The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1886-01-13

carried out which she felt would BE- 7
sadly interfered with BY the necessary
arrangements for wedding Now
she had this additional motive. 4, "a |
Every well, came the answer, calm
and steady, No trembling in the quiet
tones to betray the hearts tlnutterable
anguish as it whispered to oitSelt:
How glad she y 70 be free even tori a,
As for Dora, her heart Was saying:
{" He does not care" f9iiW
And then they talked Of Indifferent
matters, these two foolish ones, and the |
precious hours in which they might
have UNDERSTOOD each other slipped
away and were gone forever.
Once more apart. their letters We're
exchanged at regular intervals
kind and flowing. "Of couise," said
Dora, ''it is his duty,"' while Dora's
were curious study had her lover but
known. Each one q little cooler, q !
a little bricfcr than the last. until by
the time spring had DRESSED tho fields
and woods in green again poor Fred
had wcll-nigh made up his mind that \
Florence was right. Dora's heart was
all in her painting; She had grown
quite weary ofhim. n a1iiA
,''Tbis suspense Is killing me, " he
would say; .,'bnt III wait-it is, better
it will soon be over -, 3"
And Dora. working herself to a
shadow over her painting, would think:
'sThe end can not be far of. He, will
soon be free. 4. 9... $50,
Early in the summer Fred found HIM
self again in the old familiar; haunts,
but, alas! the old joyous light was want
ing everywhere A shade, mist,
seemed hanging over everything. and
Dora was farther away than ever.
There were no merry guests to divide
her attention; but, so absorbed, so
silent. did, she seem, he could hardly
believe il was the same Dora he had
known in other days. 'H e1oi23lo
A week passed bya-a week Of mingled
paradise and torment Sometimes he
would be on the point of saying to her:
Dora, I will stand in your way no
longer" ;but faint hope still fingered,
and he could not crush it so ruthlessly.
At other times he could almost believe
himself mistakcn-al these months q
fearful drear-when her eyes met his
SO earnestly and seemed filled for a
moment with the old, warm light.
They sat together one day upon a
little rustic. seat, chatting and resting
after walk. Fred had taken some
letters from his pocket which he wished
to show to Dora, A picture fell from
among them. Dora stopped to recover
it. ''Cousin Florry," she murmured,
and Fred began making some common
place remark upon its correctness.
Then, glancing at his companions
face, he was startled at its deadly
pallor. 'Dora!' he cried, 'you are i'll.
We walked to far You must rest. ~ -
"No, I'm not ILL.," she said, almost
sharply. "How lovely Florence is Il
Eyes, indeed. She is well-nigh per-
feet. But there is only one Dora in all
the world taking her little, cold hand
in his. "Without Dora the world 10
meaningless to me-" niy olats IT.,
| Dora's eyes were scanning the dist
ant hills. She made no, reply. She
was steeling her heart against him.
"He wants to be true she thought,
"but will have no such love-"
'Dora, you are not happy" 3 = '-
"She started. mot perfectly so.
What mortal is?" .3nl. -ayi
ut seems to me Iwould be if only
things could be as they once were
between u.s.. t9H' ~ t
| This was the first allusion he had
made to the fact that he had noticed
any change in their relations.
| Dora realized that a crisis was com.
ing. She simply awaited it in silence.
She would neither strive to avert mol
to hasten it. Qii ~EuNUfQ
81 have sometimes feared that you
aid l have been mistaken. That is the
right word, think. If so, l love you
too well to ask you to keep a promise
which has become hateful to you"
Dora rose from her seat; sudden
T fire famed in her pale cheek. She
held her hand out toward him-tht
dear little hand that wore his ring
, Something in her air bewildered him
He stood a moment motionless, ther
seized the hand in both of his own
She shook him off impatiently and drew
the ring from her finger. Now he I'm
, derstoOd. 10. ~
"With0ut a word, DOra?'' he said
/ struggling for self-command as maj
| might battle for life against the wave
, of u sea. +A-i
Il "What is there to say?" asked Dora
her voice clear as a silver bell, Will
her eyes shone like two stars. AM
! again he told himself that lie: 'She !
glad" " sigl e.
And so they parted The tie forme
. almost in childhood was broken, an
! they went their separate ways.
: Day after day Dora's pale, resolut
= face bent over her canvas. and sh
; steadied her trembling hand for create
3 achievements. She worked too hard
they said. She was too ambitious: sh
n put too much Of her life-blood into I'll
! strokes Of her brush, and few month
!. ended the struggle.
! He came again to the dear old hous
q beside the river; q crowd of friends Ina
= gathered there, but Dora gave them n
q welcome. Pale and silent she lay an
n stirred not finger nor an oyelash fC
I any of their tears. He stood there wit
\ Florence, and that still form betwec
them; its smiling lips were no MOI
!, silent now than they had been in lif
:, A dumb patience was marked on ii
! sweet face. but they never guessed j
y meaning. ts.s.. EOS
% If she might only have lived!
sobbed Florence.
Z Fred spoke not. but the bitter cry