The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1886-04-02
Kenneth read it over Grace's shoul

Kenneth read it over Grace's shoul
der.
"Your name is I4ilith," he said to
Mrs. Vernay.
"Who told you that?" she asked,
and he replied:
II know it," without Offering any
explanation.
"Ii'ith! horrid" murmured Grace,
us, with Frank, Mrs. Vernay moved
toward the piano.
~ think it pretty; why horrid?"
Marie asked.
"Do you know about Lilith?" her
friend replied. "She was Adams first
wife, and for transgression was turn
ed out OF Paradise. She is the enemy
OF all little children, and when Jewish
babies are born the nurses write
'Lilith, avaunt' against the wall, lest
she should come and kill the child.
And tradition says that she still
haunts the world as Il beautiful wom-
an, who entices men to marry her,
and then strangles them in her golden
hair"
"a tradition" said /, "something
like the legends of the Greek L.,mia. {"
GLOW do you know that there is
not truth in traditions and folly in
rejecting them?" Kenneth asked.
Meanwhile Mrs. Vernay was singing
song after song, and with every note
stealing away bit OF Franks heart.
And her music won Kenneth to her
side, for he took his brothor's place
ut the piano, and stood there turning
over her pages-I believe in all the
wrong places, for he looked more in
her face than at the music.
Iconfcss that i'll those days l was
vexed with Kenneth, for he seemed to
have taken IL sudden and inexplicable
plunge into the society which Il few
months previously he had abjured for
ever. There seemed only one explana-
t,on-his ideal life had proved dull
and irksome. Everywhere met him,
chiefly with Mrs. Vernay; often Frank
was with them, u woe-begone, unde-
sired third party. And the girls de-
clared That it was q shame Kenneth,
who rallied against marriage, should
come and steal her away from his
brother.
A few women there were who dis
liked Mrs. Vernay. My wife was one
of them, and well enough we all knew
the reason. For when, with maternal
pride, she one day showed off the chill
dren to the pretty widow, Mrs. Vernay
turned from them with IL cold look Of
disgust. saying" ] detcst children"
An insult no mother could forgive.
"That unnatural woman" my wife
from henceforth called her.
How lovely she looked at the Christ
mas ball when, radiant with delight,
she crossed the room to say to me,
"Look at the progress o. my CONVEX
sion. Here is Hermit Kenneth in this
frivolous scene"
~ wish l was at the chapel" Ken
meth himself remarked; and certainly
no man looked SO unsuited to u ball
room. He had grown pale and thin
during his solitary life, and wore a
thoughtful air never before had no.
ticed in him.
"Why on earth don't you go back"
said ]. Nothing has surprised me
more than your appearance here"
~ knew it would be so, he an
swered. ~ had to come"
Then in that tincongruous place he be-
gan telling me his experience in that
wild solitude.
/ began to think my life there Use
less, Il mere indul gcnce OF my own tastes.
] read and thought but the mysteries
of lite seemed as unfathonable as ev-
er. One evening felt myself no long
er alone. | saw nothing, heard Moth
ing, yet absorbed this command into
my being: GO into the world, for
there is II life you must save, u demon
you must vanquish, and the life you
have led has given you power to fight
and conquer. The world will mock,
and your friends misunderstood you,
but heed them. not. By this token
know both destroyer and destroyed
Then across the floor OF my room
glided % glittering snake, unlike any
thing We see upon English moors. And
], obeying the command, came here to
find the destroyer"
At that moment he trembled, touch
ed my arm, and bade ME look across
the room. There stood Frank and
Mrs. Nernay-she with the jewelled
snake twisted i'll her hair, he with AN
other, Il bracelet of hers. clasprd
around his wrists; some Joke had
passed between them, and she had
Slipped it on.
"My dear Kenneth, these are fam
cies, nothing but fancics," said, for
his manner alarmed me. "You can't
think that anything more dangerous
than IL boyish love affair can result
from Franks friendship with Mrs.
Eernay."
"I.ilith!" was all he said.
'I'ell me, how did you guess her
name"
ait came to mo as that command
came, when saw her write" he re-
piled. Then crossing the room, he
asked the beauty to dance, taking her
away from Frank.
believe bets passed between the
men at the Torremouth Clubs as to
which of the brothers would marry
beautiful Mrs. Vernay. l confess 1
wondered myself whether Kenneth
would relinquish his noble schemes and
marry like any other ordinary mortal.
| rarely saw him without Mrs. Vcr-
nay. He rode with her, drove with
her, spent long hours in her pretty
drawing room, and walked with her on
the esplanadc. asked him what was
coming from all this, and had for reply,
elf / don't marry her, Frank will''-
an answer which at that time struck
me as strange.
And one day Frank came to my wife
to pour into her sympathetic ears wild,
fierce rawlings against his brother.
Why had Kenneth talked all that non
sense about celibacy and scclusion
when he came and took away the only
woman Frank ever would, ever could,
love-
And thus We heard of Kenneth's ell
gagemcnt to the beautiful MIS-. Ner-
nay.
All the men in the place envied him,
but never in my life have l seen SO
grave and gloomy IL lover. Yet, like
all the other men who met her, he
seemed to adore her. I never heard
any one question his devotion. Per-
haps their eyes were blinded. l know
,yo nlI pitin FRANK And tho tin,a