The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1886-08-18

| nome hau tOucneu MS lips.
And now the sad wife began herself
to refuse to taste the lovely poison SO
surely changing her beloved Frank,
and making him now wildly gay. now
low-spirited and dull.
Another night came when guests
again assembled in the luxurious little
parlors. And when, in the course of
the evening, Frank (who had been
drinking heavily with some frien Is at
his club) called for the wine. Ruth. his
wife, replied in low tones: "No, Frank,
let us have no wine tonight. have
delicious coffee, fruits and ice; truly
the wine is not needed"
| 'Little goose" he replied, laughing
| loudly; "who ever heard of q fellows
sending his friends away with no wine,"
whereupon he hl.nself ordered it.
| There were no witty speeches on tho
little wife's tongue that night, and all
the merriment was gone from her face.
She dared not count the glasses Frank
drank, though all tho while he grew
more and more gay in his retorts, more
brilliant and entertaining. When her
guests had left, poor Ruth, SICK at heart,
looked at her husband and thought
how unlike the Frank of old he seemed.
whats the matter with you?" he
asked. gruffiy.
"Oh, Frank! Frank! you are running
your own life! Why will you drink
like thisp'
Anybody's business but minep' he
asked. ''What's the reason I can't
have friendly glass when l want itp
I can stop when please"
"Then wish you had stopped six
months ago."
Ruth, be silent, you annoy me-"
annoy you," she replied, starting
wearily up the stairs. *.Annoy you'll
And you. you are breaking my heart.
There seems demon in your sdll. At
| times hardly know you. lolk into
our future and see only misery for us
both if you keep this up. You are kill
ing your better nature; you are making
brute of yourself"
Frank, who had staggered up to the
stair-landing, felt ell the unreasonirg
| anger of a drunken man. "A brute,
am 1? A brute! And it's my fine
young lady wife who says this. A
brute!" he screamed, his eyes cleaning
wildly, and taking a quick step for.
ward he pushed her angrily against
the stair-railing. Startled, she sprang
backward, missed her footing, and fell
down the long flight of stairs, striking
the lower landing heavily, where she
lay motionless and white.
Frank looked down at her and
laughed like a maniac. "See what
brute can do!' he shouted. Cant
you call me pet names again?'
But by that time, the servants, hear.
ing the noise, had rushed to the spot.
and. seeing poor Ruth lying white and
cold, screamed: dead! She's dead!'
The sharp cry seemed to pierce
Franks clouded brain, and to leave
that dreadful word stamped there.
dead! Dead! Dead!" he moaned, in
half dazed way, rubbing his hot head,
and then. sooner than can be told,
was kneeling at his wife's side. 'Brine
water'' he called. "Oh, she can't be
dead. Help me, help me! Call ply.
sician. o, Ruth, my darling, open
your eyes. Look at me for one mo.
ment. God. what have donep"
He sobbed like child, rubbed her
white hands and dashed cold water in
her pallid face, while the sympathetic
servants. crying silently, did what they
could to restore her to consciousness.
Before the doctor arrived she had
opened her eyes in dazed way, but
without seeming to know any one.
All that night there was alarm and
confusion in the house. The grave old
physician pronounced it simply q Sc.
we're nervous shock, not apt to prove
fatal, but from which it would take
time to rally, and was glad to discover
that no more serious injuries had re.
suited from her terrible fall.
Frank did not leave her bedside
Through all her rawlings, before con.
seriousness returned, he was her devoted |
and patient nurse. though his heart |
ached with remorse as he heard her re.
peatedly going over the story of his |
shame and her own sorrow.
On the first morning that the invalid |
could be carried downstairs, there |
was queer sort of ceremony gone
through with in the dining-room.
Frank with manly tears confessed his |
sins before his little wife-confessor.
told her that he meant never, so long |
as he lived, to touch another drop Of |
liquor or to keep 1t in his home. And |
when tears and kisses had been lavish. |
ly expended, twelve little wine-gla sses |
and two pretty decanters were brought |
forth and smashed into atoms, amid |
crying and laughing, and a funeral |
speech from Frank.
And late that night if you'd been
near an old dump-pile, way out on
the common, you might have heard
those atoms of glass congratulating
themselves on the change, for, as one
little ragged-edged piece remarked:
'Td rather be out here associating
with old cans and stew-pans, doing 40
mischief. than to be pretty and clean,
sitting in state on the side-board, and
breaking hearts, wrecking lives and
dealing out poison to men," And all
the happy little smashed bits said
"Amen," and that ended the wine-set.
-MauQe Rittenhouse. in Union SiounL