The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1888-08-17

those ps and as any where ] UiH find
out who is the writerr' And she slipped
the letter in question into the pocket of
her artistic morning-gown; and then,
as she caught the sound of her hus-
band $ footsteps crossing the hall, she
turned nonchalantly towards the win
dow and bent over a jardiniere of white
and pink primulas that were putting
forth their delicate blossoms to enjoy
the morning sunshine.
Mr.. Ronayne sauntered into the
room and went at once to look at his
letters. A slight shade of disappoint-
ment crossed his face as he shuffled
Nem about like a pack of cards, and
i uttered an impatient exclamation
"What is the matter, dearp" said his
wife, sweetly. HAS any thing gone
wrongp''
:" "A letter which / expected hasn't
come, that's ALL replied Mr.. Ronayne,
in a tone of vexation.
Perhaps it will come by the next
post. Was it very important letter
"a business letter." inquired Mrs.
Ronayne, looking her husband full in
the face.
"Well, yes-it would be rather an
important letter-at least it might be. !"
81 wonder how much of that is
true?" thought his wife. Aloud she
said: :" am SO sorry, Dolph. But eat
your breakfast; here are some of the
rognoms sautes you like SO much.''
But that morning Mr.. Ronayne had
no appetite; he trifed for few min
utes with his knife and fork, then
gulped down his coffee, opened and
read some of his letters, none of
which seemed to give him any satisfac-
ton, glanced hastily at the Times, and
finally went off to the city without be-
slowing upon his wife a single caress,
or uttering one of those endearing ep-
ithets the constant and public use of
which had won for the Ronaynes the
reputation of being .such happy
pair"
When her Adolphus had taken his
departure, Mrs. Ronayne ran up to her
boudoir, locked the door and took the
purloined letter out of her pocket.
" It's a woman S handwriting know
it is," she said to herself as she held it
between her trembling fingers. ''Now,
| should like to know what business
my husband has to receive letters from
any woman but his wife, She turned
the offending missive over and looked
at the back. 1t was not sealed, only
secured in the ordinary manner.
Nothing could be easier than to open
it in such way that none could sus-
pect that it had been tempered with.
Running downstairs, she re-entered
the breakfast-room and held the letter
to the steam of the kettle, which still
stood on the brass trivet beside the
fire. In five minutes the envelope had
been forced to yield its secret, and
Mrs. Ronayne was free to indulge her
curiosity. With a quickly beating
heart she unfolded the single sheet of
note-paper the envelope contained, ran
her eyes over it, then read word by
word what follows:
% can not you realize 10 road run ground
mile quarter scarlet runner police and shares 5
in the ambush fine tttt condition so will come
enforced sound mine 10 break from my heart to
years ago thoroughly prepared so doubtless
unayailing fall 20 makes me indeed scattered
49,.
have spent seven in all ivory remember please
impending.
That was all. There was neither
date nor signature to the letter. Mrs.
Ronayne read it over at least a dozen
times, and her delicately penciled
brows drew together in a puzzed frown.
What on earth did it all meanP Was
the letter a foolish hoax? Was it
written by some inmate of Bedlam or
Colney Hatchp Or, stay. Yes; this
surely explained the mystery. The
letter was in cipher, cryptogram of
the Donnelly -Bacon-Shakespeare order.
"pll find it outn' painted Mrs. Ro-
nayne, fiercely-"Tll find it out-and
then tax Adolphus with-with-
AS she had not vet settled in her
own mind the precise nature of the
crime of which her Adolphus had been
guilty, Mrs. Ronayne could not COM
plete her sentence. All sorts of con-
lectures were floating in her excited
brain. Perhaps it was on this account
that although she spent the whole
morning in puzzling over the pur-
Joined letter, the only thing she got
out of it was racking headache,
which not even her fayorite remedy, sal
volatile, could cure.
When Mr.. Ronayne came back from
the city about five o'clock, he found his
wife reclining gracefully on the sofa
in her boudoir, looking pale and heavy
eyed.
What's the matter, Julia?'' he
asked, kindly. "You seem seedy."
tive horrid headache she an
swered, GROSSLY. "You don't look par
ticularly bright either" she added,
glancing at Mr.. Ronayne's puckered
forehead and haggard eyes.
Oh, I've been rather bothered to-
day about business. Nothing of much
consequence.
"Oh-is that all?n answered Mrs. Ro-
nayne, with one of her quick suspicious
chances. She had passed the afternoon
shut up there in her room alone, and
had worked herself into a perfect fever
of doubt and surmise, and finally of
jealousy, for jealousy was charming
Mrs. Ronayne's besetting weakness.
1t is no doubt very fiattering to man S
vanity that his wife should think so
highly of his personal attractions that
she is in constant dread lest some other
woman should fall a victim to them.
But, on the other hand, it is dreadful
nuisance when one can't address half
a-dozen words to pretty girl, or re-
mark that Mrs. So-and-So is q very
agreeable woman, without enduring a
subsequent pei,e forte ct d,we of re-
proaches and sneers-and tears.
Mrs ROnayne pora1 nerSevor;u o1 "