The Republican., 1888-12-01

"a by his arm.
@Where shall we go?" he asked softly, in
70 response to her words.
10 \ sAnywhere, anywhere-it does not matter
,e Ao me-" she answered, in a tone of dull,
m hopeless despair.
[ sShall take you home2" the Count in
a cuired, laying gentle stress on the last
n l,word.
i The familiar phrase seemed to sting her
into sudden, keen, bitter remembrance. 1t
), vas a horrible mockery of her misery. Per-
:, hps he had guessed that the words might
. have some such effect-had hoped so.
!. For a few instants Clarice, overcome by
h he rush of returning memory could not
| mswer to his question. 1t was no longer
IS Ter home since love had fled-merely a
v. luxurious dwelling where she was housed
az ad fed by an unloving husband who had
in luomised to shield and honor her. And
"a Ills was the manner in which he had full
ut fled his VOW Wearily, hopelessly, she
1e lted her eyes to the Counts and gasped
ID at tho words:
''Anywhere but there-anywhere else; all
m der places are the same"
ID My poor childr' was the only answer be
k, nde, as he found a carriage and helped the
IN anost fainting Clarice into it, But he
" kOW LO lleN 6bb]AASNt bLhS SutAAAAAN W NA9
W Pes.
. was twelve years later. when woman
S,quite alone in her room, in one of the
Eest European hospitals. She was one
sale trained nurses, RAPID had been in her
f4gl rtglesS sSynt position for almost three years.
q She had had hard day, and was very
utired now; yet, though it was past midnight,
4 a. could not sleep. Ghosts of her past life
sAemed haunting her with more than their
ufual persistency Dead joys, dead sorrows,
dead sins arose up and confronted her,
whichever way she sought to turn, to night.
She arose and stood before the mirror, ar
Ranging her hair for the night.
| 81 am only thirty y-eight, and yet my hair
is almost snow-white, she mused, as she
laid aside her professional cap and brushed
out the still aSundant locks. "And my face
how haggard and old it looks tonight.
| All, well, it does not matter! there is no one
to care-no ons to care" She dropped down
in a chair and hid her face in her hands,
and the tears fell through them in bitter,
scalding drops She was thinking of
bright beautiful girlhood, brilliant mar
riage, a happy wifehood of few brief
years, then of neglect, estrangement, doubt,
treachery despair, temptation, flight.
sit was a great mistake, great mistake"
she moaned; though the devotion promised
me was given-though, while Count Dubois
lived, he was my slave and his idol-it was
a terrible mistake. Sin and happiness can
not walk hand in haud-it is one of Gods
sternest laws that they shall not be united.
Far better had borne my bitter lot in 81
lence, and suffered my humiliation alone
with an unsullied soul. There could have
been no lot pOre wretched than mine has
been during all these terrible years. Love,
devotion, wealth, excitement. travel, as
sumed honors, what were they all to one
whose heart was tortured with u remem-
brance of a lost Paradise, a ruined
name, IA wrecked life9 o, it would have
been better, far better, to have suffered and
made no sgn. And Whereof, where to-
night is he who brought all this ruin to a
life that was once happy and good: Is he
ahve-an6 does he feel no remorse:"
QuiCSrap sounded on the door.
: The muse started from her bitter reverie
, andAastily brushed away the tears as she
= opaed the door,
= ene of the physicians stood before her
i ''ls@>" ION my disturbing you at this late
= hour, )" he said, but there has been an acci.
+ dent in the street; a man has been thrown
= out of a carriage and badly injured, and we
need steady hand aud calm nerve to assist
> us. We "an trust no one so well as you.
: Come al cnce to the operating room"
4 The nurse hastily coilcd her hair, and, re-
placing her cap, followed the physician to
the room indicated.
: The injured man lay stretched upon the
table, barred to the waist, one crushed and
. mangled arm hanging, mass of unsightly
flesh and broken projecting bones, at his
, side. But he was perfectly conscious.
: When the nurse approached the table she
gave low moan, and would have fallen had
not one Of the physicians reached out pro-
tecting arm.
"You are overdone, overtaxed," he said.
, IneVer knew you to be so affected at u
sight of this kind. You must return to
your room"
"No, no." she answered, 81 am better
now 1t is nothing-only the patient is
known to me. But hush-he may not rec
! ognize met is betterif he does not.
But already the patients fevershly bril-
liant eyes were fixed upon the face of the
> nurse with searching gaze. Then he spoke,
starting to an upright position.
, My Godr' he cried, ''it is Clarice-Clar-
r ice here-and with that hair" Then he fell
back again
3 The nurse was kneeling at his side.
g You must be quiet; you must not be
agitated," she said, calmly "There is a
dangerous operation to perform, and you
mustnot be excited"
Q There need be no operation" he said, in a
labored voice. THE crushed arm does not
matter-the trouble lies here in my chest.
There is some internal injury. 1 shall not
live many hours. 1t does not matter now.
came to Europe to seek you, Clarice; |
: could not live longer-I could not de-uutil
f lhad seen you and told you that it was all
v aterrible mistake. l wronged you'll was
i unSind; but was never as you thought"
4 E- ceased suddenly and put his hand
@ dpon his chest. He gave one long sigh and
f and then he breathed no more.
.'Ths man was friend of yours?" the
t physician asked, turning to the nurse.
''Some one you had known"
"He was my husband" she answered.
a They went out quietly, and left her alone
a with her dead-alone with the irrevocable
a past, the pitiless present, the hopeless fu-
4 ture.
, There her husband lay, deaf to entrcaty,
: insistence or outcry. She had spoken no
, word of forgiveness, had received none
: death had come too quickly for this comfort
, | to be possible. She must live the rest of
her days with regret and remorse as her
, constant companions If she could only
. -. l.,o,yp tho Dpaca Of DardOn from him