Rock Island daily Argus., 1889-12-31

sWas this la Serenai What was her his
toryi Why should he avoid 50 peerless
womanl Was she his wifei Would l ever
meet hergn These self interrogationS brought
no solution that was satisfactory, although
asked over and over again At length fell
asleep mumbling them in un.ntelligible
chorus.
Twelve DAYS afterward l was. as has al
ready been written, one Of Monteyideo's one
hundred thousand.
The vast, barnlike auditorium Of Teatro
Soils blazed with beauty, gallantry, enthu-
siasm and light Italian residents, proud Of
their countryman, We'd with natives Of the
Banda Oriental and with many strangers,
then within its gates, to cheer J omaso Salviui
u the echo Never had 1 seen or heard such
tumuluuous appreciation. The mastery -por
traysl sf Shakespeare's "Othello" was re
reived with outbursts of dcsfsning applause
One Ct the greatest Of modern tragic actors
had a new triumph.
Toward the close Of the rlay there was a
momontsry commntion in one Of the boxes
A lady had tainted, the heat inside the thea
tre being extreme. As she'was assisted by
her friends 10 Il carriage | caught a glimpse
OF her features. Though the ewes were veiled
in Inconsistencies | recognized la Serena
There could be only one such face. IS Ham
iton had said, the original of the locSet pict
ure was in Montevideo, but where was hei
and whae WAS the unhappiueSS, the secres,
known alone to these twcf
On Christmas eve Of that year, very uu-
merous throng of English and Americans
were assembled at the quinta of Senor NJ,
on the PaSO del Molina. | had been in BuenoS
AyreS, but came down the river TO partici-
pate IN this holiday festivity. Our popular
host and hostess entertained distinguished
company at their elegant suburban home.
Evergreens and the rarest tropical flowers
bedecked sola and corridor. Ornaments and
emhlems, appropriate to the season which
we celebrated, were draPed with Uruguay's
stripes OF blue and white, ntertwined with
the national standards of Great Britain and
the Uuitei States Many of the guests were
neighbors and old friends of Seuor N,
made doubly welcome by him because they
had not waited for eti4t., 5.e's 81 ocal invita-
tion. There was rluSic indoors and out, and
open air dancing beneath natures spangled
canopy. From free TO tree, in the grounds
and along the broad graveled promenades
ropes were stretched laden with Chinese
lanterns.
1 FaQldlIlN
beautiful she was among charming womenl
Her escort on TINS occasion was Lieut. s.,
a Grave office, attached to an English war
vessel then at anchor il. MoutevIdeo roads
He was high spirited Britnn, vet the very
personilication Of amiability. Knowing him
well, |, of COZ rse. sought an introduction to
his lovely companion, which she most gra-
ciously received Later in the evening Sc
bic. Then, ifter supper came the desired op-
portunity for conversation. | FASTENED to
improve tie chance, for my curiosity was
now at the highest pitch So quietly said:
"Your hasband is good friend of mine,
Mrs. Hamilton"
"You k.ow my husband Impossibel" she
murmurei
"Perhsps l misunderstood Lieut. s.
Are you not Mrs. George HamiltonY"
YES
"Of Foston, MasSachusettsln
"Yet ! cannot be mistaken in your iden-
tity.n
81 n5ver lived in your country, sir, | as
sure mi An American, who has business
iutere Is in the city which you have named,
| il no sever, my husband. We are separated
- gulf that is terrible TO contemplate.
am schooling myself 10 forget him. He /.
not now in South America, nor will he ever
return to this section Of it. His name bear,
for it was honorably given to me in mar.
riage. You say that he is a friend of yours
Forgive me, sir, but that man is the friend
of 10 human being other than himself. He
isntterly, brutally selfshIn
II said, sonora, that we were acquainted
| There is sometimes distinction between that
and solid friendship. We have recently
parted company In Rio"
At this announcement she clinched he-
hands, as if in agony Her frame visibly
shook, and her passionate eagerness was s.
| great that / feared other guests might see it
But merrinent ran riot; and each couple OIL
coterie was absorbed in its own enjoyment
| Quickly recovering her composure, Mrs
I Hamilton asked:
Are you sure that your acquaintance wa.
my husbandf"
''He called You La Serena
"Only I'm derision"
"No, | cannot think it. His tone wher
speaking that name tonly heard by me ono,
from his lips was one of affection seemingly
| chOked 10y some bitter disappointment"
Then l briefly told her all that | knew OF
him whom l had so greatly liked. How. a,
n
er's deck in New York harbor; of our pleas
urable social intercourse; his last eyenins
with me; the broken appointment on th,
Neva, and my suspicious as 10 the reason FOL
his strange action; of my subsequently find
ing the locket, and how its portrait enabled
| me to recognize her at the Teatro Soils
"You say" she replied, "that George Ham
ilton must have preceded or followed you t,
MontevideoT
"Such is my opinion, senora.n
Why should he do that Not for youl
sake, surely; nor yet for his own. With m,
lso cruelty deceivedb he cannot hope to b,
reconciled. Besides he is outawed in Brazi
and the River Plate republics for heavy de
falcations."
A light broke upon me. The mystery wa
being solved, aud 10y an accidental friend o.
the family. There were two George Hamil
tons, and la Serena imagined that she hae
married the wrong one. IL had been m,
friends fathers name, | knew. He had on
day told me that about the time of his father,
death, in Massachusetts, the name had beeI
adroitly used by swindler in South Ameri
| ca, who obtained large sums Of money.
"You became George Hamilton's wife here
in Montevideo, senoraFn was now my leadin,
! question.
"No,n she said, "at Paris. Though / wa
born in Uruguay, my edncafihn wns com
| pleted abroad never knew George Ham
| ilton y, this country Jslst e ) ! we're pr,r
! pairing for our home coming herd. ebe Euro
| pean newspapers began to print <he account
Of my husbands crimes. The knoxla7ce that
| by holy bonds, / was allied - such M,
J overwhelmed me. He was = I{x1rIool =
.Ss = +. -. I S. s -. q, q & = e