The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1889-07-26

ed her name or spoke of her after that.
The same evening Mark, with an eff
fort fol which i admireN him. returned
to tie drawing room and spoke of his
Wife. His visit TO Westwood, no said,
had been a pleasant one, but he was
afraid the air did not suit Lady Severne. |
She had not been well since her arrival,
and he thought it would be better for
them to go.
I believe every heart in the room
ached for him: he looked SO anxious
of regret from the visitors. a kindly
expressed hope that Lady Sevarne
would soon recover. Not one word Of
suspicion was breathed; but. there was
a strange quiet. No ohio talked much;
Ne had no music. no singing. One or
two spoke of leaving Wcstwood, and
there Was over all IN indelinable shad-
oW and gloom. Later on Mark. address,
ing me almost for the first time, said,
Nellie, See--tltere, are several people
ont OH the terrace enjoying The moon-
light. / want to BAY goodbye to you.
| shall, never see you again. Will you
cofne?n
went. My heart was filed with an
guish and despair. d horrible restless
pain. He was going away-Mark. who
had been my loyer-in distress and sor-
row. and we We're never to meet again,
We stood together, as we had so
many times before in the bright moon
light, and Mark raised his haggard face
to mine. Il,
"Y0n know my secret now, Nellie,n
he said.
"iieayen help you, MaIk!n I answer
ed, With tears.
"Yo1 have been very good to my UNI
happy wife; you have been your own
~self-generous, noble, forgivjng. I be-
lieve, Nellie, that Il uil.y one could do
her good, il Would be you. She loves
yoei she seems to have a certain faith
n YOU He looked at me wistfully.
Il dare not ask you--you would not, Of
course-you could not in any way take
charge of her travel with us? All, no
i am mad to think of such a thing"
ct TO refuse him was the hardest
thing | had ever had to do in my life.
No, | could not do that. The wide
world must lie between lis, Mark, for
evermore. will think of you, pray for
you. hut sec You again--neVe,s,n
You are right, Nellie, aud I have no
reason to complain. Ii is all my own
fault. have raid q bitter price for my
foliy-only Heaven knows hnw b.ees>.r.
man could never tell. deserve to suf-
feri"
What sham. you do?" [ asked, looking
VIII rowing, longing eyes at the dark,
handsome face, SO humble and SO sad.
~ shall do my best, Nellie, After to-
night, have done with the world. ]
again, ! have finished with society. !
cannot bear the disgrace; but I shall do
my best for my liapless wife. / broke
one vow, | will not break another. 1t
was for better or for worse and it is
for the worst. | shall take her away
from England, find some place where
there are few Temptations, and take the
greatest care of her. There is no hope,
l fear, but will do. my best until the
very end. l fastened the yoke round
my own neck, | must bear it with pa.
tience and courage. / say goodbye tc
all that is bright in life tonight, Mel,
lie. l would rather die a Thousand
deaths than risk such a scene again. ]
am going from lightto darkness. There
Is II thing only that a make me less
sad and less sorrowful.
"NNhat is 1t, Mark" / asked, Will
fast-falling tears.
lit is this, Nellie-that before / &c
you will say you forgive me. The bur.
Den of my life is heavy one, and the
heaviest part of it is the sorrow that
my mad folly has brought upon you
Say you forgive me. Let me take into
my dreary exile that knowledge, and il
will be to me a CLEAN of happiness, thu
only II that can reach me after my
cowardice, my weakness, my folly, my
betrayal of your faith and trust. Oh
lost love of my youth, oh, true love
of my heart, forgive me, forgive mel"
lie was kneeling at my feet. Was i
wrong, when | saw his white face 81
full OF anguish, his eyes so full of pair
was it wrong to bend over him, to pu'
my face for minute nearh his, to kis!
him with my whole soul upon my lips
while l said-''T forgive you, oh, dear
est love! Good-byc!o
The last sound | remember was TIL,
terrible, passionate sobbing of a stron!
man, and then came TO me 4 mercifu
oblivion.
They left Westwood early the mex
morning. How the removal was man
aged | never heard, and [ was too sicl
, at heart to inquire.
1spent the next two years with Lad,
Yorke, rs happy as | could ever be ii
this world. helping her i'll all her goo,
: deeds and works of charity, thinking al
I ways, With 4 sorely aching heart, 0
Mark.
We heard nothing of him. lie neye
wrote. He had kept his word; he hat
cut himself adrift from every social ii
| and from the world.
: ] asked Lady Yorke if she had re
ceived any letter from him. The an
swer was always No. but we Otter
spoke, when we We're quite alone, o
the beautiful, haplcss woman who wa
worse than dead.
One morning Lord Yorke looked III
, from his newspaper.
| "Louise,n he said. "have YOU see,
this: AT Nice, on The 18th inst, afte
| q long and lingering illness, Lnrline
Lady Severne, aged twenty-seven.'"
+ How young to die" said Lad,
| 9orlle.
: And | wondered if the long and lin
gering illness had been sent to help t
purify that poor sinful soul. in which
after all. there had been yearning TO
good. Had she gone
Where the houscless shall seek q shelter,
The lonely shall find a friend
That hath loved and trusted to tho end?
!, Inever in all the after years aske,
. how she died. The only thing told t.
F: me was, "She died in peace!' and
know how great is the mercy of Heay
: en-, how perfect the pardon for sin.
i Mark came back to me, not then. bu
) two years afterwards, and asked IN
/ again to be his wife.
) II know, Nellie" he said, shat som
: women of a nature lower than your
r would punish me now, would take thei
revenge, would send me away heart
i. broken and w%retched, would rive m
; back pain for pain, would delight il
hcaping scorn and contempt on me
You might do so, Nellie; l am at you
. mercy. If you send me away, l canno
, complain; but, as there is mercy il
Heaven, there should be mercy on earth
/. Love, my love, take me; help me to b
a better man: help me to be noble an.
: strong! My life is in your hands, Mel
lie: will you say me nay?'
g How could l. when l had loved him
: and him only, all my life? How coul
/, when every glance, every word of hi
was dear to me-: How could L, whe,
my heart, my love were his, as they ha
: always been? | did not say him nay
, Mark knows best what I said.
i | am Lady Severne now, with fai
. children growing round me, and / low
my husband just as much as Ibid whe,
4 VIC met and parted under the lilac
+ trees. l Hove him so well and so dearl
thatI pray | may die looking on hi
/. face.