Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1889-10-24
LOVE Or MONEY;
OR,
. A PERILOUS SECRET.
By CHARLES READE,
Author OF PUT Yourself In His Place."
etc., ETC., etc.

Mary said, in a hopeless sort of way,
L don't know when, but long before
your time"
Before my time, Mary? What, are
you older than me?" And he smiled
sWeetly on her.
"One would think not. But let me
ask you a question, Mr.. Hope?"
Eyes, Mary"
"Haye you lived tac0 Eues?"
Said Hope, solemnly, Il have lived
through great changes, but only one
life"
well, then" said Mary, 'I have lived
two; or more Likely it was one life, only
some of it in another WOrld-my other
world, / mean"
Hope left off binding her wrist, and
said, i don't understand you" But
his heart began to pant.
The words that passed between them
were now so strange that both their
voices sank into SOlemnity, and had an
acute observer listened to them he
would have noticed that these two mel
low voices had similar beauties, and
were pitched exactly in the same key,
though there was, of course, an octave
between them.
Understand me? How should you?
1t is all SO strange, so mysterious: [
have never told a soul; but will tell
you. You won't laugh at me?"
Laugh at you? Only fools laugh at
what they don't understand. Why Mary,
| hang. on every word you say with
breathless interest"
Dear Mr.. Hopel Well, then, / will
tell you. Sometimes in the silent night,
when the present does not glare at one,
the past comes back to me dimly, and [
seem to have lived two lives; one long,
one short,-tOO short. My long life in
comfortable house, with servants and
carriages and all that. My short life in
different places; uncomfortable places,
but large places; all was free and open,
and there was always a kind voice in
my ear-like yours; and tender touch
like yours"
Hope was restraining himself with
difficulty, and here he could not help
uttering faint exclamation.
To cover it he took her wrist again,
and bending his head over it, he said,
almost in a whisper, and the face?"
Mary's eyes turned inward, and she
seemed to scan the past.
"The face?" said she-"the face / cam
not recall. But one thing [ do remem-
Der clearly. This is not the first time
my WriSt-yeS- it was my right
wrist TOBIAS been bound up sotender-
ly. He did it for me in thatcher world,
just as you do in this one"
Hope now thrilled all over at this
most revelation. But Though
he glowed with delight and curiosity,
he put on a calm voice and manner, and
ucsguu Ilvl W ocil MIN everything else
she could remember that happened in
that other life.
Finding him so serious, so Sympa-
thetic, and so interested, put this re-
markable girl on her mettle. She began
to think very hard, and show that in
tense power of attention she had always
in reserve for great occasions.
"Then you must not touch me nor
speak to me-" said she. "The past is
such mist"
lie obeyed, and left off binding her
wrist; and now he literally hung upon
her words.
Then she took one step away from
him: her bright eyes yelled themselves,
and seemed to see nothing external, but
looked into the receSSeS of the brain.
Her forehead, her hand, her very body
thought, and we must try, though it is
almost hopeless, to convey some faint
idea of her manner and her words.
"Let-me-See."
Then she paused.
Il White scans"
A pause.
Were they sWans?"
"Or ships"
"They tloated down the river to the
sea-"
She paused.
And the kind voice beside me said;
"Darlingl' Papa never calls me 'dar-
ling"
Eyes, yes" whispered Hope, almost
painting.
stIlorI;pcr ,xva ,,,,,c+ oro Will, +bay,o 70
some other land, for we arepoor'"
She paused and thought hard. Poor
we must have been; very poor. [ can
see that now that am rich" She paused
and thought hard. But all was peace
and love. There were two of US, yet
we seemed one"
Then in moment Mary left the past,
her eyes resigned the film of thought,
and shone with the lustre of her great
heart, and she burst at once into that
simple eloQuence which no nearer OF
hers from John Baker to William Hope
ever resisted. "Ah! sweet memories,
treasures of the past, why are you so
dim and wavering, and this hard world
SO clear and glaring 1t seems cut out OF
stone? Oh, if | had fairy's wand, I'd
say, Vanish fine house and servants
vanish wealth and luxury and strife;
and you come back to me, sweet hours
of peace-and poverty-and love-"
Her arms were stretched out with a
grace and ardor that could embellish
even eloquence, when choking sob
struck her ear. She turned her head
swiftly, and there was William Hope,
his hands working, his face convulsed,
and the tears running down his cheeks
like the very rain.
1t was no wonder. Think of It'll The
child he adored, yet had parted with tC
save her from dire poverty, remember
ed that sad condition to ask for it back
again, because of his love that made il
sweet to her after all these years OF
comfort And of late he had been jeal
Gus, and saw, or thought, he had nc
great place in her heart, and never
should have.
All. it is a rarity to shed tears of joy
The thing is famiharly spoken of, but
the truth is that many pass through this
world of tears and never shed one such
tear. The feWwho have shed them car
congratulate William Hope for this
blisSful moment after all he had done
and suffered.
But the sweet girl who so surprised
that manly heart, and drew those heay.
enly tears. had not the key. She was
shocked surprised, distressed. She
burst out crying directly from blind Wo-
manly sympathy: and then she took her.
self to task. "Oh, Mr.. HopeI what have
| done? ALL / have touched some chord
of memory. Wicked, selfish girl, to dis
tress you with my dreams"
Distress mel" cried Hope. These
tears you have drawn from me are
pearls of memory and drops of balm tC
nv sore. tired heart. /. too. have liveC
Il hoo