Telegram-herald., 1890-05-25

81. Hzd 1ts kirss Ca-sEteE. Hers 0sE-aH--s
BrlttsE Haea kfs Dtea.

,9oeia4 ~ll1esEss---zsei
NV YoEE 4ay ~ henry ".
Gradys literary fame res-s lp0a als
uewsp4per work Ills jolrlzastle
kn2ex And racE were alike soa1erfu4-
Es instinct cf tnelluess AZ his syllIa-
rlerle intuition enabled Alm q selLs
uPon every popular -ople ~lvlng = u
rose. his picturesque, ce-oTrl- - r
gave = grace - every subject
Why donI y0u wure a novel, was :
question be Was oftsa 4ske1
Il have one On tbs ssocAs. be would
acswer laughing. Let Ias have = Lttis
bit of lsisure-a June month IA the coun-
~. thirty winter evenings by ny an
hreside and youu sec a novel thai VII
ast9nish yoa
The month q leisure seemed never 70
come q hun. The novel never got on
..rhe stocks Once be sketche1 the out
line OF it Tor me. Dickens was NJ.
Grsdys first and last love, and his en-
bryo novel was DickensesQUe IN plot and
style. with a DTo0tlsh mystery brooding
over IL % the end
The opening chapter showed a man--a
SOLITARY hOrseman travelling lonely
road through the night and storm. He
crossed = roaring river, and saw by a
fash ~ lightning a Large house, set lit
re back from the read, with wind blown
trees about il. The blinds cf the house
We're colorcd; no light issued from it, but
suddenly. az the traveller looked. there
came a wilder gust Of wind. the shutters
Of one Of the windows was blown ylo-
lently back, and the traveller had a
glimpse Of the lighted interior.
That one glimpse was full Of horror.
1. showed the chInax of q tragedy. \
man stabbed 70 death by another man;
TWO women standing near, one still and
stern, the other stretching her arms i'm
ploringly and sending forth a shrek that
sounded above the storm.
In another half minute the blind was
blown back 70 its place and al was dark
again. Before the stunned traveller could
recover himself 4 fierce fash and peal Of
thunder had startled his horse II took
q few minutes 10 quiet HIM, then the
horseman dismounted. opened the great
gate Of the yard and hurried 10 the
house. His knock on the door was an
swered almost at once by black sery-
ant who showed him into a roOm-the
very room in which he had just seen "a
bloody murder committed. He looked
around in amazement. No sign Of muir
I der or violence was here. 70 blood, no
/ body; no rage or terror in the faces that
turned upon him. He saw cozy room,
a cheerful fire. family group; a young
woman at the piano; a yOrng man stand
+ ing beside her: a beautiful young mother
I rocking her child in her arms the father
reading in his armchair close by.
AL turned and looked at the intruder
+ in polite surprise. He stammered out
his story. and was stared at suspiciously,
as if he was an escaped luaatic. 1t was
Indignantly denied that anything tragic
had taken place. He must have a brain
fever or be subject 10 horrible illusions.
He was made almost TO doubt his eyes
and to apologize for his intrusion. lie
was graciously asked TO shelter himself
from the storm; and he staid, and fell
under the spell Of one Of the beautiful
women, and but there ended this in
itial chapter Of story that, like it:
authors brilliant life, broke off abruptly
leaving its sequel to be guessed.
MARY Z. BRYAN.