The Sunday morning news. [volume] (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1886-1891, 1891-05-03


indigo here and there. She had reached
the terrace, usually the busiest spot d
the park. Not a soul was visible in any
direction. She descended the wide stsps
where the carven stone balustrades with
their ui1s Of lowers arose'on either sile
of her, and stood on the lower platform
and looked about her. Before her played
the fountain, crowned by the substaf-
tial young person with wings who doe
duty as an angel. Beyond that lay thu
lake, its boats at rest. its boatmen gona
home No one sat IN the seats under the
gay awning With every moment the
shadows grew grayer, the masses of foil
age more ind1stinct. but Maisie kept on
her way down the second flight Of steps,
across the broad, smooth space between
them and the fountain down to the edge
of the lake. On one Of the benches fac
ing it she sat down.
Il am vewy tired, she said to herself.
II wonder why am so tired | must.
west. do not want to be worn out and
ugly when Woy comes home to rnawwy
me. Dear Woy. do not blame him.
Oh, no. When woman like that
chooses she can always beguile man,
like the mewmaids. Woy is on the sea.
but there are no mewmaids that sing
upon any woclss as bad as Eugene.
Woyi Woyi Oh, my dawling Woyi
You are mine, mine only at lastl''
Then she sat down ON the margin Of
the lake and fell asleep there, and slept
for hours. The confusion of her brain
was greater when she awoke than it had
been
a kind face arose before her. Mrs.
Bunny's. She could not remember whose
it was. II know she viii be anxious,''
she said. WHO'S she? can't wemem-
Der her name. It is warm where she is,
and l am cold, very cold. Who is she?
1t can't be my mother; never had one.
Oh, am SO coldp' She arose to her feet
with vague desire to 60 home, but she
could not remember anything, not even
where she was. She began to cry and
moan, feeling about in the darkness and
running against the bushes. The thorns
pierced her flesh Her claws shall grow
lang Maisie muttered, cropping forward.
Something pressed against her feet; she
saw dark object that uttered a low
miaoul. The black cat, set free In the
great park, had made its way to the lake,
hungry once more, and discerning the
presence of a human being-the sort of
creature from whom it was accustomed
to expect food -strove to attract notice,
then receiving no attention lifted its
voice in that agonizing and incisive cry
with which its kind are won't to express
the constant starvation from which they
seem to suffer.
Poor, bewildered Maisie. wrapped in
her delirious fancies, believed that she
heard a threat of vengeance, and fled
wildly through the darkness the rul-
ing passion strong in madness as in death.
at is Eugene! She viii tear me to
piecesl Helpl helpl helpl" she screamed.
Her feet stumbled among the little
rocks and punches of grass and sunk into
soft sand; then the ground seemed to
give way beneath her feet. Without
knowing it she had walked into the
water
..Helps1 shecried. 'sHelp! helpl help!r
They heard her affair off. Lanterns
cleaned, shouts were uttered, men few
to the spot, bat long ere they reached it
the waters had closed over poor Maisie's
head for the last time, and they saw only
black cat, which sat beside the lake
shrieldng like q banshee.