Waterbury evening Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1887-1895, 1891-12-01

names you want to, but l won't stano
your abusing Ralph. believe you are
sending him away to the war to-mor-
row with more than one wound infict-
ed in his heart; and what do you mean
by being warned in timer"
Mrs. Farwen spoke with good deal
of laughing vehemence and May an
swered in the same tone:
aunt Hannah, do you mean to say
that you are ignorant of the numerous
hearts that Capt. Armstrong has hung
to his girdle, relics of his campaigns in
Washington and elsewhere? I believe
that you have aided and allotted him in
his collection, and it seems that it is no
fault of yours that mine is not hanging
there, too"
sMay, I believe that you have been
listening to some malicious gossip about
Capt Armstrong" her aunt answered,
half dropping her banteriDg tone and
looking keenly at her.
81 certainly overheard some gossip
about him a long time ago, but wheth-
er it was malicious or not am not pre-
pared to say"
Her aunt sat in an expectant attitude,
and, bending her face a little more into
81 have heard among other things that
he has been an irreclaimable firt, and
by some people his ways are considered
dark and mysterious, and it is vaguely
limited that there y a chapter in his life
not open to the sympathetic inspection
of the garrison at large, in which, of
course, lady is the principal figure"
Mrs. Farwell rose from her chair, and
s~Is ~ np. xy<NSn
was not feigned.
"Iwish could express openly the con-
tempt that I feel for few persons in
this regiment. would know to whom
to express it, too. Ralph Armstrong
is one of natures noblemen, it there
ever was one. I have known him ever
since he was boy Of eighteen, and
that is more than any other woman in
the regiment can say" She sat down
and resumed in a calmer tone: "His
father was a brute, and when Ralph
was eighteen forced his twin sister to
marry a man whom everyone knew to
be scoundrel. Ralph did all in his
power to prevent it, and left home on
the day of his sisters marriage, and
has never returned since. He went to
New York to a brother of his mother,
who died when he was little boy, and
that has been his home ever since. 1t
was through his uncle's influence that
he entered West Point. That is where
l first knew him. had known his
uncle, Senator Weston, for several
years. He is ex-senator Weston now.
l took an interest in him first
on his uncle's account. but as soon as ]
knew him on his own. He has been a
son that any father might be proud of.
You know something of what his army
| record has been and how noblY he
earned his promotion In '76. What
you do not know is how despicably
| Jealous some people can be, especially
some of the women Of this regiment.
| During the trouble of '76, and while
| he was away in Montana, his sisters
marriage terminated in tragedy. Her
husband, true to everyone's expecta'
tions, broke her heart. It seems she
had spells of temporary insanity, and II
one of them it is supposed that she sci
fire to their room. They were both
suffocated. She was Ralph's only sis
ter, and they had been inseparable .un'
til her marriage. He did not know the
extent of her husbands outrages until
after her death, and that tragedy ha;
darlzened his own life. He spent the
next two winters in Washington, and
was persuaded by his cousin Edith K
go good deal into society. suppose
he could have made brilliant match i
he had chosen. 1 know several society
bellies that made themselves conspicu
Gus by their attentions to him. He wal
melancholy enough at that time tx
awaken the interest Of the romantic
ally-inclined young ladies, but he hac
no heart to offer any of them, and
much less to firt with them. So, m!
dear, the history of his dark and mys
terious ways is all before you, and wha
do you think of it?'
Given time to collect their thoughts
most young ladies are adopts in the ar
of concealing them, and May almos
unconsciously had been giving her fea
lures long training in the art Of ex
preston. She had listened to her aun
with the keenest interest and variet.
of emotions, but as the freight shon