Waterbury evening Democrat., 1891-04-30

her with ignorance! She was no wiser
than a little childn and he started
away into the darkness, leaving the
woman standing there wondering at
him. After time he came back and
at the left hand side of the hall went
iato the old lawyers rooms. 1t was
near midnight, and the lights were
turned down and dimly glimmering
against the glaring horns of the elk's
head, the eagles eyes, the glass cabin
cts and scintillating serpentS'-skin
Out in the darkness he had thought of
the picture of Maun's mother hanging
there under its frightfdl covering, and
thought what she must have been to
the old lawyer that he had
served her picture thus, and how mainly
through that, perhaps, he had feared
to have Maun ever know there was a
pitfall in the world, and that q
maiden's path was filled with smiling
vipers. How false had been his
sight! How sadly had fear un-
done his Judgment! What an
end had come of it! The young mans
bitterness melted into pity for the
mans wrecked life, and he turned
about and came back. He glanced
about HIM and shuddered; through the
doorway at the farther end of the long,
dim room he saw the old lawyer lying
under the great moose-head with the
doctor and awatchersitting by him. The
old mans head with its strong Indian
profile was thrown back upon the pill
low with chin up and eyes closed. John
Earring came softly forward, and the
doctor held his hand up as if to enjoin
silence.
But the stricken man opened his
al ~. fhnsv.
shadowy, shaggy sockets until they
had entered. Then he whispered
something, and John Earring leaned
down and took his cold, crumpled
hand. Ibid you find out who done
it?" the old man whispered.
Eyes, think We have. Don't let it
disturb you, sir; he will surely be pun
ished," said John EARRING, in a low
voice.
"Who-who-was itP" he whispered,
hoarsely, trying to get up, with his
feverish amber eyes feeding upon the
young mans face. But his strength
was not sufficient, and he closed his
eyes and rolled his big head to and fro
upon the pillow. John Earring tried
to move away. but the old lawyer held
to his hand, and, without opening his
eyes. whispered: Waltz
After awhile he opened his eyes
and looked at the young man. ,'Do-
know himP" he said.
Eyes; we think it was Fowler"
John EARRING answered.
The old man looked at him a long
time, and John Earling seemed to see
through his eyes, those dark, clear
glasses into his brain. A thousand
emotions, thoughts, clouds, fires,
wishes, hates, seemed to go glaring
He relaxed his grasp upon the young
mans hand, closed his eyes, turned
his head away and said, with a
lingering, bitter, sibilant whisper:
''Snakew and was silent
John Earling went softly out, but
paused at the hall door and stood
looking back a moment. The doctor
came noiselessly to him. ''What will
be the end of it?" whispered the
young man.
90 He is broken by the effort and
the shock; he may come back, but
think it will be a long time" said
the physician.
John Earling went away through the
midnight gloom, and all the darkness
and WEAKNESS of the world seemed
gone into and settled through his be-
ing. He dragged himself slowly up
the dark stair-ways to his room close
under the roof of Bowers Block. and
threw himself down upon his pillow
Wn.. a tempest had beaten upon and
gone over him! With the first thought,
so weary was he, the soft warm numb
ness of sleep began to fold him in.
Suddenly he sprang up with a cry and
shuddered, and twice after that sprang
out of slumber with dreadful dreams;
then he thought a voice faint and
silvery was singing far, far away over
an endless sweep of wind-tormented
water, and he was trying to go to it,
| but the shore evermore went with him
and a white face under the water at
his feet went with it, and he strove, and
strove In vain. Suddenly the silvery
voice came toward him, expanding,
swelling, swelling, and -swerved up
| ward like an inverted rainbow of sound
and burst at the zenith in a great crash
that seemed to shake the world, and
he sprang up and the sunshine was
there in dapples on the wall again, and
all the horror of the time came flooding
back upon him.
They buried Maun that day just be-
fore the sun went down. No one was
there of kith or kin to mourn her, but
the common heart of Openstone was
moved with pity, and a hundred moth
ers wept. No one, perhaps, save two,
guessed what darkness filed John
Earnings mind as he stood there, white
and silent, while the f1ower-ladened
coffin sank out of sight Sadly the
prayer was said, then a band of girls
came forward, all in white, chanting a
soft hyNln, and dropped wreaths. hearts
and anchors of flowers into the grave;
and one, lame, slender girl, dropping
her flowers, stood there with her hands
extended over the grave, and with
swimming eyes turned up to tho sky,
sang the sweetest, saddest song John
Earling ever heard. 1t seemed fit tc
move the heart of God in the begin.
ming, and was in the ending as if she
were singing among the angels that ar
innocent soul had come back from
| narth,s trial and w as nshered in anon @