New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-01-11
HELEN'S EXPERIENCE.

Before she was eighteen Helen lryOn married
FOR love- At twenty five she found herself bank
rupt of everything She lived. and with the
stubborn tenacity of her nature she braced herself
to endure existence out sac neither hopea mo, nor
the mechanical rOntinc of the days repeated
itself, but she had come To dead stop She had
host all courage all faith; bare. blank wall
faced her There nothing more TO he en-
loved nor suffered. She had had everything and
lost everything.
II she had consciously recognized all this, there
might have been some hope Of reaction. When
appreciates the dramatic effect of circum-
stances. u new interest in new circumstances Is
no such attitude toward herself One saw 1t III
her face-darll and thin and changeless as n
statues. She had great dark eyes, but they
never varied their dreamy, unheedng look ller
voice was low soft and monotonous. And YET
she was not nj all dreadful person 10 live with.
" was impossible that her story should not cast
IFS shadow over the household. but when IL was
once settled that Helen's experience had exempted
her from all the ordinary rules that bound the
others. matters adjusted themselves, as they al
living flowed around her undsturbcd
She was slender and graceful. strong, TOO, as
these slight-bult New-Engand women are often
enough. Al seventeen she had not been hanu-
some but She had had that air of any possibility
Of beauty. that is better than defined prettlncsS
She was shy, reserved and cold Win
the positive rs Rs nrl pT|ef traditions so Of
training superadded. Under at she was VII,
full. hcadstrong. and passionate, never capaPle OF
seeing more than one sldc OF SuolcC' an" away
eorifving that side with the whole force OF a
tropical Imagination rigdy repressed ana total!
II was inst then that in a school vacation she
visited friend in one OF the Shadlcsu ana oiuCS'
and stpadicst of Connecticut villages Nhle shc
was i'm the house there came ont OF me vague
Southwest q Young man that claimed blood re-
lationship with the family. II was llst IN inc
DAYS when Bret Eartc's heroes stood foremost IN
the ranks of popularity me lnD9rn Ieo Fi,t
ooainst cOnvcntiOnalitipS in lelcnS DlOOd caught
eagerly al the picturesque freedom ana witness
Of these characterZationS. She could not reallzc
that one redeeming trait may not sufhce 10 make
n whole life tolerablc. Payne Morse was as haII-
some IN his blonde way as a yOung demlgHi. ne
had the slow soft speech OF the plalnsman' ne
sworc oaths in her presence, at least ne con-
formed to the requirements OF community 10
which n revolver and lariat rope were alike mn,
collcd-for and Outlandish. with a good-natured
federation that had in HelenS eyes immense
uinuancv and magnanmity. Then he rode like
rcntaur. and the accomplishment was so novel IN
that corner of the hills that it seemed almost Ike
4 wild fit of speculation had shipped East a train
lead of mustangs, with the Elusive hope that they
might be broken for use among Ee ,ne a' on f6e
haunchcs and squcaled their wrongs aloud IN
every variation of the equine tongue. and at last
P..r6c Morse was appealed TO as being only a
LILLE less savage than the mustangs TO see If he
could do anything with them .,-
cni9 y '0 The work. Ills fearless riding
his Quiet. melcilcss mastership Of the
, untamcd 6rutes, completed the conques: of
That was in leafy June in September she went
beck school. month later she lef the reclta-
tion-room orc day, put on her hat. walked on
ncXt city Payne Morse awaited her. They were
married within the hour and before sunset they
tod tho story in the Tryon sitting-room.
Helen was not defiant She was quiet, rather
sad but no more Tcpcntant or egrctiul than a
hlocl; Of marble. Mr. Tryon recognized TIE trait
IV sympathy, perhaps. lie looked at the two as
they stood in the middle of The, room Mother
and sister bad withdrawn a littl": llelens VIII
WAS thing that most OF the honSehoid did WIN
draw from. She stood 10y her husbands side,
slight. erect, her hand on his arm, but not lean
Ion axe aware. sir" Mr. Tryon said, that
this child is a MINORITY the law could take
But YOU will not ?" TIE question wa, half
30. shall not She has chosen; she must
learn life in her way shall try and make
no difference between her and the otheIS,rand
may the Lord. have mercy on you Doth, ne
aided half under his breath.
. For month tie two stad under the home
roof. IIcnn's mother pat down intuition ana
inst net with a strong hand magniiied the super
hcial Chains of the man. ana was a"c AT iast 10
say: II neutrality-suspicious., but
We can; help liking HIM; III. j., III.
him. The CARELESS. easy, unconscious dash OF ms
manner. his unfalne. elaborate If somcwha,
horid cuutcsy. the air Of vague romance that
seemed I, MAKE the atmosphere in when he
hreathed, all appealed 10 their ideal Of the
chivalrc and poetic. He did not talk much Of
adventures and reckless daring opened vlSaS into
a limtlcs. wonderland. NJ. Tryon treated HIM
politely always, and never sad word Tor or
AGAINST him
Then Helen took the few thousands Of dollars,
for which by right she should have waited t.Il
she had reached her majority, and went with her
husha nd into the then haifSaNagc depths OF the
Colorado cattle ranges.
For four wears her letters came regularly. From
the very first there had been little Of personal
record in them VIVA. she hoped feared. en-
ioved ar suffered. one had any way of guess
ing Ii was the kindcst thing 20 read nothing
more than appeared on the surface. liut At the
crd of that time Payne Morse was tired AMI
sentenced 10 confinement for life for particpd-
ton in q daring train robbery. She simply sent
the papcr, in which the matter recorded.
MIR. Tryon followed his te'egram with al the
speed possible. And 50 Helen Mors" came home
again. a statucsluc shadow Of hcrscif,-Shc and
her baby. of whom the whole family made an
object OF worship
one more blow remained to fall. wear later
tho baby died. The copy of tn newspaper that
told its death told. too, the death Of lis father,
shot dead while trying 10 escape from the prison
in which lie was confined.
Helen wore black after that,-pcrhaps for her
babys death; perhaps for the memory of the
man who had treated her with a cruelty she never
told nor limited at perhaps for herself. because
she had outlivcd everything At any rate she
went in sombre garments, and questioned
And So up TO this nisht,-thc night Of her
twenty-hfth birthday. when they Were all sitting
about the tea table and talking Of Ilarry's pros
poets. Harry had bought Share in a Texas
ranch, and he and his partner were going %
rough il alone in their cabin among the gras,
and sheep. Harry was enthusiastic, tOrestalline
little and unconSciously the character he was
TO assume by-andby.
Now. Mr. Micawher." Grace said mockingly
mother YOU ought to give him tin plate and
cup. and keep silver forks out Of his sight. And
Harry you'll have TO cut the acquaintance OF
boiled shirts. unless you boil them yourself and
then you'll have spasms over the starch"
Helen looked up and said in her slow i'm.
passive way Why couldn't 20 and keep house
for YOU. Harry
Silence fell about the table. The idea had
never presented itself TO one of Them but now
all at il did not seem so lmpracticablc ~
fancy Of lleen's ever did for Helen
d" / have seen something Of the life" she said
"Therc is nothing in il that ] cannot face
do not mind the solitude and a house is more
lille with a i'm Il