The Mankato free press., 1891-05-08
"Poor child! Poor Phyllis!"


''Poor child! Poor Phylis!"
Mrs. Harris face wore compassionate
expression, and her voice had tender,
commiserating infections. She stood by
the window, looking out into the street
with eyes which conveyed to her mind
no image of that ON which they rested.
Royal paused in his restless walk and
silently gazed at her. Her tone made
him vince like the touch of a nettle.
He was too much oppressed by the re-
suit of his own precipitation not to be
sore and irritable. Inyoluntarily he re-
sented the implied depreciation.
Il am not bad man, as men CO." he
demonstrated. ''A laundering fool, if
you will. but no villain. Your tone i'm
plies that | have been both"
Mrs. Hunt turned toward him. As
she did so she caught an expression on
the young mans face which reminded
her curiously of her husband. Her eyes
softened and smile came to her lips
She had seen the look before during the
DAYS that they had been together, and
always with mute, wistful acknowledge
ment of the tie between them. After
all, he was Phil Royals son and of their
own people-which fact, in the lady's
mind. considerably ameliorated the sit
uation. What would have been her at
titude toward Royal if, instead of being
a member of the family with blood right
of interference, he had turned out sim
ply laundering stranger, whose tender
mature had ruled his reason to such dis
astrous effect. it is difficult to imagine
Fortunately for Royal she was not put
to the test. A kinsman, like the shape
of a nose, can be accepted and endured
with the pleasing consciousness that, ex-
ternally, the worst is known of him,
while the introduction of stranger into
ones life may be attended with as grave
risks as those incident TO the French no.
tary's experiment.
Mrs. Hart loved romance with a
southern woman's love, and moreover
she was gifted with subtle sense of
humor. Interwoven with the tragic and
pathetic elements of the affair there was
comedy as well, for those sufficiently dis
engaged to appreciate il. And, for the
life of her. Mrs. Hart could not forbear
imaginative pictures OF the self COM
placent Soal OF her kinswonan, assert
lively comparing itself IN the infinite,
suddenly confronted with a view OF the
situation as it now stood Even dis
embodied spirit, ii such case, could not
escape recognition OF limitations and
acknowledgment Of the futiIity Of all
arrangements for pulling stroke in the
Efeboat of other people-after this mortal
shall have put on immortality. The
pithy old Scotch proverb recurred again
and again to Mrs. Harris secretly divert
ed mind with a relishing sense of its ap-
plicability.
What did the lawyers sayT she ques.
toned, coming toward him, and tacitly
ignoring her own dscourteous exclama-
ton and his impatient reception of it.
Royal pushed a chair toward her, but
declined one for himself. In his nerv-
ousiy excited condition it pleased him
better to tramp about the room. They
had been in Alexandria week, coming
directly home with Mrs. Hart after John
Royals funeral, and during that time
the dead mans substitute had devoted
himself to discovering what might be
his legal status in the affair Of his
case in equity he had no shadow OF
doubt.
''There hasn't been time enough for
anything like research yet, and lawyer
is nothing without precedent" he an.
swered 1--WE seen couple of fellows
here. and stated the case alphabetically
and I've talked 10 a man or two IN W ash.
ington besides. Of course I've only got.
ten horseback opinions as yet. Nobody
Eve seen has ever gone into thing like
this. One fellow told me plainly that
he didn't believe such a case had even
even been imagined before"
"But the general impression was
what?'
Royal paused beside her chair, and
stood looking thoughtfully down at herr
''As far as John Royal is concerned
the case has but one point of view. They
all agree on that. The proxy marnage
was no marriage. Under the circum-
stances it couldn't be. A man in articulo
mortis, as John Royal was at the time
OF the ceremony, cannot enter into a
contract; the law wouldn't recognise