The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1892-08-25
A RICH PAUPER.

~ was budb HId htNGI dISCONGltu bu0 law
until one night last June.
All, that night in Junel The whole earth
seemed an altar to beauty; the stars throb-
bed in ecstacy and the air breathed of
sweet and terrible restlessness and the
pauper's nature thrilled in response. What
was itf
She was twenty-five years old, married
and a mother. s was surfeited with
luxury. The conventional girl of the upper
class, her dreams had been Of marriage,
motherhood. position and riches. Her
dreams had been realized.
She was always called mice" girl.
In appearance she was not pretty enough
to attract or ugly enough to fascinate.
She was simply and merely commonplace.
On the beach she would be ignored by the
men and admired by the women, and
she would never tempt hammock to an
indiscretion.
She was d mice" girl
Everybody liked her, but perhaps nobody
loved her. In any picture she would sup
ply the wanted tints. ..
She was respected, but to be respected is
not always TO be loved. Some women in
spire one sentiment and some the other.
When a woman commands both she is In
deed happy.
And then came the night in June.
She was sitting, quite little figure, on
the piazza watching the flreflies. She was
contented, though she was never to be SO
again. Suddenly tall figure in summer
fannels materialized. It leaned above her;
it's breath was on her cheek. She saw its
eyes and trembling lips quite plainly
through the dusk for brief second; then
In flash the whole expression of the face
changed. 1t was transfxed with horror
mingled with amusement.
II beg your pardonl II have made
great mistake Tho cottages on this bluff
resemble each other so completely p
And again she was alone.
And in that moment she knew she was
that she had always been--a pauper in
loves land.
No man had ever worn such look for
her. She was not at that moment quito
sure that she would have liked it if they
had. Something then existed for other
women of which she had known nothing,
and there was chapter in life In which
she had no partl 1t was very queer.
She sat up very straight and listened.
She heard suppressed laughter on the
piazza Of tho next cottage A voice said,
II nearly kissed her, by Jovep
you are quite sure you did notf" asked
second.
WHAT You have seen herl assure
you 1t was no temptation"
Then both laughed. 1t was apparently
joke which both appreciated.
Assuredly these summer cottages are
placed too near each other for decency.
And it is true also that they resemble each
other too closely. AS the pauper sat there
q new pain tugged at her heart 1t was
not eased even when she heard in the
II
in its sleep. From another room hung in
fishnet she could hear mems voices and
the rattle Of chips.
One voice was that of her husband.
"a woman who has nothing to give is a
pauperp' she said and bowed her head.
She was human, and was thinking with
her heart and not her soul She tried to
say to herself that modesty. Intelligence
and womnnly worth were of infinitely more
value than the beauty Of the flesh. Be It
so-she had still missed something.
What had she given the man she lovedf
Unselfsh devotion? TRUTH PurityP
The affection which lays hold upon the
stars and survives when the earth sinks
awayi
Yes. All these.
But he was man. And his love of tho
woman beautiful must be forever starved
In his love for her. Oh, to have been able
to call to his eyes the look which had
shone in those Of that stranger 1t was the
part Of love which belonged to tho flesh
tho unworthy part--but it existed, and not
for her And this was not heaven yet, but
earth. IL God first made the heart of man,
why had he since then allowed plain
women like herself to eXist2 That they
might suffer- 1t WAS cruel thing, but
like other cruel things it was true.
Her pain now was like fever, and
fever which in turn struck one long harsh
noto of pain.
a moment later she stood within the
cottage. Her husband looked up and drew
her to his side. He would have kissed her,
but she said pettishly, "Please don'tp
He stared ut her In amazed good nature,
and then went on playing cards with the
family friend.
Once within her room she lighted the
candles in trembling haste and crowded
them closely upon her dressing table.
Thea she loosened her garments and her
hair and leaned eagerly to receive the ver-
diet OF her mirror. Deliberately she judged
herself She was not uglyi MOI But she
was lacking in whati Charmf Yes, that
was it. Nature, which gives all to some
and nothing to many, had neglected her
somewhat but she told herself that nature
had fashioned hes one OF her largest class
Those who resemble each other as closely
as crackers from cracker factory. She
was commonplace-nice, but common
place, and she felt that she could never
forgive nature.
She flung about her a loose robe, blew
nut her candles and sat by her window
The waves were flinging themselves in
sheer abandon upon the beach out there
She wished-suddenly her brain asked
question.
Had he been true all these yearsf
Tho thought was like hot iron in her
heart, but she held it there flrmly-that
heart which had never before doubted.
And her heart answered her brain.
mop it said
And then the poor forlorn pauper said to
Ieart and brain;
Tomorrow | will knowl"
She had set herself difficult task All
through the long night she lay with wide
open eyes, and for each splash of the waves
upon tho beach she had thought. About
8 in the morning she smiled a wan but
triumphant smile. At last the right onel
And then she slept.
Now, the family friend was most hon
orable person. He had never betrayed a
man. After breakfast he came over from
the hotel and suuntered across the little
lawn to where tho pauper was sitting
upon gay rug spread in the sunlight.
She was picking grains of sand from the
setting of her diamonds, which she had
forgotten to remove for her morning sea
bath. Her hat was flung upon the grass
and her hair glistened with brine as it
dried in the sun.
"Sit here beside met" said the pauper,
with white little smile.
Aud he WHO never yet betrayed a man
leaned irdolently upon one elbow as LIE
stretched himself cut beside her. lie
lighted cigarette and watched her
through the Eli.s Of his cyelids as one by
one she held her diamonds up and exam
ined them. She moved slowly to and fro
a ring which gave forth little daggers Of
light.
He gave me this when VIC were en-