Middletown transcript., 1892-09-08

| PiSoSOu hOA eOnoCAiJ oSoAnob AAS 81 6ASO'
Once more the old fable Of Mars anG
Venus was revived"
"Good, Z said Pereira 1T is clear
enough that your good-natured people
posed"
Perhaps One day the doctor dis
covered a package of letters
"That's old-the package oflettersl''
"Pareira, you are insupportable
You may sneer, if you wish, but in
my anecdote there are some letters
(Which furnish to the husband the
certainty of his dishonor-is that not
so p
Certainly"
"And which make him conceive
the project ofvengeancep'
"Do you know the story, Pereira
If SO. tell it"
mo, my friend, but l cat dosUo, to
use a term of our trade, cut down,
that is all. Then the husband
avenged himself
"By one of those crimes which
always remain undiscovered"
"Then how do you know it?'
because the doctor talked. Yes,
the guilty one himself, yielding to the
irresistible, the fatal need Of impart-
ing secrets which exists in all men,
and which makes of the Catholic con-
fessional one of tue most ="
"Keep to your story, Maurice keep
to your story"
"I won't say another word" grum-
bled the vexed young man.
Don't be angry" said the grossly,
insoIent Pereira. "We saved you the
trouble of finishing your sentence. 1t
is the true theatrical style. See
Scribe and Sardou. All in dialogue,
with points of suspension. am sick
of repeating it to the young authors.
No stylel No knowledge of litera-
ture There have been plays that
have failed on account of an adjective.
No one knows what harm metaphor
may do. So with romances-"
"In your turn, Pereira." said Mau-
rice. looking at the Jew with ajeering
air through his monocle. "When will
you be through"
at is just. Maurice. you said then
that the husband"
Imagined a terrible vengeance,
but one permissible only to one of his
profession. Macha was not complete
ly curcd-he knew it well, the special
ist-of this heart disease for which he
had treated her during two years with
SO much zeal and love. He undertook
to replace her in her old state. Curb
ing his wrath, he compelled himself
to maintain toward his wife the air Of
a dissatisfied, suspicious husband, and
so gave birth to fear and anguish in
the guilty wife's soul. He knew by
the letters he had intercepted what a
guilty passion possessed the two lovers;
he was sure they always sought to see
each other, even in the midst of dam
gers. This domestic Machiavel pro-
fted by this situation. After that,
mysterious power put all sorts of small
obstacles between Macha and M. de
BIazewitz, without, however, sep2rat-
ing them entirely. 1t made their
rendezvous to fail, interrupted their
correspondence, troubled and poisoned
their loves, and in this life of lively
and sorrowful emotions, Mrs. Arnold's
health again changed profoundly.
The doctor killed his wife with as
much certainty and precision as he
had but now cured her. To an hour
of wild terror, which gave morbid
activity to the circulation, the clever
man caused to succeed long days Of
sadness, which congested the heart,
and retained the blood there. Then
suddenly he feigned to have no more
jealousy and appeared touched even
to tears at his wife s sufferings. what
is the matter, my poor Macha 2. said
he to her. I cannot diagnose your
case. You have the appearance Of a
person dying of grief. Are you not
happy with me?' And while watch
ing with truly diabolical delight the
progress of the malady, he crucifed
his victim with his false-faced despair.
At the end Of six months the syncopes
were more frequent, the palpitations
more rapid, the most disquieting
symptoms of aneurism had re-appeared.
All, ha Pereira, you do not interrupt
me now"
Oh, yes, yes! This is the second
act-the connecting part Of the play.
But the denouement, the denouement?'
The denouement I" cried Maurice,
with the accent of a restaurant waiter
who serves you with dish. " Here
it is. One evening the doctor burst
into his wife's room like a tempest.
Madam, know all. M. de Blaze
witz is your lover The poor Macha
became as pale as sheet, and the
violet color OF death appeared on her
lips. Kill me ! she said. This was