The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1892-05-13

opened it in a spirit of idle curiosity
Then with the sensation of one WHO
dreams she read as follows:
DEAR NED: You may say what you like
| put men of my stamp cannot alter their feel
ings at will, and for some time the truth has
forced itself upon me that l do not love her
any more. OF course this is very humilat-
ing confession after all 1 said in the past, but
when we next meet know you will agree that
have taken the proper course. Strange how
| our ideal women turn out so badly at times.
When l first fell in love with her she seemed
o be everything that man could desire; now
| know her to be jealous and exacting, jealous
If every one, and that of course. must in
the end kill the love we have discussed so
| often. This conduct must lead to separa-
| Cion sooner or Ia ~, otherwise see how open to
criticism the position Is. However, l hope to
zee you shortly and convince you that my
| views are correct.
yours ever, JOHN s. FOSTER"
With cold pain at her heart Nell read
the letter again and again, till every word
of it was burnt into her brain. 1t was evil
lent enough that Jack no longer loved
her, and as she sat there thinking, a
thousand little things unnoticed at the
lime rose to her mind and made convic-
ton doubly assured. She sat there
alone with her misery, and as the after
noon passed on she forgot all about
Kitty and the Kings Cross. She made
up her mind at length she would keep
The letter; she would say nothing about
it to Jack, and in future content herself
by doing her duty towards him, but
henccforth any signs of affection must
be sternly suppressed.
These heroic resolutions were scattered
for the time being by the appearance of
Kitty Foster, who reached the house,
tired and hungry, and not a little disap-
pointed to find that no one had met her
ut the station. Nell's naturally gentle
heart reproached her for her seeming
neglect, and she muttered some vague
excuse, which jolly, easy-going Kitty
was only too willing to accept.
81 have been very much upset this
morning." Nell remarked. II have
made very unpleasant discovery which
closely concerns myself. John is away
in Scarborough, but expect he will re.
turn home tomorrow.
Kitty listened in silent astonishment.
Probably in the whole course of her life
she had never heard Jack spoken of as
"John" before, and she naturally sur
missed that very recently the pretty little
drawing-room had been the seen of what
Sir Lucius O'Trigger would term "a very
pretty quarrel, "a deduction which Nells
white face and swollen eyes only tended
to strengthen.
1t would be all right when Jack came
home, Kitty thought, but unhappily this
conclusion was not verified by facts.
Nell refused his kiss altogether, saying
that the time for all that nonsense was
past, and that in future she was going to
devote herself to the more sober business
Of life.
"Oh! as you WILL" Jack replied with
wounded dignity. " can't carry you
about with me in my pocket always, be.
ides, have been worried enough. You
know Graham, Kitty, well, he and l
were writing story together, and. get
ting no reply to my letters, went to see
him. | found he had gone to Filey,
leaving no address behind him. and that
my letters had gone goodness knows
where. Awful nuisance, isn't it?"
81 dare say the letters have got into
safe hands, Nell said, coldly. Besides
you could not write anything you did
not mind being seen.
Jack made no reply-he had not got
over the frostiness of his reception, and
Nell's foolish conduct had wounded him
more deeply than he cared to let her see.
For the next two or three days he kept
himself pretty close in his writing room,
and all Kitty's little attempts at recon-
ciliation ended in failure.
"What on earth is the matter2" she
asked Jack one day. Shave you quar-
relled?"
"Never had wry word in our lives,
Jack said, forlornly. II can't think
what is wrong, and I've simply racked
my brain to know what I've done. !
wish you would try and find out, Kitty
this life is miserable to me. ! can't work,
and, altogether, feel as if l was going
j distracted. 1t grieves me awfully to see
chat poor little girl with her white face
and fearful eyes looking at me so re-
proachfully."
"Tll try," Kitty REPLIED Tonly you
might make an effort yourself
"My dear girl, have; l almost went
down on my knees last night and i'm
plored her to tell me what was wrong,
but she merely said my conscience ought
70 give me the answer. l never said q
harsh word to my wife yet, and dared
not say any more last night for fear
might loose my temper. Do. help fel.
low, Kit. :"
Kitty said between her little white
teoth that she would. A day OF two went
On and her sharp eyes did not fail to de-
tect the fact that Nell had more than
once been seen crying quietly over let
ter. Kitty had seen her with this letter
in her hand several times, and it was not
difficult to surmise that this was the ori.
gin of the trouble.
Il will get it, q she said to herself 81
should say that my medical knowledge
would come in extremely we'll here.
Fortune is popularity supposed to favor
the brave, and it favored Kitty within an
hour of her having come to the deter
mination to gain possession of the letter.
She dressed herself in her hospital nurses
uniform and found Nell in the drawing.
room poring over the letter as usual, and
came upon her so suddenly that she had
no time to hide the document in ques
rion.
am going to nurse you, Kitty said
your face is reproaoh to me, and foi
the last two days you have eaten nothing
shall insist upon your taking glass Of