The World. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1891-1896, 1893-04-10


that. tine passed very slowly, indeed
Strange as Il may seem. life apart
from Mr. Hicks Brown was very,
very dnll--and lonely. Yes, she had
been hnsty-too hasty--but there was
no turning back now. She had burned
her bridges. and. besides. had ever !
Lpvedaic retrnced step once talken7
Mol And she held her pretty nose
little higher and tried 70 look haughfily
don't-care-ish, all The time feeling very
miserable, indeed
And Mr.. Hicks Brown He was
working away as though lighting time.
lie never gave himself moment, II he
could help II. for thought Not word
had passed between him and member
Of the Lovedale family since the day
his wife had flung herself out Of the
house and returned 70 her pareysla lie
heard she had gone west for Z divorce,
and Il made him vince, but be shut his
mouth moro tightly and went ct his
work still harder There were times
when he had TO think, and they were
not pleasant timeA There was one In
particular. A few lmopths before be
had begun 10 build, unknown 70 his wife,
q handsome new house in her favorite
suburb-and the time came for him 70
occupy II, and she was not there TO en-
JOY It. His younger sister, an orphan,
who had Just finished school and had
come 20 live with him, was delighted
with everything. She ran all over the
house, fairly gushing with pleasure,
and did not know that her brother, ait
ting amid the confusion Of furniture in
the front hall, was thinking Of how
much some one else would have been
pleased. And there were two big tears
on his checks when he remembered
himself and arose 70 superintcnd the
work Of arranging furniture
Everybody who reads the papers re-
members the Hicks-Brown divorce trial
--how the defendant paid no attention
tothe suit; how the Judge, IN granting
a decree without alimony, scored the
fair plaintiff for seeking divorce on
such trivial grounds, and assured her
that he allowed decree only because
1t was plain to be seen that Il was a
case Of incompatibility; and how, two
days after receiving her decree, the
pfaintiff left suddenly, and everybody
said: y told you SOL knew she'd 70
us soon Us she got IL. /"
But everybody does not know that
the reason she left 50 suddenly wns that
she received telegram announcing her
fathers death, or that when she reached
home she found that he had died
bankrupt.
Hicks Brown knew 1t, and his heart
ached with the longing to 20 to her aid
land then the Hicks Brown pride
came To the surface, and his heart
hardened with a cold snap, and he bent
himself 10 his work harder than ever.
Ono morning, as he rode into town,
Henry Hicks-Brown was thinking how
lonely his sister must be, sometimes,
out there In that slow little suburb. and
an idea struck him. Ely Jovep' he
thought, fits tho very thing. There
are lots,of nice girls who would jump
at the chance TO be companion to SO
jolly girl as Lottie.' And he stopped
ut the Sol Office and left want" ad-
yertiBemcnt, which stated that a young
lady desired companion who was able
to speak French and possessed sundry
other accomplishments; must furnish
best references; would receive liberal
salary, etc. Apply In person at resi-.
dence, No. - Grove street"
Mabel Hicks Brown, discussing wavs
and means with her mother at their
slimly furnished breakfast table NEXT
morning, saw this advertisement. "It's
the very thing, mamma, and I'm going
to see about 1t to-day. Something must
be done, and Tn the one to do II, So"
'But Mabel. It seems so--so--why,
the idea Of"
There, there's no use saying a word,
mamma. We can't be choosers any
more And so it was settled II
At four o'clock that afternoon Mabel
Hicks-Brown rang the door Of the house
In Grove street, indicated in the adver-
tisement, and was admitted by trim
maid, who seemed to know her errand.
and ushered her into pretty drawing
room ON the right.
Somehow the room had a familiar
look. At least, there were things In 1t
that seemed familiar. That picture I'd
the dark corner--she must have seen 1t
before. She rose to look at it, and as
she did so, some one came hurriedly
into the room. Turning. she stood face
to face with Henry Hicks Brown.
For full half minute they stood
staring at each other, stunned Then
Mabel. weak from the strain of the
weeks and months just passed, gave
shuddering sob and sank to tho floor.
Ten minutes later she found herself
upon the diyan In the corner, with
pair Of strong arms about her and
very dear facc close to her own, while
a deep, tremplous voice whispered:
Mabel, can't we-can't we make 1t all
up9 Tell me, little girl"
She told him right then and there;
and, half an hour after that, they stood
in the study Of the parsonage close by
-Hicks-Brown would have it so-for
all the world like pair OF clippers, and
what had taken nearly five months to
unite was retied in five minutes.
And that was tho real end Of the eel
ebrated Hicks Brown divorce case-the
part that only small minority Of the
newspaper-reading public knows about. |
r. L. Ketchum, In San Francisco !
,Argonaut.
james Russell Lowell was walking |
along Irving street In Cambridge one |
dav Xxhan ba IN ff1o s1,y. "a DE T1.{.l.