The farmers' union. (Memphis, Mo.) 1891-1895, 1894-04-26

@EFFIE, HERE Is NEWS"
with a deadly quiet. but you must
have some potent reason for insulting
your own wife by such questioning.
Since you persist, however, l will say,
did not kill my first husband"
swear it, he cried. wildly, still on
his knees; swear it by your hope of
salvation"
-As | hope to be saved hereafter"
she said, with stOlid tranquility. Il
did not kill my first husband" She
turned to Gim with look SO full OF
love, so full of truth, so full of purity,
that he sprang to hi, feet and threw
his arms around her neck and sobbed
aloud.
But why all this?"she asked; "why
thi, terrible suspicion OF Il crime OF
which I know nothing"
He told her what he had seen. what
he had heard, what he had proved,
what he had suspected.
My first husband" she said, died
Of cholera. His illness lasted only six
hours. and wa, fatal. Every servant
in the house and the two doctors who
attended him can prove this. DR.. e.
hermann said it was the most striking
case of cholera he had ever seen. Poor
but to me he was not unkind. Al any
rate he never treated me with the
harshness and spitefu!ncss which char
acterized him toward others. | did not
love him, it was not pOssible: but had
no dislike for him, and no reason for
wishing him dead
Next morning, at breakfast, Efie
said:
That man, Lewis, the auctioneer On
the ground floor, who wants to take
Ncd's house from me. has written ask
ing me to call on him, and after what
you told me, 1 shall be dOubly glad to
be rid of the place. l am not very we'll
to-day. and l wish you would see the
man for me-"
Dick was very glad of the walk in
the brisk winter air, and at the same
time he was sorely perplexed. Effie
was innocent, of course. OF that he
self sure, in spite of all the damning
proofs he had himself accumulated
against her
only another case OF the falsity. the
wickedne. s, of circumstantial evidence,
pure and simple" he said to himself.
some day or other / shall find out
mere about it"
When he arrived at the auctioneers
Office he was met by bright-eyed imp
of lad, who told him that Mr.. Lewis
was in. but he was engaged for the
moment.
He will come ter see yew 'un." ,a:d
the lad, after he had lodged into the
inner room aid lodged out again. much
after the manner OF a badger before
the dogs: please ter take a chear fur a
minnit or tew."
Dick sat down, and having naught
else to do examined the old and uust-
soiled auctioneer's bills that were
hanging on the walls. when voices
reached him through the half-open
door of the inner room.
Cne voice was a wOman's. and Wen.
stone rose with o cold horror in his
face. The voice was Effje's, his Effie's,
or 80 like it that one could not be dis.
tinguished from the other. He lis
tened with gaping mouth and staring
eyes. and then he heard q mans voice
the same voice which he had heard
in that awful place saying: He'll be
dead before the weeks over. and no
body will know that he has been poi
soned."
The man and the woman appeared
at the door at that moment. She trim
| built. tall and straight. like his Ef.ie,
but there the resemblance ceased. A
hard face. with cold. gray ewes. a cruel
mouth with thin, pale lips-and a IL
gerish expression of placid cunning.
He. tall and bOny, with long. pale feat
ures and sandy hair and beard. an i'm
age of trembling submission to wom
ans authority.
Mr.. Wenstone. believe" said the
man. Il am glad to see yCu. This is
nv wife. Mrs. Lewis"
There was no mistake this time The
murderer and murderess stood before
him-the pair for whom he had ac
cuSed his own spotless wife.
The pitifui war was over and Majo,
Wen tone had returned to his fathers
home. The old folks were happy and
! pleased to see their .on come hack t,
them after all those terrible years anG
they were doubly happy tina, he wa:
accompanied by his lovely wife.
. They we.e sitting in the shade OF thu
i garden trees one morning and Dici
/ was reading the newspaper that hai
just been brought from town. while
the old man was smoking and ths