The Washington times. (Washington, D.C.) 1894-1895, 1895-04-10

slipped away into months, and Signor
Giovanni was q constant caller at the
house. And then one day in the early
summer, when the town people were get ting
ready to fly away TO tie seashore, the coun-
try or foreign lands, Albert surprised his
wifein tears, with a letter pressed to her lips.
He stood silent and pale. before her for a
few moments. Her expression passed from
guilty surprise TO defiance, then to shame
before the solemn sorrow and rebuke of
his kind eyes. She covered her face and
fell to wild weeping, while Albert sat
down and passed his arms gently about her
swaying figure, and dew her head to his
breast.
There, there, little one" he said sooth-
ingly, ''be calm, and tell Albert all about
it. Has he not always been your best
friend? You love some one else better?
Is that it?''
new access of tears and sobs was the
only reply. The pallor of Alberts face
grew CHASTITY, but his clasp uponhis wife's
form only frightened, and he stToked her
golden hairsoftly. There was aIongsilence
and then he spoke again, "Nanette, from
the hour ] first So W you, the one desire of
my heart has been To make you happy.
Doyou not know this to be true2'
She bowed her head silently. 81 stfIl
retain that DESIRE he continued. "If you
have found that you love some one else
better than you love me; ifsome one else
is more necessary TO your happiness than
/ am, surely / will not be an obstacle
in your way. Only want you to be very
sure that yon are not making mistake.
We mortals are such complicated creatures
we cannot always trust our own emotions
Wousd it not be well for you and Signur
Giovanni To try year of separation to test
the durability OF your sentiments? Some
times these attachments are wholly the re-
suit OF physical magnetism. If you can re-
main apart until the current which your
association set in motion exhausts Itself
the infatuatien dies & natural death and
yoaa wake es from feverdream. Hadyou
not better make the test"
''But we did make it, and it WAS no use,"
cried Nanette. I'VE loved each other the
moment we met last year, and when came
way it was like death to both of us. We
meant never TO meet again; but he could
not bear the Separation-it was killing him,
and so he folio wed me. And now il is
worse than ever. Oh, Albert | was but
child when l married you'll did not know
my o. n mind. Now am a woman, and
know i feel the love of my life for this
man-GaG help him, God help him"
SO absorbed was she in her own sorrow
that she never saw the CHASTITY pallor that
overspread her husbands face, the look
OF wounded animal which came into his
kind eyes IL was only or her own suffering
she thought, and she threw herself face
downward on a Turkish dfyanin paroxysn
OF tears. Before Albert s vision, as he stood
gazing at her there. rose the picture OF
that May morning when he had seen
her for the first time, and he could recall
with amusing diEtiDctness the droll little
patch of black on the face of the white
cat which he had caught and given to
Nanette to assuage her grief and make her
happy He recalled, too, wildly. the re-
proving glances OF the old nurse, who stood
by him in silence.
Well twenty three years had gone since
that May mornipg-twenty three years de-
voted in the main to the same effort-the
effort To- make Nanette happy, and this was
the end There was but one more sacrifice
to make-the sacrifice Of his own hopes and
happiness. He must pass out of Nanette 5
life and give her the man, whom she said
she loved with the great passion of her
womanhood. Even that could be done,
must be done, to secure her happiness
1t was all understood between them when
she went abroad. After a years time had
elapsed she was to make her application for
divorce, and it would be quietly granted.
Albert's influence with Judge and jury
would arrange that Nanette accepted the
sacrifice as she had accepted all others +,
rejoicing In the thought that she was 10
have what she wanted-aDd satisfying her
self with the thought that Albert's calm
meant content.
Ten years later man with snow white
hair and a scanned and furrowed face sat
in his lonely room and opened with trem-
bling hands letter bearing a foreign post
mark There were but a lew lines in the
letter and they ran thus: Dear Albert
| am all alone-deserted-po and un-
happy. VIII you come and take me home
to die in your arms? l know you will
you were always SO good-and this is the
only happiness life has now to offer your
poor Nanette" The man broke into wild
sobs-the first of lifetime of repres-
sion.
THANK God )" he cried; ''thank God she
is coming back to me-"