Bennington semi-weekly banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 1894-1902, 1895-12-17
A DEAD MANS LUNCH.

| pie OF boards just DaCk OF the little tool
house where tho men were building, hold
ing in his stiff, dead hand a lunohbox like
those that children often carry and after
| CHANGING at his dirty working clothes and
the roughness of his somewhat slender
hand they were astonished at his sumptu-
| Gus dinner.
Within the box were fruits and cake
that any king might envy. The napkin
was of daintiest damask, and the chicken
tender and delicious.
No one knew him as other than one of
their own kinda laborer, strangely sad
and morbidly retiring.
After examining his companions as far
as possible the authorities at last decided
to investigate his dinner. Every crumb
was tested with an experts care, and the
presence of poison proved beyond all ques-
ton.
Then they took the body 60 tho morgue
and began "a right search for the evildoer.
AT last boy was found who said that
for several weeks he had been employed
| each noon to carry tempting lunch to
the murdered man and gave the name Of
the lady living in the magnificent house
across the way as the one who had thus
employed him.
At first it seemed incredible, for the
lady husband was a worthy millionaire
and she of excellent reputation. But there
was no other solution forthcoming, and at
last the lady admitted her guilt in open
court with her still adoring husband by
her side, and insisted upon giving tho fol-
lowing explanation:
"When 1 was but q girl, I loved this
man, the one whom l have killed." she
began unsteadily, land, oh, how dearly
was beloved by him who is now my vic
tim Happy as the birds, we strollod
! about our native heath and swore eternal
faith to one another. He was a noble lad,
handsome and strong, and our souls were
knit together until it seemed that death
alone could part us. And then the war
broke out and my lover left my side. 1
bore the parting bravely, but wept and
pined when he was gone, certain that
nothing could console me.
1.-THE days went by and finally they told
me he was dead, and after two long years
of grief married him you see beside me.
He was poor then, but gentle and atten-
| tive, and his affection sOOthed me for n
time until one glorious morning when, re-
turning from early prayer, l met my
former lover.
"Oh, how l wept upon his breast, for
now l realized that love had never died,
and from that day we lived for one another
as wholly as we ever had before my wretch
ed marriage. was his wife and his alone.
l lived for him and every passion of my
heart seemed satisfied by his affection.
1t was then that the ambition to be
rich first entered my lawful husbands
mind. Knowing nothing of my secret
| love, he pictured to me visions of wealthy
home, position, luxury and joys that wom-
en- dearly prize and gradually as these vi
sions were realized found myself turning
slowly from my first love to bask in pleas
ures that he could not give.
CAT first l tried to wake in him this
same ambition to be rich, but Roland,
poor, dear Roland, only laughed at my de-
sires and twitted me of growing worldly
like all the others of my sex.
"Tho change was gradual, but no less
sure because months passed before it grew
apparent. l loved him still, in a strange,
remOrseful way, but the thought that he
could not give me gold at last resulted in
a bitter malice. His happy nature chilled
me when l remembered how little satisfied
his soul while my husbands all absorbing
greed for what would give us comfort and
position inspired me with keen regard
and made my lover small in consequence.
"Then there were years of silence after
we had fercely disagreed, and when l
looked upon his face again it was to see
him clad in homely laborers garb and
struggling day by day to earn his meager
living. From the windows of my lovely
homo looked upon his haggard face and
felt down deep within my heart the twinges
of TemOrse and sorrow.
81 loved him while wronged him so.
loved him still, even when his low posi-
ton should awaken my disgust, and as
the days passed slowly by heard his ham
mer ring upon tho stones until the echo
tortured me with thousandfold regrets.
"At last 1 vGntured upon plan to be of
some substantial aid, and thus, without
making myself known in any way, daily
sent a dainty lunch and watched his pleas
ure from my Curtained window. And
day on day as 1 stood and watched the
same old hungering pain Of love crept
back, and l would willingly have given
the half owned to rest upon his bosom
as in the days of old, before ambition
came between us.
"Then frenzy took possession of my
soul, and more than once raised my win
dow wide and would have called his name
with eager voice, but something, some
small remnant of my pride, restrained me,
and l closed the sash unheard.
80 God! the horror of those days To
know that he was near, to even see his
oareworn face and know that he was still
alone, was almost more than / could bear.
Each day with my own hands packed
his dainty lunch and each day grew more
eager to rush forth and clasp him in my
arms, but always pride and caution held
mo back, and in the struggle that grew
daily intense my very reason tottered on
it's throne. Then to my brain there came
a sudden thought. must be free of either
love or pride, and after groveling in the
very dregs of woe, placed the poison in
his food and sent him to his death"
The sins which pride commit the CLINT
of gold will cover, oftentimes, for though
they judged her guilty of an awful crime
her husbands wealth secured the wretched
life, but never since the day they found
him dead has wealth, position, love or ease
brought happiness or comfort to her soul.
Exchange.
Applying n Desperate Remedy.
The Boston 2-year-old was crying.
Not in the boisterous, crude, unculti-
waited style Of the barbarian youngster of
H,,k