Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1895-06-20

avenge. I would be swift TO accom-.
plish. So, darkly musing for an hour
or more, / decided on the course 1 had
TO pursue, and TO make b decision
final | drew from my breast the cru
ciix that the dead monk Cipriano had
laid with me In my coffin, and kissed
il. 1 raised il aloft and swore by that
sacred symbol never { o relent, to
relax, never to rest, till / had brought
my VOW of Just vengeance TO its ut
most fulfllment. The stars, calm wit
nesses Of my oath, eyed me earnestly
from their judgment thrones in the
quiet sky; there was a brief pause in
the singing OF the n~ightingales, as
though they, too, listened; the wind
sighed piaintiyeiy, and scattered a
shower OF jessamine blossoms like
snow at my feet. Even 50, l thought,
fall the last leaves Of my white days
days Of pleasure, days Of sweet illu-
sion, days Of dear remembrance; even
so let them wither and perish utterly
forever! For from henceforth nv life
must be something more than a mere
garland of fiowers-it must be a chain
Of fiDely-tempered steel, hard, cold
and Observation-Disclosures into links
strong enough to wind round and
round two false lives and imprisOn
them 20 closely as to leave no means
of escape. This was what must be
done-and / resolved to do il. With a
firm, quiet step / turned to leave the
avenue. / opened the little private
wicket and passed into the dusty road.
A changing noise caused me to look
up as l vent by the principal entrance
of the Villa ROmani. A servant-my
W man servant, by the by-was
barring the great gates for the night.
/ listened as he slid the bolts into their
places and turned the key. l remeEe
Der that those gates had been thor
oughly fastened before, when l came
the road from Naples-why, then, had
they been open since? To let out a
visitor? OF course. l smiled grimly
at my wife's cunning! She evidently
knew what she was about. Appear
ances must be kept up-the Signor
Ferrari must be deCorously shown out
by a servant at the chief entrance Of
the house. Naturally!-all very unsus-
picious-looking and quite in keeping
with the proprieties! Gido had just
left her then! l walked steadily,
without hurrying my pace, down the
hill toward the city, and Oh the way l
overlook him. He was strolling lazily
along, smoking as usual, and he held a
spray of stephanOtis in his hand-well,
l knew who had given il to him! |
passed him-he glanced up carelessly,
his handsome face clearly visible in
the bright moonlight, but there was
nothing about a common fisherman
TO attract his attention-his only look
rested upon me for a second and was
withdrawn Immediately. An insane
desire possessed me to turn upon him
to spring at his thrOat-tO wrestle
with him and throw him in the dust
at my feet-to spit at him and tram
pie upon him-but | repressed these
fierce and dangerous emotions. | had
a better game to play-I had an eX-
quisite torture in store for him, COM
pared 20 which a hand-to-hand fight
was mere vulgar fcoling. Vengeance
ought TO ripen slowly in the strong
heat OF intense wrath. till of itself it
falls. Hastily snatched before its
time, 1t Is like unmellOwed fruit, Soul
and ungrateful to the palate. So I
let my dear friend-my wife's CONSIDER
-saunter on his needless way without
interference. l passed, leaving him
to indulge in amorous musings to his
false hearts content. L entered Naples
and found a nights lodging at on Of
the usual resorts for men of my sup
posed craft, and strange to say 1
slept soundly and dreamlessly. Re-
cent illness, fatigue, fear and sorrow
all aided to throw me like an exhaust
ed child upon the quiet bosom Of slum-
Der. but perhaps the most powerfully
soothing opiate to my brain was the
consciousness l had Of a practical
plan Of retribution-more terrible than
any human creature had yet devised,
so far as / knew. Unchristian you call
me? 1 tell you again, Christ never
loved a woman! Had he done so. he
would have left us some special code
of justice!