Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-09-05

merely to preserve the scenic effects Of q
straight business deal, they offered to buy
| MIN out and give him a railroad ticket out
OF town, or burn him out and run him out
| or town. Just as he signifed q preference
Col. Dash declined to SELL
Freedom With the Press.
The next evening he left town with more
dispatch than comfort, riding on rail- and
the same evening the entire contents of
his printing office and editorial rooms
were taken into the middle of the street
and set afire. That justice might attend
| upon vengeance in the matter, a fair
| money equivalent Of the property SO dis
posed of was collected Of the people and de-
posted with prominent citizen, who in
que form notified Col Dash that it was
ready any time within three days that he
| would return and collect it, and that, in
| event of his failure to make a collection
az the end of that period. the money would
! sorsly abused widow
he failed to make the collection
you can fancy that. all things considered,
| a FAMILY reunion of the Dashes was a nros-
pect not to be contemplated with gIee,
scarcely with serenity. Johnson's tea-bis-
cults that night were heavy as lead, and
the other Mans hot gingerbread couldn't
| De eaten. even by the dogs. None of us
! were hungry, however, except the woman
| most concerned She ate cheerfully, corn
ca peer nash fap-jacks bacon and eggs,
a.
| biscuits If 1 had not saved her. Secretly I
| suspected her OF seeking to eat herself to
death; could find no other rational expla-
th,,. OF her apparent relish for every
| thlng eatable in sight But odd enough
ana wholly inexplicable had been her con-
quot from the first. To all appearances.
she accepted the situation so philosophical
| ~ as 10 make 1t seem presumptuous even
| rude, on our part to anticipate trouble We
would steal off guilty to discuss the mat
Ter out or her hearing. but no amount of
inn l4I
| what she would do when Col Dash cama
| or what we should. What he would do
we dared not think of that Johnson said
that "nen the meeting was over, and all
tne oead bodies properly cared for, there
probably wouldn't be ice enough LEFT IN
keep single bottle cool for the Coroner.
Successive Surprises.
When the dreaded hour arrived that Pete
| iicst start TO return with the judge and the
| coiohel, as he was untying the skiff. our
| neioiie came nonchalantly from the house
"here she was supposed to be resting. AS
mater OF fact. we realized that under
| ha 1 circumstances there was no rest fer
| net. put IL was comfortable all around to
Pielehu sne was asleep, and everybody
| sloaheu in"ardly to see her reappear Be
lore q; any one could think of anything to
say IN greeting. she called out to Pete
| are you going to the train now wait q
| minute, L am going, too"
! w nat! we sasped, with one voice of he
|
| She turned on us her remarkable aro.
aIesllonins gray eyes. and repeated simply.
Il am going, too"
Ihis wholly unexpected and utterly in
| &C mprehenslble move was more than the
| overtaxed Nervous Woman could endnre
| ana sun Keep up the pretense of not mind
| ing. Sho burst into tears, and sobbing
saio: nat on earth possesses you? How
| care You go alone to meet that awful man /?
| AS likelV as not he will kill you"
or, l guess not" came the answer. cool
| ~; Il haven't told you, because it's all to
be very. very quiet. but Col. Dash and 1
are going to be married the middle of Oc-
| tober."
Married over AGAIN." We barely had
| breath to exclaim
| Yes. married over again; that is the way
to put 1t, If you choose to be reminiscent
| and perfectly exact. All right, Pete"
fete mad called to her to hurry, and with
OUT word further being spoken by any
| bedy we were loft alone, our minds totter-
| ing In the turn affairs had taken Blank
| astonishment possessed Us to the exclusion
| or all our senses until Johnson brought US
| BACK to consciousness with string of
| Spanish words. adding, when he could get
| his emotions down to decent English IF
| that isn't just like woman"'
Possibly the strain of our meeting with
| the colonel was more in our minds than in
our bearing.
| The Second Honeymoon
At all events. he was quite at ease him
| self, and truly he and his betrothed ex-wife
| seemed altogether happy. / nave watched
| them closely the days that have followed
| and l have discovered so much beauty in
| their sweet relation mean some day to re-
| produce 1t in lengthy poem entitled IAN
| ldyl of Mud Hen Lake" Yet 1t is not from
| Mud Hen Lake their courtship derives its
| rare charm: 1t is from their perfect mutual
| understanding. consequent upon their for
| mer union. The technique of their inter-
| course shows practice, and practice makes
| perfect even in the exercise OF love. 1 no.
| tce that when he kisse.; her he never tum-
| hles her hair nor brushes her collar, and
she isn't all the time nagging him to know
| They learned all these things and enough
| else In their previous experience to actual
ly enjoy now a dream of love-not the
| nightmare Of quarrels. injured feelings
spoiled finery, cruel disillusions and bitter
disappointments that a love affair, for lack
| OF proper culture, commonly is. The ad-
| vantages they seem to command over
| levers who have never been married to each
| other once are all the benefits of a post
graduate training in n profession as COM
pared with the struggles of a self-made
| nan. AS for the Zest which love must gain
! from mystery-from the undeveloped and
| unknown, to make a savory meal could an
eXpectant bride find anything more piuuant
| than the thought, He beat me in the past;
| will he break my bones in the future?"
And the prospective groom, what sharper
spice could man want than not to know,
Does she truly love again such a husband
as proved myself, or does she seek to wed
me in some scheme she has for getting
even?"
I'll tell you this in confidence
After realizing the possibilities of love as
revealed by Col Dash and the Woman with
a History, none but a previous husband
PAULINE PRY.