The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1896-10-30

y
her eyes and mutiny In her soul.
Why should she be left to eat out
her heart like this, she demanded of
herself. Better the distractions of her
old life thousand times. He regret
ted their marriage, and she, too. re-
gretted 1t. Well, then, he could lead
his own life, and she would lead hers.
She would 60 to the "Audacity" the
| very next morning, and try for re-
| nowI The sooner the wiser. To-mor-
row might be too late.
She ran into the bedroom her hus-
band had just vacated, and hastily
| proceeded to don her cloak and hat.
In fastening the latter. she dropped
| the pin, and, STOPPING for it found
| that it had fallen on the jacket he had
exchanged for a dress coat
She picked them both up together.
and a note fell out of the jacket pock-
eta note in a woman's handwriting,
which began "My Ducky."
She was not a heroine, only very
| natural girl, and she read the note
through from the address to the sig
| nature When she had finished the
perusal, she took the cloak and hat
| off again and sat down In the armchair,
thinking, until Mr.. Capel returned.
1t was 1 o'clock when the street door
was unlocked, and his steps were heard
ascending the stairs. Mrs. Capel stood
up, with the note in her hand.
"You should be more careful" she
| said, "or perhaps, since you regretted
your marriage so deeply, you were
anxious I should assist you to regain
your freedom. I promise to do my
best"
Are you mad?"
NO." she said, Il am very sane.
We have both made a desperate mis-
take and my eyes are open to it. Six
| r,onths ago should have been pros
trate with misery to find you false
| to me. To-day 1 thank heaven for my
chance of escape. l IAN divorce you
and I mean to do it"
"You are mistaken" he answered
sullenly. 81 am sorry to dispel an illu-
son, but you cannot diverce me.
| may have been false to you, but
have never been cruel. You are my
wife, and you will have to continue
So"
81 will not live with you another
day"
"Oh, that may be, but my wife you
are, and will remain. Any lawyer
will tell you as much"
She broke down then and wept pas
sionateiy; and clumsily. because he
was ashamed of himself, he stroye to
console her. His efforts, however,
were quite unayailing, and after aban-
doning the attempt in despair and seek
ing refuge In pipe, he left her to her,
self and turned into bed.
When he woke the next morning she
was gone. He must have slept sound
ly. for her box was packed and her
| preparations had not disturbed him.
A letter lay on the table beside him.
and reading it he saw this she had
left him forever. On the whole, he
was relieved to learn 1t, and he was
not surprised, in the course of three
or four days, to see her name announc-
ed as a member of the forthcoming
Audacity burlesque. Well, the episode
was over. He had tried most things
and found them a failure before es-
saying matrimOny, and marriage had
proved as empty as the rest. There
was nothing now 10 prevent him re-
suming, without restrictions, the more
Junfettered life he ha6 forsaken at the
temptation of little Myra Bromley's
pertty face.
He would clear out OF tie Maddox
street lodging and take a couple of
rooms somewhere en- gar~on. He bal
ancer his cash and decided that he
was justified in treating himself to
well-chosen little dinner and a music
hall afterward. AS for M~ra, he did
not want any more to do with her. She
had left him, and he did not intend to
think of her again. 1t was his ire
ward" he told himself bitterly, for
marrying her-her recriminations and
desertiOn. He felt that he had been
guilty Of a certa'n Fing Cophetua no.
bility in making her his wife at all,
when No, he could not dupe him.
self about that. She had been hon
est enough, but it had been a mesalli-
ance, and when a man made a mesalli-
ance the least he had-a right to look
for in return was gratitude and devo-
tion. Bah! If he were wise he would
go down to the theater and box her ears
in the presence of a witness or two.
and let her get her divorce after all.
On the whole, he thought he would.
Let the account close-wipe 1t out-ob-
literate it. Hang her!
Whether he would or would not have
don, so in the ordi: ary course of
events, however, there Is no means of
determining He did not, as things
turned out, because, while he was still
considering 1t, Myra Bromley made
sudden and unexpected leap into pub
lie favor and comm .nded in thc course
of very few months salary Of first
f25, next E3O and ther ESQ a week. Mr.
Capel. his ire exhausted, perceived that
In Kidding himself of wife on whom
he had right to levy handsome con-
tributions, he would be-to use an ex-
pressive vulgarism-pulling his nose to
spite his face.
His circumstances. thanks t. the ILL.,
ness Of the principal" into whose
shoes the fortunate little "understudy"
had stepped, were now vastly i'm
proved. He took cry cozy chambers,
indeed, called on his tailor. and was
no longer ashamed to sun himself in
Piccadilly between the hours of and
5. His correspondence with the goose
10 laid the golden eggs was rare and
brief, but sometimes, when his allow
ance failed to suffice for his weekly re-
quirements, he dropped a polite re-
quest for an additional "tenner," and