The Van Buren press. [volume] (Van Buren, Ark.) 1859-1914, 1896-06-06

20 to the hospital. but those two women
1enew they had me where vas defense
less, and they only laughed at me when
/ growled. ard fed me On dainties when
I was taeffurn and silent. didn't want
10 eat their truck. but my appetite wss
something, and it forced me to over
come any prejudice I might have
formed
Later my cousins wife's sister toox
to reading to me, and she compelled me
To listen to her because she did have ex-
eel1eHt taste in the matter Of books and
could read exceedingly well. Is to her
voice. IT was the sweetest ever heard,
but Of course she could have 10 credit
for that. She was born with 1t.
Occasionally the members Of the CO.
terie visited me. but not often. as tie
very presence of women was disagree
able 70 them. They condoled with me
however, and together We trowned upon
Providence for thus throwing me into
the hands Of the enemy.
As time went by and my cousins
Wife's sister continued to read to me
ttnconsciously grew into the habit Of
| looking at her sitting on the low chair
near me, with her head bending over
the book. and began TO wonder what
she used on her hair to make It 80 way
and glossy. and when she would look up
occasionally and smile IN response 10 a
| laugh or remark of mine at something
she had read I would have a queer kind
Of feeling, as If we're threatened with
some kind Of heart trouble.
One day asked the doctor about IT
and he actually grinned. I say
@grinned,7 because mean ..grinned. !"
1t wasn't the kindly smile Of the physi-
can TO a pctulant patient, but grin;
and would have thrown him out of the
window had been In my usual health
and strength
The first day / walked out on my
crutches my cousins wffe's sister ae-
companied me. and / think / leaned
more on her than I did on the crutch.
/ am sure / did, as far as the crutch on
the side next to her was concerned.
During the first two or three weeks
of my imprisonment / had longed for
the time when / could get out once
more and Join the coterie: then / be-
gan to think less about it, and note.
when I was ready to start forth ON my
journey once more, a free man. somehow
felt that was losing something.
couldn't quite understand it. and.
after my lately acquired fashion of re-
lying upon my cousins wife's sister.
asked her about it.
Well. IL vou will believe me, was
never more surprised in my life than |
was at the result Of this simple question
on my cousins wifc's sister. She
blushed and stammered and said her
sister wanted her right away. and
just stood still in my amazement. She
had always been such help to me. and
now, In little matter like this to go all
TO pieces. almost made me lose conf
1ence IN her. Then She looked up at me
and al Of a sudden / felt that old heart
trouble come back and-and-and-
hope it IS not necessary for me to go
into particulars. Suffice it to say that
between my cousins wife's sister and
myself We managed to have the matter
satisfactorily explained.
But there was the coterie and there
were those internal resolutionsi What
fool man can make of himself when
he is left to his own devices passes
finite comprehension and almost crowds
the infinite to the wall. 7, Thomas Tom
mingion. the chief. had basely betrayed
my trust, and concealment for long was
impossible. But quickly determined
that concealment was my only hope,
aud with this hope in my bosom | at
tended thc cotcrie's banquet in honor
Of my restoration to the charmed circle
What hollow moclSery that restora-
ton was!
| was there and at the head Of the
table, as befitted my relation to the
coterie, but my spirits were elsewhere.
Still put bold face on myself, and APP
plauded to the echo every anti-female
sentiment that was uttered. Ieyen pro-
posed toast myself to the utter obliter-
alton of women. / thought it best to
draw 1t strong, and did. However, at
nine o'clock pleaded that was not yet
strong enough to join in the late fes-
tiyities, so | withdrew. and, shameless
wretch that ! was, / hurried to my
Cousins house and satup until IL o'clock
with my cousins wife's sister.
At the next melting of the coterie !
began to feel that | was under suspi-
cion. Perhaps II was merely n guilty
conscience, but | bought my bachelor
friends cooled when appeared among
them. | know that when John Tenn
pie proposed the toast; Earth would
be Heaven without women" and did
not empty, my glass; every member
present looked directly at me and then
at each other. Any person of the most
ordinary scnsitiyeness knows how he
feels under such circumstances.
AS time went by and suspicion grew
apacc it became evident to me that
must ret out of the coterie. There was
no other honorable course left me. /
could see there was no longer har-
mony, and when rend our resolutions.
as | did religiously at every meeting.
they were greeted with silence Each
man suspected the other; each man
seemed to have secret that was burn
ing him. II was evident that was the
Jonah, and proposed TO maks sac
rifice of myself to save the others.
AZ the next meeting, therefore, when
the time had come to open the exer-