Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1896-01-06
THE PLAUIARIST.

which shows how my brother Herbert
nearly won the privilege of providing for
the keep Of Hiss Mary Ashton, our cousin,
for the term of her unnatural life She,
however now Crn1ments anOther'S hume,
and Herberts he.tt is dead. My bro, hcr
had q heart in those days, though he was
old enough to know better. 1t was q kind
of hobby with him.
Herbert had long loved Miss Ashton,
literally from afar, she being sublimely
long and he more than common squat.
/ However this defect he shared with Cupid
| himself who is always represented as di-
minutive and podgy, and Mary, really
think, was not ayerse to my brothers suit,
| for she frequently dropped smiles on the
top of his tall hat, much to it's wearers
| content She also said she would not hear
| d word against him. This was generally
| when there was nothing more to say
Even a bishop could find something funny
to say of q short man. Nevertheless, Her
bert was happy under the smiles of his be-
loved.
But, alas, there came q day when the
smiles were directed elsewhere and Her
bert found that Mary could never be more
than d sister to him. 1t was astonishing
to hear him recite this declaration of hers
as choice specimen of feminine feeling
and originality. Young as l was / knew
eral such voluntary relations whose exist
ence 1 had Immediately forgotten. But
Herbert derived q goomy consolation from
this promise of sisterly affection, and even
quoted the length of his neither garments
as ample justification for Mary's decision.
He was certainly petite and magnanimity
was strong within him.
The wrecker of my brothers hopes was
none other than Eric Frodsham, whom
you may recognize as the author OF certain
chaotic pieces of literary composition. We
had known Frodsham as q distant ac
quaintance for a long time and had
watched the tortuous trouble Of his liter
airy career In the beginning when the
world was young Frodsham wrote plain,
clear novels, which were q lasting joy to
his statiOner, to whom the selling of pa
pers was high mission in life. These
works for the most part blushed unseen
on Frodshams table till their author sue
ceeded them with wea1d work, the title
of which, "A Secret Vow" was the only
Ineligible part of the volume. Probably
for this reason the book was an instan
taneous success, and Frodsham was a &C.
lebrity. He was interviewed and we all
recognized in his conversation the good
things we had said to him in times past.
Mary then fell in love with him and joined
our family as a sister to Herbert. We APP
preciated her kindness.
Ny BROTH at this time was emineDtly
depressing as q companion, and gloom
was imprisoned in the cOrrugations of his
brow
One day he came to me in a state of
virtuous wrath, waving a daily paper
round his head. He was speochless with
Indignation, so l relieved him of the jour
nal and discovered the cause of his excite
mcnt Some clever person had read "A
Secret Vow" and in Il letter TO The Her
aid had pointed out that that work was an
unblushing plagiarism Of an unknown
novel, published anonymously some years
previously under the title of 'On His
Oath Frodsham had evidently been
guilty of literary theft.
1.-The scroundrel,' - said my brother at
length. Hes stolen somebody else's
brains and my love. He's nothing more
than thief. I'll expose him to Mary
''Where is Frodsham?' / asked.
'On his way to New York. But I can't
let that high minded girl remain fettered
to such a villain, can 1? I'll tell her at
once, in case she haslSAe heard the news
Better not" L remarked. eff she
loves Frodsham she won't thank you. Let
things take their course
But Herbert didn't. He told Miss Ash
ton there and then, and that young lady
listened to the tale. She expressed herself
as being greatly shaken and unable to de-
eide what to do. She also wondered about
the deceit of man, which impressed Her
bert. Finally she told my brother he ght
call and see her, and he returned to me
beaming. Incidentally he referred to
Fordsham as ''poor DEVIL Herbert was
magnanimity itself.
Mary smiled sweetly, but sadly, as an
angel whose wing had been broken by a
pie pitied her, Herbert especially, who
lured her to take an interest in the world
by going to theaters with him. had for
gotten to mention that my brother was
we'll to do, though short.
For a broken hearted girl Mary was
fairly jolly, and I commented upon the
fact. Herbert explained that he was tax
ing her out of herself This meant taking
her into places of amusement
One fatal day (fatal to my brothers love
story in it's second and enlarged edition) I
bought The Herald to read the daily in
stallment of indignant correspondence on
the subject of the now famous plagiarism.
And this is what 1 read:
SIR-I have on my return to New York just
received various copies of your widely read
journal, which have been awaiting me. am
much astonished to become acquainted for the
first time with the storm which has blown up
in my absence apropos of my work, ga Secret
VOW" Permit to make a tardy apology
to the public through the medium of your ex-
tensively circulated columns by stating that
in celebrating the story ''On His Oath, - which
appeared some years ago, into my successful
book should have acknowledged my indebt-
edness to the former novel and have avowed
myself, as do now, your obedient servant,
it's author, ERIC FRODSHAM.
Poor HERBERT He is still single.-Bos-
ton Post.
Chance In Matching.
Two men matched coins for the fare on