The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1896-06-04

WAS selling in thousands, despite the
fact that it didn't even hint at the
Seventh commandment, and hadn't a
chapter that either the British matron
or the young person could condemn
Openly with a view to dwelling fondly
on it in secret.
The reviewers already called their no.
tices of his work appropriations" and
were almost falling over each other in
their haste not to be last or least loud in
his praise. Far-seeing editors were
competing for his nnwritten works, and
literary agents were scheming subtly
for the honor Of standing between him
and them.
In word, Marcus Agar was the man
of the hour, as other men and women
had been of previous hours. The Vaga-
bonds had entertained him and the au-
thors had dined lnm--and John Stur-
man knew all this, and II he had had all
the wealth OF Kimberly he would have
given il cheerfully TO stand in his shoes,
for he did not possess that priceless
gift of literary expression, that God
given, unlearnable art the want of
which meant to him the difference be.
tween Sylvia's friendship, which had
been his for years, and her love, which
as she had told him, could be given only
TO the twin soul for whose advent hers
was waiting, the ideal she had not yet
met, unless-and as ne looked at Marcus
Agar and thought of that wonderful
book of his, all the evil spirits that turk
behind the rose bushes In the Garden OF
Love seemed to come out of their hiding
places and take possession of his soul.
He made his excuses and got away as
soon as he decently could, because he
wasn't the sort of man who could chat
ter cheerful trivialities when his soul
was full of bitterness, and the earth's
base seemed subtle and the pillars of the
armament rottenness to him.
He was strong, Straightforward,
clean-hearted. clear-headed man, rich,
well read and well educated. but with
mo more romance in his being than was
inspired by his almost lifelong and
now hopeless love for the sister of his
old schoolfellow and friend, Sydney
March, this girl with the soft chestnut
hair and big dreamy gray eyes whom he
had worshiped as a boy and loved as a
mnn, in his own plain. honest manly
fashion-only to learn, as he had learned
but few days before, that tha.
'wretched transcendal soul-theory of
imatrimony of hers was TO condemn him
to stand by and sec her give herself TO
some one else just because he lacked the
one faculty that she placed above all
others.
IL was maddening 10 be SO near and
Yet so far, for, with the confidence born
OF their lifelong friendship. she had
even told him that she liked him so
mitch sin other ways" TINT she really
would have tried 20 love him II she could
and she had said this SO innocently
and SO sweetly that IL had hurt him
more than the most scornful refusal
could have done. for II did not even leave
him the poor consolation Of getting
angry either with her or with himself.
III Mephistopheles had come 20 his
aide just then. as he wns walking home
from March's studio In Edith villas,
West kensington, 10 the big house in
Bolton gardens--which he had made so
beautiful in the hope that sylvin would
one day reign over it--and offered him
that one gift of Marcus Algar's in ex
cnGnge for everything else on the usual
terms, he would have struck the bargain
there and then. coute que coute, for
Sylvia's sakc-end yet. II he had only
"a a
deal nearer to his elbow just thea than
he had any idea of his being.
-Altogethcr his walk home was any