Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1896-06-03


situation was quite beyond my compre-
hension. But then. 1t was passion and
not logic that dictated her words. How
ever. l looked upon myself as justly
arraigned culprit, and bowed my head
TO the storm, hoping against hope for
revulsion jn her feelings, for tears and
imDlorinS hands. But when she had
made an end. she stood calm, self-pos-
sessed. scOrnful, | made a last effort.
| was eloquent, for my heart was full
Of pride, and pity and hope. l declared
myself ready TO forego the fortune;
would work al my art till won success.
She should be my nurse. my comforter
But she only tossed her head and sheer
eG, Love in a cottage. know what that
means Ny love then turned 10 bitter
ness. for | also knew that when women
sneer at romance, they forsake their
very womanliness. they harden their
hearts. She marked the change, and
pointed to the door
Not word. sir. Go! Go, Let me
see you no more. Go your way and l
will go mine. My friends will protect
me from you.
lUullu Aia Stll III A4AN oNANNNt ~ h~AA
ed, dazed, stupid with conflicting emo
tiODs. Was this the woman | had low
ed 50 dearly-this the Margaret for
whom l was ready, If needs be, TO en-
brace poverty? Poverty The man
who is poor has no friends; on friend
ship let no man count when fortune is
adverse. And the love that'is stronger
than death was evidently
unable to face poverty. Margaret's
love. Clearly she had none, or she
wouldn't have reproached me, abandon
ed me at the very frs, trial. | shook
myself together, promised myself to
forget her. She was not very worthy
Of remembrance; she was merely an ad-
ventures, a bad woman"
"A year wena by devoid of incident,
| occupied with fitful exerti0n. Unhap-
py, only too often absent-minded, that
is TO say. haunted, | yet made good
progress in my art. Besides time and
work. there were two other remedies
! FOR love-madness, / kept telling myself.
But | found that absence did not ag-
| gravate the malady. That which is alb
/ sent grows vague, and that which is
vague has the charm of mystery.
I Absence idealized Margaret, absence
endeared her once more to me. | be-
/ gan 70 seek excuses for her conduct;
became anxious 10 pardon, TO convert
blame into pity, and from pity to pass
/ to love. The sole other remedy was
| scOrn-dOuOtless the strongest remedy
/ of ALL | sccrned her truly, but inter-
| mittently; too often my scorn sought
means for abdicatiOn. And thus II
came about that l began in my weak
/ ness to yearn for news from her. But
how could 1 forgive? At last l deter
| mined TO hear news Of her, if not from
| her; | should least commit myself by
| such a course of action. She had de-
! clared her intention OF going to her
4 friends. But she had none in London.
/ in England; our privacy forbade the
/ cultivation of acquaintanceS. France,
/ then? Margaret's pupil-friend, and
this friends brother had indeed visited
us not long before / would write TO
Picardy. inQuiring as calmly, as nat
! urailv as possible Nine. B would
! possibly be prejudiced against me, and
return no answer. However. | deter
mined to write; and a week later | re-
ceived a reply, a mere line, a single
phrase: TOO late. What was the
! meaning of such a missive? DID Nine.
I B. wish TO express her blame chow
could she blame me0, or to signify
coldly that she would not enter into
| communication with me? | would go
myself TO Picardy, request an inter-
view. hear and see how the case stood.
THE second day found me in Picar-
dy. Nine. B received me strange
/ ". 1t seemed to me as though she
/ feared to see me. Evidently she knew
something which she was reluctant 10
reveal. At length | drew from her
some stammering phrases which sent
the blood coursing madly through my
veins. She had just received news,
| bad news-her son Gaston-my wife
at a small fishing village together,
What did she mean | faltered. l
knew that this CASTOR was a handsome
| somewhat like his sister, l remem-
bered). thoughtless lad-very French,
no doubt, in morals. Gas,on-my
wife? | was not conceited, but | could
hardly believe that. Yet | was at least
ten years older than this STRIPPING, and
NV wife not much less. Mature wO-
men were prone to idealize the image
of youth: women We're tickle. Cyni-
cism mastered me; | remembered my
uncle's lesson. Men cannot judge
what il is that catches a woman's eyes,
and causes that which she calls her
heart 10 flutter.
And yet, how could it be? She had
treated the fellow merely as the brother of
his sister-playfuuy, indifferently. But she
had been a grass widow for year, and
no doubt felt her loneliness. Some such
reasonings. if I can call them reasonings,
occupied me as I STROBE backward and for
ward under the watchful. alarmed eyes Of
Nine. B. THE name OF the village I
demanded roughly. Would I abstain from
violence? she questioned. I was an Eng
Hshman and a gentleman l rejoined; and
such a wife was unworthy that 1 should
take the law into my own hands on her
behalf. And thereat I broke down and
sobbed Patience. patiencer murmured
Nine. B. vainly striving to ap2ease. to
comfort me in my distress.
Next day reached the lovely fishing
village horrible in its Haunting beauty
and made inquiries at the sole inn. Yes,
the lady and gentleman 1 described had
stayed a week there. but had left yester-
day. and gone to another village 20 miles
down the coast. y pretty couple, the land
lady garrulously assured me- the gentle
man rather too young. perhaps; but they
seemed to dOte on each other. Not afraid
10 make other folks euv;ous. I cut the
good woman short I'm the flow of her adj
miring details. flung down coin. and i'm