Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1897-04-10

l one met Nun Hail WAY anu disH tFtl rs IL a.
mind was quite at ease.
mo, dear, Pm not tired--but I'm glad I
get back"
did you find your old landlady still
alive?"
Yes. But oh, 80 ALTERED. poor thingl The
struggle for life must have been 4 hard one
since | last saw her"
"She didn't recognize you. vi ceHr7a?'
"Ohl no. She lookcl tire artli dress
In great surprise. End said ! iOd-mg r.ro
hardly III Tor "a young lady Ike me. Ii was
too sad. | said I had kn0wi her lodgings
well, many years agO-and, with that to pre-
pare her, / told heT who ! was. Al, il was
a melancholy meeting for both Of us. She
burst out crying when l kissed her, and 1
had to tell her that my mother was dead and
my brother lost TO me in spite OF every effort
to find him. j asked to go into the kitchen,
thinking the change would be a relief to both
OF us. The kitchen used to be q paradise to
me In those old days: il was SO warm To a
half-staryed child-aDd | always got some
thing to eat when | was there. You have no
idea, Herbert, how poor and how empty the
place looked TO me now. | was glad to get
out of il and go upstairs. There was a lum-
ber-rOOm at the top of the house; | used to
play in ii, all by myself. More changes met
me the moment | opened the door"
Changes for the better?'
MY dear, it couldn't have changed for the
worse! Ny dirty old play-room was cleaned
and repaired, the lumber taken away, and q
nice little bed in one corner. Some clerk in
the city had taken the room-I shouldn't
have known IL again. But there was anoth-
er surprise waiting for me-; a happy surprise
this time. In clearing oct the garnet, what
do you think the iandlady found? Try TO
guess"
Anything TO please her! Anything to
make her think that he was as fond of her
as ever! was ii something you had left
behind YOU he said, 'at tire time when you
lodged there?'
YES. you are right at the first guess-a
ittle memorial of my father. Only some
torn, crulnpled leaves from a book OF chill
dren's songs that he used 10 teach me 10 sing:
and a small packet of his letters, which my
mother may have thrown aside and forgot
ten. See! / have brought them back with
me; ! mean to look over the letters at once
but this doesn't interest you"
Indeed it does"
lie made that considerable reply mechan-
ically, as If he was thinking of something
else. She was afraid 10 tell him plainly that
she ssw this; but she could venture to say
that he was not looking well. II have no.
ticed il for some time past" she confessed.
You have been accustomed to live in tie
country l am afraid London doesn't agree
with You"
lie admitted that She might be right; still
speaking absently. still thinking of the d.
vorce. She laid the packet of letters and
the poor relics of the old song-book on the
table and bent over him. Tenderly and a
little timidly she put her arm round his neck.
Let us try some purer ali, she suggested:
'the seaside might do you good. Don't you
think SOP
II daresay, my dear. Where shall We goY'
'Oh, / leave that to YOU"
NO, Sydney. Ii was / who proposed
coming to London. You shall decide this
time
She submitted ana promised 20 think of il.
Leaving him with the first expression of
trouble that had shown itself in her face she
took up the songs and put them into the
pocket of her dress. On the point Of remoy-
ing the letters next. She noticed the news
paper on the table. Anything interesting
t~o-iay?' she asked, and drew the newspaper
wv ltl ~ WIN ~ u - AtNh u wi ltA
su~ddenly-alm0st roughly. The next mo-
ment he apologized for his rudeneSs. There
is nothing worth reading in the paper" he
said, after begging her pardon. 'you don't
care about politics, do your
Intead OF answering she looked at him at
tentiyely.
The heightened color, which told OF recent
exercise. healthily enjoyed, faded from her
-. 81, .-a~ .sla.4. 1l.o r~ae ,ula A I..ia
confused, he smiled uneasily. surely" he
resumed. trying to speak gayly, Il haven't
offended your
''There is something in the newspaper"
she said, which you don't want Inc to read"
lie denied it-but he still kept the news
paper in mis- own possession. Her voice sank
low; her face turned paler still.
lis 1t all oyer?' she asked. And is it put
In the newspaper"
wv hat do you meant
~ mean the divorce"
He went back again to the window and
looked out 1t was the easiest excuse that
he could devise for keeping his face turned
away from her. She followed him.
81 don't want TO read it, Herbert. I only
ask YOU 10 tell me If you are a free man
again"
Quiet as it was, her tone left him no alter.
native but TO treat her brutality or to reply.
Still looking ont al the street, he said YES"
Free TO marry, if you Iike?' she persisted.
lie said yes" once more-and kept his
face steadily turned away from her. She
waited awhile. He neither moved nor spoke.
Surviving the slow death little by little OF
all her other illusions, one last hope had lin
gered in her heart 1t was killed by that
cruel look, liked ON the view Of the street.
'Fll try to think OF a place that WI can 90
TO at the seaside" Having said those words
she slowly moved away TO the door, aud
turned back, remembering the packet Of let
tiers. She took it up, paused, and looked to-
ward the window. The street still interested
him She left the room.