Maryland independent. [volume] (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1874-current, 1897-02-05

which nature had LETT wanting. She
often argued with herself that their
existence together in that house was
a proofth purely platonie friendship
can exist between a man and woman
il they are intellectual people. 1t
IVES false argument, and she knew it,
for her love for him tof which lie
never for a moment suspected) was
eating her strength away day by day,
and undermining her constitution.
She had his undivided attention, and
he was fond of her, but the fact that
she was woman, and not much over
thirty, had never really forced itself
on his mind. and certainly not on his
feelings. A man, if he could have
made himself as useful and as com
parionable, could have taken her
place.
One day the peace of Haonah's life
was broken by the coming OF a cousin,
an orphan like herself, who had
written and asked Hannah 10 give her
home while she looked for work.
Hannah wrote and welcomed her with
bitter misgiving at heart. She had to
toll night and day to make money to
pay for food enough for herself and
her lodger.
Madeline came, and, like hot wind
passing over sensitive plant, she
withered up Hannah's courage. She
was young, and the beauty of her ami
NAL health was startling. She stood
in Hannah's humble parlor in the
MONDAY sunlight, straight as a young
palm tree and beautiful in symmetry,
pulsing, tingling piece of flesh and
blood, coiored like pale pink reony.
Hannah felt herself prov colder as sho
looked at her. Madcline's eyes vera
so blue that if you came into the gar
den and she was there it was her two
germanders fringed with black that
caught your notice, and her childishly
perfect teeth closed tight when she
laughed, and her passionate lips quiy-
cred into smiles. Blue eyes such as
Madeline's, and white young teeth
alone can make face provoking TO
the dullest sensibilities when she in
troduced herself lblushing for her own
prettiness) to the elderly party he
cursed the white teeth in his heart and
blamed the beauty of her eyes for he
knew not what. And poor Hannah,
whose eyes had had color in thep
once, with growing numbness at her
heart for her own plainness in con-
trast, followed the pink flower that
moved so glibly about the haHse, Civ
ing her the best that lay in her power,
marvelling at her cousins beauty.
which was after all principally the
result OF perfect health ana and self
ish disposition.
Weeks passed into months, and
Madeline had planted herself firmly in
the house Hannah could no. turn her
out, and she never suggested going,
and never made any serious attempt TO
get work. Her orphan and penniless
condition served her as useful means
of appealing to the sympathy Of the
"elderly party" AS time went on,
Hannah saw less and less of her lolser,
her cousin appropriated as her charge
his study and laboratory, and it was
bitterness and gall to Hannah to see
her administer to him all the little at
tentions which she had been wont to
perform, and the last straw was that
Madeline talked as if she gave enough
help 10 fully repay Hannah for her
room and keep.
Hannah. with her heart smarting at
The bitter injustice of things, couli
not tell her that she was day by day
robbing her of all that made life bear
able. Madeline had taken to using
the ''elderly party's" study as her sit
ting room; il was more attractive
than the prim parlor downstairs; and
when Hannah was hard at work dur
ing the hot August days-days that
made her look paler and palmer than
ever, her cousin would sit reading a
novel in her fayorite basket chair,
with her feet up on the rungs of an
other-a pretty picture of ease and
comfort. She never forgot to look up
at intervals, with cat-llke something
in her blue eyes AMI in her soft, pur.
ring voice, and say 10 her companion,
Don't you wish that Hannah would
stop fussing and come and sit down."
And as, when woman is partieu.
larly busy, man generally does think
she is "iussing" and choosing to do
something totally unnecessary. the
'elderly party" came 10 look upon it
as quite natural that Madeline should
bo his hourly companion, and that
she should sit in an easy chair while
Hannah, hot and weary in mind and
body, should toll and strive for them
both.
After Madeline had been with them
three months Hannah's lodger came
into fortune. 1t was not large
one, but it wouli enable him TO live
in ease and comfort for the rest of his
life. When Hannah heard the good
news, what she-dreaded most did not
happen. He did not suggest moving
into more luxurious lodgings; he
seemed to consider himself fixture in
the old wainseoted room with its cot
tage window and old oak floor but he