The Redwood gazette., 1897-04-01
Pity for the impulsive young girl in
he fear Of her first love dictated Miss

shepherds s soothing answer.
No, dear; nothing that | do shall
ever separate you from him. You don't
think / could be SO cruel and treacher-
GUS as to do such a thing
The promise had to be many times re.
peated during the days which followed.
Sitting alone in the softly lighted Ii
brary one evening, a sad professional Of
banished dreams and remembrances
passed themselves with intrusive per-
sistence before her backward mental
glance. In final desperation she
turned the light to it's full and took
up the leading society paper from the
table.
For moment only her face flushed
with the light of secret pleasure There,
in clear but dainty Typography, was the
last poem which she had w1Aten. The
next moment her expression mirrored
the changes of anger, grief, moral re-
sentiment and Indignation and finally
betrayed a conflict Of all these i'm
pulses. She leaned back in the chair,
closed her eyes and sat motionless,
without sign Of consciousness save the
tears that escaped from under her long,
dropping eyelashes.
The cause? At the bottom Of the poem
was the signature Phoebe. When at
last she arose from her lethargy she
made hurried examination of more
papers. There she found other of her
poems with the same false signature at
tached. 1t was little sleep or rest that
came to her eyes until she had possessed
herself of the principal elements in her
complication of conscience. These were
that the ambitious mother had placed
the poems with the various editors, leav-
ing the latter with the we'll defined inn
preston that they were the work Of her
daughter. This impression became gen
orally communicated to the social cir
cles in which the Graveses moved and
the compliments which were brought to
the young woman were certainly not re-
PEELED. The invitations and attentions
received by the daughter were flatter-
ing and Mrs. Graves was apparently
happy in the success of her shrewd
movement
One moment Miss Shepherd was ex-
ultant with determination to follow
high sense of duty and reasoned with
herself:
eyes, must expose the whole thing.
It is base, dishonest, oppressive and cor
rupt. It is worse than stealing. 1t will
be an awful ordeal for all, but I must
expose the wickedness of it. - The next
moment she would temper her high de.
termination with the reflection, "But
what about my promise to Phoebe: To
expose that sham would be to put an
end to all relations between Frank Hy-
att and the poor girl. He would despise
her forever and her mother more than
she All their wealth would not weigh
with his impulsive judgment and fine
sense of honor against such hollow
and revolving sham, and it would crush
the child. Then Mrs. Graves bought the
poems and only the signature of
Phoebe was attached, just as any pen
name might have been had it not hap
pened to have been the given name of
her daughter. -
One day, while passing the publica-
tion office of the society paper in which
the poems Of Phoebe had appeared, the
impulse to go in, have an interview with
the editor and end the whole cruel strug-
gle seized her. She entered the corridor
of the building and was walking to the
with the desperate haste of one
fearful that courage might give place to
hesitation when cheerful voice ex-
claimed:
"Oh, Grace! Pardon me for stopping
you, but wish to see you for mo-
ment. Would you mind stepping over to
the Masonic temple moment with me?
We can have an opportunity to chat in
freedom and seclusion on one of those
inviting benches in the corridor of an
upper floor. That place is perpetual
to me. Its height seems to
provoke in me corresponding elevation
of thought. do some of my best think
ing on those benches, where I can peer
over the rail into the depths below
She silently acceded to his sugges-
tion.
''fsn't that as artistic as an old fash
ioped hearthside settle?'' he asked as
they took seats on one Of the oak
benches. First he continued, 81
want to tell you Of the disgusting trick
that the Graveses are guilty Of. You may
not know it, but I was out to luncheon
with the editor Of Society the other day
and he, told me that
"Yes, T know all about that inter-
rupted his companion.
"You do! Well, shouldn't have
been surprised, for it's just like your
generosity and forbearance to suffer a
thing like that for the sake of others
and the fear Of injuring their feelings.
But wouldn't have your conscience
net for an interest in The Century Mag
azine or a bicycle manufactory. It sim
ply sickened me, and I've not been to
their house since, you know.
''But, Grace, that isn't beginning
Of what I want to say to you. Let me
finish now. Ever since you tied my red
scarf for me at recess that winter day
in the old Gray Willow schoolhouse
have known that I loved you But am
bition has kept me out Of the kingdom