The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1897-06-05
CHAPTER Xiv.

Xiv.
Catherine listened to the fall of water in
the basin of the fountain. She was con-
scious of a faint hope-a hope unworthy of
her-that Kitty might get weary of the gold
fishes, and might interrupt them. No such
thing ~happened;l stranger appeared OH
the path which wound through the garden.
She was alone with him. The influences of
the still and fragrant summer evening were
influences which breathed of love.
Have you thought of me since yesterday"
he asked, gently.
She owned that she had thought of him.
as there nc hope that your heart will ever
incline toward me?"
u daren't consult my heart. II Ill only
to consider my own feelings" She stop
ped.
What else have you to consider"
MY past life,how l have suffered, and
what l have to repent Of"
Has your married life not been a happy
one?." he asked.
Not a happy one-in the end" she an
swered.
Through no fault of yours, l am sure?'
Through no fault of mine, certainly"
And yet you said Just now that you had
something to repent oi?'
II was not thinking OF my husband, Capt.
Bennydeck, when l said that. If l have i'll
jured any person, the person is myself"
She was thinking OF that fatal concession
to the advice of her mother and to the inter-
ests OF her child which placed her iii a false
position toward The honest man who loved
her and trusted her. Ii he had been less in
nocent in the ways of the world, and not so
devotedly fond of her, lie might, little by lii,
$ln lnva ,,oro,otal p, tkn,i,,n u, r,,, tI,, ,i.j,
of shocking him by a confession of the truth.
AS 1t was, his confidence in l. y raised him
high above the reach of suspicious which
might have occurred to other men. He saw
her turn pale; he saw distress in her face.
which he interpreted as Il silent reproach to
him for the questions that he had asked. Il
hope you will forgive me" he said, simply.
She was astonished. What have l to for
glre?:"
MY want OF delicacy."
ooh, Capt. Bennydeck, you speak of one
of your great merits as if it was a fault
Over and over again l have noticed your deli.
cacy, and admired it,"
He was too deeply in earnest to abandon
his doubts of himself.
II have ignoralitly led you to think of your
sorrows,'' he said; sorrows that ! cannot
console. l don't deserve to be forgiven.
May / make the one excuse in my power?
May I speak of myself?:"
She told him by a gesture that he had made
a needless request.
"The life have led" he resumed, ''ac-
counts, perhaps, in some degree, for what is
deficient in me. AT school | was not a pop
ular boy; l only made one friend, and he
has long since been numbered with the dead.
or my life at college. and afterwald in Lon
don, l dare not speak to YOU; l look back at
it with horror. My school friend decided my
choice of a profession; he went into the
navy. After awhile, not knowing what else
to do, l followed his example. l liked the
life-l may say the sea saved me. For years
l was never Oh shore for more than a few
weeks at a time. l saw nothing of society;
l was hardly ever in the company of ladies
The next change in my life associated INT
with an arctic expedition. God forbid
should tell you of what men go through whit
are lost in the regions OF eternal ice! lie,
me only say | was Observation-Disclosures,
preserved-to profit by that dreadful expert,
ence. 1t made a new man of me-; it altered
me Il hope for the better into what | All
now. Oh, / feel that l ought to have kept
my secret yesterday-l mean my daring II
love you. l should have waited till you knew
more OF me; till my conduct pleased you
nerliaps, and spoke for me. You Won
laugh, l am sure, ii l confess lat my aye
that ! am inexperienced. Never till / me
YOU have l known what true love is-ant
this is at 40 years old. How some peopl
would laugh! And yet it seems melanchol,
10 me-"
No; not melancholy"
Her voice trelnbled. Agitation, which i
was not n pain but a luxury to feel, wa
gently taking possession of her. Where al
other man might lave seen that her tender
ness was getting the better of her discretion
and might have presumed on the discovery
this man, innocently blind to his own intel
ests, never even attempted to take advantag
OF her. No more certain way could hay
been devised by the most artful lover o
touching the heart of a generous woman AM
making it his own. The influence eXerte,
over Catherine by the virtues OF B%ennydeck'
character-his unaffected kindness. his mar
ly sympathy, his religious convictions S
deeply felt, so modestly restrained iron
claiming notice-had been steadily increa.
ing in the intimacy of daily intercourse
Catherine had never felt his %ascendancy Owe
her as strongly rs she felt it now. BY fill
degrees the warning remembrances whic
had hitherto made her hesitate lost their hol
on her memory. Hardly conscious lerse,
of what she was doing, she began to scare
his feelings i'll his own presence. Such iON
as his had been unknown in her experience
the luxury Of looking into it and sounding
to its lnmoSt depths was more than the NC
mans nature could resist.
81 think you hardly do yourself justice,
she said. Surely you don't regret hayin
felt for me so truly when l told you yeste
day that my old friend had deserted mepV
mo, indeed!"
"Do you like to remember that you slov
ed no jealous curiosity to know who IN
friend was:"
II should have been ashamed of myself
l had asked the. question:
, And did you believe that l had a GOO
: motive-a motive which you might yourse
have approximation not telling you til
name of that friendT'
as he some one whom l knoww
: Ought you to ask nj that after what
have just said?"
; pray forgive me! / spoke without thin
, ing"
II can hardly believe it when l rememb,
. how you spoke to me yesterday. l cou
never have supposed, before VIC became 4
!, Qnainted with each other, that 1t was in Il
= : nature Of a man to understand me so pc
: fectly, to be so gentle and so considerate
!, feeling for my distress. You confused me
little, ! must own, by what you said ate
! ward. But [ IN not sure that ! ought to
. severe i'll blaming you. Sympathy mei
such sympathy as yours-sometimes 81
> more than discretion can always approx
II Have you not found it so yoursc!fw
u 81 have found it so with YOU"
), And perhaps l have shown a little t
y plainly how dependent l am On you-ho
dreadful it would be to me il ] lost you, to
as a friend?"
She blusfed as she said it. When Il
y words had escaped her, she felt that tlit
y might bear another meaning than the simp
meaning which she had attached to thel
He took her hand; his doubts of himself, Ii
d needless fear of offending her, restrained hi
} no longer.
You can never lose me-" he said. "if y,
will only let me be the nearest friend that
woman can have. Bear with Inc, dearest!
ask for SO much; l have SO little to offer
return; / dream of a life with you which
'e perhaps too perfectly happy to be enjoy
on earth. And yet, l cannot resign MY q
10 I,,,in, Nuuf nj, ~ nnnr I, 40 ri a ,un va 1n,,u 1