The Press., 1898-09-29

anything you say to me. I'm interested in 1t all When man is manly and pa- triotic, his life is always interesting to me We all have our sorrows. and it's . relief to tell them occasionally. Did you say your wife is no longer with you?''
 Blundering as this speech may seem to e mind which seeks and finds hidden motives, it was sufficient to satisfy the simple son of Hancock county. so he continued:
 Yes, sir, it's over three months since I saw her. Understan, now, I ain't blamin her at all. She was young an pretty an full of life, an SO I'd jes' rath- CT to think of it all as a big mistake. For little time after we was married she seemed to be happy, but then mo- ticed that she didn't pear to take the same interes' in things It was jes' aft CT she had spent the day at Sulphur Springs with lot of young folks. drove her over there to picnic one mornin an then come for her in the evenin. There were a dozen or more girls there an several young men from the cities, but there warn't none of 'em could touch her when it comes to looks. She seemed to enjoy bein with 'em so much that couldn t help kinder standin rouEd an lookin on for awhile, but then hurried on back, for had lot of h>ein to look after.
 "Well, sir, was the proudest man in the world when went back there for her that night. Everybody crowded round, even the old ladies, an told me what a pretty dancer Mary was All the young folks in the country was there. but Mary was the populares' of 'em all. They wouldn't hear to our drivin back then, but made us both come right in to supper. didn't exact ly calculate on doin this, but Mary looked like she wanted to, so I did They tried to make me dance, but I don't know how. It was the openin of a new summer hotel, you know. A young fellow that set next to me at the table an was mighty polite in handin me everything sand he was gonter be there at the hotel for some time, an that we mus come round often. Of course I asked him to come see us too. He was pretty glib talker. When we was leavin an tellin everybody goodby and promisin to come again soon, l heard @ lady from New York say to an other one, Wouldn't she be a queen with the right trainin?' We got in the spring wagon an drove home, an she was jes' all excitement tellin me what time they had that day an how ought to learn to dance.
 "Two days after some ladies drove round in their carriages an asked her to go to the Springs with 'em again. .4She H ious to have her go she went with them. They drove back after supper, her and the two ladies an a young man, an they all told me ought to have been there. That night she seemed kinder unres'less- She talked heap bout the nice things they'd all said bout her at the Springs, but mostly talked bout how nice it would be if we could go an travel an go to New York an every where, an she said we ought to read books an the like, an that a lady there said what she needed was cultivatin. ''I didn't like this, talkin bout her like she was a field to be plowed up, stead of a flower jes' to grow an bloom natural, an when told her this she jes' laughed an slapped her hands over my mouth. She went to the Springs right regular for a time. Then she wouldn't go no more. Somebody sent her some books-four or five of 'em. She commenced to read one of 'em out loud to me one night Twas a nice story about some rich folks, some art ists. an how they was lovin each other, an the thing they went to, but while l got to hkin the pesky books after awhile, | told her all the time that it was jes' stories an that there wasn't no such folks in Paris or New York or. any where's else. Since she was teachin me, a-readin out loud, I took to teachin her, | tellin her what I thought bout the l books told her that life was 8 reality an that even if there was such people | they wasn't no better of than us cause | there's advantages an disadvantages | everywhere, an it all mounts to bout the same an everything in its place is the best. That's the way I'd write if I wrote books
 Maybe it was readin in them durn books bout the fashion an the wealthy, or maybe it was them people at the | Springs put foolish notions in her head, or maybe it was jes' cause she.come to know she was too good an pretty for 8
 
 to pine an droop like @ flower that s witherin. I'd beg her to go to the Springs an enjoy herself like she was invited to do, but it warn't no use. She wouldn't do it. After bout a week of this thing that same lady from New | York drove up to our gate an asked Mary to come in an pay a visit to her at the Springs She wanted her to stay as long as she would, an then Mary did agree to go an stay 8 week, maxim the condition that was to come to see her every day.
 | Its @ lonesome time had then. l didn't go to see her but three days an every day it seem to me I was unwel- comer than before, so thought better I not go no more an let the chile. enjoy
 her visit. It look to me like the harder
 try to please her the more .things
 would go wrong. Wimmin folks is curious little things, stranger, an a awkward fellow like me don't know | jes' how to handle 'em. I had done mortgaged my farm again an went in town an brought her silks an dresses an gloves les' the right size, an when she see m she jes' cried an said was too good to her. Then1 got her piano,
 but nothin would suit This was befo' she went for the last time to the springs
 The things IS all at home now, but never wants to see them again, an if God spares me I never will. There 6 nothin else to say now, but that lef'
 'cause couldn't t stan the sympathy an the talkin of the neighbors after got
 this letter"
 Here he paused and took from the in- side pocket of his corduroy coat a square envelope addressed in 8 round, girlish hand. The faint odor of violet sachet which had once permeated the pages oould still be detected, though