The times., 1898-07-10

1 fees afterWard seem gmore. noble and his
! invariable death scene more intense by
contrast. Nell felt wonderful pride in
| him-and admiration that made her love
| worship. @-ee
| OF course, the company did not know
| how things worked up to the final stage
/ but all were greatly surprised when the
/ pair came home from a pleasure rip one
/, afternoon. and announced that they Were
married The two played as usual that
| night and afterward, but Nell got to look
| ing still more charming and still more
happy. They had a fiat up.own. and she
| took simple delight in doing their cook
ing and administering to his wants. She
saw less and less of the people with
whom she worked and her home life al
| most resembled that in the doll houses
children play with. Once In a while he
would admire something in a shop win
| dow. and Il was a noticeable truth that
| that something was almost invariably
| transferred to their rooms, though some
| times 1t cost Nell careful boarding and
many sacrifices to get ii.
Those of her friends who were in po-
| sition 10 know. declared that Bruce grew
more and more worthless after their mar
| iiage. He wa seldom with her. and even
| then was sulien and morose When he
| spoke to her 1t was in harsh. demand
| ing way and his careless indifference
| WOuIU nave hllltu the diltNlioh VI sAHs
! other woman. But Nell was all excuses
! for him. and never ceased caring for
! and watching over his interests Occa-
/ sionally he would ges brutality drunk, and
| then she was miserable for brief time.
| But the first flash of kindness would
bring back all her generous love, and
the happiness that grew with 1t.
One day a queer thing happened The
early mail brought Bruce letter which
| a nd II, napkpt His
| demeanor was changed at once. and his
| worried eyes followed her ali that morn
! ing At night he was absent from the
| theater. and as he had no understudy the
| performance was not given. A whole
week elapsed before he was seen again.
| and Neil was nearly crazed with grief
| and fear When he did return she was
so glad to see him that his sullenness
was hardly noticed. Even his discharge
| from the company on the day following
| made her only solicitous for him. though
his Indifference 10 the trouble showed
| clearly how much he depended on her.
/ Never mind" she said to him, u
wouldn't trouble about it. You need
rest anyway" And so she continued
working uncompiainingly while he sat
idly at home. refusing to help her in the
! slightest.
They lost one room of their fiat short
ly after. and Nell began TO show traces
OF the strain she was Undergoing. But
still she felt only for him. and the fac:
that he brooded fearfully over something
or other made her very wretched. Ere
quently she reassured him as TO his
chances for next season. bur his an
swers wero testy and impatient. ITS
not that" he said once; I'm not we'll
that's al.
But that was not all. one night after
the play Bruce was arrested and Neil.
who followed him half denented 10 the
staJion-house. found what all the city
knew as soon as the morning papers
/ were Out-that the charge WAS bigamy.
Those who had worked with him were
not surprised. but Nell refused TO believe.
The one defense she could give was that
she loved him and her one answer 10 all
the Sights thrust upon her BY the curl
Gus was. he was the first man | ever
cared for.
Nevertheless she grew worn and very
pale as the weeks went by and the little
form that walked daily to the jail to
comfort him was getting thinner and
thinner. In his selhshness he did not note
how much more she needed help than he,
and his calm coolness was fearfully tr!
:, ing to her. Don't make fooi of your
self" he had exclaimed once when she
had cried at his plight She never left
the jail without carrying with her some
request that meant poverty and pinching,
; but was, nevertheless, always fulfilled
, And in the face of her sorrow she kept
up the little home. ready Ter him when
, he came back Everything remained the
same excepting the mistress of il all
who was worn TO nervous little shad-
. ow and often broke down in the middle
, OF her part at the theater.
The night before his trial she spent
outside his cell, and sat. a prim, white
faced figure. near him IN the court that
day. They say that she never finched
when the vulgar. loud-mouthed woman
who was his legal wife swore TO heI
claim but it is certain that when she lef
the room her lips were ray where shr
had bitten the skin away. But the sur,
! prise came when she was sworn and
gave her testimony. She was an actress
Yes" She was in the stock company
at the Hardwick Theater? Yes" That
. was all right. But there was miniature
= sensation. when, in answer to question
4 she took oath that no marriage ceremony
: had ever been performed for them. He
own face never change1 all the time
The haunted. pleading look never lef
her eyes ard they did not move from
= him while she swore away her honor ant
d love and everything For a period every
q one thought she had perjured herself L
: save him. Most of those present expect
ed to see a certificate brought out or Il
r charge against self But when he as
: sented to her testimony even her bes
: friends recalled the circumstances anC
:, wondered why the truin mad never oc
= Cured to them before The professional
; people did not mind much-bright foil
n are generally painfully lax morally-bu
d everyone else did and the revulsion o
: feeling was so great that not even th
: dignity of the court kept back the cheer
:, ing al his discharge, which followed i'm
mediateiy after. Perhaps d few of tn
lookers-on felt sorry for her as she lef
n the room silently after the culminatio
: of the case. but if so they were mostl
r men who bad not found that her palo
q had removed all traces of beauty.
/, The next months were full of agony t
# her. In her morbdly sensitive little Sc
il she felt oyery slight, whether intended Z
n not. More than once she greeted tn
d professional people, who had always Sc
! ed with ner, 30 Coidiy that they left he
5 altogether alone, and in utter solitude sh
e suffered day by day without a wort
is Things went badly at the theater, too, an
e a great cut in salaries was followed b
d I her discharge after the customary Nv
d weeks notice. She had a very lit
o money saved, but it did not last long, an
It she might either have starved or take
e the path so many women do take had
not been for the unobtrusive character
n her old friends. Even this hurt her. hoV
d ever, more than she liked to confes
re Everything that passed left its mark upo
le her-the sneers of her enemies, the lone
d life she led-everything. Still she keI
r their little home and waited for mir