Akron daily Democrat. [volume] (Akron, Ohio) 1892-1902, 1899-06-30
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Dorothy Yane, Il pretty young girl OF
| tirrpi.tce in her cozy home. deeply alb,
torl.cd in highly sentimental novel,
which she was very fond of reading.
IirT mother died when Dorothy was
very young. and her father. being busy
| man. had net much time 10 spend with
his dearly beloved daughter. So when
not occupied with her studies Dorothy
spent most of her time reading roman
tic and impossible love stories.
When she graduated from school at
the age of III. she became engaged to
Arthur Raymond. Il promising young
man and the son of an old friend of Mr.
Nane's. That they loved each other was
not 10 he doubted and would have been
very happy had not Dorothy's pretty
curly head been flied with silly notions
and fancies gained from her beloved nov
els
She laid down the book she was now
reading with sigh of regret.
why can't Arthur talk like that to
me, I wonder? He never tells me that
he worships the ground 1 walk on or any
of those nice things, as they do in nov
els. Oh. do wish he would talk so to
me Just once! 1 wonder if l can't cause
him to-" And Dorothy sat thinking
deeply for few moments.
'Oh. | know hat to do now" she
cried, clasping her hands in delight, land
it viii be such Il good joke too.''
Although her conscience told her she
was doing wrong, she would not heed it,
but sat down to her desk, writing the
following note, which formed the main
part of her plan:
Dear Arthur I write to bid you fare
we'll Yes. am going to die. / am quite
sure you do not love me- as you never tell
me- about it much. So tonight, when the
world sleeps, l am going TO turn on the
gas, and in the morning / will be found
lying cold and still on my couch. So
bid you a last goodby. Yours in despair,
DOROTHY.
Reading this over with satisfaction,
she hastily sealedit and sent the maid out
to post it, little thinking how much suf-
fering that note was to cause on the
morrow.
The bright sun awoke her early next
morning. and she sprang out of bed with
a happy laugh as she remembered what
she had planned to do. She soon arrayed
herself in pretty white dressing gown.
her lovely golden curls hanging far below
her waist.
L have not long to wait now, for Ar
thur must have received my note by now
and will soon be here. Won't it be joke
to be on my couch so still and when he
reaches my side to jump up and surprise
him? He surely will say lots of nice
things 10 me then and be quite romantic.
1t will be just like Il novel;
We will leave Dorothy to arrange her.
self on her couch, making veritable
sleeping beauty
Arthur Raymond was delighted to rec
ognize 'Dorothy's writing among his
morning mall as he sat leisurely eating
his breakfast. He pressed the letter to
his lips aud zen. breaking the seal, COM
menced to read. As he grasped the mean
ing of those cruel words his face turned
white as marble, and the, room seemed
whirling around him as he caught at the
table for support. Then. springing up,
he ran into the hail, and, catching his
hat from the stand. he went out on the
street. Hailirg cab, he was soon speed
ing on his way to Dorothy's home. 1t
seemed to him as though the horse but
crawled, and the awful suspense of mind
seemed more than lie could endure.
lie reached Dorothy's house at last ana
rang the bell violently, feeling as though
he must batter the door down before it
was opened by the astonished maid, who
:-azed at him in amazement Us he dashed
by her and soon reached Dorothy's room.
Dorothy, And what world of an
guish and despair was contained in that
one word that he uttered as he saw Dor
nthy lyir2: still OH the couch before
him, and before she could arise he fell
on the floor by her side.
As she stood as one stunned by his
side, Mr.. Fane, hearing the commotion.
hurried into the room. Dorothy gasped
out few words of explanation, then
with Il low moan fell back on her couch
in Il swoon.
Arthur was carried to another cham.
Der, and when Dorothy regained con-
sciousness she hurried to his closed door,
waiting in terrible suspense to hear the
verdict of the physician who had been
"Oh, God" she prayed, "for-
give my great sin and do not take my
darling from me. If he dies, 7 will be his
1t seemed an eternity before the doctor
came out and kindly told her that Arthur
had recovered consciousness, but a severe
attack of brain fever had set in.
Who can describe the long weeks of
sU=pcilze and the awful remorse that
Dorothy suffered while Arthur's life hung
on a thread? They left indelible lines on
her fair young face. At last, after long
lays of agony. came the happy news that
j ithur had regained his senses and would