Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1899-06-22

cruelty. PLeaSe listen 10 my prayer,
and answer It! | come to you to plead
for Carlos life!'
Then the woman TO whom she made
the plea knew when and where they
had met before. Again the scene In
the opera painted itself on memory's
tablet. She saw herself idly listening
to the princes batteries. She saw
Dameroff seated beside this girl in the
box opposite, when she had beckoned
him to come to her, and she had obeyed
the summons.
She had taxed him with his betroth
al. and he had acknowledged il: but
already, poor. struggling fly, he was in
the stronger web of her weaving; she
had but drawn closer the threads, and
the weaker links which bound him 10
another snapped.
After all, she had but obeyed the spi-
der's instinct, which makes all prey
lawful that listens to its siren
"Ah!" she answered, after that short
and almost imperceptible pause, Il re-
member. You are Carlo Dameroff's at
famed bridei'
The young lieutenant must have lied
to her in saying that his engagement
had been annulled, she thought. since
this young girl could come hither to
plead to her--her rival-for his life.
But her answer u~ndeceiyed her.
NO" she said. I'VE were engaged
TO be married, but that is ended now,
and has been, as You Well know, mad
anne, for many weeks. He loved Inc
for a little while, and then your beauty
made him forget me-. Perhaps it is not
easy for one TO forgive another,
but, after seeing you, no one could
wonder that you blinded him to any
charms save yours. oh, madame. l did
not come here to reproach you with
that: or, indeed. to speak of that past
at all! 1 came to plead for his life-the
life which he will forfeit for your sake
for the sake OF a flower, a ribbon!'
"Ah, the old love has revived. then.
and he comes to you for sympathy?
He has informed you as TO all the par
ticulars of the event?'
The tone was cold and sneering.
Beatrice recoiled as If she had been
struck. The implied insult to him
brought fuller resentment than any
personal wrong could possibly have
done.
.He seek sympathy from me?" she
said. ''Shame, madame-shame, You.
whom he loves, dare impute to his
brave soul a cowardly regret, You
well know that / have not seen Carlo
bancroft i'm many weeks. 1t matters
not how or through whom / heard
what took place last night. Let that
explanation pass for some future time,
when it shall be yours. il you wish it.
We must act now, not waste moments
in words. Why should his blood be
spilled? Why should his young life
pay the forfeit Of his love? 1t was
your act. madame; you placed the rose
upon his breast. Would you make it
the seal on his death warrant? You.
who cow all men TO your will by your
fateful loveliness-will you not use that
loveliness for good, not evil? They say
the prince, too, loves you. Go TO him
make him swear, for your sake, to give
Carlo the spoken reparation which is
his due. How it can be done | cannot
tell, but you can. and you must pre-
yent this murder"
"My dear Miss Leonard" answered
Florence, in a calm. impressive tone.
Il have heard Lieutenant bancroft
speak your name. You have borrowed
your ideas from romance, or perhaps
from Mr.. Arkwright, n countryman of
yours. whom you may chance to know.
/ do not know, wen Were | willing TO
go to the prince, what | might say, ex-
cept to forget that a glass OF wine had
been thrown in his face. If boys will
so far lose their tempers / do not know
that they should murmur at the penal
"; o do l fancy Lieutenant Damer-
ef's courage. which l have no reason
TO doubt, would be grateful to me for
Heading to the prince 10 spare him.
Pray. does his own skill count for
nothing in the contestT'
''The wine was but the answer 10 the
insult, madame, and the insult reflect
ed upon you as Well as himself. Dare
you call such manly action the temper
of a boy? No. / do not ask YOU to
plead for mercy, but for justice. You
know that Carlo bancroft will paw the
penalty of his life for his love. if he
meets the prince to-day. But you. and
not the prince. will be his murderer.
Your hands will be red with his blood;
your conscience haunted by his spirit.
See. | love him. yet / give him mp 10
you: / love him. though | am nothing
10 him, l love him, and resign him to
your caress. But, oh. let me feel he
lives-tlat the same earth holds us
both-that somewhere the same sun
shines on us. the same rain rains on us.
For Gods sake. save him-spare him.
Florence drew from her belt a tiny.
jeweled watch.
Pardon me. .-,ss Leonard. but ii
wants but a few minutes TO my toilet
hour"
"Go to your toilet,' she echoed. when
he goes TO his death-smile on other
men when you have sharpened the
sword TO pierce his heart, Are you wo-
man or deyilt"
Women are never born devils. Miss
Leonard" was the calm. almost smil
ing reply. They are made so. Shall
/ spare the lives of the men who do the
work OF transformation"
Listen. Madame Florence. Always,
all my life, | have had one regret-that
God had given me no sister. But to-
day that regret has turned into thanks
giving. might have had n sister like
you-a who used her beauty TO
make men murderers. her loneliness TO
give those murderers victims. Had
you had II grain OF womanly pity in