The Jersey City news., 1899-07-08
.GIRARD'S !
WIFE.


Gerard Girard is regarded by people
who don't know him as a freak and by
those who do know him as person to be
avoided after dark. Girard is not his
name. but it is SO much like his name
that those who care to do so may identity
the gentleman and establish to their own
satisfaction whether or not he is JUSTIFIED
in his extraordinary beliefs. One man IN
this town, bon vivant Of the ciuhland
cult. felt himself attracted to Girard be-
cause be found out that Girard believed
things no man dared credit If he valued
his own peace Of mind and, moreover,
that he was ready to demonstrate the
correctness of his theories to any one
sufficiently interested. The man about
town interested himself IN Girard be-
cause the talSy fellows of his own set
told Queer street stories that savored OF
Boccaccio. but lacked in that raconteurs
artistic merits.
tirard. on the other hand, seldom talk
ed at all unless directly addressed, but
when he did tell story one evening lt
made everybody creepy and uncomforta-
Bile, because Girard's mode Of expression
is horribly convincing. His dlction is de-
liberate--alnost ponderous, IN fact lie
makes no effort whatever to convert otn-
ers to his convictions. Indeed, ne ap-
nears utterly Indifferent to skepticisni.
Omen scoffing is impossible where Girard
IS concerned, because he never permits
himself to be engaged in conversation un-
less by those with whose characteristics
he is somewhat familiar. There are va
rious ways of avoiding persons who wear
diamond studs and frock coats at ~
o'clock in the morning, and Girard man
ages his social affiliations with infinite
skill.
The story Girard told at the club was
about his wife, who died four years ago,
but who still lives with Girard in the big
house he built when he came here from
Chicago. Girard and his wife were COM
naniops in the sense that few married
paople are. She was frail and he was
strong, yet until the very day of her
death he had not contemplated the horror
of a separation He failed Of a proper
regard for the carefully worded prepara-
tory phrases of his medical adviser and
understood only when conventional eu-
phemism was abandoned and the plain
truth stared him in the face that the
woman whose future he had built and
planned in common with his own would
be dead in an hour. Then he went and
sat beside the bed and stared at the little
white face, at the darkly circled eyes
closed in fitful sleep. He realized then
that the deep lines between the brows
were fearfully deep; that the gaspins,
shortened breathing might cease at any
instant; that nothing on earth could stay
the inevitable loss of her, his idol.
He strolsed her hair, and the tired eyes
= ~ 4 e..
ed his pet name He bent over her and
wept-such great, heaving sobs as come
from the breast of a strong man in NOR
tai trouble, but the dying woman smiled
through her tears and bade him grieve no
more.
Il shall be with you always" she said
"Alwsys in the evenings NE win sit tc-
gether, you and l. We shall be comrades
ever"
When Girard raised his head from the
pillow, he realized with calmness that
surprised him that his wife was dead.
He closed the weary eyes, crossed the
thin hands, kissed the bloodless forehead
aud went out. Three days later they
buried her, and people remarked that Gi-
rard didn't seem much affected. He even
INDUCED in one or two sedate jokes en-
the very day of the funeral. That even
ing also Girard dined as usual at the lit
tie table whereat he and his wife had
dined tcte-a-tete every evening during
their two years Of married life.
"You will understand" he said to the
servants, that Mrs. Girard is still here
that dinner will be served every evening
for both of us as usual; also that Mrs.
Girard's apartments will be maintained
in their usual order" From that time to
this Girard has referred to his wife not
as one dead, but as the constant compan-
ion of his daily life. For those who
doubt his assertions he has merely
shrug Of his big shoulders. One or two
men have dined with Girard since his be-
reavement, however, and these gentle-
men do not care to talk about their expe-
riences Only one man has had the cour-
age to go twice and thrice to the Girard
table That man is the bon yivant He
has found something that interests him,
and men with whom he was formerly
hail fellow we'll met, for want of better
diversion, say he isn't half the deceut
sort he used to be. Last night / asked
| the bon yiyant to tell me the story he had
told to one Of his friends about having
| spent the evening with Mrs. Girard. The
| friend repeated the story. and those to
| whom he told it said that the bon viyant
had wheels.
/ Look here" he said, what do yoc
| want with this story? If you propose to
make one of your feeble joke1ets out of 1t,
you will merely write yourself down an
ass. II you will print the bare truth as I
| tell it, both you and ! may be accused OF
lunacy by eoterie Of lunntics. But what
/ does that matter? As for Girard, he "a
totally Indifferent to public opinion con-
cerning either himself or his beliefs. Now
/ here are the facts:
| i am IS years old, in sound health
| physically and mentally. My father and
| mother both died when was child
| had no brothers or sisters. ! have never
4 experienced anything which could possi-
| bly, be characterized as great grief.
| have been known from my boyhood as an
individual Of fimperturbab Bile temperament.
4 have never loved a woman well enough
to marry. | have no shattered ideals.
/ There Is mighty little superstition in my
! nature. Ny friends say | am cold blood
| cd aid cynical. They are wrong. am
merely analytic 50 Ear SO good. Now
for the rest Of 1t.
You reneuber the snowstorna last
Saturday, Gifnrd asked me to spend the
afternoon and evening with him. He's q
most interesting fellow llsIs d tnagn1Ii7
i cent collection OF old books and n1aHS1-