The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-08-20

her, ana the laughter of rt[S tOliOWlng al
ter her footsteps. There was a wreath Of
star flowers around her brow, and about
her waist a buttercuD zone. Her breath
had the sweetness of wild-rose thickel
| and she bore the altar of lost ecsIacy in
the pink cup of her hand. And an, the
irresistible lure of her
Then cloud fell upon Mrs. Mayhew's
| face. She turned with a sigh and en-
tered the house. Her brow was lined deep
with care.
a sweeter-faced woman than she had
never come to that Western town She
| had laughed and sung herself, in sheer
| happiness. into every ones heart. The
men admired her. the women loved her.
her husband adored her For two years
she had been the envied leader of all
the most beautiful, the most gracious, the
most accomplished of her sex.
Then the change came. The choir, the
church the Red Cross Society knew her
no more. She was not we'll she said.
and her white face and dark-circled eyes
were silent witnesses in proof of the as
serton. At first there was wonder, then
curiosity, then a putting together of heads
ana gossip.
Mrs. Mayhem suspected nothing There
were other things TO occupy her
thoughts. Life was holding another cup
"a new cup--to her lips. and she was
drinking 1t without a murmur. The gray
est sin one can commit against her neigh
bors is to bear a trouble in silence with
out taking them into her confidence. This
sin Mrs. Mayhem had committed Peo-
pie of a certain belief, eudeavoring to ex-
plain their conception of sin and It's in
eVitab4e punishment 10 unenlightened
minds, usually assure US in childnke ar
gument that IF we put our hands into
the fire we will be burned" When Mrs
Mayhem kept things" from her neigh
bors she was unconsciously putting her
small hand into hot fire. A day was
TO come when she would take it out only
10 learn that 1t was too late for remedies
to be of avail.
on this spring day. then she hung the
bird cage on the right side of the inno-
cent-lookins door. A few moments ]ater
man came hurrying from the dark wood
She opened the door at once and admitted
him.
twenty minutes later Mrs. Dean. Mrs.
Frazer and Mrs Hostetter stood before
the same door and looked at each other.
Ihelr hearts had pumped the blood all
away from their faces
Shall we knock?" questioned Mrs. Dean,
in a thinlwhisper.
Knock" said Mrs. Hostetter's uncom-
promising bass. IAN give him time 10
hlde? What's the use in coming if we don't
take EN- by surprise. Let me git a-holt o.
that door handle. You both look as white
as pillow slips. I'll lead the way. I amt
afraid"
The door swung open readily and they
rustled and swished into the wide hall
They closed the door behind them and
stood listening. The han ran clear
through the house, with rooms opening in
to it on both sides. From a room at the
farther end a murmur of voices came
family through closed door. They look
ed at each other and nodded their heads
silently.
Down the hall. huddled together like
frightened sheep-only sheep are innocent
things and harmless-went Mrs. Hostetter,
Mrs. Frazer and Mrs Dean. They OPEN
ed the door and peered into the room: and
this is what they saw: A large sunny
room, having an air of comfort. Easy
| chairs and rugs, and in the windows
blooming plants. In the center of the
ROOM Mrs. Mayhem stern and white,
meeting their gaze with undaunted eyes. In
one corner of the room a bed, and sitting
up in it, propped with pillows, a miserable
| old wreck of a woman, leerng at them
with wild. cunning eyes. Her cheeks We're
sunken; her nose and her. chin almost met
| her body was bowed almost double. The
awful light of insanity shone out of her
| face like phosphorus.
Al the wholly unexpected sight of her the
| three women huddled closer together, hor-
rified and aghast.
"Hey. hey! cried the old creature, with
| a dreadful laugh. why don't you give
the ladies cheer? BE they ladies, or
| beant they? If they be, why don't you
| give EN- d cheer?"
Then. with her heart beating till it SEEM
| ed to shake her slight body, Mrs. May
| hew spoke. ''To what am | indebted for
this unexpected vsit?"
! Mrs. Hostetter's speech had been long
! prepared and committed to memory. But
| not a word of it came Whatever the
| three women had expected to find behind
| that dove-colored door, it was certainly
| not that bed and its dread occupant. The
! room seemed Whirling around them. Mrs.
| Hostetter endeavOred to give utterance
| TO some of her carefully prepared SEN
| fences, and failed dismally Finally she
| faltered out: "We-we-that is-we want
ed to have a talk with YOU
| "Wen2'
"We-we've seen for long time that
somethin' was a-goin' on right under our
very noses'-her voice strengthened as
| she went on-"an' we concluded we'd come
an have a talk with you"
| "Weu?"
We've see you hang that bird cage
out on the rshthand side o. the door
| an then we've see that fellow come an
stay an stay. We don't propose to have
| such goin'-on s-right under our noses
| your husband can't put a stop to it, We
| can"
She paused, and there was intense ST.
| leuce for a moment. Then the old woman
cried out. Nv ny dOn [ you give EN- a
| cheer? Be they ladies', or bean't they?''
q don't know" said Mrs Mayhem, and
laughed out scornfully. But almost in
stanty her face showed conrition.
ooh, l didn't mean that" she cried,
| turning imploringy to the women Il
beg that you will forgive me. 1 know you
mean this in kindness, but your words
cut my heart like knives"
30, we didn't calculate to be received
on two chips" pped out Mrs. Dean. I'VE
braced up to do our dooty like Christians,
| no matter how hard we might be insult
| ed" Her voice was as sharp as her face.
You can't deceive us an atom" put in
| Mrs. Frazer. determined to have her lau-
rels, too. Not an atom, we have see
| everything. We have even see the cold
| feelin's betwiXt you an Mr. Mayhew-a
man that this hun town, from one end
90 the other, looks up to. Everybody has
seen the cold feeln's that's come betwixt
you"
| wa n