The Cape Girardeau Democrat. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1876-1909, 1899-02-18
Faith Unfaithful
sy Mrs. Eva Nepean

WAS all over. The excitement and
the confusion of tongues. the obit-
uary notices. the list of those present
AT the funeral. their wreathS. their let
tiers Of coincidence. the usual message
from royalty. that made up the nine
days wonder were passed, and the
world had rolled on-out Of sight of
that EvwIy-made grave, with lis bur
den Of sacrificed flowers wincing in the
January froSt-and the incident was
closed. Ii Il everyday horrors only
happened d little oftcner. they would
cease 20 be horrors 1t all.
", had loved this young man. ;he ris-
ing author Of the time, we wept over his
books. we wept over his uutimcly
death. in the orthodox big railway ac-
ciGcut lust outside Southampton. at
the ear, age OF So" we talked Of
"Gcathi,Ss fame" and said. whom the
gods Io,e die young" and then changed
the subject.
There are younger and handsomer
writers Of newer books. that DO not al
Way make Us weep. and we canno cry
forever. because. if we try to. We look
old.
50 ~ went on with the world. and
left Martin Arthur behind. Mrs. Roupell
stood before the mirror in her bed
room. leaning her hands on the toilet
table. with its a]dornings of crystal
and ivory. and looked at her face in The
gas.
Isn't ii written there" she said
aloud. And then she laughed, the aw-
rul laugh Of 4 woman who is burlesqu-
IL" her uwn real emotion. which Las its
source in the very foundations of a
deep nature. and which will die when
it dies. or kill it; there is no other
way.
Three people had asked her that day
why She WAS in mourning. The friends
and acQuaintarce> had gradually real
izcG tina; the touches of color which
had Of late begun to Tighten the heavy
draGrrsS Of her widows weeds had
again faded into black as before. ana
that The strange heart-wearing. heart
~ickcrin" time of mourning seemed To
have gone back a step. and resumed its
old ha~ynrd uncertainty.
For Maria Roupcll was a widow. and
no widow. Her husband was dedd-sO
said ordinary surmisC. 50 said human
probability. so said TIE newspapers
which give an ccoUn of the sinking
of thr Atlantic liner Ramadan. with all
hands bl, two. in the ba; three years
before. There was only one thing lack
ing. positive. incontrovcrtibie proof;
and that thing tarricd.
She WAS. comparatively speaking. a
Young Woman that is. she had been as
Young rs most wonderland the simile
j. not as vague as it sounGs-untii three
weeks before. Now she looked in the
glass under that pitiless northern
light. took note of every stray white
hair. of every line of suffering round
the beautiful. strong mSIth, aud the
purple hollOws under the sOmber black
eyes-looksI. and laughed at her own
misery. and said to herself: You are
old-uld-old, but three weeks. ago he
loved you!" She thought she was
alone. as only a woman who has loved
and lost can be, but, because of that
great knowledge, she was not.
She had been pa~ssionately in love
with Martin Arthur. In the old days of
racking uncertainty as to her hus-
hands fate. she had met the rising au-
thor whose name was then appearing
above flames horizon, as the edge of the
suns disc looks over into the world. He
became deeply interested in her. She
was a handsome woman of the night
dark Spanish type, creature of strong
emotions. distracted with suspense.
torn this way and tina; by hopes AMI
fears.
When a woman is suffering agonies
through her love for one man. another
may wrap himself ineNtricably in the
fiying threads of her life, and become
more near. more dear to her than she
has any knowledge of, by standing
silent but ever in readiness at her right
hand. She will turn to him for help.
Aud when j woman goes TO i man for