The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1899-12-22
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|. My Fellow laborer.
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By d. RIDER HAGGARD.
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
CHAPTER y.-(Cosr,Surp.1

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CHAPTER V.-(CoNTISUEp.)
The work must take care of itself,
Godfrey. You must discover the Sc
cret of Life yourself; or perhaps you
had better put the whole thing in the
fire and go back to practice At any
rate. 1t has served my turn, and have
done with it!''
II don't understand your answer
I'd, sinking into a chair. perhaps if
you are not in too great a hurry you
will explain little.'
"Of course will, when have poured
out your tea. There now, listen, and
I will give you lesson in human
nature, which, with all your brains, you
very much want, Godfrey. have been
In this house for fourteen years, and
I will begin by telling you that from
the day that came in till to-day, when
I go out, you have never understood me
in the least. You have always looked
upon me as simple-minded woman of
Intellectual capacity and with genius
Tor mathematics, and no aims beyond
the discovery of scientific secrets. Now
I will tell you. When l first came to
this house as girl of fourteen, l fell
in love with you. You need not look
astonlsaed-young girls sometimes do
that sort of thing. You were good
looking in those days, and very clever,
as you are now; and then you were
really and truly gentleman, and one
sees so few gentlemen-I always think
they are the scarcest people in the
world!
We'll, nursed my secret passion
and held it so tight that neither you
nor your wife even guessed it. Even
In those days could form clear opin-
ion, and 1 saw that she would not live
long, and that the time would come
when l should step into her shoes. So
played upon her weak points. to
strengthen my hold over her, and wait
were long time before you proposed
to me after her death, and your head
was so full of your work that believe
you'd would have been longer, had 1
not, by means that were imperceptib!e
to you, kept continually turning your
mind into that channel. Even then you
did not love me as l wanted to be
loved; but knew that this would come
after marriage. And then came the
crash, and the sudden appearance of an
obstacle against which no scheme of
nine could prevail, overwhelmed and
confused me, filling me with a sense of
impotence that I have never expert
enced before Or since. If you could
know, Godfrey, what flood of I'M
utterable contempt rushed into my
mind, as l heard you Numbering on
about your scruples and posterity! 1t
drowned my passion. felt that was
we'll rid of man who could in cold
blood give me up to satisfy what he
was pleased to call his conscience! But
perhaps you will never quite know or
understand how near 1 went to killing
you that night!'
Here started-the whole thing was
like nightmare. Fanny laughed.
Don't be frightened" Fanny went
on; there's nothing more melodramat-
ic to come. I am glad to say that pru-
dental considerations prevailed! Well,
after that fiasco, l reviewed the posi-
ton and determined to stay on-partly
from habit, partly on account of John
partly, indeed chiefly, because 1 was
still foolish enough to believe in the
Secret of Life business, and foresaw
that when it did succeed my name
would be made, and that should then
backed as / am by my personal ap-
pearance and capacities, be able to
marry whom l liked, or, if 1 preferred
1t, not to marry, but to follow any ca
reer in life that might recommend it's
elf to me.
cat last, however, the end came. I
lost all faith in our work, and saw that
you and had only been making fools
of ourselves; and consequently 1 de-
termined to sever connection that
could not bring me credit or profit eth
er now or in the future, and. being
woman, the only way that could pos
sibly sever it with advantage was by
marriage For long time 1 could
not fall in with anybody rich enough:
when at last happy accident brought
the man within my reach-by the way,
I had thought Of him for several years
and, of course, took my chance, and
married him before anybody could in
terfere. What is more, 1 actually per-
suaded him to enter into an engage
ment to settle four thousand a year to
my separate use; so you see l shall in
reality be totally independent of the
man.
"And what do you mean to do with
yourself now?" asked, feebly.
"Do! mean to bask in the sunshine
land drink the wine of life-to know
what pleasure and power mean, to live
land become rich and great, and ayenee
myself upon everybody who has ever
|slighted or injured me! Oh, yes, I
Eshall do it, too! shall use even that
miserable little Joseph, whom / Just
tnow had the pleasure of promising to
Hove, honor and obey, as a means to
advance myself. He is a poor crea-