The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1899-01-18

neip me by the man love. che
was still striving for her father with all
the strength she had, and yet now she
was not acting.
Tresham uttered low cry, and los
ing all his habitual selfrestraint,
caught her 10 him
Roger she whispered, and it was
the voice of eternal woman tempting
eternal msn-"Roger, you will save
him. 1t is 50 pitifuI. What can a
wretehed pair Of girls, persons we have
never seen, matter 10 Us F.? know you
will be good TO him."
In the shock of returning conscious
ness and conscience, produced by her
strangeAophistical plea, he could not
help a smile at the very womanishness
of it all. 1t was a very wan smile,
though, and then he put her from him.
"What a feudal princess you would
have made ~ he said, with grim hu-
NOR "You wouldn't have recommend
ed cake in default Of bread; you'd
have asked what poor folk, persons
you didn't know, had to be in the
world for
He knew it 10 be very FAR from
laughing matter, and yet the air Of ag-
grieved surprise with which she regard
ed him gave him some ado TO keep his
countenanee. As the same time he
knew her 20 be a sweet, true woman.
He knew that she would be at much
pains to relieveany distress that came
within the range Of her vision. Bat
the case Of her fathers unfortunate
vietims-that was barred out from her
contact, hidden by cloud as dense as
prejudice could make il, utterly swept
away by the current Of her daughteriy
love. Il was without meaning TO her,
something distant, vague, with which
she had not to do. Her mind was Ia
eessantly busted with the picture Of
her wretched father, victimizsd, mar
tyred, as he seemed to her. There Is
inherent in wonen-handed down to
them, perhaps, as legacy from a time
when they did not think or act for
themselves-a strong tribal bias. From
men it has been to certain extent
eliminated by advancing civilization;
in women it exists to-day, living Wit
ness OF the narrow confines that once
held them.
Joyce B1niface spoke now with the
fervor of despair. She had risked her
highest stakes, and she could not afford
to lose. She silenced Treskam with
gesture, and broke out passionately.
"You pretend to be above tempta-
ton, to be superior to egotism; and you
look down on people that have-blun
dered as if they were lower order of
creatures. Oh, you needn't deny it;
it's quite troe. Aud all the time you
are hard aud cruel and unjust-yes,
unjust, too. Suppose l were the Grim
inal; just suppose it were | whom you
had TO condemn would you be 30 high
and contained aud self-righteous? OF
course not. You are like all the rest
You can see man suffer, no matter
how old aud sick aud miserable be is;
it is nothing to you. But woman,
yoa say, is different, most of all a lady
Answer me, Roger Tresham; if were
criminal would you not find some
way of acq1itting me, some way Of
settling it with your conscience ?p
God help mer' unused her lover;
"woula honor carry me through such
an ordeal as that?'
He did not speak aloud, but the wom-
an read in his eyes the first sign Of wa
vering. She pressed her point, not in
words, for she had used her final argu-
ment, but by rising and standing before
him, her hands lifted 10 his shoulders,
her face squarely confronting his.
He spoke after moment, slowly and
calmly:
"God alone knows if should pass
tNiumphantly through such a trial as
that, my darling. Even as it i, 50
strong is your hold upon me that, were
there nobody else concerned, believe
| should be induced to show more mer-
cy than justice allows"
He had forgotten her now; he was
answering the arraignment Of his con-
science. at has never been with me as
with many Of the young men that |
studied among From the first felt
drawn to my calling by a pow.r too
strong for words. Later | received from
my fellows a holy Office, the duties Of
which shall fulfill as well as in me
lies. Even for the sake Of the woman
l love | could not be led into an act of
foul injustice, into decision that would
deprive two helpless girls Of their right
fal inheritance"
She had dropped her hands to her
sides, and stood -oking at him strange
ly. He did not heed her.
"rnere are some old words ringing
in my ears, the words Of that old song
of Lovelace's. You know what mean:
| - i cGlid uoL iCfe tiiets urii r 10 iitHCAs
Loved not honor more
He stammered little with the reluc-
tance of modern to handle sentiment
IL had hoped that, for the sake of the
strong love | bore you, we might, per-
haps, in some future day"
..Neverg' she interrupted, hercely.
"Whatever may be your decision, l
would have you to remember that if l
could have yielded TO you in this, my
love would not have been worth the
having" He took a sudden step for
ward. Joyce, will you help me 10 my
choice of the only right way, even II
this is to be the end between us?''
But she shrank back and hid her face
from him. In spite Of her he drew her
to him and kissed her lightly on the
forehead. Then he turned steaithily
artrax-