Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1899-05-24

never again realize with THRILL OF
shuddering horror that she had cold her.
self into bondage. into the worst and
most hateful kind Of bondage, that she
had sold not only herself. her body. but.
to all intents and purposes, her very
soul Well, It was all over now She
was herself again. accountable to no one
for her actions, she was free Of that
unbearable chain. Of that hated union.
The worldly dross for which she had
sacrifoed herself had fallen away like
the links Of the chain Of fate. and che
would have to begin at the lowest rung
Sthe ladder again.
Still she would be content. Every
crust of bread that she earned would be
her own, and sweet would be the taste
thereof it would be better, far better
TO sweep a crossing and to live content
edly on the pence earned by sweeping it
well. than to live in luxury earned by
the loss of all her womanly self respect
There came to her mind more times
than once verse out Of the Great Book
|-"Better dinner Of herbs where love
Is than q stalled OK and hatred there
with.
How true, how truel And yet the
poor soul above struggling with the
rapids Of life and death had never seen
the beauty of the dinner of herbs. She
had longed to be as the stalled OK, be-
lieving that the smoothest pathways
must always be the most pleasant and
the best for us. Well. she had enjoyed
her brief spell of the stalled OK to the
full. and it was probable that she would
slip away over the great barrier with
out ever knowing that there had been
hatred at all And if that should be so.
Mary Conway felt that she would be
able to face all the rest Of her life fear
lessly and with a thankful spirit.
Late in the evening a messenger ar
rived bringing a letter by hand from
Mr.. Lawson.
| DEAR Mrs. CoNwAY-it said-1 do not ask.
do not seek to know, the reason that your hus'
band left 30 strange and almost tnhuman a
will behind him. 1t Is enough for me that you
are a woman, alone, young and IN trouble.
Will you accept the inclosed as gift from one
who knew your husband for many years and
who liked and respected him9 beg you to
accept 1t as kindly as 1t Is offered to you. Sin
oerely yours, henry LAWSON.
Inclosed with this letter was check
for e100
It would be hard to describe Mary's
feelings that night The kindness. the
distant dignity of the few words. i'm
pressed her deeply. She never thought
of refusing the kindly gift. 80 welcome
to save her from unheard Of horrors She
only longed fercely and passionately
that she might. nay could. would. go
and tell this man everything. tell him
the whole story Of her marriage and the
cause pure and simple why Captain
Conway had left cruel and wholly un-
lust will behind him. a sinister blow to
strike her in a vulnerable part and
from which she had no chance Of de-
Tending herself.
She went to her bed that night with
fixed intention Of going in the morning
to seek out Mr. Lawson and to tell him
everything. with determination that
she would justify herself in his eyes.
But morning brought different feel
ings In the early dawn change for
the worse came over Mrs. Hamilton,
and the nurse called Mary from her bed,
believing that the end was nigh at hand
And as she stood by the eide Of that
poor. Pickering, feeble light. 80 soon to
burn out into nothingness 80 far as
concerned this world. a voice came to
her telling her to do nothing, to say
nothing-the voice Of strange. curl
GUS. wise instinct. which said: "You
are free Don t fetter your freedom by
troubling about the past With good in
tentions you did what you thought and
believed was for the best. The sacrifice
was made. served its purpose. and you
are released. Do nothing. Accept the
kindness of this stranger. take it as it is
offered and endure all in silence. At the
very worst his suspicion, if he has one,
is only suspicion. No good can come
to you by blackening the memory Of
dead man. If you speak, you will but
save your fair fame at the expense Of
his. If he has been ungenerous to you
80 spiteful as to aim a blow at you from
his sailors grave, do not you retaliate
by striking back at him now. Best far
BEST to suffer in silence: wisest. faI
wisest. to cut yourself off as completely
as may be from the mistaken past to
begin life afresh on your own lines and
as free as is possible from the influences
which have dominated you, hurt you
and poisoned your better self hereto
fore"
Mary Conway knew that her instinct
was wise one. that the strange mystic
rious voice was that Of friend in the
best sense Of the word She made up
her mind during those few terrible
hours Of watching that she would follow
the advice which had come to her from
her inner self. that she would bury the
past and begin new life with the day
that she turned her back upon the home
of her brief married life, the house
which had been in no sense home to
her
And the following day Henry Lawson
received this note:
thank you with all my heart for your kind
and generous gift. 1t will be my salvation and
will enable ME to start myself afresh. | am
quite alone in the world now. My mothor died
| at o'clock this afternoon. Yours with deep
gratitude. MARY CONWAY
CHAPTER VII
LIFE ON NEW LINES
AS soon as she could be quietly and
decently laid away, Mrs Hamilton was
carried out of the pretty villa in which
she had enioyed her brief spell of pros