Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1900-06-28
Her Hearts
Secret
BY JEAN WARNER.

4, it is Well. The curse of the dying is
beginning to work. Weary and old. and
| broken; but It's not enough. He must
be STAINED. dishonoved. crushed. The
| end is near-the end is near! The
end is near
| Gene home with ME. RiZpah. said
the doctor >oothingly. You are ill
yourself This weather is TOO frosty
for such old blood as yours.
Cold. cold she repeated. you
know me-the old blood is boiling with
fever heat in my veins. Unjust stay
| OUT amid the SHOWS. beneath the stars.
See, there is already cleaning, blood
red in the heavens. that same star
that brought me its message Of evil
| Internationally yea1S ago. The red
star of ill-omen TO the Gives. Hank,
| halk."'
Doctor DOCTOR. cried an excited
voice behind them. and one of the ser
wants from the Towers ran up. breath
| lpsSly. 'Come-quick. doctor, quick
| the masters struck
Struck. How: When:' asked the
| doctor. eXci1edly. II left him not half
IN hour ago.
| Aye. aye, sir, But the stroke came
on him just afterwards They told me
to come quick. and 1 might catch You.
Fo" coos sake. hurry. sir. for he's ly-
| ing lili" one dead III the study. and
Miss Fannie is going on like one mad.
Lord knows twill be the dark night
al Give Towers unless you bring him
to-
Aye. dark night" cried the shrll
voice of old Rizpah as the doctor hur-
ried away with the man-"a dark
night. indeed. Bur no darker than
another night fiye-and-twenty years
| ago. when the blood-red star was tell
ing Of death and dishonor to the Gives.
Aye. tremble. tremble. tremble. Robert
CEve.-for tremble now. you may.
Your Gay has been long and sunny,
| but the night has come At lasr-a dark.
dark night, tina. is lit only by the
bloOd-red STAR
1t was. indeed a dark night at Give
Towers. Mute and helpless its master
lay on the cushioned lounge in his
study. While Dr.. Bond and two of his
confrereS. hastily S,mmC ned from the
ciry, l;.bored >kilfully and earnestly to
bring back the life-tide to its accus-
toned flow.
But the channels seemed clogged: the
breath calne in heavy, Stertorous
ga>ps: the swollen veins. the sluggish
pulSe-all seemed TO make the doctors
efforts vain.
Shut in her own room. whittier DR..
Bonds friendly tirmn.&> had banishel
her, Fannie passed the dragging hours
Of that wretched night. Alone, alone
SO utterly alone.
Oh. for Herbert's strong and loving
arm to lean on in this hour Of trial
for Fenton's cheering whisper-for
SYPHILIS tender sympathy!
All had left her, a nd the dollhouse
flower, that had been sheltered from
every blast, must bow its beautiful
head to the storm of winter. and
breast the keen wind of adversely
alone-all alone!
The wing that had guarded her so
tenderly was broken, the strength that
had shielded her so faithfully laid low,
and, sobbing in her darkened chamber
through the weary hours Of that aw-
full night, Fannie felt that she was,
indeed, an orphan.
IL was nearly day when DR.. Bond
tapred at her door and summoned her
to her fathers bedside.
He is conscious, we think. my
dear said the old doctor. kindly; but
there seems something on his mind
taht he cannot speak Perhaps you
may understand what he wishes to
say"
Trembling in every limb. Fannie was
led into her fathers chamber. whittier
he had been conveyed an hour before.
The white curtains of his bed We're
loopcd aside, and, supported in an al
| most upright position, amid the pill
lows, his fea allure; rigid and unnatural,
his lips livid and tremulouS. his eyes
blocdshot and CLASSY, wandering from
| side TO side in a despairing unrest
was the stately master of Give Tow
ers-the stern, naughty, indomitable
Robert Give.
His right hand kept straying ever
| and anon to his breast, as if he would
| make an effort to reach something
there that panied him, and, when the
effort failed, he would gaze around
again with such pleading agony that
even the physicians, accustomed to
painful scenes of every description
felt indescribably moved.
''There is something that troubles
| him. my dear said DR.. Bond, in a
low voice. to Fannie. TRY and I'M
derstard. my child, something your
| father wishes to say
Papa. papa the poor girl burst
forth. piteously-"oh. papa. can you
not speak. and tell me what you wish
ME to dog
Oh the dumb appeal Of those CULVER
ing lips. those wandering eyes-the de-
spairing energy with which the trem-
bling hand tore at the uncovered
breast-the agony of remorse that
forced at length the husky whisper:
Herbert, in Gods name do justice
JUSTICE
Even as the words passed his livid
lips Robert Give fell back on his pill
lows, and. with last despairing ges-
ture as if he would tear a veil from
his heart. the master of Give Towers
lay a corpse.
CHAPTER XXXIy.
II was late one winter evening, that
a sun-browned traveller stopped at a