The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1900-09-15
aG Il RE
By BRET HARTE
Part
CHAPTER j.

1.-THE Robes ranch, mingled with thu
Outgoing audience OF the Cosmopolitan
Itheater at San Francisco, he ELECTED
the usual smiling mods and recogni
ton due to his good looks and gooc
fortune. But as he hurriedly slipped
through the still lingering winters
rain into the smart coupe that wal
awaiting him, and gave the order
home" the word struck him with
peculiar ironical Significance.
His home was n handsome one, ant
lacked nothing in appointment ant
comfort, but he had gone to the the.
inter- to eyade Its hollow loneliness
Nor was 1t because his wife wa not
there, for he had a miserable con.
sc%iousness that her temporary absence
had nothing to do with his homeless;
ness.
The distraction of the thentcr over
that dull, vague, but aching sense Of
loneliness which was daily growing
upon him, returned with greater
Irigors
He leaned back in the coupe, and
glooniily reflected.
He lad been married scarcely 8
yeak. yet even in the illusions of the
honeymoon. the woman, older than
himself and the widow of his old IN,
Iron, had half nnconsciously reassert.
90 herself, and slipped back into the
domination of her old position.
1t was nt first pleasant enough
this half maternal protectorate, which
Us even apt to mingle with the af
tections of younger women-and Clar.
ence in his easy half-feminine intui.
tion of the sex, yielded, as the strong
hre apt to yield, through the very
consciousness of their own superiori.
ty. But this is a quality the weaker
are not apt to recognize, and the
woman who has once tasted equal
power with her husband, not only
does not easily relegate it, but even
makes lis continuance a test of the
affections.
The usual triumphant feminine con.
illusions: Then you no longer love
me-" bad in Clnrence's brief expert.
ence gore eve farther and reached
lis inscrutable climax-"then I nc
longer love you"-although shown
only in a mcmcntary hardening of the
Eye and voice. And added to this was
Ills sudden but confused remembrance
that he had seen that eye and heard
that voice i'll marital alteration dur.
Ing Judge Pe~yton's-life, and that he
himself, her boy partisan, had sym.
pathized with her.
Yet, strange to say, this had given
him more pain than her occasional
other reversions to the past-to hei
Did suspicious of him when he was
youthful protege of her husbands
and presumed sutton of her adopted
daughter Susy.
High natures are more apt to for.
give wrong done to themselves thar
hny abstract injustice. And her capri
tions tyranny owe her dependents
md servants, or an u~nreasoning enmi.
ty to a neighboi' or friends, outraged
his finer n more than her owl
misconception of himself. Nor did he
dream that this was a thing most wo,
meh seldom understand, or, under.
standing, ever forgive.
The coupe ratified over the stones OF
swirled through the muddy pools Of
the main thoroughfares. Newspapers
md Geographic offices were still bril-
liantly lit, and crowds were gathered
among the bulletin boards. He knew
That news had arrived from Washing
ton that evening of the first active
outbreaks of secession, and that til.
city was breathless with excitement
Had he not Just comc from the the,
Alter where certain insignificant nilu,
sions in the play had been sudden,,
caught up and cheered or Kissed bj
hitherto unknown partisans, to tn,
dumb a~stonishment of a majority Of
the audience comfortably settled Il
money-getting and their " affair.
aloneP Hnd he not %applauded, albeit
half scornfnlly, the pretty actress
his old playmate Susy-who had auda
eiously and all anonymously waved
the American flag in their faces?
Yes! he had known it; had lived fol-
the last few weeks in al atmosphere
electrically surcharged with it-ant
get it had chiefly affected him in hi.
personal LONELINESS. For his wifi.
was a southerner, a born Shareholder
and a secessionist, whose noted preiu
dices to the north had even outrur
Der late husbands politics.
At first the piquancy and reckless
ness of her %opinionatel speech
amused him as part of her character
istic flavor, Or as a lingering youth
fulness, which the maturcr intel!ec,
always pardons.
He had taken her politics sc
riously-why should he? With hel
head on his shoulder he had listened
to her e~xtravngant diatribes agains'
the north; he had forgiven her out
Efageous indictments OF his caste ant
his associates for the sake OF the i'm
perious but handsome lips that ut
tered them. o
But when he was compelled to list
en- to her words echoed and repeated
by her friends and family; when h,
found that with the clannishness o
rier race she had drawn closer Il
them in this controversy-that sh,
depended upon them for her intclli
gence and information rather thar
upon him-he had awakened to tn,
reality of his situation. He had born,
the illusions of her brother; who's,
old scorn for his dependent childhood
had been embitterea by his sister.
marriage, and was now scarcely con
cealed.
Yet while he Ind never altered hi,
CWn political faith and social creet
in this antagonistie atmosphere, h,
had often wondered, with his old con
scientiousness and Characteristic self
abnegation, whether his ow1Spolitica
convictions were not merely a reyul
sion from his domestic tyranny ant
alien surroundings.
In the midst of this glt, 5my retro
Epect the coupe stopped With a jerl
before his W house. The door wa.
quickly opened by a servant who ap
peared to be awaiting him.
Some one to see you in the library
sir" said the man, .'and- he hest
lated and looked toward the coupe
WELL" said Clarence, impatiently.
He seid, sir, as how you were no
to send away the carriage"
Indeed, and who is it?" demanded
Clarence, sharply.
MIR. Hooker. He said I was to sa,
Jim Hooker"
The momentary annoyance in clar
ence's face changed to a look of re
f~sctire curiosity. 3F5
lie said ne knew you were at til,
theater, and he would wait until I'd,
came home" continued the man. dubi
ously watching his mastcr,s face
"He don't know you've come in, sir
nnd-andI can easily get rid Of MIN.
"No matter now. I'll see him
and," added Clarence with a fain.
smile, slet the carriage waltz
Yet ss III turned toward thelibrar,