Little Falls herald. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1889-1950, 1901-02-08
The SEQuJ
...= TO THE SToRY.

are you gong TO tell me OF your past
life now, Evelyn" Linda Craven asked
of Evelyn Gage. - j.. -
Eyes, dear; for it all comes up 80 plain
before me now-the dim, old fashioned
parlor, with two girls kneeling before the
hre. l was one and the other my sister
Claire. s.
my children,' said a soft voice behind
us, and, half ashamed Of our childish pc.
sition and noticing the slight reproach
In Aunt Helen's voice, we sprang to oul
feet as Charles Roland bowed courteously
before us.
q" This is Claire my aunt said, pre-.
senting Claire first, and this Evelyn
Twill l. ever forget that evening at
Aunt Helen's. where I first saw Charles
Roland?
"After that we saw him constantly. TO,
he became visitor at my fathers.
"How quickly that winter passed tc
me-, for before the spring came 1 knew ]
loved Charles Roland!
Eyes, I loved Charles Roland, but !
never dreamed that my sister Claire loved
him as Welt
''C1aire is dead now, Linda, and lying
ct rest, but l cannot tell you my story
without speaking Of a wrong she did.
Zone evening Charles told me his love.
Our wedding day was fixed, and the per.
feet joy Of the intervening time serves
to brighten my life even now
"a few days before the wedding he
went up to the city. We were to be mar.
ried on Tuesday, and on the Friday be.
fore, with one sweet, lingering kiss, be
left me, saying he would be back on Sat.
urday evening. But Saturday evening
came and Charles did not.
Sunday passed. and when Monday
morning came without bringing my love,
l grew strangely nervous.
MY wedding day dawned bright and
clear-oh, so bright and clear for the sor.
row it brought me, for, Linda, Charles
Roland had not come!
FEATHER went up to the city on Mon
day evening, for l said my darling must
be sick, for no thought of falseness to me
had entered my mind. ;.
Even to this day, Linda, nv heart
grows faint at the memory Of what was
not my wedding day.
LAS the evening shadows began to fall
my father returned alone.
II ran to him. One glance at his face
was enough
"'Father, father cried, he is dead!
Your Evelyn will never leave you now,
father and then l fell senseless at his
feet.
''Charles Roland was not dead. The
last that was seen of him he was stand.
ing on an outward bound steamer, and
that was all that was known.
1.-TWO years after that Claire married
a wealthy merchant and seemed happy,
with gay. careless happiness.
l" Her huShonI worebinoI how CHI
seemed to have everything that life could
give. but in the midst Of it all death
claimed her
"She asked me to be alone with he1
on the day Of her death, and, with he1
head resting on my shoulder, my beau.
tiful sister told what she had done and
laid this lette: in my hand:
II loved your lover. Evelyn she said,
loved him passionately, and when i
knew he preferred you my anger and en-
w were intense.
Evelyn. there came letter for you
the Monday before your wedding day.
II kept it!'
MY darling had been called to Europe
on summons he could not disobey. for
it was case Of life or death-this was
what the letter said-and asked me to
patiently await his return.
HE will come back, Evelyn-he will
come back Claire said, her head droop.
ing lower.
Evelyn, say you forgive me all-allv
~ forgive you everything, sister, |
said. 4 forgive you what know as well
as what do not know
''Then, with her head on my shoulder.
her spirit fed to it's God.
THAT was eight long years ago, Linda.
but Charles Roland has never come
back"
Linda Craven bent over and kissed
Evelyn's fair face, then quietly left the
room, and Evelyn sat, her eyes resting on
the letter lying at her feet, the letter
that had awakened old memories Of the
heart.
A half hour passed, and still she sat
idly dreaming.
Miss Evelyn! and Evelyn's old nurse
laid her hand on the girls shoulder.
Dear, there is somebody" and then
she stopped short.
Something in the kind old face made
Evelyn's heart stand still.
"Do not look so pale, Miss Evelyn.
Oh, my child, my child; it is he! He has
come back!"
Pale and fair, unable to realize the
truth, Evelyn passed down the stairs,
but before she reached the parlor door it
was opened from within, and tall, state
" man stood before her.
my darling". was all he said. There
was low, glad cry from Evelyn's lips as
he folded her in his arms, and after ten
years of weary waiting, peace and hap
piness, she knew, had come to her heart
at last.
In the evening a long, long story was
told to Evelyn Gage. He told her Of his
sudden departure and of the fever that
had laid him helpless for many weeks,
Of his slow recovery, Of the long, weary
waiting for letters that never came and
then the letter from Claire announcing
the death of her sister lit was for that
she must have wanted forgiveness when
she said "all') and then the feverish
longing for change that came over him.
MY darling dead, was the only thought
my mind could form, Evelyn" he said,
land when the longing for change came
over me l yielded to it, for would not
return to the place where my dead dar-
ling's memory would haunt me, and so
became a wanderer in foreign lands till
at the end of ten years a wish to see old
scenes came over me, longing for home
J.