The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1901-11-08

they viii appear in a small volume
which viii be issued as soon as It Cal
De sot through the press. Until then
when you Will be able to read the letter
Ter yourself--every one Of them is IN
cluded--I earnestly ask you to suspen,
your Judgment.
The Evening Eavesdropper. most en-
terprising Of all half-penny oracles, aen
down a member Of its stan to interview
the vicar.
wait until the letters are publish
cd" he said, "snd then comment OF
them as you please. may say that
await the verdict Of the public viii
every confidence"
Further interest was imported into
the affair by the action Of the Bishop
who. being very much scandalized by
what he had heard, sent for the vica
to come over to the palace and explain
himself.
"The whole affair" said his lordship
severely, strikes me as particularl.
discreditable, and those remarks Of
yours from the pulpit about platonic az
feotlon as downright scandaious."
II am sorry that you object to them
my lord. But my wife's hasty conduct
forced me to speak out in my own de-
fence"
"And then, to publish these letters!
II simply emphasizes a scandal which
otherwise might baye been hushed up.
II did not desire it to be hushed up
That would have been an admission oi
guilt on my part, l court publicity"
"But they are love letters, written u
You, a married man and clergyman
By another woman"
Love letters only in a sense--s
strictly platonic sense"
"Pish" calculated the Bishop angrily
II really cannot make out whether yoU
are demented, Mr.. Stedman, or merely
impudent"
81 can only say TO you, my lord, whai
have aid to everybody else. Wait un-
tn you have read the letters"
In due course the letters were publish
ed. They were devoured eagerly or
every hand But am sorry to say that
the consensus Of public opinion wen
dead against tho vicar. The letters, as
letters, were well enough They were
witty; they were humorous; they wer,
full, also, Of charming. tender phrases
and graceful erotic fanciees. But a!
letters written to a married clergyman
by lady other than his wife-well
they were unquestlonably too warm.
"Not much plato about this wrot
a trenchant critic ITS a good dea
more Ike the Song of Solomon"
SIX weeks later the vicar called at tn
house where his wife was lodging AM
iDsisted upon seeing her.
what do you want? What do yol
mean by this intrusion?" she demand
ed. fercely. 81 wonder you have tn
face-but MOI You have face enoug
tor anything"
'Laetitia," said her husband, wit
humility, Il have been in error l com
10 beg your pardon"
'That is very fine" sneered Mrs
stedman. "Now that your impudeu
publication OF those letters-by whic
you madly hoped to enlist public sym
pathy on your sde-has turned ou
[ otherwise than you expected"
"True," interposed the vicar meekll
"Evry one seems to condemn III
e There's not a newspaper l have seen hr
has crlticisd the letters in the mos
o ruthless manner"
L Serve you right, Mortimer 70
1 tried by brazen coup to put me in tb
+ wrong You have only succeeded
: blazoning your iniquity through tn
:. length and breadth Of the land"
L "Laetltia," said the vicar. in tone
almost abject submission, you left n
because would not tell you VIII
|, Grille was. repent Of my refusal
h have come TO tell you now"
"Well?" she demanded, looking
n him quickly.
"Girlie, he said, shamefacedly, "
lis a young woman typewriter"
h "oh. that's the class Of creature yC
carry on with, is it?" calculated b
IT wife, bitterly.
n "she-she Is a coed girl, and mea
no harm in writing the letters, assu
K you" pleaded the vicar.
ls "A likely story. The shameless ba
gagei" sneered Mrs stedman
"a 'Iaetita," he said, Il win prove
IS you the truth Of what say The your
Is -Girlie'-did not compose &
Of letters. She merely copied them
r some one else"
As 'I see!" cried his wife. Some o.
le else whose handwriting l should ha
rs known"
fe Yes" confessed the vicar, some o
farrfN b.