El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1901-03-30

he did want to know that Frederick
possessed anything which he was
afraid to retain in his own possession.
"sIy son did wrong" said he. ito con-
fide anything to your care which he Old
not desire to retain in his own home.
I feel that I ought to see these letters.
for II my son is in trouble. as you say.
/, his father. ought to know it."
81 am not sure about that" she
smiled. His trouble may be OF d:f-
ferent nature from what you imagine.
Frederick has led a life that he regrets.
I think his chief source Of suffering lies
in the fact that 1t is SO hard for him
to make others believe that he means
to da differently in the future"
Does he mean to do differently?"
She flushed. HE says so. Mr.. Suth-
erland. And I. for one. cannot help be-
lieviug him. Don't you see that he be-
gins to look like another manY
MIR. Sutherland was taken aback. He
had noticed this fact and had found 1t
q hard one to understand. To ascer-
tain what her explanation OF 1t might
be he replied at ouce:
There is a change in him-a change
that more than one has noticed. What
is the occasion OF It? To what do you
ascribe II. AgnesT'
How breathlessly he waited for her
ausweri Had she any suspicion OF the
awful doubts which were SO deeply
agitating himself that night? She did
not appear to have.
81 hesitate" she faltered. but not
from any doubt OF Frederick. to tell
you just what think lies at the bot
tom Of the sudden change observable
in him. Miss Page you see. can
name her, IL you cannot has proved
herself SO unworthy OF his regard that
the shock he has received has opened
his eyes to certain feelings OF bis own
which made his weakness in her re-
gard possible. l do not know OF any
thing else. Do your"
At this direct question. which pierced
to the very quick Of his trouble, breath
ed though it was by tender lips and
launched in ignorance OF the barb
which carried it to his heart Mr.. Suth-
erland recoiled and cast an anxious
look upon the door: then. with forced
composure. he quietly said. IF you do
not, who are so much nearer her age.
and. let me hope. his sympathy. how
should /. who am his father. but have
never been his coufidantY'
ooh" she cried, holding out her hands.
'such a good father! Some day he will
appreciate that fact as well as others.
Believe it, MT. Sutherland. believe it,"
And then. ashamed of her glowing In
terest, which was a little more pro-
nounced than fitted to her simple atti-
tude of friend toward a man professed-
~ in love with another woman, she
faltered q little and cast the shyest OF
looks upward at the grand but trou-
bled face she had never seen turned
toward her with anything but kind
ness II have confidence in his good
heart" she added, with something like
dignity.
would God that ! could share it,
was the only answer she received. Be-
fore she could recover from the shock
OF these words Mr.. Sutherland was
gone.
Agnes was a little troubled by this
interview, for after she had heard the
gate click behind these two friends
and bad carried that precious some
thing away with her up stairs there
was a lingering in the step with which
she trod the little white EMPOWERED
chamber. sacred to her giriisb dreams.
that bespake an overcharged heart. a
heart that. before she slept. found re-
lief in these few words that she whis-
pered into the night air. laden with the
sweetness of honeysuckles:
Can II bc that he is right2 Did
need such n warning-I who have hat
ed this man and who thought that it
was my hatred which made il impossi-
BILE for me to think of anything or any
body else since we parted from each
other last night? Oh. me. IL it is SOL
And from the great. wide world with
out. tremulous with moonlight. the
echo seemed to come back:
Woe to thee. Agnes Halliday, IL this
be sou