Daily camera., 1901-08-17
awhen they pII4d 81 81 me and let


picked up big jagged stone and fol
some hours before succeeded in get
ting squarely in front Of the big
Peter Werner, who had led the as
sault, and who had by this time for
gotten 1t. / let drive my stone with
all the force I possessed. and re-
member we'll the wild Joy which pos
scssed my soul when saw the blood
squirt from his head, AM beheld him
lying unconscious on the ground. In
the days that followed while he lin
gered between life and death. never
could be brought to see wherein I
had done wrong, although after the
excitement had passed away, and my
bashfulness had reaSserted itself, l
realized the terrific force of my pas
sion.
only two or three times after that
was it aroused. but those few times
served to demonstrate more clearly
my utter inability to restrain myself
when injustice or abuse set loose the
torrents Of my temper. l went on
through boyhood and youth with my
sensitive, reserved and lonely nature.
l had few pleasures and no compan-
ions after my mother died.
THE one bright ray that came into
my life, was Alice Wilson. AS boy
l worshiped her. As youth made
her the goddess of my dreams, and
builded her into air castles which can
only come to persons who live the
lonely and companionless life that
young manhood, and had made some
thing Of success in my vocation
after contact with the world had
brushed the gloss off my dreams and
had blunted somewhat the edge of
my shrinking sensitiveness, plucked
up courage to propose to her. She
refused me. but 1t was with tender
ness and with evident distress. She
told me that she had never dreamed
that admired her, and was fun of
pity and regret. She was engaged to
Philip Sherry, she told me, and loved
him with all her heart.
"She married him, and I crawled
back into myself again, and went on
in my lonely life. Philip Sherry was
O rake and cur. He broke her heart.
dissipated what little fortune she had
and became involved In notorious
scandal so badly that he was dragged
into court, in a divorce case brought
by another man against his wife.
II happened to be in the Metropoli-
tan hotel one day. where l had been
summoned to figure on some changes
to be made in remodeling it. and l be-
came the accidental and unseen wit.
ness Of an interview between Sherry
and his wife. II was in the public
parlor. but they thought themselves
quite alone. She was pleading with
him to leave the country and save
their children from further disgrace,
surely to be en.ailed by his presence
at the forthcoming suit. She was
dry-eyed and calm. but / pray God
will never let me see face into
which Is written broken heart so
wildly as was In hers. He was. some
what in liquor. brutal and sneering.
She did not talk angrily, but very
plainly. He became insolent, insult
ing and abusive. He said things that
filled me with horror that they should
be spoken to any woman, but most
Of all to her.
And then, governor" and I walked
directly in front Of the governor, and
looked him squarely in the eye, 'he
struck her. Yes. a. tod is my judge,
he struck her, and reeled out of the
room. With that blow l started for
ward from where had stood trans
fixed during the brief interview. AS
she saw me she flushed deeply, and as
she caught the expression on my
face, cried out a. I turned to leave
the room:
"'Mr. Drummond, be careful; oh,
be careful
ut was late that night when l
found him. He was in the hotel
lobby, laughing and joking with
party Of friends. l struck him down
with his own cane. The blow was
mortal 1 meant 1t to be. l was glad
of 1t when l saw him dying there on
the floor. I have been glad of it ever
since. am glad Of 1t now. would
do II again this minute if all the fires
of hell roared in front of me and
awaited me. And il behind me were
all the joys ever hoped for"
The governor sat for some min
utes with those introspective eyes
turned inward, and wondered IL he
had heard me. Then he arose, put
out his hand for mine, placed his 9TH
er hand on my shoulder and said:
And l would pardon you with the
same conditions facing me. You will
be a free man before night"