Richmond daily palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1876-1904, 1901-06-05
q YEAR AND "A DAY

a
on the dark skirts of an uaiidy wo-
man lay the dusty road across the
dun brown earth one solitary tray
eler alone gave a touch Of life 10 the
deadly moaoFony of a landscape made
up 81 low sky and high hills, continual
II meeting and falling apart IN endless
undGlatious From the earth itself
arese the soft, shining simmer OF in
tense heat aud through IL. wnh sort
- automatic INCONSISTENCIES, plunged
the figure whose gun and game bag be
spoke the hunter-a hunter and u
mighty man as wen. whose broad
shoulders. 1.-THE limbs and lean. I'M
handsome face bore the unm!stakahie
stamp 81 breeding and refinement.
For hours this man had tramped. ut
ferlv Lost 10 the discomfortS OF the
present. IN the intense pain OF vivid
retroSnection. a retroSpection suddenly
interrupted by a spectacle of human
misery a ercWsonae as il was pathetic
Quite alone Yet within the shadow
of 4 hastily improvised shelter OF bend
inc bou-hs. lay the worn and wasted
figure Of man, a man upon whose
brow lay damp and cold CHASTITY dew,
whose limbs had already fallen into
the absolute immohility of coming dis
solution and whose passing life seemed
caught aud focused in wide opened,
aneui>hcd eyes,
startled ont of his long day dream,
Serge Vernon knelt beside the sufferer,
pressing his brandy flask 10 his lips
stranger said he, God sent YOU l
am dying dying with my work I'M
done out Wonder Eve a daughter look
i.sg for water. a pretty girl and good
one. raised a lady with her mothers
ncaple. hut She left them all for me. L
didn't ask it, Al first | even tried TO
send her back Ranch life is hard on
some women. but she loved it-loved
everything IL e dogs. the horses. the
wild free life tuat was glad and beau
fiful to rs both until he came, maa.
rich handsome and educated like her
self. a man whose speech was the
speech Of her own people and who
brought 10 his wooing all the subtle
arts / civilization, never thought OF
dang r never dreamed of treachery,
until the black hearted scoundrel had
eoue-gone denying the private mar
j riage into which he had entrapped her
and ninc.ng her shame in her face.
'
+ out that shame in his hearts blood:
i Murder they called it; just judgment l
+ knew il. but for her sake guarded well
/ the secret that she has never guessed.
/ that she must never know. But trou-
/ Bile came of it and loss until now. when
/ | must leave my poor girl Pennies and
/ alone III strange land. They have OF.
/ ferrd n reward for the murderer
/ $1,000 for him alive or dead. The
/ proofs are all here" laying purple
hand across his laboring breast
stranger. she needs IL. Will you get
the money for my girl? When the end
comes. she has promised to go home
| Then find the murderer of Jim Kan
mas and send the blood money to the
| woman who. before God, is his widow.
! Jim Rannis, Serge Vernon lived in
! that moment n year of misery-the long
| year since Stella Marsden had chosen
between his love and his cousins for
! tune. the cousin who cared so little FOL
| the treasure won that he soon left II
for taste of pleasure and adventure
| in the new world. All that he had
| found AMI deserved death as well. Lit
| tie liking til task. Serge had crossed
| the water rad learned the evil story
OF u wasted life. lived under a false
na aa ssssa..., = DISGUISE and disgrace
sion of the murderer and had ra,,n.
him
here uas ruStling among the will.
rose bushes. and. looking up, Serg,
saw them part above the head of ;
girl. tail. fair and like rose herself
heir perfume caught in her wine
blown hair. their bloom on perfect liz
anu cheek. lip and cheek that paled nj
sight of the dying man as. with a low
cry. she dropped beside him.
In the pocket of Serge's hunting shir,
lay letter sweet and gracious ap-
| peal for forgiveness. written by his
cousins widow The letter. that morn
/ Ing received. had been less a surprise
than his own reception of the fact that
| she was no longer inconsolable Know
| Ing the heights of sacrifice to which
this guilty wayfarer had attained. see
| ing his naternal passion returned with
| absorbing flial affection. he realized
| that the English girl willing to sell her
sortlil soul FOR the Vernon title. was no
longer his IDEAL of perfect womanhood
Suddt My. loud and clear, from the
dying lips came the eager question
stranger will you get that money for
my gifi: Serge Vernon barred his
head AMI !iftcd his hand. LAS God is
my witness. said he. Il WILL"
Before Serge Vernon and his wife
were married she told him the story of
her siHless shame. but he gave her no
answering confidence. Today her ia
Tier sleeps in an honored grave. and
she III her happy English home has
won all hearts save that of the wild.
owed Lady Vernon. Serge himself dis
coarages any intimacy between the
two. feeling il 10 be unnatural and nm
wise.
Ri-nrnr..L- I,hiIn.n.L