Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1902-02-27

cTOcuSSS- he does not Know hlmSeI
how ii all came about, but all at once
he has asked her if she will be his.
And then he heard a YES" a timid
but firm Yes
And now he feels again that
strange sensation that never left him
comes over man when he feels
under obligations to another and
cannot show himself sufficiently ap-
preciatige. II is a stupid feeling, and
it makes him irritable and nervous
and unjust 1t is too hard to enuure
magnanimity, too frightfully hard;
one is almost ready to hate the per-
son to whom one is so much in
debted, especially when one believes
the giyer to be so far beneath one in
intellect, SO far beneath
Strange, the more he. received. the
more irritable he grew, Absurd.
She was his wife. and she had said
to him thousand times, What as
mine is yours" And yet, and yet,
In Heavens name, had he put moth
ing at all into the scale, then? His
name, his honorable name, and moth
ing more. Actually, there was moth
ing more-nothing, He had not
even been successful in his pictures,
because-because she he'd dragged
him down into the prose of lie. 1t
was all her fault
He was only glad that he had told
her, told her brutally, that she had
been only a chain to weigh him down
in spite of her wealth. That
wretched drunkard's wife was a
heroine beside her; she had had the
strength to keep her faith to the end
in spite of everything. But he had
been turned out.
He gave a short laugh.
Really, it was poetical justice for
her to dismiss me, that must admit.
| should hardly have given her credit
for so much spirit. Thank Cod"
He began to yawn and stretch like
person released from a heavy
chain, but he had nc pleasant feeling
of freedom. There is no freedom
without money. and he would rather
starve than take penny of the aims
that she would be sure to offer him.
But where should he go? What
should he do?
He began too undress, and as usual
he took his sketch-book and pocket
book out of his jacket pocket There
were the letter. and the telegram.
too, which he had received just as he
was leaving the iron-works more
over, there was the elegant pocket
revolver. and here at last was the
little red bow which he had been
carrying about with him for the past
week. The dark head in whose hair
this bow had nestled rose before him
with charming distinctness. Why
had she displayed such anger, such
scorn, at last?
Yes, | made my eyes lie to You,
on purpose, because | wished to be
revenged on you
Revenged? For what? Because
he had laid his homage at her feet?
All, bah! She had been set on by
Ante; they had frightened her
among them.
That woman whose horizon was no
wider than a tea-cup, what could sne
understand of intellectual relation
ships, of Tie force which attracts one
soul to another? Everything about
her was coarse and clumsy, her
whole manner of thought and feeling.
Pots and pans, baby's pap, her
money-boxes-a delightful con-
glomeration! Oh. to get away
away from this narowness,
He went to the window and looked
out into the night. The wind had
died down: hSlt, silvery mist
floated about the beeches beyond
the clearing where the forest-house
stood. He took up the letter and
could not read the writing; and after
all there was no hurry. But the
telegram-probably the announce
ment that the shares in the p
bank are sold''
He had given the order to sell he
cause he had happened to hear that
something was wrong with this bank.
1t was no longer any affair of his,
but. after all. it was his duty to see
that his wffe's fortune was safely in
vested: it had dwindled a good deal
as it was. IL he had not sometimes
been lucky in his stock speculations.
things might have been even worse.
Barrenberg had advised him to buy
these confounded shares. His friend.
who was usually Well up in such mat
ters. had felt sure they would rise in
value.
Leo held the telegram still unopen
ed in his hand. and looked at it. He
had bought shares at far higher
value nominally than the capital
which was at his disposal Confound
4. it would be disgusting II ne should
have to sell at a much lower rate. If
he had only thought to cast a glance
at the prices of stocks in the count
fng-room at the iron-works!
Suddenly cold shiver passed
over him. Then he CROPPED for the
matchbox and lighted the thin little