The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1902-03-03

in. such thing. / fancy detect an
| incredulous smile on more. than one
| face. But can assure you that so far
| as the writer of the letters and myself
| are concerned, it Is the strict truth.
| And in order" said the vicar impress
| sively, ito put myself right with you
and others who may be disposed to
| condemn me on hearsay | have already
taken steps, with the consent of the
| writer, to have all these letters print
| ed and published.
"They Will appear in a small volume,
which will be issued as soon as it can
| be got through the press. Until then,
| when YOU will be able to read the let
| ters for yourself--every one of them is
| included-I earnestly ask you all to
suspend your Judgment"
| The Evening Eavesdropper, most en-
| terprising of all the halfpenny oracles,
sent down a member of it's staff to in
] terview the vicar.
| "Wait until the letters are pub
| lished,' he said, "and then comment
on them as you please. may say that
1 await the verdict of the public with
| every confidence"
Further interest was impaired to the
affair by the action of the bishop.
who, being very much scandalized by
what he heard. sent for the vicar to
come over to his palace and explain
| himself.
THE whole affair" said his lordship,
severely, strikes me as particularly
discreditable, and those remarks of
yours from the pulpit about platonic
| affection are downright scandalous."
II am sorry that you object to them,
my lord. But my wife's hasty conduct
forced me to speak out in my own
defense"
And then to publish these letters!
1t simply emphasizes a scandal which
otherwise might have been hushed up"
Il did not desire it to be hushed up.
That would have been an admission of
guilt OH my part. l court publicity"
But they are love letters written to
you, a married man and u clergyman,
by another woman"
Love letters only in sense-a strict
ly platonic sense"
''Pish!' calculated the bishop, an
grily. II really cannot make out
whether you are demented, Mr.. Sted-
man, or merely impudent"
81 can only say to you, my lord. what
l have said to everybody else. Wait
until you have read the letters
In due course the letters were pub
lished. They mere devoured eagerly
on every hand. But am sorry to say
that the consensus of public opinion
went dead against the vicar.
The letters, as letters. were we'll
enough. They We're witty; they were
humorous; they We're full also, of
charming, tender phrases and graceful
erotic fancies. But as letters written
to a marble clergyman by a lady other
than his Wife-Well, they We're unques-
tionably too warm.
Not much Plato about this" wrote
trenchant critic. It's a good deal
more like the Song of Solomon"
& T.
Six weeks later the vicar called at the
house where his wife was lodging and
insisted upon seeing her.
What do you want? What do you
mean by this intrusion?" she demand
ed, fiercely. II wonder you have the
face-but no. You have face enough
for anything.'
'Laetitia." said her husband, with
humility, Il have been in error. come
to beg your pardon"
THAT is very fine" sneerd Mrs. Sted-
man. Now that your inmpudent pub
lication of those letters-by which you
madly hoped to enlist public sympathy
on your side-has turned out otherwise
than you expected"
True" interposed the vicar, meekly.
EVERY one seems to condemn me.
There's not a newspapers I have seen
but has criticised the letters in the
most ruthless manner"
Serves you right. Mortimer. You
tried a brazen coup to put me in the
wrong. You have only succeeded in
blazoning your iniquity through the
length and breadth of the land"
'Laetitia," said the vicar, in tone
of almost abject submission, you left
me because | would not tell you who
'Girlie' was. l repent of my refusal.
l have come to tell you now"
We'll" she demanded, looking at him
quickly.
"'Girle,' he said. shamefacedly,' lis
is a young woman typewriter"
80, that's the class of creature you
carry on with, is it?" calculated his
Wife, bitterly
'She-she is Il good girl, and meant
no harm in writing the letters, | assure
YOU" pleaded the vicar.
"A likely story. The shameless bag
gage" sneered Mrs. Stedman.
"Laetta," he said, II will prove to
you the truth of what l say The young
woman-'Girlie'-did not compose the
letters. She merely copied them for
someone else"
Il see" cried his wife. Someone else
whose handwriting you would have
Known
Yes" confessed the vicar, someone
else whose handwriting | would have
known"
who is she?" demanded his wife,
with renewed ferocity.
1T is not a she at ALL" replied the
vicar quietly. II knew, Laetitia, that
advertisement was everything, and so |
made use of you and of others to un-
consciously advertise for me my maid
en- literary effort-With the result that
10000 copies have already been sold
l told you, If you remember, that
'Girlle' was one who was very much at
tached TO me, That was the literal
truth" concluded the vicar, FOR 'Girlie'
is--myself!'
Note-Mrs. Stedman forgave the vic
ar, and a PREDATORY notice in the next
edition of AN English Parsons Love
Letters" put him right with the pub
lie, who, ticllled by the daring ingenuity
of his little dodge, and recognizing also
the great cleverness of the letters, have
established him as one of their favorite
authors. He has since resigned his
meager living, and now makes a hand