The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1903-04-03
Hrs. EOYgs1gIS FIRST HMSbamn
BY i. Ralph. Copyright 1905. " w. r.. IIearat0

Copyright, 1908. by w. R. Hearst.)
fascinating, and knowing far more of!
the world than she did, she believed mi
him. His proposal to marry her, on the
condition that she should keep the matter
a profound secret for a month, so that he
might obtain the consent OF his. father
who, he said. was a wealthy landed pro1
prietor in the Midlands-she i%nnocently
agreed to.
She, indeed, told her mother, who, Will,
the imbecility natural to her, made no in
quiries; letting the girl IN fact do just as
she pleased.
Leaving home one day on the pretext
of paying a visit to a relative in Lon
don. she met Jack Forester. by arrange,
ment, at a certain little church In Chel-
sea, and was married with only the pew-
opener and verger as witnesses.
The catastrophe was not long delayed.
AT the entrance Of the hotel, where they
were to dine, her new made husband was
,arrested on a charge OF "long-firm" swim
ding. by a couple of detectives, who, 1t
appeared, had been upon his track for
days.
Not staying to think or to hear more,
she returned home at once. and managed
to keep the whole wretched affair a Sc
cret.
Her mother, weakminded as she was,
had never dreamed of a runaway mar
rage. Had she known that, Metals life
would have been unbearable. The poor
girl just threw away her wedding ring
and resigned herself to misery.
In little more than a. year she saw In a
paper that her husband was dead. He had
tried to escape from Dartmoor and had
been shot.
Though once more free she was never
able to shake off the haunting memory of
her mistake and its consequences. Her
conscience u~pbraided her with deception
as toward her mother, with passing under
a false name and with posing as an UNI
married girl, when she was in reality a
widow.
But this man." I said, who is he-the
man I mean who accosted you this after
noon?'
He had followed. she explained to me,
upon a letter-a terrible letter-received
from her husband
But" said I, a bit bewtldered. 81
thought you said he was dead
"Yes-yes!I quite believed so; but I
suppose the man who had tried to escape
was another of the same name. He de-
mands-"
Il know" I Interrupted. "Your return
to him, or a sum of money"
!! would sooner die than return to him:
and as for the five hundred pounds. I
If I had"
you have his ~letter?' I asked her.
She produced it and gave 1t to me,
You are sure that 1t is his handwrit-
ing?'
mo; I am not sure, but I think it isl
never had a letter from him BEFORE
In a flash I saw what ought to be done.
n at once.
You must answer this letter." I said.
NO she replied, II will not write to
him!"
Then I sought to show her that If she
would write a note at my dictation, say
ing that at hat moment she had no mon
ey. but promising to send him some in the
course OF a few days, 1 would take charge
Of 1t, and go to London with 1t.
The same evening I left Overcoombe
with the letter in my pocket, and within
three hours had laid the whole case be-
fore the smartest private detective In
town.
In three days he had news for me. Jack
FORESTER, confidence man, swindler and
craftsman, had been undoubtedly married
to Meta Russell, and, as undoubtedly.
was now dead. in the way the newspapers
had stated.
The relief I felt was immense Meta
was free, and the way was open to me to
win her for myself If I could.
There was, however, one little thing
more to discover-the writer of the letter.
- think. said the detective, that If
you will wait half an hour, my agent VIII
have something to tell us ebout this yerv
enterprising gentleman" AS, indeed. he
had.
He reported that having taken Metals
note to the address given-a tobacco shop
The left 1t to be called for.
He found that a man had been asking
for letters In the same name each day for
the two previous days.
Posting himself in the passage. the
agent saw the man come and receive the
letter, and Swallowed him home. He knew
htn as a notorious crook"
Handing his memo-book to his PRINCIPAL
the latter read out:
Name, Carney Well known turf oper-
ator. Ten years in 1883. Out on ticket"
1T was decided, subject to Meta Rus
seiis opinion, that nothing much was to
be gained by a prosecution Of the rascal.
It Is needless to say that I caught the
first train Lack to Overcoombe, and that,
prepared by a wire from me, Meta met
me at the station.
Already she looked brighter, and COM
paratively free Of her melancholy.
I found, too. to my great satisfaction,
that she had told her mother everything.
Meta married a year later. Who she
married you may well guess, and I think
l may suggest that her second husband
was an Improvement upon her first.
i =HE E#UE