Newport daily independent., 1903-04-16

come by his unexpected news, and touched by the pathos of his comics sion.
 "Then I began to hope again he went on, "and by and by l fooled my self into fancying you had changed and one day l came to you as l had come before. And you sent me away as you had sent me before. Ii | came to you again in the same way I feel that, in the same way, you would only send me away again; so what am l to do?'
 She did not answer him.
 q thought to myself, I must die out of my old life and begin new one. When you're past hope, the wisest thing is to give up hoping; then you're past despair. Once l might have been happy; now 1 shall have to be satisfied if l am not miserable. l can never leave off loving you, Netta, but l shall not make 1nysUif sance to you"
 "You have-you have never made yourself a."
 Her voice futtered in her throat, and she discreetly let it die there, sooner than it should falter and die on her lips, and so betray her heart to him.
 You will forget me, no doubt, but I shall remember you always" lie glanced toward her. She was not looking at him, but an indetinable something in her subdued expression, in her very attitude, thrilled him through With an ecstatic conscious ness and assurance that brought him instantly to his feet with tremulous cry of Metal"
 She rose, startled, made a confused little movement, as if she would have evaded him and escaped from his sight before her self-restraint was broken down altogether.
 But there was no escape for her. He caught her impulsiveIy in his arms and drew her, after a faint, futile resistance, close and closer to him.
 "Only tell me I have misunderstood you," he pleaded; q have been too inpatient"
 No; it is too late,' she faltered, ashamed of her strange weakness and clasping her hands over her face to hide it from him, since she could not free herself from his detaining em- brace.
 Ut isn't too late, Netta,' he in- sisted, drawing her head down on his breast so that her face was hidden there T love you more than ever, and if you love me only ever so lit | tie, how can it be too late?" "How can you tell-her-"
 q have told her!" he laughed, ex- citedly: If you are not angry with me, she won't be. If you love me, she will love me. If you will marry me-
 Netta waited.
 q shall marry her!"
 And in q flash she saw through his deceit.
 Don't look up, dear," he said, keep ing one arm resolutely about her, and laying a hand lightly on the cur Iy brown head against his breast q am ashamed of myself for such trickery. But I had no idea of behav- ing so meanly when I came this aft ernoon. I had not planned it at all It really was not my fault"
 Do you mean it was mine?"
 He was not sure from her voice whether she was laughing or crying
 "No. no-not yours. It was all through the dear old vicar. It was en- tirely his fault. While you were tell ing me his notion that you could be led but not driven, and what he said about more ways than one, it struck me suddenly that had tried one way twice, and l wondered whether it was any good trying again, and trying a different way. =. Will you forgive me, Netta, and let's blame the dear old vicar? |. Don't look up, dear till you can forgive mel don't want to see you looking angry with me now"
 But she did look up, at last, and she didn't look angry; for though there were tears in her eyes, there was a wistful light shining through them that made them sweeter and happier than any ughter.-Blacl and White