Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1903-09-23
The Repentant Wife.
BY PHILIP REAUFOY.
tive wears ago tonight"

give years ago tonight"
DIR. Basil Graham sat beside the
waning fire in his big study and peer
ed into the rudy depths. What did
he see that caused him to gaze there
with such intent eyes?
He saw a house in city street,
and within that house a girl-sWeet,
winsome, adorable. He saw man
at her feet, heard him murmur words
of love, heard her whisper eyes"
while the mans eyes lighted up with
ineffable joy.
The embers fell, and another pic
ture burned into the doctors brain.
He saw another house in another
street-desolate, empty, grief-strick-
en-a house whence the woman had
flown, leaving black sorrow and tears
behind her. And Basil Graham knew
that this woman was Mabel, his wife,
and that the man was himself, her
broken-hearted husband
Five years ago she had vanished
from his home after a brief welded
life. She had gone without word
of explanation, and he had been
forced to tne bitter conclusion that
she had flown with some man for
whom she had conceived sudden
and perhaps overwhelming affection.
All search proved useless. Had the
grave closed over Mabel Graham she
could not nave been more effectually
hidden from the man into whose LIE
she had come with such wondrous
ioy, and out of whose existence she
had gone with such tragic abruptness.
He had told himself that hence
forth life could hold no further JOY
for him But for his work, he would
in all probability have sought refuge
in the everlasting sleep that lurked
within the pnials of his office, but,
fortunately, the mans devotion to
his profession held him back, ana
turned his thoughts towards the path
of life.
Five years had passed away. Five
wears had borne him along the dreary
highway of existence, and long since
he had put aside all hopes OF meeting
his wife again on earth. He tolo
himself that he must tread his lone
iy way until death wrote the word
s'fnis" at the foot of his life's his
tory.
Tonight. on this most bitter ami
versary, he sat in the gloomy study,
wondering the events Of his past life,
and asking himself with strange per-
sistence, the old, old question:
"Why had Mabel 1eft him?"
"Once I believed that there was
some other man" he rurmured, but
I have tried to battle With that ter
rible belief and to DISMISS it from lny
bra n"
The doctor arose, ani going TO the
bookshelf, took from it 4 volume ana
began to read. Hardly had nc set
tied in his chair when a loud knock
resounded through the quiet house
A servant entered and Informed
him that a lady desired to ste him.
GA patient, I suppose" said Ora
ham, mechanically. "Show her in
here"
The man quilted the apartment, re-
turning in a minute with tall close
" yelled woman.
What can | do 70" you, madam"
he queeried, motioning her to chair
Doctor, l cannot sit down, Tor
there is no time to lose
''You wish me to return with
Sou?" he asked quickly.
eyes. A lady wno resides in the
same house as myself has been taken
iii. and I volunteered to nurse her.
She seems worse tonight, and I was
about to send for the doctor VINO had
already attended her, when she called
me TO her bedside and said: Bring
DIR. Graham of Harley street. | have
something to say to HIM
"T will come at once!" cried the
doctor, as hope and fear subtly min
eIed in his brain. The hope took the
form of a belief that the sick woman
MIGHT be his wife-the fear that she
might die in the very hour of meet
ing.
A cab was waiting at the door.
The doctor and his companion enter
ed the vehicle and were rapidly drlv-
on in the direction of northern sub
urb. After some twenty-five minutes
Journey, the cab drew up at the door
of a somewhat dingy house, and the
yelled woman touched DR.. Graham on
the arm.
"This is the place" she said. in
low voice pray Heaven we may
not be too late"
A sharp ring at the bell brought a
glatternly maidservant to tne door
"How is Miss Everson?" asked the
woman, quickly.