The Farmville herald. [volume] (Farmville, Va.) 1890-1934, 1903-07-03
An BfChin8
from Life
By ADDIB FAR RAR


| L WAS characteristic Of him that he
| should have married as he did. His
was nature full of generous impulses
and quick sympatnies. She was poor
and alone, shouldering the burden of
on existence under the load Of ill
health and lingering disease. His
natural chi,alry for women but as
serted itself when out of his greater
abundance he extended her many
personal comforts and little courte-
sizes her mcager salary could not
compass. IL never occurred TO him
that a pettish and narrow minded
world might misconstrue even the
hndest of intentions. Because OF
this, in the end. he married her-not
that he loved her-his feeling for her
was but a pitying affection. Then
too, he was loncly-a stranger in a
strange land, and just then home
OF his own meant much TO him. In
q way his marriage meant little, for
in an the 33 years of his life he
had never felt but more than pass
ing interest in any woman. Love-
the love ne had dreamed Of had never
come into his life lie had am ar
dent, poetic temperament, and had
had wonderful dreams Of the per
feet union Of body and soul-the
only life Of a man and woman to-
gether
Now that he had settled down in
a quiet domesticity and the care of
his half-in,alided wife, who, relieved
Of an the exeriion Of self-support
had blossomcd into almost health, he
resolutely put aside such vague love
dreams and played at happiness. For
three years he had tried to believe
himself at least contented, and so
great was his loyalty to his wife, that
he refused even to himself TO ac-
knowledge that his restlessness and
unsatisfed longings came from aught
else than a desire to amass COM
potency and an ambition 10 become
a certain factor in the great world;
20 command for himself certain de-
gree Of influence and power.
As for his wife, she was grateful
for his care, and loved him as sucn
women love, with a half-maternal
fondness that manifests itself In an
irritating fussiness for the object of
its affection. She was the kind Of
woman who make better mothers
than wives, better housekeepcrs than
companions, and who, while possess
ing all the virtues of good woman,
vet lack the little arts that hold a
man. She didn't understand him, and
she believed in his talents and pos
sibilities only SO far as they ma
terialized into gold. This money She
handled judiciously, fed him excel
lent dinners, and starved his soul.
She, however, was quite content;
she could not miss what she could
not fathom, and even after the other
woman came into his life she never
noted that he was different, that his
whole being was awake and alive,
quivering with new and undefnable
emotions.
They were singularly congenial,
there two, the other woman and he.
Their tastes, their work, their
thoughts, ran along the same chan
mel, and so great was their sympathy
from the first day of their mere ac-
quaintance they had quickly passed
into close friendship, and If her beau
" and grace had at first attracted
him, her sweet disposition, her keen
intellectually. quick wit and gener-
Gus broad mindedness held him.
For many months he had been
regular visitor at her house, and
each succeeding day had brought TO
him afresh the realization of his love
for her. To him she was the one
desirable thing life held.
She was, and would always be the
dominant note of his life. She was
the woman of his dreams, and fame,
wealth and position appeared as
nothing beside her. Gladly would he
have renounced them all for her
sake, but only too well he realized
bis position. His was a strong ma
ture, and he fought valiantly for
what the world demanded of him,
his loyalty TO his wife. Night after
night he had lain awake tossing in
his agony of hopeless loye-the love
his lips dared not utter, and there
was not a waking moment that her
face was not before him.
For ten days he had martyred him
self by staying away from her, but
regularly every night he had walked
past the house TO catch glimpse Of
her through the low windows, with
out which he could not rest.
From outside he had watched her
among her guests, and wondered il
she missed him. lie had longed SO
to 90 in, to hear her voice in pleas
ant greeting, to see the flush arise
on her cheeks, the roguish sparkle
in her eyes, but it was a part Of
the punishment he had laid out for
himself that he should not.
As he walked down the street, he
noticed that the house was not light
ed, but by the rays Of the summer
moon he caught the futter Of a
white dress on the veranda, and COM
ing closer ne saw her sink into one
of the porch chairs and drop her
head on her outstretched arms as
they rested ON the veranda rail-
Coming closer in the shadow, he
heard a stifcd sob, then another.
CRYING -she-she, who had always
laughed things away. With a bound
he was up the steps beside her. Fate
had won.
"Agneo!"
She sprang to her feet, quietly
greeting him with outstrteched hand,
and smiling, flushed face, calmly ig
noring the traces Of tears on her
face.
D. g.. ae.1a