Columbia courier. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1902-1905, 1904-10-14
\ OBERT MALCOLM had never

~ ObEHT MAI<ObM ha0 never
N[ been called Bob" by any one
CIV until his recently acquired wife,
with a coquettish pretense of shyness'
had 80 addressed him.
q. He had known her but short time
when he won her. And now, at the
end of SIX blissful months, he was sit
ting in his splendid library. perplexed
and miserable, and gloomily cycling the
embers of a CRATE fire and trying to
persuade himself that the shadow
which threatened to wreck his future
could be explained away if only he had
the courage to ask her.
On coming home that afternoon he
had gone to the sitting room and had
found 1t empty. Turning to leave he
: saw a piece of note paper lying on the
floor, ms though 1t had been brushed off
her desk as she rose In hurry. In
STOPPING to replace 1t, his eye caught
two words, the beginning of letter
Dear Tom" Dear Tom! Could 1t be
that there was a dear Tom in her life
Of whom he knew nothing? The letter
read:
"Dear Tom-If were to be asked
why l am writing to you should have
to admit that l am yielding to an I'm
pulse. My whole life has been made
up Of impulses, and l never battled
with them but once-alas, the very
time should have yielded. You know
well what l mean, that night you re-
nounced me, renowned me while your
blood was on fire with love for me-,
which knew and felt and revealed in,
when your eyes dumbly begged me to
refuse to be renowned and your lips
told me 1t would be better to part. All,
II had only yielded then to the i'm
pulse to tell you l loved you well
enough to share your poverty and the
task Of caring for your poor, helpless
father. How well remember that
dear, delightful, cruel summer In Dork-
ing.
You came, dear, and you stepped
into my heart with that first smile on
your brave, sunny face. Then, after
ward. Aunt Sarah, when told her of
our betrothal, said in her Icy, sneering
tones: I congratulate you upon your
discretion. 1t is fitting thing that
you should marry Tom Spencer and let
your early poverty be merged into mid
dle-aged and elderly poverty. As Tom
spencer's wife you will have the salts
faction Of knowing that you have be-
fore you such life as your mother
has led, only intensified, since your
life will be encountered by his help
less, paralytic old father
TON, dear, do not utterly despise
me when tell you that her words had
their weight. did not fear the pow
erty, for l knew you were bound to
succeed, If only, dear one, you were
not hampered In your career by your
father. l knew you were fond Of him,
and that while he lived you would keep
him with you-that even could not
influence you to send him away. So
when you told me we had better part
offered no protestation. l knew your
heart was aching and that you needed
comforting words from me. . knew
. had only to speak one word to break
down the barrier and have you take
me to your heart forever. I did not
speak that word. Though my heart
cried out to you l could not tell you
that loved you well enough to share
your burden. l did not speak that
word. l am married now. My hus-
band loves me, and | am rich beyond
my fondest expectations. | have all
those things which my luxurious and
expensive tastes craved-yet l am not
happy. This is indeed my farewell
dear one. You know now-eyery word
in this letter has told you-what you
are to me. You will not misunder.
stand-you will not come to me. 1t is
over, Tom, and"
Here the writing ended abruptly.
Robert Malcolm was loyal man
and though the evidence was against
her he refused to believe his wife gull
ty of all that the letter implied. He
told himself that If he dared to ask hel
for an explanation she would give 1t
and it would be satisfactory. To ash
her to confess n dishonorable act was
also to confess a lack of confidence II
her.
While he was sitting there the doc
opened noiselesly. A slight girlish fig
ure stole across the thick carpet an,
behind his chair. Two soft small hand
were clasped before his eyes and {
voice whispered:
Guess who II is
His heart gave great bound ant