The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1904-09-15
The berorter

|:7;,G, ( I
obtained the facts from which he made
that leading article in the Star which
had so startled all Washington on the
evening of the Jeffrey wedding. That
they had come from some eyewitness
had no doubt, but who was the eye
witness? Himself? No. Who then?
At first he declined to tell me, but aft.
er II fuller understanding of my mo-
tives he mentioned the name of young
lady who, while frequent guest at
not above supplying the papers with
such little items of current gossip as
came under her own observation.
How ! managed TO approach this lady
and by what means succeeded in
gaining her confidence are details quite
unnecessary to this narrative. Enough
that did obtain access to her and that
ShV tilN'h 'lhll' lldllhl. w anu
so doing supplied me with II clew which
ultimately opened mp to me an entirely
new field of inquiry.
We had been discussing Mr.. Jeffrey
and Miss Tuttle when suddenly aud
with no apparent motive beyond the
natural love of gossip, which was her
weakness, she larSnched out into re.
Il. nj, lao, l,iI
had been late. Did know it? A half
hour or threc-u1artcrs past the time set
for il. And why? Because Miss Moore
was not ready. She had chosen to ar
ray herself in the house and had come
early enough for the purpose, but she
would not accept any assistance, moi
even that of her maid. and of course
she kept every one waiting. ''Oh,
there was no more un ,asy soul in the
whole party that morning than the
bride" Let other people remark upon
the high look in Cora Tuttle's face or
gossip about the anxious manner of
the bridegroom. she the speaker could
tell things about the bride which would
80 to show that she was not all right
even before that Ominuus deaths head
reared Itself into view at her marriage
festival. Why, the fact that she came
downstairs and was married without
her bridal bouquet was enough. Had
there not been so much else TO talk
about, people would have talked about
that. But the big event lad so effec,
tually swallowed UP the little that only
herself and possibly two other ladies
she might name seemed TO retain any
memory of the matter.
what ladlcs:' ] asked.
"Oh, it doesn't matter what ladies'
Two of the very best sort know
they noticed ii, because | heard them
talking about it, We were all stand
ing in the upper hall and were all
crowded into passage leading to the
room where the bride was dressing
1t was before the alarm had gone
around of what had been discovered in
the library. and we were all impatient
enough for the appearance of the
bride, who, we had been told, intended
to wear the old point in which her
great-grandmother was married.
have IA weakness for old point and
was determined TO stand where | could
see her come out, even If | lost sight
Of the ceremony itself. But it would
have been tedious enough waiting in
that close hall II the ladies behind me
had not kept up IL conversation, which
|, of course, pretended not to hear.
remember it, every word for il was
my sole amusement for half an hour.
What was IT. Oh, IL was about that
same bouquet, which, by the way, !
had the privilege OF staring at all the
time they chatted. For the boy who
brought it had not been admitted into
Miss Moore's room, and, not knowing
what else to do with ii, was lingering
before her door, with the great stream.
ers falling from his hands, and the
lilies making the whole place heavy
with sickening perfume. From what
l heard the ladies' say. he had been
standing there an hour, and the timid
knock he gave from time to time pro-
duced in me an odd feeling which
those ladies behind me seemed to share.
"'It's a shame! heard one of them
cry. Veronica Moore has no excuse
for such thOughtlessness. 1t is an
hour now that she has been shut up
in her room alone. She won't have
even her maid In. She prefers to dress
alone, she says. Peculiar In bride,
isn't it? But one thing is certain
she cannot put on her veil without
help. She will have to call some one
In for that At which the other volun-
teered that the Moores were all queer,
and that she didn't envy Francis JEFF
frey. What! not with fifty thousand
year to tighten her Odditiesr return
ed her companion with shrug which
communicated itself to me, 80 closely
were we packed together. i have a
son who could bear with them under
such circumstances Indeed she has,
and all Washington knows II, but the
remark passed without comment, for