Lincoln County leader. [volume] (Toledo, Lincoln County, Or.) 1893-1987, 1904-02-26

ing at it in the light she did, what a ter
rible thing this must have been to hear
a man condemn himself of such terrible
crimes.
The memory of that night, when she
came to him in the avenue of elms and
put the question to him, was as fresh with
him as though it had happened but yes
terday, and he began to realize the hor-
ror that must have entered into her soul,
when, immediately after acknowledging
that it was all true in relation to Nora
Warner-and Carol understood him at
the time to be acknowledging the fact
that the woman in the mad house was
his own wife, not his cousins, as he sup
posed she knew-he had, pleaded with her
to be the same to him as before.
His self-pride had been terribly wound
ed by the fact of Carols believing he
could be guilty of such fearful acts. In
his anger he gave her no credit for her
fearful struggles against such a belief,
and the overwhelming evidence upon the
matter, but seemed to be seized with the
insane idea, quite beyond reason, that,
if she loved him as well as she professed
to, she should have believed in him, even
when his W words condemned him.
Roger had very exalted ideas on the
subject of human love, but he was yet to
learn the lesson that we are all weak,
even the strongest among us, and that
love can yield to facts as well as any
other emotion.
This was how he deceived himself, how-
ever. and in so doing kept up his anger.
Had he allowed himself to sit down and
calmly think over the matter, his good
sense would have soon won the victory,
together with his owe for the young girl;
but he kept the fire burning by repeat
ing to himself the words he had used in
that last.interview with Carol, when she
had Mortified him by disclosing the fact
that she had-and even then-believed
him to be the evil man who had ruined
the life Of the gypsy girl, Barbara Mer-
rifles, and shut his wife up in the mad
house when she was as sane as he him
self, simply because he wished to be rid
Of her.
"Yes, I will bring proofs to her, proofs
that will convince her of my innocence be-
yond all doubt; and having'done that 1
will throw her love from me like a tat
l tered glove, for it is false. She never
t really loved me, else she could not believe
such a terrible thing of me-"
. Thus he allowed his thoughts to run
! on in the same channel. He would not
t let his mind dwell upon the other side Of
} the case, and in this way he was unjust
to Carol and to himself. 1t was not like
Roger Darrell to thus be %ungenerous; but
l there are times in a mans life when for
awhile his whole nature seems perverted,
though generally it swings into place
again ere long.
, He was paying the penalty of his anger
; toward Carol, and soon he would enter
into the second stage, when he would find
himself so miserable, cut off forever from
: her love, that death itself would seem q
I relief.
When this time came, Roger would be
rapidly nearing a state when he would
be in a fit mood not only to forgive Caro-
, but to sue for pardon himself.
! He now understood the game his cousin
. was playing, though of course there were
/, parts of it entirely yelled from his eyes
,. for instance, he did not know that Nora
Warner had escaped from the mad house
and that it had been her vengeful hant
that had given his cousin the wound thai
! prevented the duel between the two Rog
= err barrels. Then, again, he was ignorant
: of the fact that Nora was not insane.
: Before his cousin had her confined il
the mac house he had been enabled Il
\ do her several fayors, without his identity
! being known to her, as he thought at tn,
- time; but when he heard that she ha(
gone crazy he did not doubt the truth O
the report. although he felt sure it hat
- all come through the man who bore hi
!, name, and such was his shame for the dis
Il honor put upon the Darrell family by thi
foul act, that more than ever he felt dis
y graced and wished to be alone.
!, This was his state of feeling when h,
" came home from abroad and met Caro-
= Richmond for the first time.
- His fine inner sense told him that h
. ought not WOO her for his wife. but h
= became angered at the idea of his Who'll
life being ruined because of this repro
bate cousin. and he had put aside al
foolish scruples.
When Carol denounced him on tina
. night in the avenue of trees, he n"aturall
. thought she was speaking OF the disgrac
that hung over him because of his cous
: ms doings when she declared that 'Nor
:. Warner stood between them"
His cousin was so eXcellently disguise
that he did not recognize him any NOR
: than on the former occasion, when trave
ing in Europe, and he met him as tn
V Russian count, the man with the blac
~ glove.
= What schemes the scoundrel had /
= view it would be hard indeed to tell, bu
most certainly his designs upon his cousi
at that time had been frustrated throug
, some cause.
u On the next night after the one o
u which he had held that interview wit
ie Carol. when fate had parted them neve