The Weiser semi-weekly signal. (Weiser, Washington Co., Idaho) 1904-1911, 1904-10-01

and gossiped very mucn WIN nf.
customers. Besides, he was very busy
Just then selling out for be was going
70 the Klondike with william, and he
had TOO much on his mind to be bother
ed, or SO William said. All this must
tell you or you will never understand
the temptation which assailed me
when, having returned to Washington,
awoke to my own position and the
Kind of men whom l could now hope
to meet l was the wife-ob. the folly
of it-but this was known to SO few,
and those were so far removed, and
one even my friend Sadie being dead |
why not ignore the miserable secret !
ceremony and cheat myself into be- |
lieving myself free, and enjoy this |
world of pleasure and fashion as Cora |
was enjoying 1t and-trust? Trust |
what? Why the Klondike! That
swallower-up of men. Why shouldn't
1t swallow one more? Oh, know that
1t sounds hateful, but l was desper-
ate; had seen you.
Il had one letter from him after he
reached Alaska, but that was before ]
left Owosso. | never got another. And
never wrote to him. | rode and
danced with you and went hither and
yon, lavishing money and time and
heart on the frivolities which came In
my way, calling myself Veronica and
striving by these means to crush out
every remembrance of the days when 1
was known as Antoinette and An
l
toinette only. For the KIondike was
far and its weather bitter, and men
were dying there every day, and no
e letters came q used to thank God for
this, and l need not think-not yet
I whittier was tending One thing only
y made me recall my real position That
D was when your eyes turned on mine
i your true eyes, so bright with conf
L dence and pride. i wanted to meet
them full, and when could not sud
q denly knew why and suffered.
o Il did not accept your attentions nor
i agree to marry you without struggle.
You know that You can tell as no one
s else can how | held back and asked for
'r time and still for time, thus grieving
% you and tearing my own breast, till a
Qd} Cdlut-yOu lcultIlDCl tnC 0dy w hSb
d you found me laughing like mad wo-
II man in a circle of astonished friends
u You drew me aside and said words
k, which hardly waited for you to finish
e, for at last / was free to love you, free
OF to love and free to say SO. The morn
q, ing paper had brought news. A tele
m graphic dispatch from Seattle told how
rs man had struggled into Nome, frozen
10 bleeding and without accouterments o.
Oh companion. 1t was with difficulty h
IS had kept his feet and turned In at thu
IL first tent he came to. Indeed, he ha'
IT. only time to speak his name before h
'e- fell dead This name was what mad
IN this dispatch important to me. 1t wa
Vn William Pfeiffer. For me there wa
ID but one William Pfeiffer in the Klor
as dike-my husband--and he was dead
lis That was why you found me laughing
ISL But not in mirth. l am not 80 bad q
all that. But because l could breath
mt again without feeling a clutch abor
ne my throat l did not know till the
l how nearly had been stified.
'ut "The week of our marriage came.
ny was mad with gayety and ecstatic wit
ite hope. Nothing had occurred to ma
me my prospects. But God had his ey
ao upon me and in the midst Of my happ
l ness and the hurry of our final prep
lor ratiops his bolt fell. 1t struck me viii
me 1 was at the-don't laugh; rather shu
90, der-at the dressmaker's shop In Fou
ust teepth street l was leaning over a {
iiu' BILE. chattering like magpie over Il
IT. way wanted gown trimmed. wh'
I'M nv eve fell on a scrap OF newspap
ose in which something had come rolled
leu madame. 1t was torn at the edge, o
ore ON the bit lying under my eyes l sa
ISM nv husbands name, William Pfeiffs
'h- and that the paper was Denver OF
airy There was but one William Pfeiner
was Denver-and he was my husband. Al
ana I read-feeling nothing. Then l re
I'M again. and the world, my world, we
OF from under my feet, for the man w
~ had fallen dead in the camp at MOI
j Is was Wallace, Williams brother, a
rlsh not William himself. William
OF heen left behind on the road by
him more energetic brother, who had pu
ing Cd on for succor through the wo
storm and under lne Worsl eoh>
tne possible even in that God forsaken
$ gion. With the lost one In mind'
the one word that Wallace uttered IN sil
of rescue was William. 1t was Wan'
d IN who had fallen dead, and while wan
nteu might have persisted also, and doupti
pose had. had no certainty OF It. Ano
lick wedding day was set for Thursday.
atch "why didn't tell Cora? Why die
I tell you? Pride held my tongue'
was sides. | had had time to think peio
He saw either of you, and to reason
far and feel sure that if Wallace nad
e. spent enough to fall dead on reacl
0 be fine camp, William could never y
ne to survived on the open road; TOT
hard lace was the stronger OF the TWO
who the most hardy every way Ere
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