Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1905-02-17

L y ~ i ,
THEY WOULD DISCUSS Tue FOLLY or
THEIR OWN CONDUCT
all alone with his letter and fight every
word In 1t. She became angry with
him. hopeless about him, finally lit
tie CON einptuoUs OF his weakness. And
SO at Inst the correspondence ceased
and the pretty promise they had made
In one bright hour amid the long gloom
was broken.
/ .Tyrrell remained in England five
! wears, and when he returned to Amer
/ lea he did not know whether Charlotte
was dead or alive. whether she had
married or Tilted the fellow who had
| been rival at the outset Of their ac-
/ uuaintance, whether she had preserved
her prettness or had faded early. She
was nearing the calamitous age OF thir-
ty, that direful point upon the way OF
! life where youth crashes down like
landslide and one looks back across n
wilderness from which the dream flow
ers that never bloomed and the beau
tiful trees that bore no fruit have all
been swept away.
To the questions above suggested
Tyrrell knew not the answers. 1t
would not be fair to say that he did
not care, yet the truth Is that his mind
was upon another matter. He had
lust reached Il settlement Of his affairs
in England, and his legacy had yielded
him little more than enough to carry
him home. True, 1t had provided him
with a part of his living during five
years. but who wants a living! What
is it good for? Nine days in ten out Of
those five years Tyrrell would rather
not have had II living; he would have
preferred dying.
He had come home by the malice Of
destiny, as he viewed 1t, to face pre-.
cisely the same situation in this coun
try. Again he was named in Il will;
again he must meet other claimants in
the courts. The parties in each con
test would be similarly situated. In.
, deed, some Of the same people would
; appear.
Tyrrell had emerged from his pre-.
vious struggle with certain convictions
. and nuggets of wisdom. He knew
that his own claim in both cases was
| perfectly just he knew that the dis
Il putants could be bought out cheaply II
\ cash could be used immediately, but
II that after they got acrimonious from
II strife, and especially after their law
II yers had gained ascendcncy over them
II Il settlement would cost more than II
II was worth.
II He had only one near relative remain
II ing on earth, a sister whose pecuniary
II interests were involved with his own IL
y this new contest, as they had been IL
the other but as she was married to 1
e man of some means he had not wor
It ried much on her account. Upon ar
e irving in his native land he learned i'm
= mediately Of the death of his sisters
e husband. This did not surprise him
e for the last news that he had received
i in England had prepared him for tn,
r event. 1t appeared. however, that TIN
J. husbands estate had vanished at lii
l. death, as 50 many others do. having
l. been pyramid kept balanced upon Ii
G. apex by a constant. narrowing strug
l. gle and sinking instantly into Oblivion
e when the sustaining force was with
II drawn. In short, he found his siste
r dependent-or about to become soup
& on the dubious issue of the legal BATH
II which he himself had come home t
4 fight.
Its np t1,N tnu
filled him with cold fear, which wa
d ten times intensified by the knowledg
s that few thousands in cash woul,
1t have set all right, and that he couldn't
1t raise that sum, nor even 10 per cen
n of it, completed his panic.
a Behold him on balmy day in Jun
t. shivering with nervousness as the re
suit Of an interview with his lawyer
d whom he had visited in the gentle
e mans luxurious residence In yer
l. fashionable suburb. lnsensible to tn
81 colors of the blossoms and even to til
< heat of the sun upon his back, blind t
he the beauties Of the town and deaf t
ct some one was calling after him, h
n plodded on toward the station.
he Bert Tyrrell" cried the voice for tn
'e fourth time and almost in his ear.
N He turned and stared ut two fin
lie horses glittering in silver mounted hai
a ness and then ut liveried coachma
le and finally at very charming woma
In an open carriage.
= "LOttiev' he said in dazed tone
IS "Lottie!'
s. She surveyed him with an amuse
c. and qutzzical smile.
IS You haven't changed a Bit" sal
ID she
" The words affected him with SUI
J., prise, first, because he fancied hilnsel
e, grown old and haggard. and, secont
n because Charlotte herself was SO rae
Re ically different that the sight Of he
y seemed to change all the world. Yet Ii
N could not have expressed his feeling
she looked no older; she had not game
g. flesh, as pretty girls are distressingl
n apt to do.
le "Get in" she said. I'VE must hav
d good talk"