The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1905-09-07

"Tell me, mother; tell me"'
She rose from the chair where he had
gently placed her and took an envelope
from the desk.
Don't blame me, dear, for net show
ing you this before. As long as there
seemed no immediate need of it why
should I darlen your life? l prayed
that the time might never come, but
now I should be a guilty woman if I
did not give you the letter. I found it
among your fathers papers after he
died. He never told me about it. It
has lain in that locked drawer eight
years. Waltz" as he started to open
the paper. Don't read it till you are
in your own room. have suffered
enough tonight"
He turned and tenderly kissed her
and went to his room.
Hastily lighting the gas, he looked at
the envelope. For Jack was written
on it in his mothers writing, but the
yellow sheet he took from it was in his
fathers hand and ran thus:
MY Lear oO0-lL IS my QutN 70 tell you,
though the telling tears my heart in
twain, you must never marry. An ac-
cursed thing IS the inheritance of my
family Insanity invariably appears in
the third generation. If the victim of this
curse remains unmarried it may not
come until late in life but it is a singular
fact which has been a puzzle to the doc
tors and scientific men that marriage is
sure to hasten it and cause it to assume
1,o Io,.,-;T,l.
to murder the being most beloved.
My great-grandfather killed the mother
of his child when the babe was but two
days old My father attempted my moth
er's life, then killed himself. The real
facts have never been made public. but l
know, and l feel that l must preserve you
from becoming a murderer. You are the
third generation. For Gods sake, heed
what I have said. My poor boy! If
only could have died before I had been
compelled to write these words.
YOUR HEARTBROKEN FATHER.
Jack Pringle sat for some time like
one stunned. Then he took up the ter
rible thing and read it again as one
does hoping with a forlorn hope that
there may be some mistake or some
loophole Of escape.
than at first, since now the whole
meaning Of his ruined life and what it
must bring to her, the woman he loved
better than his life. came over him
with a crushing force and bowling his
face upon his hands his body shook
with mighty sob.
In the morning it seemed that he
could not meet his mother, but he
forced himself to the ordeal, and both,
white, haggard and stricken, faced
each other with a silent pressure of the
hand.
After 4 time she spoke, a world OF
entreaty in the question:
You do not blame me, my SOM"
Mother, you tried to save me from
the misery of it. I know that, but if
you had spoken before-before I won
her love-before I brought this horror
into her life
you We're away, dear. You did not
tell me till you came back. How did
know? 1 always thought it would be
time enough when 1 found you were
beginning 10 care very much for some
woman. When I saw you 50 happy /
l could not
1t was hours before he could muster
the courage to face Sibyl. When be
finally did, she started with a little cry
of alarm.
Jack, what has happened? Are you
ill?"
For answer he put the letter in her
hand.
Il never knew this till last night
Read it. l will wait for you in the gar
dem He went slowly down the path
Dropping into a garden seat, he wait
ed, knowing that her coming must be
another agony.
He heard her step upon the porch
her light tread upon the gravel walk.
The next instant her cheek was
against his head and her arms were
about him.
My poor poor boy"' she said
Dearest heart, that is like you. You
don't speak of yourself. 1t is my mis-
cry of which you think first. Oh, why
couldn't l have known this before /
ever saw you? l would have carried
away that one blessed moment-the
memory of it-and never have brought
my wretched self near you again"
"But think how you would have
robbed me! I don't believe much in
heredity anyway"
Il do. I have always been a firm
believer in inherited traits and dis
eases, especially those Of the brain.
My own observations have been borne
out, too, by scientific men,"
But the doctors are often wrong.
This may never come to you
"For your sake, dear, it is too terri
bic a risk
But, darling, 1 am not afraid. Let
US have it together"
Have yea thought what that means
1.-The horrible form this insanity takes?
Think, think-the possibility of be-
coming your murderer! No, no! God
forbidr'
He stood up and looked at her with
great despair
Words seemed such useless things.
Then he strained her to his breast,
kissing her long and passionately.
"Goodby," he said and, putting her