The Princeton union., 1905-06-01

| III ulUl. aJF perhaps she cOulQ get OUT
without seeing anybody, after all! Her
agony almost escaped from her in
| shrieks.
did you wish to see me?''
A cold, stately parsonage stood before
her. Brenda remained standing She
saw that the woman recognized her.
How much had John told her? oh,
what should she say?
The naughty woman waited, staring
at her. A pitiful smile feeted over the
girls face underneath her dotted veil
She put her hands out as though to
catch hold of something. Then she tot
tered and fell. The satin sofa caught
her, and the cold woman was warmed
up to the extent of lifting the. fainting
girls veil and pulling off her gloves.
while she rang the bell for assistance
Before anybody could answer it Bren-
da had come to herself and had sat up
on the sofa,- looking the proud mother
| before her full in the eyes.
"Tell me-" she said breathlessly-
''tell me before anybody comes-is John
well? Tell me! Tell me!'
EYES," said Johns mother, a scorn
creeping over her handsome face, which
was the counterpart of her sons. 81
cannot imagine why you want to know.
But John is finely established in New
York. We have many friends and rela-
tives there, and he is very happy"
ooh, no, nor breathed the girl, tears
streaming slowly down her face.
$50 he writes" pursued the mother
merciIessy.
'Tell him." Brenda said presently,
with all her courage-"tell him that
am-glad-that he is happy" Then
her crushed pride gave a great recoil,
and without intending the words or
fairly knowing that she was uttering
them she added, ''Tell him that II am
going to be married"
Somehow she emerged from the house
and made her way home. She felt that
everything was gone, and it did not
make any difference now what became
of her. She might as we'll please her
father and mother and do what she
could to make their lives easier. She
broke into the quiet living room at
home as though she were crazy.
Mother" she said, 'you may tell
Martin Mears that will marry him.
"When?" gasped the startled mother.
Tomorrow" And it was done.
Five years passed, and Brenda was
the mother of two children. They
were girls, with all of her blond beau
ty. Martin had been a devoted hus-
band. He had put Brenda's brother
D1gby in the way of earning well, and
all the comfort which the family had
anticipated from the marriage had been
realized.
One day Brenda was in her store
room, when in moving a small box of
her husbands, which he always kept
locked, it fell to the floor The lock
broke, and package of unopened let
ters dropped out. Brenda's blood froze
In her veins as she looked at them.
They were addressed to her in the
handwriting of John Masters She
tore them open feverishly and read
them-letters full of love at first, of ag-
onized doubt and fear later, then of
despair. One letter had been written
after her marriage. "Oh, how could
you leave me, my darling? Could YOU
not wait for me? Have I not done all
that I could for you? You have strip
ped life forever of all brightness for
me. on, If could only know what has
come between usv'
She wept in great gusts of passion as
she read on. And her husband had
Kept these letters from her. She hated
him.
When he came to his dinner the let
tiers lay beside his plate. He recog-
nlzed them instantly. One of the chill
dren was taking it's monday nap. He
sent the other to be fed by the negro
woman in the kitchen. Brenda was sit
ting in her place colorless and her ewes
fixed on him and burning with re-
proach. He gazed at her moment.
Then he dropped upon the floor and
groveled at her feet, and she spoke for
the first time.
GLOW could you, Martin; how could
your
"Oh, know it wasn't right, Brendav'
ne said hoarsely, "but I loved you so! You
don't know how loved you! Nobody
ever loved anybody so I had to have
you, and so I got Digby to get the let
ters, and paid him not to let you have
them. Oh, it wasn't right! But it was
the only way that l saw to get you,
And haven't I been good to you, Bren-
da? Haven't done everything for
you?"
She rose and left him. His touch
seemed to poison her
A week followed of horrible. silent
suffering for them both. Then came a
scene which she had pictured, to herself
for many years. Even since her mar.
riage she could not help sometimes i'm.
aglnlng it, though she had tried to be a
good and faithful wife to the one who,
as she now knew, had robbed her of the
only man whom she had ever loved.
John Masters came back to Bermuda
She knew nothing of it until he an.
peared before her, though her husband