The daily Alaskan., 1905-10-25
MRS. JELIFFE
LOriginall

| eighteen. Had not Bert gone west Ip seek his fortune they would undOuOt- edly have made Q match. As it was, neither knew of the predisposition of the other. In time Bert fell under the | influence of widow, a Mrs. Jeliltc, considerably older than he, and mar riel her. Marriage is said to be lot tery. but it is rather 8 matter of com | mon sense. There was certainly no I common sense in the PrestOu-Jclihe union. Mrs. Jelfre was shrew, and | there was no knowledge to be derived | from any one as to the taking oI oL | her first husband; not that any SUS- | p,clon attached to his widow, but there | was mystery concerning hlS death. She led Preston a miserable life for a few years, then to his great relief sud denly disappeared.
 It was five years after Preston went west and two years after his marriage that he made visit to his old home in the east Florence Holt had heard Of | Pls matrimonial venture and, since l there had always been a place for him In her own heart felt deep sympathy l for him. She had not married anu | there seemed to be no one whom she
 wished to marry. Then when it was too late she and Preston learned that tlcy should have been plighted to each other before he went west He and Florence would have been happy to
 gclher.
 When Preston went back west he | carried with him the assurance that if at any time he learned of his wite's dclth Florence would marry him. They
 cs.Tcsponded daily and, with the cN- ccDtion of being together, were d. hap py as possible. Then a paper came
 to Preston from a southern city with a marked death notice-thut of Mrs. l Anthony Jelirr. TLat saw3 evening foInd Preston on the train bound east. | El wrote the newspaper containing 1 u, notice for information, but could get none. After a long period of in 1 uuiry as to the late Mrs. Preston l Jelife and a failure to learn why the notice had not read Preston instead of 1 JeliTe. Bert and Florence concluded to ! consider the woman dead and marry.
 When this time Preston returned tU l L.s western home he toak wi;A him the
 woman he should have taken in th" fist place. They male each other
 very happy. auI several c.l..r'n
 sprang up about t,aU' |".. Ie. 4
 bors all satd that if marriage is a fail
 ure there was one exception to the | ru,e-the case of the Preston family.
 One evening when Preston was sit l ting on the front porch, with his c.lil
 drcn climbing over him. Mrs. Preston
 sitting by sewing, there was a click at
 the gate. Mrs. Preston looked up to
 see a strange woman coming in, while
 Preston was paralyzed with the sigh, | of the late Mrs. JclIiTc-Prcston.
 "Rertie." said the intruder "Tvc
 come back. Aren't you glad to see
 me?'
 When Florence glauccL at her hus-
 band, or, rather the man she had sup
 posed was her husband, she knew by
 the despair on his face that the dead
 wife had come to life. Mrs. JclIfe,
 as she must be called to distinguish
 her, came up to the porch, took a seat
 and famed herself.
 Bert" said Florence, "thcrc Is nOth-
 ing for us to do, for the chjldren's
 sake if not our own, but to stand by
 each other" Then, turning to the in-
 truder, she continued: This man may
 be your husband in the sight of an
 imperfect law, but he is mine in the
 sight of a perfect God. Co.,
 There was something so impressive
 in the speaking of the words that Mrs.
 Jellffe was for the moment vunQuished. She arose and departed. but before go- i Ing out the gate she turned and fired one shot, wen see about that
 Mrs. JeiRe settled herself down in the town, intending to get rid of her
 rival not by legal process, but by per 1 secutiou. She would have failed to
 make any great impression had 1t not l been for the man. Florence overawed ! ltI Dl d SlttA AbLALg AAA N'rAa NNrE'~
 It was the terrible effect the intruder had upon Preston that destroyed the family happiness. The woman had
 only to remain in the place where the
 Preston family lived to make wreck of Preston. Such situations at times | induce murder, and Florence watched 1 Preston night and day that under the terrible temptation he should not make the matter thousand times worse by
 crime, but the strain was too great
 even for woman of superior strength, and Florence at last broke l down.
 One morning while at breakfast 1 Preston took up his newspaper, and his eye lit on the following:
 Matilda Jellffe was last night arrested, | at the insdgatlor of her husband, An | thony Jeuffe. an a charge of bigamy. It | Is charged that Mrs. Jelihe deserted her | husband and married MT. Adelbert Pres | ton of this city. Her husband Jelifte) by | threat of exposure induced her to return | to him, and In order to conceal herself she sent @ printed notice of her death to | MT. Preston. Recently the Jelite couple agreed that Mrs. Jclifie should return to