The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1906-05-03
Blamed Without Blame

IOriginal.1
Everybody knows that there was
something strange about my marriage.
Having recently been absolved from a
pledge, l have concluded to tell the
story exactly as it occurred.
One summer l went to the country
for a rest from professional cares that
had been pressing too heavily on me
and met a lady, a Mrs. Treat, whom l
supposed to be a widow. We drove,
boated and sang together, drifting
along companionably, not recognizing
that love would better describe the
situation, till the summer had ended
and we were on the eve of separation.
Then l found myself madly in love.
AS for the lady, her actions spoke for
her. She confessed to me that she was
not a widow, but had a husband liv-
ing. She was willing to get a divorce
from him to marry me.
I had been q bitter opponent of di-
vorces and, being q clergyman, had
preached against them. I therefore
felt it my duty to sacrifice myself to
principle and told Mrs. Treat that 1
could not on any account marry a d.
vorced woman. My decision seemed to
be a sad blow to her, but she would
not give me up. When we parted she
told me that we would yet be happy
together, but how that could be l could
not see, for her husband was in the
1nacf Of hnoJfh Ord 0vo1vy n roOVs Al1n.
than herself. 1 begged for an explana-
ton, but she would give me none.
Some months later on taking up a
morning paper / saw that Laura B.
Treat had secured q divorce from her
husband, Wallace K. Treat, on the
ground of adultery, the said Wallace
Treat having lived for some time with
another woman who passed as his
housekeeper. He was q rich man, hav-
ing made a fortune by investing his
savings in the stock of a small corpora
ton that had been bought out by q
trust. The court directed that he should
pay his wife alimony equal to one
third of his income. This made her
very comfortable If not rich.
1t was not long after seeing this no.
tice that l received q letter from Mrs.
Treat informing me that she had some
thing to communicate. l replied that
I had already read in a newspaper
what she had to tell me and that while
l did not blame her for getting her di-
vorce l would certainly blame myself
should l fail to practice what l had so
long preached by marrying a divorced
woman. l loved her as devotedly as
before, but never so well as my self
respect. In reply to this letter she
wrote that I had not read all she had
to say to me and that she wished to
see me. If she could not convince me
that a marriage with her would be
consistent with my principles she
would not ask me to visit her again.
To fortify my resolution l preached
the next Sunday a sermon which was
the most vehement attack on the mar
riage of divorced people that I had
ever made. Then on Monday morning
l took the train to see the woman with
whom 1 was desperately in love. I
found her as handsome and attractive
as ever.
"Your love for me-" she said, sis
about to be put to a very severe strain.
l shall convince you that it is no sin
for either Of us to marry the other.
1t will then remain for you to decide
whether you will put yourself in a
position before the world of not prac-
ticing what you have preached or new
er see me again."
She then told me q story which l
would not have believed had l re-
ceived it from the lips of any other
person. That she had not told me be-
fore was because doing so would con-
fict with a pledge. There was another
reason. l was a poor clergyman, strug-
Cling on a salary of $1,000 a year.. The
alimony was hers by right, and she
had wished to secure it for me as we'll
as herself.
I went back to my charge pledged to
secrecy and with all the time l wished
to make my decision. / must marry
in direct opposition, apparently, to my
avowed principles or give up a woman
without whom my life would be a fail.
ure in every respect.
l was willing to stand in a false light
for my love, but would it not be wrong
for me, a minister, to exert an influence
in favor of what l considered sin? ]
confess 1 never satisfied myself on this
point. never could convince myself