Lincoln County leader. [volume] (Toledo, Lincoln County, Or.) 1893-1987, 1906-01-05
CHAPTER XIII.


1t was September when Kitten was
married in Frierly village church 1t is
May when Mr.. and Mrs. Brian Des-
mond take up their abode in the newly
decorated town house in Lowndes square.
All these months the happy pair have
spent abroad. Kitten has learned and
seen more than she had ever dreamed of
in her whole life before. She has been
taken to Paris and Vienna, and to Rome.
She has been dressed by Partisan dress
makers and presented at foreign courts;
she has become self-possessed and con-
versational; she has learned to talk glib
ly about the old masters, and to under
stand the difference between modern and
antique brlc-a-brac; she is quite a con-
noisseur in old laces, and already pos
sesses valuable collection of her own.
of Venetian and Genoese point, and she
has gained that undefnable something.
that charm of manner, that grace of Ian
guage, that trick of good society in which
she was possibly somewhat lacking in
the old childish days when she sat up
aloft in the cherry tree and studied
Pope's Essay on Man" with the all
devout worship of her earnest young
soul.
But all this time has she been happy?
Has Brian indeed taught her that love
and joy are one, and that happiness
can be caught and embraced and tightly
held captive between the clinging arms
of answering affection?
At first she believed that it was so.
To be with him daily, to share his life,
to sun herself forever in his smile and
in the glances of his eyes, was sufficient
for her for a time. AS her love grew
and increased in depth and intensity, SO
did the blindness of her self-devotion
render her at first unconscious of all
save the delight of her own alteration.
But as the days and weeks went by.
she began vaguely to feel a faint chill of
disappointment. Sometimes the ardor of
her love seemed even in her own eyes
to meet with but an inadequate response.
once or twice it happened that she pour
ed out her thoughts and her fances. and
that he hardly understood her. At times
he was abstracted and thoughtful and
if she rallied him upon his gravity he
would rouse himself with an effort. smile
upon her, stroke her hair, kiss her .pout-
ing lips and tell her lightly that he was
thinking of business"
Then, one day, there came an awaken
ing. 1t was wet afternoon They were
at Dresden, and were slowly wandering
homeward to England They had ex-
hausted the picture galleries and the
green vaults" had listened to the organ
in the church till they were tired of it
and wandered about the narrow streets
and hung over the bridge across the
Elbe until they knew them all by heart, |
1t was their last afternoon, and it was
raining heavily. Brian got sick of the |
dreary grandeur of the hotel sitting room.
and clothing himself in long waterproof |
coat went off by himself for a walk.
Presently, from sheer idleness, she be- |
gan touching the trihes upon her hus-
bands table-his silver cigarette case.
his writing case, the little collection of |
silver topped bottles and ivory toilet i'm
plements. She fingered them with loving
tenderness, as things which, for their
owners sake, were dear to her. His
dressing bag stood wide open upon a
chair, and just inside it was a small
square morocco case Kitten felt vague
that she had never before
noticed this article. She took 1t up and
turned it about curiously. Apparently
It was locked, but presently, quite acci
1entally, her finger touched upon n
spring, and the case flew open suddenly.
1t was lined with faded satin. Kittens
heart began to beat with strange and
sickening sensation, for what was the
meaning Of these things which lay inside?
"a crumpled white glove a bunch of
lead violets, tiny lace bordered cam
oric handkerchief with the faint odor of
perfume still lingering about it, an oval
ocket, which, with wild amazement.
she found to contain soft, thick curl
If dark brown hair, and then, beneath
else, folded letter, yellow
md faded, with written words that were