The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-05-26

| scarcely served to rescue a man once committed, and then only after long and tedious litigation and the unraveling of vast red tape.
 So all the time that Alfred Hardie was struggling, plotting, planning, working for his release he was as dead to his friends, with whom he sought vainly to communicate. and the cuisine world in
 general as if the cab which took him to
 Slverton station had driven him to an-
 other planet.
 The blow was a terrible one to Julia, but her unfaltering trust in Alfreds love
 enabled her to bear sorrow which oth-
 erwise would have quite crushed her The disappearance of Alfred, the trag-
 edy of the wedding morning, slipped from Jane Hardie her fanatieism and her prejudices and awakened all her love for
 Edward Dodd. She became once more a
 gentle, loving, Christian girl and flew to
 Albion Villa to mingle her tears with those of the unhappy Inmates. She was not pet prepared to leave her father, but both she and Edward felt that even- ually their great love would meet with its reward.
 Straitened means of the Dodds could no longer afford their mildly luxurious i, villa life at Barkington, and 1t was de- cided that their household effects and the lease of the house should be sold and that the family should move to London and all go to work
 When Jane Hardie went to pay her farewell visit to Albion Villa Julia said "I was never so sorry to part with yiu. love. When will you come again? We 1 leave tomorrow. l am selfish to detain you, but I feel as If my guardian angel
 were leaving me-"
 Jane smiled T must go," she said, but L..
 you this. Humble yourself under the hand
 of God. When it sems most harsh, then
 1t is most loving. Pray for faith to say
 with me, Lead us by a way we know not "
 A few minutes later Jane was carried back into Albion Villa-dying. Soon after she left the gate she had encountered old Maxl9y coming along, with crazy, blood
 shot eyes, and followed by the usual rab-
 ble of jeering boys Jane left the sidewalk to expostulate with the most cruel ani- maj which nature ever produced-the
 thoughtless boy. Old Maxley saw her com ing, saw in her face the lineament of
 the man who had driven his wife to death and in frenzy he fell upon her with his club.
 Richard Hardie, sent for in haste, found his daughter lying ashy pale on a little
 bed in the drawing room of Albion Villa.
 Poor papa" she said, and then. turn ing to Julia, nurmured, Let me sleep" If Hardie had an unselfish thought for any one in this world 1t was for his dy- ing girl. above whose couch he bowed
 his head in an agony of grief. Here, was
 the family he had wronged, the child he loved, and. thinking of all that he had done and that this was the end of 1t, he was shaken for once.
 He saw with awe that a mighuer hand than mans was upon him. Before ner death Jane revived for q brief interval, and then the tinid girl. who once would 1 have screamed at a scratch. met the King | of Terrors with smiles and triumph Fer | her the grave was Jordan and death bu. I the gate of everlasting life.
 Though Hardie felt the hand of m averaging heaven upon him, he would not ] bow to it. Crushed, hating himself and 1 life, he still sought to cast off the bur | den of remorse and guilt. He went to
 London and plunged wildly into specula- l tino
 l Shortly afterward the Dodds, too, were 1 settled in London. Edward soon found 1 what many a young man has found oe- 1 fore and since, that while there is plenty | of work to be done in a great metropoll- | tan city. all the world seems to be com | exceptional ability can command a hear l ing Tn the industrial Babel. After q har- l ro5-ing experience he finally joined the | fire department. and was exceedingly glad l to get there. In fact, it was only be-
 cause of his heroic work as volunteer
 at big fire. which called attention to