The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-05-26


accompanied his young and beautiful
wife ABROAD For five years little was
heard of them in their native city, ex-
cept that now and then some wanderer
far afield brought tidings of them from
cut of the way placeS-now a little vii
lage in Switzerland by and by modest
hotel in Italy, farm house in Scot
land, one of the islands of Japan, or, in
India, villa in the hill country. They
evidently Travelled extensively, yet
wherever they were found it was al
ways in the peace of seclusion, undis-
turbed by the fret and hurry of gregar-
ious humanity, their life streams blend
ed into one happy, flowing river of love
and content.
Then suddenly, in q night, as il
seemed, the rumors changed ominousiy.
Something mysterious had come be
tween these ideal married lovers. 1t
was now only the husband who lived
apart from the whirlpool of society,
while the lovely young wife threw her
self into the swirling current with ex-
travagant abandon The polish which,
in their five years of intimacy, the &C
complished man of the world had been
able to impart to his girl wife, the
wealth he had lavished upon her. his
name. and her own beauty and Vivac-
ity, opened the doors of social recogni-
for admittance, and, entering with
dash. she disported herself in a man.
ner so reckless that her name was soon
on everybody's lips. Her f1irtations
were uncountcd, scandalous, audacious-
~ open; her style of living ruinous
even for posseSsor of ten times her
wealth; she dressed loudly, looked fire.
quently on the wine cup, and, while
the doctor remained strictly in the pri-
n his nvvn she n
peared at home except for the few
hours ofTsleep she was obliged to steal
each morning in order to recuperate
for the feverish dance of the day and
night. Her husband she seemed to
hate. OF him and to him her speech
was invariably cOntemptuous, and the
fash of her black eye in his direction
was like the savage cut of a sword. On
his part he paid no attention to her any
longer. Her fierce glances seemed to
impress him not 1T all. He answered
no sharp word of hers. He never even
looked at her, or seemed conscious of
her existence, all his interest apparent
~ being confined to his pipe, his food,
his bed. and the scientific literature of
the day.
These were the reports which for
several years came from Europe.
chiefly from Paris, and then suddenly
the scene shifted back to America.
The doctor. looking like a feeble octo-
genarian, though he was under so, had
been seen through the window in his
: old homestead. In various ways it
soon leaked out that the strange cou-
pie had returned and, with an old
hOusekeeper, taken up their abode in
the decaying mansion, living in a re-
lation to each other that was nothing
short of prepOsterous. RumOr de-
clared that the wife occupied the two
great rooms on the ground floor and
never stirred out of them: he lived in
the back attic and never stirred out
of that while the houSekeeper slept in
the basement carried them their meals,
took what little care of the house that
was taken at all, and stood as the buff
fer between her mistress and the in
sistent duns who, in due season, began
to clamOr at the front door. And the
explanation was that, the million haV-
ing taken wings, the foolish wife and
deluded husband had finally immured
themselves here to drag out the re-
mainder of their days in self-sought
oblivion. A few of his former friends
had called at first, but were turned
away without a sight of him, and from
that time on nobody but the aged SER
want and the tradesmen had been OBJ
served going to or from the house.
This story flashed instantly through
the physicians brain as he sat there
with his eyes on the woman who had
caused it all. now cold in death. her
earthly pilgrimage with it's strange