Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1907-11-21
Lady Dutton's Ward
sY ssxTmA N. GAY.


there.
fallen lightly, but to that sensitive,
loving, truthful nature, it was mar
tyrdom. If she could have gone and
thrown herself at her husbands feet,
and have told him all, confessing her
unworthiness TO be the mistress OF
he proud home where he had placed
her, unworthy of the name and love
of one whose race had never known
the faint of shame, her sorrow would
have been light in comparison. The
worst that could have befallen her
would have been that her husband
would have sent her from him. From
her height of pride Lady Bayneham
would scorn her, and Barbara Earle
would look on with sorrow and won
der. Yet all that was far easier to
bear than the consciousness of her
secret The knowledge that she was
the child of one who had broken the
law suffered the fate of a convict
the knowledge that she, although
Lady Hutton's heiress and adopted
daughter, was after all an imposter;-
there was something even harder
than that. and 1t was the necessity OF
keeping a secret from her husband,
the noble upright man who had
trusted her 50 deeply and loved her
so well.
Life had been all sorrow for Lady
Hilda since this barrier had arisen
between them-since she lost the
power of looking with clear truthful
eyes into his face; and she would
have suffered anything willingly II
he might have told him.
AS she sat there, white and still as
a marble statue, the impulse was
strong upon her to go after him and
tell him all; but three things pre-
vented her,-three reasons held her
bound in chains of iron. The first
was his words, that such one"
should be sent back to her own
friends. If she confided her secret
to her husband he would send her to
live with the terrible father whose
conduct had so fatally blighted her
life. The second was the oath her
dying mother had asked her to take;
and an oath was sacred and solemn
matter to Lady Hilda not promise
that could be lightly broken. The
third, and perhaps the most binding,
was her fathers determination, IL the
secret became known, to kill himself
He would do 1t, she knew,-that vain,
proud nature would never withstand
the shock; he woull kill himself, and
she would be answerable for his life.
There was no alternative; she must
bear her husbands anger as best she
could, endure his mothers pruod dis
like and Barbara Earle's sweet look
of wondering Sorrow She Gid mot
fear that Lord Bayneham would dis
cover the fact of her presence in the
Ladys Walk that night II he did
So and knew she had been there with
Mr. Fulton, there was no help for her,
she must then tell him all.
Hour after hour passed. and Lady
Hilda still sat where her husband had
lef her. From the confused mist OF
her thoughts one idea gradually grew
upOn her. II was that she must keep
her secret, and learn TO endure in sill.
ence all that 1t brought upon her.
The fair young child. for she was
little else. wondered why this lot had
fallen upon her. Only few months
since and her happiness was perfect.
without flaw; now her trouble seem
ed greater than she could bear.
What had she done that she should
be thus punished? No great or griev-
Gus sin married or stained the Course
Of that fair. tranquil life. She had
done her duty as far as she knew IT,.
both to God and man. she had never
wrunged another. and the poor ana
the sorrowing rose up to bless her
Why was she punished so heavily
all her sorrow came from the sins
and follies OF others. The weight fell
upon her crushing the brightness
from her life, bending the golden
head low in humble shame.
Why was it7'-reason gave no
answer. She remembered her mothers
words. that all would be clear In
another world she would know and
understand why she had suffered in
this Then over the, fair, sad face
threr stole look of sweet, humble re
signation. The wild tempest OF sor-
row became calm. and the beating re-
5ellious heart grew still.
Il must bear II" said Lady Hilda
To- herself: and many others, by the
bare utterance of those words, have
learned to endure heavy SORROWS in
silence
Lord Beyneham was III at ease. He
loved his beautiful young wife with a
devotion that knew no limits, He
could not In his widest dreams, i'm
lgine her capable even Of an impu-
ience: and he wondered. until wonder
became pain. what she was keeping
from him. He did not see how 1t was
possible for Lady Hilda to nave any