The Cairo bulletin., 1908-01-31

bukins accent in the nurses tone.
aud she was SO anxious to see you.
Lillian wrote him letter full d
love and sympathy; she said to every
one Dear ilolen, how sad II IS" Al
me same Time down In her heart there
was little feeling that she never PM
into words or even concrete thought
now he is wholly mine.
But not entirely hers: there was
the little Helen. And as the Child
grew beyond the years when she
could conveniently be pnt 10 sIeep or
sent to The nursery, loving, loyab.e,
always ready to spring into her ia-
Tiers arms, the baneful root in
Lillian's heart took fresh start.
Every caress he gave 10 Nellie she
felt herself deirauded Of every fond
word a rohbins ol her right. 10 her.
SELF she said she could not bear IL,
that her own child should come be-.
tween them. and al tines She almost
mated the child for it,
One day there was white Grape on
the door, and white casket was car.
ried out OF thcir home
Lillian shed many tears, she felt
the keen stress Of grief, but yet deco
down. far deeper than Helen's death.
lay the thought that she would hardly
nave owned TO herself. but was none
! the less present, that now, for the
/ hFst time, Robert was hers alone.
no longer was there right or claim
/ beside
and yet, impalpable as the thinnest
| breath Of yapor, not to be grasped or
DENIED but none the less present and
ielt was the shadowy something that
seemed TO have come between her and
Robert In the hour when she conl
claim him as hers, and hers only. AL
hrst she recognized this with an in
credulous petulance that in turn gave
place to vague alarm. Not that he
was less tenderly kind or attentive
the more so, Ii anything: but he went
his way as ii no longer touched by
her moods; frequently he said he had
writing to do, and shut himself IN
the little room that had been Nellies
piay-room, now made into den, it
almost seemed; but then it could not
be that he was living a life Of his own
apart from her
At last one evening petulance and
alarm famed into speech, and as he |
was leaving the room on the plea Of |
writing little while" she threw her. |
self before him. Robert" she cried. |
holding him fast, what is ito What |
has come between us so? What are you
doing?"
7 am writing on the book you have
often heard me speak of" answering
the last Of her questions.
But I don't want you to write that
book; hate it, the tears beginning
to gather You are so changed to
me. and now for that to come in.
You have never been the same since
Nellie died; | always knew you loved
her the best; | wish | could have died
instead Of her You never loved me,
or you would not make me so miser.
able"
Lillian and there was note in
his voice she had never heard before,
Il married you because | loved YOU.
have loved you always; | love you
now You are sweet and true at
heart The trouble has been that
you wanted and exacted of me what
did not ask of you, what no one has
a right to demand of another, my
whole and only love. Love is like a
the more freely and in larger +.
measure it flows, the purer and fuller
[ is; choke 1t up, and it either dimin.
shes or becomes unhealthy. This,
'our selfish iealousy-forgive me if
peak plainly-has done for both OF
IS. Because Of it you hardened your
Ieart to Helen. who would gladly have
owed YOU and loving whom would a
lave made your own life the richer, .
nd led me to weakly fail in the graft =
ude and devotion l owed to her. be- 4
ause OF it You were an untender 4
1other to Nellie; YOU neither gave
er your own love nor allowed me to =
how her mine. for the lack OF which
er whole young life was cloaded v
DO not think that blame YOU h
lone for this. | blame myself even v
lore, that seeing it | weakly yielded. II
hat / was not strong enough. clear d
lighted enough. TO have crushed it for ].
on as YOU would not for yourself;
ut as it is, il has spoiled my home Il
nd marred my happiness and filled Il
~ heart with remorseful memories. b.
You say that ! have changed TO v
on since Nellie died. Il is because II
have thought Of these things since ST
Zen as l never did before, and have &c
lme to some conclusions that II SC
ere well for both Of us had | done ie
} long ago. In the future | shall u
We to you, as ] have always had 1t u
my heart 10 do, the best Of my love 81
I'd confidence and care; but az the
me time ! shall remember that
I'VE my own life 10 live. and give to its
tiles and claims what feel they 81
serve. You ask me. Lillian. what W
IS come between us? 1t is the only
ing that ever could have come "a
urself" ih
She had loosed her hold on him
d dropped into a chair; he bent and da