Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1908-11-19
CHAPTER Il.-Continued.


loved you. Is not that answer
enough?"
But I deserve only that you should
hate me now" she said, feverlshly.
'And yet | think | knew, STEPHEN,
when I came to you tonight out OF
the unbroken silence of three years
I knew there was one man could
trust little as | had deserved his help
and little cause as | have, heaven
knows, to believe in mans consistency
or truth or Lowell"
And all the intense hopeless Dltter-
ness of her last words, surging up re-
sistlessly from the deeps of woman
heart outraged beyond reparatlon'
famed into her eyes.
And yet, Stephen, you have no re-
proach for me-only the old gentle
ness!"
when I loved you once 1t was 1or
always, Olive, for good or ill. don
know whether I'm unlike other meI;
it's the only way of love l know, ne
had. 81 only thank God you have
come back, that in your need you
turned to me-"
"My need-yes!" she cried. 4 have
come to you, Stephen-selfish to the
last, perhaps-because [ hate man
with a hatred so deep that you can
only gauge it by the measure OF your
love! The man who took me from
you!"
What do you mean, Oliver" The
startled cry escaped him. The strange
historical words that had broken
from her in the porch of the vestry
came back into his mind ITO helt
me to avenge my wrongs"
stephen, I think I could have come
to care for you but for that man. You
appealed to all that was best in my
wayward nature" she said, feverlshly
But this mani had known him be
fore ever | saw you; and he exercised
fascination over me, though knew
he was not a good man, though | knew
he was a man who played witt
women's hearts.
when I took the post OF goVerness
this man-Where | was going.
wanted to forget him. Then | prom
ised to be your wife, Stephen-onlJ
after long hesitation, you remember
and because you pleaded so passion
ately. You see, | wasn't sure of my
self | was afraid of that man, afraiC
lest he should come again into my life
and exert the old inexplicable fascina
ton, and so | hesitated. 1t was fol
your sake, Stephen, not my own, fol-
you offered me a good mans love,
home and freedom after the hateful
life of dependence with people who
treated me less kindly than their serv
ants
Her fingers were plucking at the
tiny handkerchief she held, fraylnE
the delicate strands of lace, with {
nervous restIessness that betrayed the
intensity of emotion prisoned beneath
the low, repressed tones.
A culver of melody stole in from
the church where the organist still
sat at the keys, filling the moments
pause
"Stephen, he found me out. The ole
evil fascination drew me back resist
lessly at his bidding. He told me hi
had always cared for me. For the frs
time he told me he wanted to make
me his wife. He knew his power
knew that he had only to say come,
and | would have followed him to the
worlds end. [ thought I loved hin
then. | have no excuse to offer TO
my treatment of you. Stephen; [ an
only telling you the bare facts. There
was no excuse, Of course. | went tt
him, leaving no clue by which I coult
| be traced as he told me to do, ant
| then
She rose suddenly to her feet, ant
stood facing him firm and erect, he
| faintness and exhaustion forgotten il
| the ouivering sense of outraged WON
anhood that filed her. She pulled {
| letter from her pocket of her cloak
| and held it out to him.
| Read that"
"You have probably guessed" tn
| letter ran, that | am tired of on
| menage: your reproaches after m.
| absence grow monotonous, my dea
| Olive. and | have come to the conclu
| sion that it is better for us both tt
snap the bond that has grown irl
some. enclose you notes for $50
and from time to time, if you shov
Yourself reasonable, | shall send yo1
| more. If you will take my advice yol
will accept the situation without max
| ing any fuss, and continue to call your
| self Mrs. Carr, though | may as wei
| tell YOU that your claim to style your
| self married woman is of the slight
| est-non-existent, in fact. When yo1
agree to let our marriage be in Scotcl
| fashion of simple declaration bcfor
witnesses, you should have mad
sure that the village where the littl
| simple ceremony took place was il
Scotland. AS a matter of fact, it wa
five miles on the English side of tn
| border, and accordingly no marriag
at all. To save you any trouble in tn
quite useless attempt to trace me,
may as we'll tell you that my real nam
is not that under which you hay
known me-though | continue to sig
myself to you, my dear Olive-Franl
Carr
Stephen Ruthen read through tn
| letter with all it's incredible callous
ness; this foul blow that a man
hand had struck at the woman VIII
had trusted and cared for him. TIL
name was quite unfamiliar, though il
some odd way the rector seemed t
have seen the handwriting before
stephen, do you wonder now tina