Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1910-12-30

membered her wedding comedy. but
she u,ade of IL no secret.
one day a middle aged. money max
ing lawyer. who bought his legal cap
and ink of her. asked her across the
counter 20 marry him.
I'm really much Obliged TO You.
said Helen cheerfully. but | married
another man twenty years ago. He
was more a goose than man. but l
think love him yet. | have never
seen him since about half an hour aft
er the ceremony. Was it copying ink
that you wanted or just writing fuidt'
The lawyer bowed over the counter
with old time grace and left re
spectful kiss on the back of her hand
Helen sighed. Parting salutes, how
ever romantic. may he overdone. Here
she was at thirty-eight. beautiful and
admired. and all that she seemed to
have got from her lovers were re-
proaches and adieus.
Business languished, and she hung
out Room to Let" card. Two large
rooms on the third floor were pre-
pared for desirable tenants.
One day came Ramonti, the viOlinist,
and engaged the front room above.
Ramonti. with his still youthful face,
his dark eyebrows, his distinguished
head Of gray hair and his artists tenn
perament-revealed in his light, gay
and sympathetic manner-was a well
come tenant in the old house near
Abingdon square.
Helen lived on the floor above the
store. The architecture of it was sin
gular and quaint The hall was large
and almost square. Up one side of II
and then across the end of 1t ascend
ed an open stairway to the floor above
| This hall space she had furnished as
sitting room and office combined
| There she kept her desk and wrote her
business letters, and there she sat OF
evenings by warm fire and a bright
red light and sewed or read. Ramontl
found the atmosphere so agreeable
that he spent much time there, describ
Ing to Mrs. Barry the wonders of Paris
where he had studied with particu
larly notorious and noisy fiddler,
Next comes lOdger No. =, hand
some, melancholy man in the early
forties, with brown, mysterious bearo
and strangely pleading, haunting eyes
He, too, found the society of Helen 6
desirable thing. With the eyes OF
Romeo and Othello's tongue, he
charmed her with tales of distant
climes and wooed her by respectful
innuendo.
From the first Helen felt mar
velous and compelling thrill in the
presence of this man. His voice
somehow took her swiftly back to til,
days of her youths romance. TINS
feeling grew, and she gave way to it
and it led her to an instructive belle
that he had been a factor in that TO
nance. And then with a womani
reasoning (oh, yes, they do, some
tines she leaped over common syllo
gisms and theory and logic and wa
sure that her husband had come bacl
to her. For she saw in his eyes love
which no woman can mistake, and
thousand tons of regret and remorse
which aroused pity, which is peril
ously near to love requited, which i
the sine qua non in the house tina
Jack built.
But she made no sign. A HUSBAND
who steps around the corner 70
twenty years and then drops in agail
should not expect to find his slipper
laid out too conveniently near nor
match ready lighted for his cigar
There must be eXpiation, explanation
and possibly execration. A little pur
gatory, and then, maybe, if he wer
properly humble, he might be trustee
with a harp and crown. And sh
made no sign that she knew or sus
pected.
And my friend the reporter coul'
see nothing funny in this! Sent on
on an assignment to write up roar
ing, hilarious, brilliant joshing stor.
Of But | will not knock a brother.
One evening Ramonti stopped i
Helen's all-office-reception room an
told his love with the tenderness AM
ardor of the enraptured artist. Hi
words were bright fame Of the Ill
vine fire that glows in the heart of
man who is dreamer and doer com
bined.
'But before you give me an answer
he went on before she could accus
him Of suddenness. 81 must tell yo'
that Ramonti is the only name | bav
to offer you, My manager gave m
that. l do not know who | am 0
where l came from. My first recol
lection is of opening my eyes in hos
pital was young man. and ha,
been there for weeks. My life befOr
that Is a blank to me. They told MI
that was found lying In the stree
with wound on my head and wa
brought there in an ambulance. The
thought / must have fallen and struc
my neau upon the stones. Inere wa
nothing to show who l was. hav
never been able to remember. After
was discharged from the hospital
'.Ok up the violin. | have had sue
cess. Mrs. Barry do not know you
name except that love you. Th
first time | saw you | realized tina
Won were the one woman in tho worl
for me-and"-oh, lot of stuff Xix
that
Helen felt young again. First
wave of pride and sweet little thri
OF vanity went all over her, and the
she looked Ramonti In the eyes, and
tremendous throb went through he
heart. She hadn't expected that throl
1t took her by surprise. The musicia
l Il a.. %