Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1910-05-28

The married life between Clarence
Hooper and Edna Worth was very
happy. When they were united Car
ence was twenU-one and Edna nine
teen Ten years later the husband
was obliged to make a business "trip
10 Russia His wife being In delicate
health At the time, II was not deemed
best that she should accompany him
From Russia Clarence wrote ofreD TO
hts wife. at times mentioning In glow
ing terms d certain primA donna. Welt
volsky, n Russian Pole He Was not
aware that there Was anything said
In these letters 10 lead his wife TO be-
heve that his feeling for the singer
She did not write him that she was
Jealous OF his new found friend In
deed, she never mentioned the singer
In any OF her letters. When his and
the singers paths direrged he ceased
10 mention her In his letters
One day be received a cablegr2m
from his Eife's bosom friend. Sarah
Ingalls,. that Mrs Hooper had been
caught In one Of those terrible railroad
accidents which KIN and main 50 many
people and had been crushed to death.
he had seen an account Of the accl-
dent the day before csbled TO an Eng
Hsh paper. but did not dream Of his
wife having been on the train
A death Of one very dear TO Us In
the events of which we do not par
t3cipate personally Is very different
from one where we are present Clar-
ence Hooper could not realize that his
wife was dead II was only when he
returned to his desolate home that his
bereavement appeared TO him as a
reality, and then II rushed upon him
with Its fun force No children had
come to them to inpart life or cheer
fitness to the conpanionless man
Nevertheless he remained in the home
where he had been 50 happy, norbidly
dwelling upon his loss The lady from
whom be had received the cablegran
announcing his wtfe's death had gone
abroad, crossing him On the ocean
She had. however, left letter for him
giving al she knew Of the circum-
stances attending his Eife's death II
was not Duch, since no enc living had
seen her killed and the body was I'M
recognizable. but stated that she had
buried the remains IN his lot at the
cemetery. He would find the grave
near the center OF the lot
Hooper's first act after his return
was 20 visit his wife's grave and shed
bitter tears there The remainder OF
his life seemed q dreary waste before
him He had had his one lore, It had
passed from him. and ha would never
have another A few days after this
he opened his E1fe's Will He WIS SUI
pr1sed TO NOTICE codicn added during
his absence abroad leaving the in
come OF certain property to Sarah In
gals. who had been his informant as
10 the tsstatn-'s death The reason
Hooper was surprised At this be
guest Was because Sarah Ingalls, ERs
wealthy. Moreover. this legacy halved
his own income from his wife's prop
erxy.
It wRs winter when al this occurred.
and ms soon as spring opened Hooper
went 10 the cemetery for the purpose
Of putting plants about his w1fe's
grave. What was his establishment 70
discover that the a6oruDent he had
intended WIS there already 1t con
sisted OF rosebushes Of q variety that
his wife had loved and had kept IN
thar Conservatory during the winter
season
Standing there beside the grave OF
The woman he had l0red 50 well n
turuu1t OF suspicious, c0n5ec1ures pour
ed IN upon him The events Of his
married life passed before him in re-
view as they are said TO pass in
simultaneously before one who Is
drowning he had known his wife
since they were children, and this
sweep Of memory went SO far back
Rs their first love, and he wondered
II any one then had been his rival
Next he considered those she had
known when they were young men
and women From there he passed
70 those who might hare come be
tween them since they had BEEN mar
r1ed- Among al these he could not
remember q single person who could
have filed the place he had for years
considered he alone co1l6 fiji
Hooper wgs stirred by deep emotion
His wife had been m orphan with no
brothers or gisfer-aodeed, no relatives
n whom she had taken an interest OF !
who Ind taken any interest IN her. /
Sarah Ingalls, had been the only being /
except himself that she had loved and 1
by whom she had been loved Yet here |
wRs some enc who had furestaIled him |
IN caring for her grave. Was this un- |
known person man or wonADs IL q \
man, had he loved her before or after 4
her nErriRgez Had that love been re
turned? This Inst thought mAddeDed 1
him
He turned away with a gT0RD ex-
presSfve partly CT grief partly Of an /
ger. why had Edna never spoken o. 1
this pers0nf A woman she would Ger.
tA1nly have mentioned a mAD SHE
might hive mentioned. n bower she
would not likely have mentioned and