Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1910-05-04

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
as their first love, and he wondered
IL 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
to. those who might have come be-
tween them since they had been mar
RED Among all these he could not
remember single person who could
have filed the place he had for years
considered he alone could fill.
Hooper was stirred by deep emotion.
His wife had been an orphan with no
brothers or sisters-indeed. no relatives
in whom she had taken an interest or
who had taken any interest in her.
Sarah ingalls, had been the only being
except himself that she had loved and
by whom she had been loved. Yet here
was some one who had forestalled him
In caring for her grave. Was this I'M
man, had he loved her before or after
her marriage? Had that love been re-
turned2 This last thought maddened
him.
He turned away with a groan ex-
pressive partly Of grief. partly Of an
ger why had Edna never spoken of
this person: woman she would GER
telnIy have mentioned. a man she
might have mentioned. a lover she
would not likely have mentioned. and
lover whose love she returned sho
would never have made known.
Such was the reasoning by which
Clarence Hooper persuaded himself
that his dead wife had loved some man
and. loving that man. she could never
have loved her husband. Doubtless
some obstacle had interviewed between
them to prevent marriage, or. what
was worse, she had met the unknown
after she had become wife. Hooper
inflicted upon himself a succession of
such torturing hypothesis and when
they had been all applied began again
and went through the process anew.
One day Hooper saw in a paper that
VeltvolslSy was coming to America TO
sing In opera. The thought that he
might meet her again was pleasant to
him. When she arrived he went to
the metropolis where she was singing
and called upon her He told her of
his bereavement. and she sympathized
with him. With kindly tact she d.
verted his mind When she had time
to spare from study and rehearsals
they drove out together. Hooper was
a frequent attendant at the opera
house where veltvolsky sang. and
evenings when she didn't sing he FIRE.
quented her apartments. He confded
to her his discovery that some one
who had loved his wife was caring for
her grave. NE prima donna deprecat-
ed his fears that his wife had had a
lover, explaining the episode by the
supposition that the unknown friend
was some poor creature whom the
dead had befriended This Temporal
rily at least relieved his mind
Hooper was seen so much at the
opera, applauded so enthusiastically.
drove so often with VeItvolsky and
spent so much time in her aparS--epts
tia. tia little coterie Of singers at last
began 10 connect ner name with iafs In
q more tender connection than friend
ship. Then one day he saw a notice
In newspaper that the prima donna
was to marry an American gentleman
whom she had met In Russia shortly
before her visit to the United States.
Hooper was naturally very angry at
the publication of this bit Of informa-
zion. which had not been authorized.
He went TO the Office of the paper con-
tanning IT and complained He was
shown the manuscript of the item.