The Evening standard. [volume] (Ogden City, Utah) 1910-1913, 1910-10-01

i
taN OF something else. Suppose you play some
thing Sidney | managed to say, and we talked no
more that night OF Constance Larchcr
But neither that any of the later talks that |
had with him gave any hope for my friend The
warm. comradcy liking that he had for her was
sSaaeey an encouraging sign And yet how other
wise could this untrcd boy have left toward woman
Idueu' arcady little pttuI. already suggesting op-
portunitieS outycd.
faced all this, every aspect OF it; and nor least
did race the dcScrvlngneSs OF dear Sidney himself
inc cruelty perhaps OF merely using him. for how
ever desirable end And still ! could not force
myself to take a disciplinary attitude to determine
that Constance Larcher was too old for a romantic
lniatuation. and that she must be helped to re-
nounoc As only brokcn-hcarted woman can
Ionged to see happiness. to have realized outside
my own disappointed life. Her courage was SO
perfect her little hcoisms unfaling that could
not bear she should be denied ] wished devoutly
Tor her happiness | wished for it so much that I
did what may have been a great wrong, Oh the
nights have lain and wondered, the nights shall
yet lie and wonder till die? Was 1t a cruel sinful
thing that did, or 1t seemed TO me then the
merest humanity? To me the comfort will always
be that believe Constance Larcher herself would
not condemn me.
Ono stormy morning / sat fussing over my ac-
counts. undsturbed by the fact that they had never
yet como out even when Constance Larchcr came
IN | did not look up from the papers for a mo-
ment; but | remember the pleasure that | got even
then, from the OF her light movements her
beautiful voice, the graceful sweep OF her dress
When did look up, / saw that she dressed
Tor the street and that she must have come for
me to go out with her usual
But don't you see how 1t is snowing7" | exclaimed
Don't pretend anything so absurd as that Won have
TO shop this morning"
81 have ordered a carriage" she said so
think VIC may venture. At least ! going
From her light manner. ! supposed that her
GRAND was ono OF commonplace frivolity and | felt
sharp sense OF dismay when turned into
Madison Avenue and stopped at her ply
My friend had come / found by appointment vet
the doctor seemed greatly disturbed that she should
have gone out in the storm. They had long talk
in his Office. so long that felt fresh alarm for
the seriousness OF the case. and not surprised
when the doctor seized an opportunity to speak with
me alone moment and to tell me- authoritativcIy
that should sec that Miss Larchcr lett New York
He had old her weeks ago that the only chance
for her health, for her lifc even. lay in going a
different climate.
Arc there members OF her family" he de-
mandcd. who would be able persuade her? I
have tried TO frghten her and she refuses to under
stand"
81 think she has none" I lied promptly from
motive mysterious to myself But | will do what
| can
Yet it was well known to me that Constance
Larcher and her only brother devoted friends
and In most matters close counSellors, so that o
save her need only send him word OF warning
Was not this my obvious duty? Why could | not
bring myself TO do it-by telegraph, cvcn-without
delay?
All day the thought tortured me, yet | renamed
perversely inert. In the evening it came about
that she spoke OF her brother, spoke OF him so
intimately that dared to ask her what his advice
had been IN regard to her illness
oh John doesn't know I've been docorng my
self, she SAID, easily Il should be ashamed
have him know, he's been bothered so much with
me The poor man thinks I'm quite wcl-as |
shall be"
I was Left then with what appeared to be the
sole responsibility for tho woman's life. |, and |
alone, could have saved her And I did hot
But cruel and foolish though | may have been.
could not then. and could not even now take her
joy from her; break her crystal cup and spill the
red wine of life that filled it After much
weary thinking l had come to understand that if
she had been younger should have had the courage
he hcpn girl there
have been time for long healing. and she could
ultimately have opened her heart to another happi-
ness. But to tear Constance Larcher from the
sight OF Sidney Fennc would be like thrustng her
in the tomb Life could hold rcparation for
And yet the situation that gave her such agita-
tion and delight its very nature eyanes-
cent. 1t was not likely that she would
see less OF Sidney or more OF him 1t seemed TO
me that she must lose hm-or gam him. And
Sidney could never Bright gay, lovablc
turc that he was, he seemed to remember no woman
longer than day; the airiest dallier with the
tons. thought him And as for poor Constance
Larcher. living on her secret tormenting love for
him. she seemed to mean more to him than
for instance. insignificant Adcla Southmayd.
There was the certainty too that any else
that Dick, had ] dreamed OF telling him-woud
have questioned pretty sharply my presentation on
the case, Constance Larcher had never told me
that she cared for Sidney How could | put
much faith in my romantic imaginings stake
much on them. stern interrogators might well have
asked mc-cvcn to the riSking OF a womans lifc2
Yet this did not shake my own conviction that ]
knew or alter my feeling that it would be
plicated treaohery to betray her to her brother
whomsoever else, when she had wished that
even | should know. There was, for my watchful
eye. evidence enough. There the five days
when did not known where Sidney was news OF
his mothers illness having called him home too
suddenly to permit his telling of his departure.
She bravely filed the time with laughter and frivo-
ity, but who was near her knew the fear that
chilled her and the anguish that burned And
there her affected carelessncss of interest in
all the little things | knew OF him and was glad TO
tell her, for although poor Constance did not know
it, came to talk OF Sidney almost all the time
She must have supposed that my introductions OF
his name, Of anecdotes about him, nadvcrtent
if she had known with what laborous indfer-
| dragged them in unable to resist the look
of content of assuagcment, that they gave her
But the thing that determined me at last to take
T.