The Washington herald., 1912-02-04

was up | was as much in love as a man
could be. We were quietly married at
a registry Office, and we returned to
Norfolk welded couple. You'll think
it very mad, Mr.. Holmes, that a man
OF a good old family should marry a
wife in this fashion, knowing nothing
OF her past or of her people, but il you
saw her and knew her, 1t would help
you to understand.
"She was very straight about il, was
Elsie. | can't say that she did not give
me every chance of getting out. of it
il wished to do so. i have had some
very disagreeable associations in my
life said she; 1 wish to forget all about
them. / would rather never allude to
the past, for it is very painful to me.
If you take me, Hilton, you will take
a woman who has nothing that she need
be personally ashamed Of; but you will
have to be content with my word for 1t,
and to allow me to be silent as to all
that passed up to the time when be-
came yours. II these conditions are
too hard, then go back to Norfolk, and
leave me to the lonely life in which
you found me 1t was only the day
before our wedding that she said those
very words TO me / told her that |
was content to take her on her own
terms, and have beeen as good as my
word
"Well, we have been married now for
year, and very happy we have been.
But about a month ago, at the end of
June, / saw for the first time signs OF
trouble One day my wife received
letter from America. | saw the Amer
ican stamp She turned deadly white,
read the letter, and threw It into the
FIRE She made no allusion to il after
ward, and made none, for a promise
is promise, but she has never known
an easy hour from that moment. There
is always look of fear Upon her face
a look as II she were waiting and ex-
pecting. She would do better TO trust
me- She would find that / was her
best friend. But until she speaks. 1,
can say nothing. Mind you, she is a
truthful woman, MIR. Holmes, and
whatever trouble there may have been
in her past life n has been no fault Of
hers am only simple Norfolk
squire, but there is not a man in Eng
land who ranks his family honor more
highly than l do. She knows il well,
and She knew it we'll before she mar
ried me- She would never bring any
stain upon it--of that | am sure.
'Well, now / come TO the queer part
of my story. About a week Sgo-it was
the Tuesday of last week-I found on
one of the window-sills a number of
absurd little dancing figures like these
upon the paper They were scrawled
with chalk thought that it was the
stable boy who had drawn them, but
the lad swore he knew nothing about
it. Anyhow, they had come there dur
ing the night ! had them washed out,
and | only mentioned the matter to my
wife afterward To my surprise, she
took It very seriously and begged me
il any more came to let her see them.
None did come for a week, and then
yesterday morning | found this paper
lying on the sun-dial in the garden. l
showed it to Elsie, and down she
dropped in a dead faint. Since then
she has looked like woman in a
dream, half dazed and with terror al
ways lurking in her eyes II was then
that wrote and seM the paper to you,
Mr.. Holmes. 1t was not a thing i
could take to the police, for they would
have laughed at me, but you will tell
me what to do. | am not a rich man,
but If there is any danger threatening
my little woman, / would spend my last
copper to shield her"
He was fine creature. this man of