El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1913-05-24
The Melody


/ burst. Her finely shaped, darkhaired
I head rested on the table. She was sit
! ting in front Of her sewing machine. at
which she had been working all DAY.
/ All around her We're scraps Of silk and
wooden goods fashion papers and uar-
! terms lay in piles on the table. and
Wnen she moved ner arm some Of them
dropped on the floor Her head was
I dizzy with complete exhaustion Sha
7 vas unable to think. but felt the in
I creaSlng darkness as a blessing which
put an end TO the toll Of the day
At the sound OF a clock striking in a
+ tower Tar away, she raised her head and
1oOheu through lne WINDOW The sky
I was brCOdlng and leaden over the roofs
and peaked gables, which seemed to cut
{ it to pieces or push IL away.
She stood up and began to put the
things aside and tidy the room She
had a face which reminded one M =
mask WIth two big eyeholes- Her body
was TOO small and lhlns IL was worn
out prenaturely by 1ncessaut toll She
did not have strength enough to sit
UP straight Her head was always
bowed down, tired and heavy. as if she
could not raise it
1t was 10 years Of work that bent and
aged her. These years had been to her
Ike enc long walk through endless des-
{ ert without q single oasis TO relieve
Z the mOnOtOny, her feet had left no
{ tracks. on the sands, not a single cry
from her lips had been responded is.
nobody had met her on the way to
shake her hand
But on the other side all these years
OF weary thraldon.- there were a few
years. when she had been young and
had lived. in those years the two had
SAT- uOSeLner watching the coming OF
everything
She was young then and worked for
small wages IN a dreSsmaking shop ETa
mad long ha1r, dreaming eyes, an mex
haustible fund of hope. and a vfOIfn-
that was all, but he was an artist He
was young, gave lessons on the violin.
de was always bright and happy. No
. body could laugh as he could or cheer
her up as ne cOuld-he knew how to
maze every thing appear in golden
and rosy light
When you have young blood in your
veins you must not sit and grumbIe."
day has sunlight and the night stars
and you have beautiful pair Of eyes
to gaze into As long as you can
laugh and cry, as Ions as the SUM
mer has flowers and the winter snow.
you ought to be happy and live
he played to her late into the night
making her laugh and cry, as his bow
ran across the strings
You are my sun" he said. Eff I did
not have you could not live or grow.
You must never forget what you are
to ne"
One night he came to her unex-
pectedly and took her into his arms.
- cannot 1--we without YOU he said.
" ny SnOuld we wait until We can az
Iord TO marry Then we shall be old
ana gray. You cannot put happiness
aside and say Wait a few years
cannot give you any time now. later on
/ VIII call Tor you VIII you not come
to me now and live with me as my
wife2"
But she did not understand him. she
struggled out Of his arms. wounded and
unhappy an intense pain shooting
through her every nerve and fiber
For solitude had made her shy and sus-
pecu1g, his suggestion hurt her and she
asked him to leave her. She no longer
remembered the passionate words that
passed DeLWeen JneTn but ne lerr her
pale and angry. his black hair in disOr-
der and his eyes shooting fire AT her.
She stood staring at the closed door
and struggled with her own mingled
feelings All her castles in the air had
suddenly been turned into ashes
During the night that followed she
gllded into the great loneliness, she,
so 10 speak. went out to meet it She
did not cry She sat at her table where
the little lamp was burning. her head
and purred- IL had in itself something OF.
the warmth she CraVed for 1t was as if
she saw her own wife like q lonely
candle in a cold and lonely room
Two days passed Then one evening
she saw II IN one Of the papers,
short notice which most people would
have overlooked He had shot himself.
He had gone straight from her and had
sent a bullet through his brain. She
thought of all the hard words she had
SAID TO MIN and felt how unjust she
had been to him
Then 10 years had passed. the mis-
cradle and lonely years, without long
10 years she never realized that he had
some forever Every night she saw
him in her dreams.
As she was putting her room in or
der, she felt a sudden desire to go Out
to see people around her and hear them
talk, 20 feel the cool evening aid in her
face.
When she came outside the street
lamps were lighted 1t had started TO
rain a little. melancholy driZzIe-
r rom the park she heard music which
irreSlstlDly drew her in among the trees.
where il was so much more pleasant
than in the dreadful rushing and crowd
ing OF the streets. She stopped in front
OF 2 larse restaurant with many chairs
and tables outside and music in the
EerGnda, where few persons sat drink
Ing ana talking
She sat down on a bench under a
tripping tree where she could hear
the musicians. Here she sat for a
lonE. time quietly and sad, with her
hands folded and her head thrown
back
suddenly a musician got uD to play a
violin solo. He was a tall. dark young
man, he stopped little His eyes were
sad and melancholy under the heavy
brOWs-
As. he started to play she stood up.
lrem ping pale and WrlnElnS her
hands She felt like rushing up TO him
and asking him to stop. but she fell
back on the bench and hid her face in
her hands.
Big heavy drops from the tree over
head fell on the back Of her neck.
The people on the veranda grew silent
and listened to the wonderful tones Of
the violin They were alive, full Of
human suffering. every single tone
grlpped her soul and carried ir away.
All sense of time disappeared. the 10
long years existed no more she was
once more sitting in her little room.
Another man was playing. she saw his
Sllnoutte outlined againt the sly
through the window 1t was the melody
he loved best of all. and which he used
to play TO her in the dusk which made
the roofs of Paris outside and the whole
world look strangely unreal
That melody contains all life" he
used 70 say, love, suffering and happi-
ness"
This was no dream. 1t was some
thing that was given to her-it was
q revelation nameless happiness
filled her soul she felt that he was
near her. that his soul embraced hers
across the dark abyss which separates
life and death.
When the vfoInist lowered his bow.
she stood up and went home Like
small shadow she disappeared among
the crowd Nobody had look or
thought for her
But her pale. tired looking mouth