The Madisonian. (Richmond, Ky.) 1913-1914, 1914-06-30

held. kept my promise. ssssoon did
not fall by my hand"
She had begun to tremble SO that +
the paper shook in her hands. and
from her breast, shattered by her
quick breathing, the brown jesssr .ine
petals busted down in her lap. 1t was
some moments before she could calm
herself sufficiently to read on
HE fred at the signal and the shot /
went wide I threw my pistol on the
ground ThenEwhether maddened by /
my refusal to fire. cannot tell-he
turned his weapon an at once and shot
himself through the breast It was
over in an instant The seconds did |
not guess-do not even now. for it
happened but an hour ago AS the
code DEGREES, their backs were turned
when the shots were fired But there
were circumstances cannot touch
upon to you which made them disap-
prove-which made my facing him
just then seem unchiva1rous. saw
it in Bristow's face, and liked him the !
better for 1t, even while it touched
my pride. They could not know, of
course, that l did not intend to fire. |
Well, you and they viii know it nowi
And Bristow has my pistol; he will
find it undischarged = thank God.
thank GodI
But will that matter to you? If
You loved Sassoon, l shall always in |
your mind stand as the indirect cause /
of his death! 1t is for this reason
am going away could not bear to
look in your accusing eyes and hear
you say it Nor could bear to stay
here, a reminder to you Of such a
horror. If you love me, you will write
and call me back to you. Oh. Ju-
dith. Judith, my own dear lovei /
pray God you will"
She put the letter down and laid
her face upon it. Beauty! Beautyl"
she whispered, dry-eyed- 'T never
knewi 1 never knewI But it would
have made no difference, darling. i
would have forgiven you anything
everything! You know that, now,
dear! You have been certain Of it all
these years that have been so empty.
empty to mel"
But when the faded rose-colored
gown and the poor rime-yellowed slip
pers had been laid back in the hair
/ cloth trunk; when, her door once more
unbolted, she lay in her bed in the dim
glow of the reading-lamp. with her
/ curling silvery hair drifting across the
pillow and the letter beneath it, at
/ last the tears came coursing down her
cheeks.
And with the loosening of her tears,
gradually and softly came joy-infi.
nitely deeper than the anguish and
sense of betrayal. 1t poured upon her
like trembling food. Long. long ago
he had gone out of the world-it was
only his memory that counted to her.
Now that could no longer spell pain
or emptiness or denial. It was engold.
ened by new light, and in that light
she would walk gently and smilingfy
to the end
She found the slender golden chain
that hung about her neck and opened
the little black locket with its circleA
of laureled pearls. And as she gazed at
the face it held. which time had not
touched with change. the sound al
Shirley's harp came softly in through
the window. She was playing an old
fashioned song, of the sort she knew
her mother loved best:
Darling, I am growing old,
Silver threads among the gold
4 Shine upon my brow today;
Life is fading fast away.
But my darling, you will be
Always young and fair to me.
Outside the leaves rustled, the birds
called and the crickets sang their I'M
ending epithalamia of summer nights,
and on this tone-background the mel
ody rose tenderly and lingeringly like
haunting perfume of pressed flowers.
4 She smiled and lifted the locket to her
face, whispering the words of the re-
frain:
Yes. my darling. you win be
Always young and fair to mel