The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1915-03-31
The New Judith,

The New Judith.
From sleep as from drugged stupor
Judith Urine awakened, struggling
back to consciousness like some ex,
hausted diver from the black depths
to the star-smitten surface of a night.
bound pool
And for little she lay unstirring,
her half-numb wits fumbling with
their business of renewing acquaint
ance with the world.
At first she could by no means rec.
ognize her surroundings. This rude
chamber of rough plank walls and
primitive furnishings; this wide. hard
couch she shared with her still! slum
bering sister, Rose; the view revealed
by an open window at the bedside;
fair perspective of tree-clad noun.
tains through which a de-bosomed
canyon rolled down to an emerald
plain, conveyed nothing to her intel.
, ligence.
A formless sense of some epochal
change in the habits and mental proc
esses of young lifetime, added to
her confusion.
Who was she herself, this strange
creature who rested here so calmly
by the side of Rose? If she were
Judith Urine, how came she to be
there? Irreconcilable opposites in
every phase Of character, the sisters
had sedulously avoided association
with each other ever since childhood:
they had not shared the shelter Of
n four walls overnight since time be-
yond the bouI DIS of Judith's memory.
that they should be found in such
close company?
What. indeed, had become of the
wild thing, Judith Urine of yesterday?
Surely she had little enough in com
mon with this Judith of today, il
whose heart was no more room fol
envy, hatred, malice or any uncharit
Rbleness so full was it of love which
though it was focused upon the person
of one man, none the less embraced
all the world-even her sister ant
successful rival in that one mans af
fections
This change had not come upon hel
without warning. She had been al
most insensibly aware of its adven
through the gradual softening of tina
old Judith's hard and vengeful nature
in the course of the last few days
But now that the revolution was &C
complished, she hardly knew herself
she hardly knew the world, indeed
SO differently did she regard it-no
without something of the wide-eye'
Wonderment of a child to find al
things so new and strange and beaut1
full.
And this was the work of Love!
Now the chain of memories wa
quite complete, no link lacking in it
continuity She recalled clearly ever
incident that had marked the slo1
growth of this great love she had 70
Alan Law, from that first day, not we
month old, when he had escaped tn
fiery deathtrap she had set for hin
and repaid her only by risking his lif
anew to save her from destruction
down to this very morning when tn
stream from a hydraulic nozzle ha
swept over the brink of a three hur
dred-foot precipice crimson racin
automobile containing two desperat
men bent upon comprising the deaf
of her beloved.
By that act of sheer self-defens
the world was richer for the loss
two black-hearted blackguards, an
Alan Law might now be considere
safe from further persecution-sinc
there now remained not one soul loys
enough to Seneca Urine to prosecut
his private war of vengeance aga1ns
Alan. And though that aged mon
n maniac had means whereby ne migf
purchase other scoundrels and co
rupt them to his hideous purpose
Judith was determined that he shout
never again have any opportunity
to do. Though Alan, she knew, woul
never lift his hand to hinder NJ
fathers freedom Of action. she. Judit