The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1915-01-15
CHAPTER IL.
The New judith.

The New judith.
From sleep rs from drugged stupoT
judith Trine awakened, struggling
bark to Consciousness like some ex'
hangted diver from the black depths
to the star Amitten surface of night
bound pool
Al first she could by no means rec
ognfEe her surroundings. This rude
chamber Of rough plank walls and
primitive Furnishings; this wide, hard
couch she shared with her still slum-
beTing sister, Rose; the view revealed
by an open window at the bedside;
q fair perspective OF tree-clad noun
tatns through which a wide-bosomed
canyon rolled down to an emerald
plain conveyed nothing to her intel
nBsnca-
A formless sense Of some epochal
change In the habits and mental proc
eases Of a young lifetime, added to
her confusion
What, indeed, had become OF the
Wild thing, Judith Urine of yesterday
Surely abe had little enough In COM
mon with this judith Of today, in
whose heart was no more room for
envy, hatred, malice or any uncharit-
Ableness, so full was it of love which,
though It WAS focused upon the person
OF one man, none the less embraced
I'll the Borld-eYen her sister and
successful rival In that one mans af-
factions.
This change had not come upon her
most inEensibly aware Of It's advent
through the gradual softening of that
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
abe hardly knew the world, indeed.
30 differently did she regard it-not
without something of the wtde-eyed
wonderment of a child to find all
things SO new and strange and beauti
ful
And this was the work of Love!
Now the chain of memories was
quite complete, no link lacking In Its
continuity. She recalled clearly every
incident that had marked the slow
growth Of this great love she had for
Alan Law, from that first day, not yet
q month old. when he had escaped the
fiery deathtrap she had set for him
and repaid her only by risking his life
anew to save her from destruction,
down to this very morning when the
stream from q hydraulic nozzle had
swept over the brink OF three hun
dred8oot precipice a crimson racing
automobile containing two desperate
men bent upon comprising the death
Of her beloved
By that act Of sheer self-defense
the world was richer for the loss OF
two black-hearted blackguards, and
Alan Law might now be considered
safe from further persecution-since
there now remained not one soul loyal
enough to Seneca Urine to prosecute
his private war OF vengeance against
Alan And though that aged mono
maniac had means whereby he might
purchase other scoundrels and cor
rupt them to his hideous purposes,
Judith was determined that he should
never again have any opportunity 30
to do. Though Alan, she knew, would
never Lift his hand to hinder her
fatheTs freedom Of action, she, Judith,
meant to take such steps as his perse-
e1tion called for. II there were any
Justice in the land-if there were any
Aiienlsts capable Of discriminating be-
tween TTine's apparent sanity and his
deep-roCted mania-then surely not
many days more should pass into his
tory without Witnessing his conslgn-
ment to an institution for the crimi- |
nal insane.
She, Judith, would see to that. and
then
The woman sighed once more.
Then Rose and Alan would marry
and 1--we happily ever after.
But what Of Judith?
She made a small gesture OF resig- |
nation to her destiny. What became
Of her no longer mattered, so that |
Alan were made happy IN such hap
pfneSs as he coveted.
And now the thought stirred her
sharply that what was to be done
must be done quickly, II at all.
And the almost level rays OF the |
declining sun, striking in through the
open window, counseled haste IL Judith
we're to accomplish her intention Of
leaving this place and finding her
father again before nightfall.
With the utmost care she rose from |
the bed, crept to the door OF the room
(noyv recognized as the quarters of the |