The evening Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1918-1920, 1920-05-01
His
Better Self
SGSC
By RHODA BARRYMORE
tCe oyright, 1919 by the western Esws-
paper un!ou.)

deli d lie boarded train ana pisceu
b0Xil Ike package in the rack over
his seat. His own innate sense OF
self-respect was lashlng him. In the
first place he was acting In defiance
Of the law, IN the next he was ac-
knoWledging himself a Weaknng ana
coward, and hastily, deliberately was
making his way back 10 seiVltude
thar had wrecked his own life and
thar Of loving, devoted wife.
Drink had been the bane Of five
years Of married experience. inner
tied or acquired, once he had given
way to the craving for stimulants he
had begun a career that called for the
sacrifice of position, home, respecta-
billy and friends. The downward
path had been sheer, the pit ii LED
to deep and enguliing. His wife had
cung To the last shred OF hope and
duty, but he had driven her away from.
him. At length, picked up on The
street In rags, Il wretched, maudlln
wreck, Wordel had been removed To Il
hospital where he lay lowering be
tween life and death for a month, ana
was finally discharged to face the
world weak, homeless. friendlesS.
T 10 enormity of his downfall now
presented itself In harsh, reproachful
censure. The one maddenlng thought
was of the wife he had lost. For Il
week he managed to pick up enough
All ~ nj
together. Winnie had entirely disap-
peured. and former neighborS gave no
cleW to her whereabouts.
"Why. everybody supposed you were
dead" he was advised at one source
where he and Winnie had once lived,
'and Mrs. Wordel supposed 50, too,
for she read your name in the paper
in Il big lodging house fire.
Wordell had been one of the in,
mates of the place, his name had been
mistakenly included i'll The fatalities
and he had been too far down and out
to care to correct the error
"She probably IS glad MAT burden
her life no longer" lie reflected bitter
~. "Well, better SO. What have ! 10
offer her but regret and 4 barren,
broken lifeT
Bat somehow new manhood had stir
red within him with permanent 50
briefly. He secured work and did il
wen At the end Of two years he held
II lucrative position and restrained
from INDUCING The dormant appetite
within him. He had made several eff
forts To find his lost wife, but they had
no result.
And now he was on the way to Join
some familiar companion ON a fishing
junket. He was expected to contrib
ute something to the camp equip
ment--a box of cigars. some ported
meats or fruit o. what he might
choose. At the final moment, Wearied
from strenuous week Of hard work.
enticed 10y solitude and congenial com
partnership. Myron Wordel had taken
II grevious false step. In the box in
the coach rack was Il store of stllnu-
lants. purcha sed surreptitiouSly, and
whetting his long slunIbering appetite.
although more than once some better
impulse swayed him to toss the temp
tation through the window.
He was in Il smoking compartment
when his station was called out and
ha Stening to the rack seized what he
supposed to be his box. i've taken
somebody else's belongings by mis-
take" he muttered when he opened
il at the camp, for its interior show
ed bound volume. some magazines,
II box of candy and some collars and
handkerchiefS. He contained himself
us he threw these upon Il camp cot.
Had to hurry" he explained false
~ la his companions. Just managed
to pick UP IL little miscellaneous read
ing matter" and the incident passed
casually. but The next day one of his
comrades called on him.
Il say, Wordel, look over this story.
If it isn't you To the life. Whoever
wrote it knew you. or dreamed IF you,
or your precise counterpart
Wordell took the volume and sought
secluded spot. Through the ensuing
hours he seemed to live his life over
again. 1t was the story of a man, like
himself and woman like Winnie. 1t
told the whole pitiful story Of his ca-
reer ii ended in his death, but the eff
fort Of the writer seemed to be di-
rected towards awarding a tribute to
an unfortunate possessed of true
soul but led by weakness of will away
from the world and its old sweet ways.
She had written it--yeS, it could be
only the pen of "a woman who had
lived the life depicted who could have
So truly described his career and
her own. So convinced of II was Wor-
dell, that he left his friends with one
Sole purpose in NieW-to trace down
"Estelle Martindale," the authoreSs.
He accomplished this through The pub
fisher. and located mis- missing wife liv-
ing comfortably through the proceeds
Of her literary work.
81 have come 10 add Il !a.t chapter
to your beautiful story, If ynI will let
me-" he told her. and she Uss glad to
listen to his story aud to nis prom
iSes of rectitude and love. which She
felt assured lie would keep.
The Real Ditto ulty.
II e