Baraboo weekly news. [volume] (Baraboo, Wis.) 1912-197?, 1923-12-06
She Was
Misunderstood

20. 1923, Western Newspaper Union.)

to type-God pity them
You can picture her, with her dark
hair and strange eyes, with the far
away look in them, playing by herself
when she was child; then, at school,
walking alone when the girls went
home in pairs. No one took much no.
tice of her.
What was she thinking Of? She was
no embryo genius. Just solitary. Her
parents were ordinary people, but they
had three other children, and SO they
did not bother to understand her. Her
brothers and sisters were afraid Of her.
She had queer fits of temper. Then
she gave away everything she owned.
And that was odd for a small town.
She went to a business school and
became a stenographer with a law
firm. Young Rawlins made her his pri-
vate secretary after awhile. Then,
suddenly, she left. Rawlins had been
prosecuting her. But everybody said
it was the girl who had been at fault
for encouraging him. You see, one
who it not of the herd the herd tram
pies on.
She got another position in the bank,
and one day five ten-dollar bills were
missing. No one ever found out who
had taken them. But suspicion fell
upon Madge Evans, because she col
ored and became sullen under cross-ex-
animation.
Taken them? The girl didn't know
what dishonesty meant Still, she was
not of the herd. She was dismissed on
some preteXt at the end of the month
After that she was disgraced in the
town. People stunned her.
Charles Lathrop was a newcomer.
When he arrived to take up the local
branch of his insurance company
Madge had been living at home, help
ing her mother for three years. She
and her mother did not get on together,
and she was unhappy. The scandal
about the bank had died down. Young
Lathrop got to know Madge. They
seemed to like each other. Sometimes
they were seen walking together. Then
tongues began to wag
! After while the story of the bank
CO. 20 young LathrOp's ears. He traced
it to it's source in Miss Hepzibah Gleed,
the old maid who lived in the cottage
under the elms. He went to see her,
had it out with her; forced a written
retraction from her.
/ Tongues buzzed more thGn ever at
that. 1t was clear that they were morA
friendly than they ought to be. why
didn't they get married, even If Mr..
Lathrop had a widowed mother to sup
port and was waiting for raise of sai-
airy?
! Mr.. Rawlins was little intoxicated
one day and began talking reminis-
cences in the country club, Madge's
name came up. He dismissed the girl
with a sne2r. Mr.. Lathrop overheard.
He demanded an explanation.
! Whats your right?" demanded Raw
Inns.
This" said Lathrop, knocking him
down.
After that tongues buzZed like hor-
nets in an empty garnet. They were
watched, spied upon. Their friendship,
harmless as it was, proved impOssi-
BILE Madge Evans had promised to
wait any number of years for him.
But the Lathrops began to be cut by
the tOwnsfolk, and LathrOps mother,
a Querulous old invalid, was in despair.
She was always pouring poison about
the girl into Ter sons ears.
Then Lathrop was moved to a larger
town He was to get an increase of
salary. He had an interview with
Madge before he went. People saw
her radiant face and hated her the
more After he had gone. she became
an outcast from the community.
Weeks went by, turned into months.
Gradually NFadge ceased to smile !;
then one day, letter came. No one
ever knew what was in it, but q week
later they read the announcemert of
Lathrop's marriage in the county news
paper.
After that Madge got a position in
New York. going in on the train every
day and coming back in the evening.
A little later her mother died. She
= had no ties in the village.
That was a month before young
Rawlins disappeared with those trust
funds. His father paid; covered up
the scandai. He returned two months
later, and it was pretended he had an
attack Of n entail alteration from over
work. He is now a respected citizen,
and has a wife and five children.
Madge? Oh, she disappeared at the
same time Rawlins did, but no one
bothered to wonder what happened to
her If ever RaWlins' conscience wor-
ries him. he takes out his handbook,
or looks at his blooming wife presiding
over his table.
! But | saw Madge on Broadway last
week. At first she denied herself,
Then she looked at me with haggard
eyes.
Coming back to see the old town? p
coY,oo Md