The Oakley herald. [volume] (Oakley, Idaho) 1908-1961, 1924-03-21
CHAPTER VII

Rutherford still stood In the grea
room where he had left her, still star
ing at the exit through which he hai
gone, victim of emotions only les
disturbing than his
There could be naturally littl,
doubt in her mind now of the identit,
of the stranger. Who could II DOS
sibly be but one-this individual witt
pass-key, and the private knowledge
had never dreamed of, and of her own
intimate but forgotten past.
She had often thought, naturally, OF
her husband-of what he must be
like; of why she had been separated
from him. She had avoided speaking
on this subject to Jasper Haig; and
he, for purposes of his own no doubt,
had mentioned it to her in only a very
general way. She had assumed mere
! ly thar she would not see him; nat
urally that was one absolute condi-
ton of their agreement-one compli-
cation which must not arise for her.
| She could have complained to Mr.
Haig now, of course, of this visit, but
after seeing him She paused and
thought, remembering her visitors
face-and her own situation, as she
saw ii now. For her situation, 1t must
be said, was growing more and more
disturbing to her.
One must recall, in endeavoring to
understand this. that this young WON
10 ,fe,fr - +Hc
great Gorgam Trust, had--as her own
servants could at least partly see-no
memory of her past at all back of her
recent desperate illness, beyond that
supplied by her two visitors-her
financial and physical guardians, Jas
per Haig and the very celebrated doc
tor. Considering this, she often. and
more and more as time went on, felt
the lack of exact and definite infor-
nation concerning many things
around her-even about herself.
She was ill; she appreciated that
IA nervous trouble with long name,
which would keep her isolated for
long period. She would see none of
the friends of the Adelaide Rutber-
ford of former years. She readily
agreed to that. But she had hoped
in fact had been more recently at least
partly promised that some time, after
sufficient time for recovery, she
might be free, by some special ar
rangement, to travel-to see some
thing of the world outside of the In.
terror of this great luxurious house
She grew most weary of this place. II
was like, in way, an Imprisonment
in a museum: huge, priceless paint
ings; long, costly draperies; jars
worth a fortune-many enough and
large enough to hold the Forty
Thieves And no sunlight, except In
the afternoon from the west-sunlight |
being one article apparently that even
the Gorgam Trust could not purchase
in New York.
She had agreed of course with her |
doctor and Jasper Haig to all this.
Yet even this she could see now must |
be something that would have an end
"a purpose. And now-no doubt from
the very situation of loneliness and
time for thought In which she found
herself, certain suspicious which she
had formed took q somewhat mon
strous and disconcerting shape There
might be something, she sometimes
thought-from various things. from
isolation in the house
that she did not exactly know-not
only about the Gorgam Trust, but
about herself
She checked herself when such ideas
,ame to her. For II was black, blind
llley In which she had small desire to
rope.
The delights of unmeasured wealth
md luxury, Who can reasonably ques-
ion after their universal acceptance
IS the goal OF life for man-and for
woman certainly no less-through all
he ages. and especially In this? This
5 simple matter of common knowl-
dge and belief which everybody
nows. On the other hand there are
cry few who have been in a position
o observe and appreciate the strange
logical, almost hysterical effect
which close Imprisonment has on hu-
nan nervous systems; to understand
he odd outbreaks and panics of hys-
eria which penologists assure us over
axe the most unlikely victims-the
lost hardened individuals confined in 4
risons, at entirely unexpected inter- 2
ais, in involuntary and almost insane ?
aroxysms Of self-pity.
Considering this. IL Is nossihie IN ex- b
lain, If not to understand, the changed Il
nd changing mental attitude of the $
Iorgam Trust, which, denying her no r
ersonal luxury that heart could wish
utside of freedom. yet caused her now
growing, sharpening fear, thing she
ould not apparently resist, fear Of b
eng an eternal prisoner OF illness t,