Year: 1871

ed TO ner pale cneekS, ner eyes uaSnet


with their former fire as. she sprung t.


her feet, and babe me restore it te


her.


"Oh, icicle, are you melted at last


Give it to youl No, indeed, 1 viii
teach you more respect for your hus
band than you have lately shown
See," 1 continued, as picked il uI
and tore it to fragments, ,-''see, there
is the frippery which you think more
worthy of your attention than youl
husband. !"


s.Anything is more worthy of it than
nv husband at this momena," she re-
piled


"Say you so say you so, madam y
L exclaimed, grasping her by the arm,
and Kissing the words through my
teeth then what say you to sepera-
tionl You need not refuse; will have
one will live no longer with such a
wife. Do you consent Answer me y
I cried.


GAS you please" she replied; ''no-
thing can be worse than this"


"Then you consent at lasta" l ex-
claimed. g Well this very day L will
commence arrangements.


"When you please, she replied, and
she left the room.


1 stood aghast at what had done,
1 had progressed separation, and she
had consented. / had said that on that
very day 1 would commence arrange
ments for the purpose,-an could l
break my wordl Could go to her,
and beg her not to leave me. and that,
when myself had proposed such a
step2 NY pride again forbade me,
and / obeyed its dictates; but there
still remained secret hope within me
that on cool reflection she herself
would refuse.


determined to consult lawyer in
whose secrecy could confde, and make
such arrangements as were absolutely
necessary. L did so, and patiently
awaited the result.


Ny wife did not appear again during
that day. The next morning l found
a note on the breakfast table. / open
ed it, and found that it contained
proposal to the effect that she should
be permitted to join some friends, who
were about to visit Italy, ostensibly on
account of her health; that she should
remain absent one year and if at the
expiration of that time, she still lived,
that permanent separation might then
be arranged; but at present such
thing should not be made public. The
note was written in calm, clear man
ner: vet I thought the desire to avoid
publicity in the affair betrayed some
token of relenting. / replied TO it at
once, saying that / should make no OBJ
lection to such arrangem. nts, or to any
other that might suit her convenience /;
and with the note sent large amount
of money for her own use.


The next day we received an invita-
ton to a party, which contrary to her
late habits, my wife accepted. She
sent it to me in a note, stating the fact,
and saying that she thought it would
afford an excellent opportunity to make
known to society her intention of 60
ing abroad. signified my assent.


During The time that 1ntervened L
saw my wife only at table, where she
appeared as calm as ever, though per-
haps trife paler than usual. Hour
after hour had 1 looked for her pride
to fail her. Deeply injured as she had
been, could not bring myself to be-
lieve that, loving me as she had once
loved me, and l fondly hoped she still
did, she would really leave me; out
after having once made public her in
tention, feared lest she might not
shrink. wonld she do so2 Oh, Now
snxiously Iawaited the eyentful night
and when at last it came, / was dressed
and in attendance at an unusually early
hour. As paced the floor anxiously,
hoped, prayed, that her heart would
conquer, that love would subdue pride;
but how could I-how dared / hope it
What indignities had she not borne
from me! Ought not be humble my
self, and ask her to forgive me9


Had she come in that moment L
would have done so, but she came not.
I wondered how she would dress. Per-
haps some carelessness in her apparel
would betray that her mind was too
much pre- occupied to think of it. 1
glanced at the clock; it was time that
she should be there. Just then she
entered, and as pale and calm as usual.
/ looked at her dress; it was of dark
velvet, trimed with rich lace; she wore
Just such dress in happier days be-
cause 1 admired it, and thought it be-
came her style of beauty. But now
what was her objects Did she desire
to please me still, or was it her habits
glanced at her; on her neck she wore
a suit of diamonds, which had given
her shortly after our marriage. She
had rarely wore them at first, because
she thought them unsuitable ornaments
for one SO young; but now, when she
looked so queenly, and moved so grace
fully, they gave her a grandeur which
startled me.


l could detect no carlessness In her
dress, no agitation in her manner. Her
hand trembled not when l led her to
the carriage. She showed no emotion
during our drive to the scene of festivi-
ty. Could this be the lieht-hearted
girl / had married but few short years
ago2 Could this cold, this naughty,
this imperial woman be the gentle, the
loving, the delicate wife of other days I
1 looked back on the happy hours of
our betrothal, on the happier days of
our early married life. recalled her
ioyousness of spirits. her frank conf
dence of manner, her deep love, our
former happiness, our present misery;
and remembered thatit was I who had
wrought the change. In few days we
should part, perhaps for ever, while
our hearts were full of love for each
other. Never had Iadored her as Ibid
at that hour, and / determined that she
should not leave me. I


During the evening the voice of some
one singing attracted my attention.
The tones seemed familiar; 1 could
not be mistaken, the voice was hers
and placing myself in position where
/ could see the singer without being
seen by her, / listened until the song
was finished. When it was finished
she raised her eyes for moment, but
only for moment, and then COM
menced another song-one had never
heard before-the story of proud
heart broken The words seemed to
come from her very soul. The tones of
her voice viii ring in my ears until
they are stopped by death. A deep,
painful silence pervaded the ROOM
Tears stood in MANY bright ewes and