Show the tale of a love affair and a lawyers 4 twitt 00 II 11 A of 0 FIELDING confidence 4 4 bv 0 o r 4 2 0 00 44 4 4 f 4 aj J 4 was the sound 0 my own voice that waked me from the state of semiconscious wretchedness which I 1 call sleep the hour was uncertain but the night seemed on th wane the room had the gray gloom of a allm cell under ground and the four walls lurked in shadows liko four dark robed inquisitors Inqui watching some tortured victim en the rack I 1 rat upon a pillow with my back against the brazen grille at the head ot the bed the bar were as cold as an eskimos idea ot perdition and no doubt they printed their pattern on me as I 1 crouched there for two minutes like a scared monkey having attained full consciousness thia pleasant process which has become quite usual with me I 1 began to repeat the phrase that I 1 had uttered automatically before making As her husband Is a citizen of rhode island could it be possible that I 1 had put those words into a letter addressed to the one in the world who know thai the young woman in question has a hur bandT I 1 knew myself too well to doubt that I 1 had done it memory tor all useful purposes Is gone I 1 meet my tt lenit and do not know their names I 1 talk with them and forget the subject which Is under discussion even while I 1 in the very act of discussing it I 1 it in my law office and accept business when I 1 know that it Is criminal for me to take chaice of mother mans affairs because X cannot hold my mind upon my own long lo 10 brushing my hair in the morning but when I 1 am aslee por sunk in that purgatory of mental stress through which I 1 never can quite win my way into the heaven of am liable to remember anything minute details of my boyhood the exact turn of a phrase or glance of an eye that marked a scene of youth but chiefly my own faults and errors these whether of long ago or of the day just done come into my mind with and always with absolute accuracy so far as I 1 am able to determine sometimes 1 I repeat aloud my own worda er tholof others sometimes I 1 utter vain profesa pro fesi against the recurrence of such thoughts but the end Is always the I 1 pass through purgatory in the wrong direction and am cast into the torment of wideawake the way in which this memory had come jo me stamped it as genuine moreover I 1 have a rule tor euch matters and I 1 rely upon it with a sad certainty that v w 4 which Is good la a dream that which Is bad Is true I 1 arose sh iverine and huddled som clothes upon roe with a heavy hooded bathrobe over them then I 1 made a clr ot sea coal in the parlor and eat down before it to meditate upon a state 0 affairs which briefly elated was this an old gentleman named christopher hooper who alvo in on the MAN LEADS ME TO A LITTLE INN maine coast a pretty little town where I 1 have ebent a summer or two had written to me for a legal opinion upon the status ot certain property he particularly desired te know what would become of tt in case he should die without a will he did not say why he wished to die without a will but I 1 was of the opinion that he might do worse indeed I 1 was considerably relieved to fand that such wae his intention should not change his mind upon this point his granddaughter gertrude ellis would inherit about quarter of a million ot dollars to the best of my knowledge and belief and my information was sufficiently accurate as a result ot several consultations during my la Sair the hooper family history was clean put anil there waa no difficulty in estimating the share ot the halt dozen heirs at law who had a prospective interest in the estate in regard to the property mentioned in hia letter asking my advice there might be a squabble over the matter 0 partition and it litigation should nilso the situation would be complicated by the tact that gertrude waa no lonser a minor with a legal residence in maine but wae secretly married to robert N bills of inbode leland eells was a young man who had had a little money and had lost it through neglecting the advice of christopher hooper this was a serious offense but he had cut himself off from pardon by taking a position on a newspaper mr hooper despised all newspapers as a result of having been abused by one of them in the course of a political campaign in elua had met oertrude in summer vacations as 1 had he was still in his youth and with a sunny view of life it was better that he should win her I 1 had never striven against him nor said one word in my own cause I 1 had no exalted notions of celt abnegation I 1 thought that this would be like other sorrows but somehow it many griefe I 1 hav borne as well as most men bear them but I 1 cant get over this nor atop thinking about it they made a great friend of me and when it came to their childish folly 0 a secret marriage I 1 was their sole confidant I 1 tried to dissuade them selfishly generously I 1 dont know which perhaps the meeting of those storms ot different considerations side rations in my brain may have had something to do with the condition of it at any rate it it hurt me it bap no one else they were married aa a guarantee to eells that old christopher hoopers opposition should not wreck his hopes the ceremony occurred in new york where gertrude spends her winters with an aunt who is so dull ot wit that I 1 think the wedding might have taken place in her own parlor and she have been none the wiser I 1 was the only accomplice and it was I 1 who put eells aboard a train halt an hour after the ceremony and sent him back to providence it was some months later that I 1 had my letter from mr hooper As I 1 eat down to answer it X said to myself 1 I must b careful I 1 dont know what im about the less I 1 mean to do a thing in these days the more likely I 1 am to do it so i strove to give mr hooper accurate ad vice and yet ateer clear ot any revelation it it had been a matter that I 1 could turn over to my partner but it I 1 had done my best with it and my best had been as bad as possible for those words had crept in As her husband Is a citizen of ithone island the name of the state would identify the man and aa hooper had once been led to tear a secret marriage no though backed by all the resources ot perjury that are known to a new york lawyer could repair the mischief I 1 sat before the binte and saw those words written in on the smoke that rose from the smoldering sea coal it was hard to accept the plain proof of my mental condl llon like many another man who Is breaking to pieces I 1 had cheated myself with the covert belief that halt my trouble was mere affectation that I 1 permitted to ink more and more into thia distraught condition that I 1 could check myself by an effort ot the will it it were worth while that I 1 really maintained control 0 my faculties in all essentials learn ye who arc in the same evil ease that such a view of your misfortune Is part of it and a proof of lt beyond doubt I 1 had arranged matters so that mr hooper would not die without a will no direct advice upon the point could have been halt so effective ith lived ions enough to fand a bottle ot ink after reading my letter gertrude would be disinherited though he had deceived him I 1 did not believe that she deserved the loss I 1 did not believe that her grandfather really wished to leave her penniless though he would surely do it but the right of the matter had little to do with my position I 1 was for gertrude right or wrong with the honesty ot a good lawyer what waa to be done upon this point I 1 fried to think clearly there roust be a way out of it I 1 said to myself that it I 1 could have ten minutes of real sleep nay but elvei could think my way through this difficulty with I 1 laid HAS HE BEEN TO THE MAIL I 1 DEMANDED my heavy head against the cushioned chair and closed my eyes despite the force of the springs that held them open springs that pressed incessantly 0 o that th of the eyes were eore I 1 saw many visions the old days at gertrude seventeen years old upon a tennis field shaking doyn the masses of her hair disordered la the game the pic lure of youth the first time I 1 ever saw her the first time I 1 ever baw her eells on the wharf at aret time I 1 over baw him that waa a year later ana I 1 was atrall of him are there pre sentiments perhaps for crazy people the sano have no need of them however about this letter they drifted together so naturally youth to youth and I 1 was only but X had had a hard life with too many disappointments and the eight 0 too much sorrow tor all I 1 loved it had made me afraid to draw near to any heart lest I 1 might bring bome evil to it but this has nothing to do with the letter I 1 must chink of that mailed about halt past 15 of the evening it had not yet started on its way to Bos torii only one mall a day at I 1 wrote a letter to gertrude once and beat it to by a full days alme that wa in the early part of laet summer and I 1 had it in my heart then to try but never mind all over JK I 1 take the fast express at 10 this I 1 may be there in time in that case ill fand some way to intercept the letter ill bribe a servant so all settled and off my mind and X may sit here in this chair and dream of things ithal arent true that Is good Is a dream it la a comfort to ride in a railroad train the engineer knows hia way and the conductor for a consideration will put an absentminded passenger oft at the proper station if he happens to forget to render this service why should the ab passenger make trouble nather let him be comforted by the thought that some one else has lost his memory however boston Is a terminal so there is no risk in boston it id raining to degree that noah never saw the like of the roof of the cab in which I 1 cross the city with the flood that la descending upon it the cabman waves his as it he were swimming when he comes to open the door though no water Is falling there except from his own hat and shoulders tor we are under shelter at the union station of the northern roads beyond boston the train seems like a submarine boat night closes in and the rain still falls we are late at portland later yet at the junction where I 1 must change to the little branch road the conductor Is a bright eyed young man whose faculties are on the alert and he puts me oft the train it I 1 were baggage I 1 envy him because he has told me that he sleeps eight hours like a tired ox after he has finished his night runs on the railroad man with a lantern leads me to little inn that looms in an ocean of rain he takes it for granted that I 1 want to go to bed probably he has never seen a man who did not have that natural inclination cli nation at such an hour of the morning ho says that he will wake me in time for the train on the branch and I 1 bet him a dollar that neither he nor any one else can perform such a feat with me why he asks with round eyes because a man must sleep in order that he may be awakened my friend becomes sympathetic and tells me that his mother sleep well unless she cats a dry cracker just before going to bed have I 1 ever tried it next day the weather had cleared the sun shone brightly but the whole region seemed te be a lake I 1 had many misgivings yet the branch rain started confidently on time it ran about ten miles and then stopped while the track ahead was tested and repaired A few miles farther along the bame was repeated and so we crept down to belfast arriving too late for the boat across tho bay malls reach about 2 in the afternoon coming down by alone the east bank 0 the penobscot by the beet calculation that X could make my letter had been in the very train that had taken me to the junction it would probably tall to make connections at bangor because of the storm and would not go down to until next day but if I 1 should wait lor tomorrows boat I 1 GERTHUDE WAS SITTING BESIDE THE COUCH be too late to intercept the letter the margin of fmc being narrow there tore it was advisable for me to hire my own transportation across the bay I 1 found a sloop and a skipper and we started with a spanking breeze ran out of ft into a calm and then into a light air dead ahead it was 2 when we drifted into harbor while I 1 was walking up the main street of the town I 1 encountered hiram banks who was mr hoopers handy man rather early for summer visitors aint it he inquired howd ye come sailboat eh you must ben in a hurry coln up to the house I 1 suppose I 1 knew mr hooper d written to ye hes sick just took quite bad im coin tor the doctor has he been to the mall I 1 demanded just come from there he replied when he was took why see me about that later I 1 rejoined dont say anything to any one elsa he nodded pursing up his lips and then he hurried away upon his errand so my letter had come despite ray hope and it had prostrated the old man well I 1 might have expected as much what was to be done my mind refused to take hold of the problem but some instinct directed my body I 1 went to the telegraph office and sent this message to gertrude matter of R N 13 necessitates your coming here at once then I 1 went to the hooper house the old gentleman was quite and the doctor advised me not to try to him I 1 waited till evening when he was conald crabby improved Jm proved and than I 1 wen to in room ills aret word let me know thal he had not received letter but in tha meantime I 1 had had a telegram from gertrude saying that she had started i had not the resolution to tell mr 1 abi gertrude must explain her own coming As to mine I 1 had no trouble fleging hie letter ae the excuse or it I 1 bribed bank with a great price oa he went to the next day pr pared to commit a crime but my lestr 3 was not there it appeared afat all intaj from the west waa greatly delayed bif wae houta and a wreck there wag a p that gertrude would arrive bedfor chiy letter f went down to the belfast boat her next day my feared the eight oj her I 1 was in the depths of and in the grap ot the direst mental consi fusion the boat did not bring her and I 1 hur ried back to the house banks wa 1 l on the steps she came by the stage said h i 1 meant to tell ye likely the stage I 1 gasped it gets in an hour earlier thursday eald be dont ye remember 3 remember I 1 echoed striking my forehead with clinched band hew should I 1 remember anything where t sho gone up to his room have you heard 1 I aint heard nothing eald he there likely to be a rumpus I 1 strode by him into the parlor and clune my overcoat ort upon the floor As X all something tell out of the areat pocket I 1 picked it up it was my letter to chris copher hooper T I 1 had forgotten to mall itt all abi mental torment this self accusation thi scurrying across country this insane BUM mons to gertrude had beefs wholly un necessary the affliction which had baui the trouble had in the mystery of divin mercy averted it or would have don aoi but tor my own panic i I 1 ripped the letter open it was a lengthy communication but I 1 knew just where to look tor the bit ot lunacy tuat bad dribbled from my pen there lf stood most plainly written bownas dow nAs bw 1 husband Is a citizen 0 rhode island the phrase had recurred to roe accurately n sleep why had I 1 pot remained dreamland a little longer and that the letter bad never been posted o 0 however this was a vain question abi need ot the moment was or quick ands accurate thought upon the present emergency but there was no one to think it stood wringing the letter in my dripping hands until it was a mere rag and in mind was wrung in precisely the sam way all I 1 could think ot was that trude wa in the room over my head without a notion as to what I 1 should say or do I 1 rushed up the stairs tour at leap some one said come in as I 1 knocked at hoopers door entering I 1 beheld the old gentleman lying upon a couch am propped up with pillows his white bair floated round his head it was of pr feet whiteness and as fine as the strand of a sunbeam with his clear blue eye t gave him a certain beauty and marked |