For Woman's Love Part- 2 by Mrs. E. D. E. N. Southworth (i love reading books txt) 📕

Sylvan To His Post Of Duty At Fort Farthermost,  To Open A Mission Home

School For Indian Children,  And To Devote Her Life And Fortune To Their

Service; And Of The Good Opportunity Offered Her By The Kindness Of

Colonel Z. In Procuring For Her The Escort Of Captain And Mrs. Neville,

Who Were On Their Way To Farthermost With A Party Of Recruits.

"And Clarence? How Came He To Be Of The Company?" Inquired Rothsay.

"Uncle Clarence Could Not Agree With Uncle Fabian In Business Policy. So

They Dissolved Partnership Very Amicably And With Mutual Satisfaction.

This Was After I Had Left Rockhold. Clarence Gathered Up His Wealth,

Brought Three Devoted Servants With Him,  And Set Out To Follow Me. At

St. Louis He Purchased Wagons,  Tents,  Horses,  Mules,  And Every

Convenience For Crossing The Plains. He Overtook And Surprised Us At

Fort Leavenworth On The Very Day Of Our Intended Departure For

Farthermost."

"Clarence Came For Your Sake."

"Yes; And He Has Enjoyed The Journey. On The Free Prairie He Has Been

Like A Boy Out Of School--So Buoyant,  So Joyous--The Life Of The Whole

Company."

"What Will He Do Now?"

"I Think He Will Go On To Farthermost For This Season. After This I Do

Not Know What He Will Do Or Where He Will Go."

"He Will Remain In This Quarter,  Which Offers A Grand Field For A Man

Like Clarence Rockharrt," Said Rothsay.

"I Should Think It Might--In The Future," Replied Corona.

"In The Near Future. The Tide Of Emigration Is Pouring Into This Section

So Fast That Very Soon The Ground Will Be Disputed With The Mexican

Government,  And True Men And Brave Men Will Be Much Wanted Here."

"Yes," Said Corona,  Indifferently,  For She Cared Very Little At This

Moment For Public Interests. "But Tell Me Of Yourself,  Rule. I Long To

Hear You Talk Of Yourself."

Rothsay Was No Egotist. He Never Had Been Addicted To Speaking Of

Himself Or Of His Feelings.

Now,  At Her Urgent Request,  He Told Her In Brief How He Had Renounced

All His Honors In The Country For The Sake Of The Woman For Whose Sake,

Also,  He Had First Striven To Win Them And Had Won Them.

"Dear," He Said,  "From The Time You First Noticed Me,  When You Were A

Sweet Child Of Seven Summers And I A Boy Of Twelve--Yes,  Winters--For

While All Your Years Had Been Summers,  Dear--Summers Of Love,  Shelter,

Comfort,  Luxury--All My Years Had Been Winters Of Loss,  Want,  Orphanage,

And Destitution--You Were My Help,  Support,  Inspiration. I Longed To Be

Worthy Of Your Friendship,  Your Interest,  Your Sympathy. And For All

These Things I Toiled,  Endured,  And Struggled."

"I Know! Oh,  I Know!" Said Corona,  Earnestly.

"Yes,  Dear,  You Know It All. For Who But You Were With Me In The Spirit

Through All The Struggle,  Helping,  Supporting,  Encouraging,  Until You

Seemed To Me My Muse,  My Soul,  My Inner And Purer And Higher Self. Dear,

I Wronged You When I Connected Your Love With This World's Pride. I

Wronged You Bitterly,  And I Have Suffered For It And Made You Suffer--"

"Oh,  No,  No,  No,  Rule! The Fault Was All My Own! I Am Not So Good And

Wise As You!" Exclaimed Corona.

"Hush,  Dear! Hush! Hear Me Out!" Said Rothsay,  Laying His Hand Gently On

Her Head.

"Well,  Go On,  But Don't Blame Yourself. Oh,  '_Chevalier Sans Peur Et

Sans Reproche_,'" Said Corona,  Fervently.

He Resumed Very Quietly:

"When I Had Reached A Position In This World's Honor To Which I Dared To

Invite You,  Then I Laid My Victory At Your Feet And Prayed You To Share

It. And,  Corona,  When The Bishop Had Blessed Our Nuptials,  I Dreamed

That We Were Blessed Indeed. You Know,  Dear,  What A Miserable Awakening

I Had From That Dream On The Evening Of Our Wedding Day."

"It Was My Fault! It Was My Fault! Oh,  Vain,  Foolish,  Infatuated Woman

That I Was!" Cried Corona.

"No,  Dear; You Were Not To Blame. You Were True,  Candid,  Natural Through

It All. Our Betrothal,  Dear,  Was On Your Part The Betrothal Of Friends.

You Did Not Know Your Own Heart Then. You Went Abroad With Your

Grandparents,  And,  After Two Years Of Travel,  You Were Thrown In The

Court Circles Of London,  And Exposed To All The Splendors,  Temptations

And Fascinations Of Rank,  Culture And Refinement,  Such As You Had Never

Met At Home In Your Rural Neighborhood. You Were Caught,  Dazzled,

Bewildered. You Thought You Loved The English Duke Who Sought Your

Hand--"

"But I Never Did,  Rule. Oh,  Heaven Knows I Never Did. It Was All

Self-Delusion," Broke In Corona.

"No; You Never Did. I Saw That In The First Instant That I Met Your Eyes

In The Log Cabin Up Yonder. You Never Did! It Was A Self-Delusion. Yet

You Were Under The Influence Of That Self-Delusion When I Found You On

Our Wedding Evening In Such A Paroxysm Of Grief And Despair That

I--Astonished And Amazed At What I Saw--Shared Your Delusion And

Imagined That You Loved This Duke When You Married Me. What Could I Do,

My Own Dear Cora,  For Whom I Would Have Lived Or Died At Bidding--What

Could I Do But Efface Myself From Your Life?"

"Oh! You Could Have Given Me Time--Time To Recover From My Mental

Illness,  Since I Had Done No Evil Willingly. Since I Had Kept My Troth

As Well As I Could. Since I Had Vowed To Love And Serve You All The Days

Of My Life. You Should Have Given Me Time,  Rule,  To Recover My Senses

And Keep My Vow."

"Yes; I Should Have Done So! But,  You See,  I Did Not Know. How Could I

Know? Oh,  My Dear Cora! It Cost Me Little To Lay Down All The Honors I

Had Won,  For They Were Worthless To Me If Not Shared By You,  For Whom

They Were Won. But It Cost My Life Almost To Resign You. Mine Was 'Not

The Flight Of A Felon' Or A Coward,  But The Retirement Of One Sick,  Sick

Unto Death Of The World And Of All The Glory Of The World. Some Men In

My Case Might Have Sought Relief In Death,  But I--I Knew I Must Live

Until The Lord Of Life Should Himself Relieve Me Of Duty. So I Left The

City On The Night Of My Wedding Day,  The Night Also Before My

Inauguration Day."

"Oh,  Rule! And As If It Required That Supreme Act Of Renunciation To

Tear The Veil From My Eyes And Let Me See You As You Were,  And See My

Own Heart As It Was--From That Hour I Knew How Much,  How Deeply,  How

Eternally I Loved You!" Said Corona.

Rothsay Raised Her Hand To His Lips And Kissed It. Then He Resumed:

"I Wrote Two Letters--One To You,  Explaining My Motives For Leaving,  And

Advising You Not To Repeat To Any One The Subject Or Substance Of Our

Last Interview,  Lest It Should Be Misunderstood Or Misrepresented,  And

Should Do You Unmerited Injury With An Evil-Thinking World--"

"Yes,  Rule. See! See! I Have That Letter Yet!" Exclaimed Corona,  Hastily

Unbuttoning The Front Of Her Bodice And Pulling Up The Little Black Silk

Bag Which She Wore Next Her Heart,  Suspended From The Silken Cord Around

Her Neck,  And Taking From It The Old,  Yellow,  Broken Paper Which

Contained The Last Lines He Had Written To Her.

"You Kept That All This Time,  Dear?" He Inquired,  Gently Taking The

Paper And Looking At It.

"Yes. Why Not? It Was The Last Relic I Possessed Of You. And It Has

Never Left Me. I Never Showed It To A Human Being,  Because You Did Not

Wish Me To Do So. But You Said You Had Written Two Letters. To Whom Was

The Other? We Never Heard Of It."

Rothsay Looked At Her In Surprise For A Moment And Answered:

"The Other Letter? Why,  Of Course It Was My Letter Of Resignation."

"Then It Was Never Found! Never! If It Had Been,  It Would Have Saved

Much Trouble. No One Knew What Had Become Of You,  Rule. Not Even I,

Except That You Had Left Me On Account Of That Last Conversation Between

Us,  Which You Adjured Me Never To Divulge. And Oh! What Amazement Your

Disappearance Caused! And What Conjectures As To Your Fate! Many Thought

That You Had Been Assassinated And Your Body Sunk In The River. Oh,

Rule! Many Others Thought That You Had Been Abducted By Some Political

Enemy--As If Any Force Could Have Carried You Off,  Rule!"

Rothsay Laughed For The First Time During The Interview. Corona

Continued:

"Advertisements Were Placed In All The Papers,  Offering Large Rewards

For Information That Should Lead To The Discovery Of Your Fate Or

Whereabouts,  Living Or Dead. And,  Oh! How Many Impostors Came Forward To

Claim The Money,  With Information That Led To Nothing At All. A Sailor

Returning From Rio De Janeiro Swore That You Had Shipped As A Man Before

The Mast And Gone Out With Him,  And That He Had Left You In The Capital

Of Brazil. A Fur Trader From Alaska Reported You Killing Seals In That

Territory. A Returned Miner Swore That He Had Left You Gold Digging In

California. A New Bedford Sailor Made His Affidavit That He Had Seen

You Embark On A Whaling Ship For Baffin's Bay. These Were The Most

Hopeful Reports. But There Were Others. There Was Never The Body Of An

Unknown Man Found Anywhere That Was Not Reported To Be Yours. Oh,  Rule!

Think Of The Anguish All These Rumors Cost Your Friends!"

"Cost You,  My Poor Corona! I Doubt If They Cost Any Other Human Being A

Single Pang."

"But All These Rumors Proved To Be False,  And Your Fate Remained A

Mystery Until It Was Apparently Cleared Up By The Report Of Your Murder

By The Comanches In The Massacre Of La Terrepeur."

"A Report As False As Any Of The Others,  As You See,  Yet With A Better

Foundation In Probability Than Any Of Those,  As I Have Explained. But

How My Letter Of Resignation Should Have Been Lost I Cannot Conjecture.

I Posted It With My Own Hand," Said Rothsay,  Reflectively.