Image provided by: Oregon City Public Library; Oregon City, OR
About Oregon City enterprise. (Oregon City, Or.) 1891-194? | View Entire Issue (Nov. 13, 1914)
nitrnnx city kxtkkimmsm ruinw. novkmukim.i mm. En Watc for By Louis Joseph Vance 0?Heart rej CHAPTER LI. I Th Ntwr Judith. rrom alerp as fmtn drugged atnpor JudHh Trine awakened, struggling back lo rontcloutnraa like torn eg hautted diver from th black depth to th tiaramltun surface of a night bound pool. And fur a little he lay unsllrrlng. hr half numb milt fumbling with , tbelr butluns of renewing acquaint anc lib the world. At Brt the could by do meant rec- ! ognht her turroundlngi, Thlt ruda chamber of rough plank wall and ITlmltlre furnlthlngi; thlt wide, bant couch ihe shared with ber still lum bering (later, Roee; the view revealed by o open window at the bedside; a fair pertpectlv of tree-clad moun talna through which a Ide boaomed j canyon rolled down to an emerald plain, conveyed nothlnf to her lutel ltgenc. A formlrat sent of some epochal i changa In the bablta and mental proo j : aea of a young lifetime, added to her confusion. Who wa aha bersrir. thlt ttrang creature who reited here o calmly by the aide of Roee If ihe were Judith Trine, bow cam the to be , , there! Irreconcilable oppotlte In very phase of character, the ilitera had sedulously avoided association with aach other aver sine childhood: they bad not ahared the abetter of four walla overnight ilnce time be ' 7ond the bounds of Judlth'a memory. What, then, bad ao chanced them both that they iboold be found In auch do company? What, lnoeed. bad become of the wild thine. Judith Trine of yesterday. Surely she bad little enough In com mon with thla Judith of today, In wlioea heart waa no mora room for envy, hatred, malice or any uncharlt ableneit, 10 full wai It of lore which.' ttoogh It waa focused upon the person I , of one man, none tha lesa embraced all t bo world even her sister and successful rlral In that ona man's affection. This change had not come uxm her without warning. She had been al most -Insensibly aware of Its advent through the gradual softening of that old Judith's hard and rengeful nature la tha course of the last few days. ' j But now that tha revolution was ac complished, she hardly knew herself' aha hardly knew the world. Indeed,' ao differently did she regard it not . ' without something of the wide-eyed wonderment of a child to Dnd all things so new and strange and beauti ful. And this was the work of Loral Now the chain of memories waa quite complete, no link lacking In lta continuity. She recalled clearly every Incident that had marked the slow growth of this great lova she had for Alan Law, from that first day, not yet ' a month old, when be bad escaped the fiery deathtrap she bad set for him and repaid her only by risking his life ' I anew to save her from destruction, down to this very morning when the stream from a hydraulic nozile bad awept over the brink of a three hundred-foot precipice a crimson racing automobile containing two desperate men bent upon compassing the death i of her beloved. By that act of sheer self-defense ' ' the world waa richer for the loss of two blackhearted blackguards, and Alan Law might now.be considered safe from further persecution since :i there now remained not one soul loyal ' ; enough to Seneca Trine to prosecute his private war of vengeance against ' Alan. 'And though that aged mono- maniac had means whereby be might .! purchase other scoundrels and cor-'- rapt them to bis hideous purposes, Judith was determined that he should never again have any opportunity so '. to do. Though Alan, she knew, would ; never lift his band to hinder her i father's freedom of action, she, Judith, I meant to take such steps as his perse ;i cation called for. If there were any i; Justice In the land If there were any p alienists capable of discriminating be r tween Trine's apparent sanity and his deep-rooted mania then surely not j. many days more should pass Into his- tory without witnessing his conslgn : ment to an Institution for the criml i nal Insane. j; , She, Judith, would see to that, and then . . . I Tho woman sighed once more. , Then Rose and Aian would marry and live happily ever after. I But what of Judith? ' She made a small gesture of resig- nation to her destiny. What became 'j of her no longer mattered, so that j Alan were made happy in such hap- ji piness as he covcUd. . And now the thought stirred her p sharply that what was to be done (; must be 'done quickly, If at all. And the almost level rays of the declining sun, striking in through the '.' open window, counseled baste if Judith were to accomplish iier Intention of I leaving this place and finding her !, father again before nightfall. With tho utmost care ehe rore from if the bed, crept to the door of the room i (now recognized as the quarters of the ?, foreman of the hydraulic mining out s' fit) and out into the room adjoining. And there, pulling the door to gently behind her, she paused and for many minuteB stood in tensestrung contem plation of the man she loved--Alan Law, asleep in a chair beside a table, his head pillowed on his folded arms. This was leave-taking between them and he would never know. Far better so: Judith felt she could not trust herself to say farewell to him without breaking down and con fessing the utter wretchedness that threatened to overwhelm her each, time she forced herself to face the thought that this parting muat be float i Uke a thief aha stole am th Making nxr to Alan s aide, hiit .(. J tx iii brr bad to bla and u.!iri nr to bit chrek- ly'it tr-.at he slept no In Ignorant e or It Thru. a the llftml her brad kid aloud erect, boaotu rutivulu-d wUh kilriit din, the Ukikrd a.juarly Uil tbv (are of Hom. CHAPTER Lit. Tha Old Adim. V hrr e ) U-.o! W h-r ar MTv (ibat and JniiUir lH(lii( Itta f. at 1 1 a of br llnfcra aln full) Hi to brr altn a. the t)f.lh-, d- I". rhlltig doaa hil ria. fr4rrt Ing brr It -'ii(riil In xi tlixri a i ua of tlmo Hut brr (jih.r (jiU J to ai-iri-clat that ihrra was anihui( uu rvmnti'n In the miiid cf tho girl " hirer' be dniiaiidi-4 atigrily a she al'l'fi'jrtn-d t!n cr. "nro. I ; Ibmugh hr lor'a proli uiIihh; Ju.llltl III ITtldKlllil. t III' l-iinti.il ; Ttino burlua bla Itf. w'ikiii him If Ui liitu a tlli-ht lu nhie tiMuifc IJUrlll-i rltil txi Hnr jr fi'i hlng Ituil rvru he dltaiuod In bla wlldrtt tlltHIK tit i r r t dvwliipnirtit, fur all that, j di li rate riiough 1b aaitl iiMinumaiiUi' ix-cuil-d tha rtfhl baud rmnrr of the rrar teat. drrtd men and women, lh f'"', Ititlted to Ihe wrd'Ung "t II. ne Trliin and Aim liw Within in'ilii-r irn minute lb man Judnb luted with all b-r bxy and 'ul would be 111" bubalid of Imr alaler h'lie bad tuld lirrm If tin was r Igned, but Im was nut, and tha would netiT be. Id r hiart waa break !' In hrr Ixnoiii a alia aat thrrn. timn In Hie ban. I of Hi iirta Ti tun, illn ImriHn the i' .ni i wii aa It ainii k lilin tli ad A bn fill the ti aoerted and strut k two ntlii't dnwn -Alaii lw and the woman who bad Ju( broo iimiU bla wlfn. CMr.TIH LIV. ant lo know, are JUrri'i hat and Jim- A long minute rlai-.-d bff.-re either n' ' "" ) '' "" n'" wom.n n.n.H oe .tv,L """I if hrm Thry li ft n e at all The bla na able band waa tu U lo I watt htna, waiting. Il( liliig lo Ihn Tratiftrd blde Alan chair, ati-ad)Ui( berx-lf with a bund utn IK tack, Judith ktarvd at th fture In the dH'ray, In a temper at i nre d: comfltrd and drflanL With Hits the suffered a fhate of Incrrdulltv. wat scarce able to perauade brm.-lf th4l thlt was truly Iloie who ritrtnti'd her IUe whose swet-t and f f.V.e nature had ever served at the butt rf Judlth'a contempt and ruthlert ridicule. Here was revolution with a venge ance, when Rote threatened and Judith shrank! It was at If the women bad ex changed natures while thry slept. The countenance that Hoe showed her slater waa a thundercloud rent by the lurid lightning of brr angry eye, ller rote was ten and alert. Ilk the pote of an animal set to spring. In brr band bung a revolver, the tame (Judlth'a band sought tha bolster at her hip and found It empty) that her sister bad worn and for gotten to remove when she dropped, half dead w ith fatigue. u;on the bed. And slowly, toward tho end of that long, mute minute, the girl's graup tightened upon the grip of the weapon and Its muitle lifted. Remarking this, a flash of her one time temper quickened Judith. Of a sudden, with a elart, she crossed the floor In a tingle, nolielett ttrlde. and threw herself before her sister. "Welir she demanded hotly. "What are yon waiting for? Nobody's stop ping yon: why don't you shoot T" The upward movement of the hand was checked: the weapon hung level to Judith's breast at level and un equivocal at the glance that probed her ryea and tha tone of Rose's voice as she demanded: "What were you doing there T' "It you must know from me what yon already know on the evidence of your eyes I waa bidding good by to the man I love kissing him without his knowledge or consent before leav ing him to you for good and all!" What do you meant" That I'm going away that I cant stand thla situation any longer. Marro pbat and Jimmy are dead, my father's helpless and I mean to see that he remalna so. Nothing, then, stands In the way of your marrying Alan but me. And such being the case and because he's aa dear to me as he Is to you I'm going to take myself off and keep out of the way." For fear lest he find out that you love him?" Judlth'a lip curled. "Do you think blm ao witless he doesn't know that already?" And so you leave him to me out of your charity! Is that It?" Any way you like. But If It's so Intolerable to you to think that I dare love him and confess It to you If you begrudge me the humiliation of stooping to kiss a man who doesn't want my kisses If you are ao afraid of losing blm while I live and love him very well, then!" With a passionate gesture Judith tore open the bosom of her waist, offering her flesh to the muzzle of the revolver. A cry broke from the Hps of Rose that waa like the cry 'bf a forlorn child punished with cruelty that passes Its understanding. She fell back against the wall. The revolver swept up through the air bu Its mark waa her own head rather than Judith's bosom. But before her finger found strength to pull the trigger the man at the table, startled from his sleep by the sound of angry voices, leaped from his chair with a violence that sent It clattering to the floor, and hurled him self headlong across tho room, Im prisoning the wrist of Jils betrothed with one hand while the other wrested the weapon away and passed it to Judith. Rose!" he cried thickly, "what does this mean? Are you mad? Judith " Dragging the bosom of her waist together, Judith thruBt the weapon into its holster and turned away. "Bo kind to her, Alan," she said in an uncertain voice: "She didn't under stand and and I goaded her beyond endurance, I'm afraid. Forgive me but be kind to her always!" Somehow, blindly, the stumbled out of the cabin into the open, possessed by a thought whoso temptation was mrongor than her powers of resist ance. What Rose had failed to tic complifih might now serve to resclvn Judlth'a problem. . . . None, she told herself, bitterly, would seek to hinder her. I!ut she meant so to arrange the matter that none should see or sus pect and be moved to interfere. Round the shoulder of the moun tain, on the road along the edge of tho cliff, she was sure of freedom from observation. And yet, such Is the Inconsistency of the human animal, the instinct for self-preservation was stronger than her purpose: when a touring car sw un round the mountain and shot toward her, she checked herself hastily and Jumped aside in ample time to escape being run down. The next Instant the machine was lurching to a halt and the sonorous accents of Seneca Trine were saluting her: "Judith! You here! What the devil' o'clock thla morning, lo go aflt-r " "Ifc-adV Ihe girl Interrupted, ten trtitlout, rvring him atrangeiy. "I don't brllrve It!" the olj nun arrrained. aghatt. "I won t bellete It. You're l)lng lo me. you Jade' You're litng-" "I am not." the broke In coldly. "I am telling you the plain trvth . . . Tbry follow rj nt alt morning In that red racer, firing at ua all the while. Finally they caught up with ut here, about noon came up thlt road shoot ing over the wlndihletd It wat our Uvea or Ibelra. Wa turned the hydrau lic atrram on them and waahrd the car over the cliff. If you don't believe Judith. In rU-a utai itlin In tho tetulxr In the bol.ter uu br bip j Without the leaat warning bit left band rloard upon the wrjin, wlth- , itrrw It and lerlrj at the biek of ! AUn'a bra.) ! At be pullr j ih trigger Judith flung j hrrtrlf bodily upon Ihe arm. j Krn o. the bullet found a goal, i though In another than the Intended ! victim The muscular forearm of (he ! chauffeur recerd It I With a thrlek of pain the man r bated the wheel and gratprd hit) I arm. ltefora Alan could mora lo prevent the itu.nter Ihe car. running without guiding band, caromed off a low embankment to the left and shot full- lilt Inln a ahllluw tllrh nn tha vUfct me. get somebody to thow you their ,,,, , p,rnrr, llk, prM ('" . hw.. ..i She Indicated with a gettur two fcrmt that lay at a Ilttlo dintance back from the roadalde, mollonleag beneath a sheet of canvas the bodies of Trlne't creatures, recovered by tb mining gang and brought up for a Christian burial Put Trine required no more confirm ation of Judlth'l word. The light flickered and died In bla evil old ryrt; bit ttrlcken countenance atauracd a hue of pallor even more Intense than wat normal with It; a broken curt Issued from bla trembling, thin, old llpt; and bit chin tagged to hit chett. heavy-weighted with despair that fol lowed realization of the fact that be no longer owned even on friend or creature upon whose contclenceleat loyalty be might depend. The last bitter drop that brimmed hit cup of misery wat added when Alan Law himself appeared, leaving the miners' cabin In company with bit betrothed Rose now toothed and comforted, smiling through the trace of her recent tears at the clung to her lover, nettling In the hollow of bla arm. To Alan, on the other hand, thlt rencontre teemed to afford nothing but the plrasantest surprise Imagin able. "Well!" he cried, releasing Rose and running down to the car. "Here's luck! And at the very moment when I wat calling my lucky atar bard names! How can I ever reward your thoughtfulness. Mr. Trine? It beats me how you do keep track of me tbla a Broken P'd. Alan catapulted a good twenty feet through the air and alighted with uch fore that b lay tunned for several momenta. When be cam to. he found llarcui helping him to hi feet; a heavy eev rn pataenger touring car halted In th roadway Indicated the manner In which bit friend had arrived on the teen of th accident When damtget were assented It wat found that none of tha party bad suffered terloufly but th chauffeur and Seneca Trln hlmnelf. The former bad only bit woi nd to thow however, while Trine lay ttlll and tentelee at a very considerable distance from th wrecked automobile. Nothing but a barely perceptlblo respiration and Intermittently flutter ing puli persuaded them that th flume of life wat not extinct In that poor, old, pain racked body. CHAPTER Ull. Th Latt Trump. Toward the evenlnc of the third day following the motor spill. Judith tat In th deeply recessed window of a bedchamber on the second floor of a hotel situated In the heart of Call forr.la'i orange growing lands. Behind her Seneca Trine sat, ap parently asleep, tn a wheeled Invalid cbalr. There waa no ocenpant of the room. Though be bad lain nearly two) days In coma, her father's subsequent IF V V iTi m Tr ii in -im f 1iTj' "ij ' Lightning Kills Trine and Strikes Down Alan and Roc. evt-r heavier detonations of Ilia ap proaching Ihunderatorm and to lh Jubilant pealing of a great organ down Im-Iow. Tha bad told herself that, though realgned, tha could not bear lo wit nea tha ceremony Now as lb mo ment drew near when the marrlaga would b a thing finished, (lied. Irretrievable, th" found herself un able to endurw tha strain alone, Slowly, against her will, ah roan and ttul acroaa tbo floor to her fa ther' chair. Ill brratblng wat ttow and regu lar; be) oud doubt ba slept; unques tionably there waa no reason why ah ahouM not leave blm for ten minute : even though ba waked It could not j barm blm to await her return at tb end of that tcaut period. Llk a guilty thing, on feel at nolto lest aa any tnenk thief's, the crept from tb room, rioted tha door si lently, ran down th ball and de trended by a back way, a little uted staircase, to the lower ball, approach Ing the aren of th marriage. Constructed In Imitation of an old Spanish mission chapel. It contained on of the finest organa In th world; at tbla close rang lta deep throated tone vied with th warnings of tha ttorm. Judith, lurking In passage way whoa open door revealed tha altar atepa and -chancel, wa abakea to th very marrow of her being br the malcstlo reverberation of tha mualc. 8!nc Ihey had regained contact with civilization In a section of th country where th !.aw estate bad vast holdings of land, th chapel waa thronged with men and women who bat) known Alan' father and wished to honor hit ton. Above stalrt. In the room Judith bad quitted, Seneca Trine opened both eyea wide and laughed a silent laugh of lavage triumph when the door cloaed behind hit daughter. At last he waa left to hla own de vice and at a tltje th most fitting Imaginable for what he had In mind With a grin, Seneca Trine ralaed both arm and stretched them wide apart. Then, grasping th arm of hla chair, he lifted himself from It and stood trembling upon bla own feet for the first time In almost twenty year. Grasping the back of the wheejed chair, he used It at a crutch to guide hit feeble and uncertnln movementa. But these became momentarily stronger and more confident. Thla, then, waa the secret ba bad hugged to his embittered bosom, a secret unsuspected even by the at' tending surgeon: that through tha motor accident three days ago he had regained the uso of limbs that had been stricken motionless strangely enough, by a motor car nearly two decades since. Slowly but surely moving to the bureau In Ihe room, he opened one of lta drawers and took out some thing ho had, without her knowledge, seen Judith put awny there whllo ahe thought he slept. Then, with this hidden In (ho pocket of his dressing gown he steered a strnlght if very deliberate course to tho door, let himself out, and like a materialized specter of the man he once had been, navigated tho corridor to tho hend of tho broad central atnlrcaso and stop by step, way happening along like this every time I need a car the worst way in the world!" "Drive on!" Trine screamed to the chauffeur. "Drive on, do you hear?" But Judith had stepped up on tho running board and was eyeing the driver coldly, with one hand signifi cantly resting on tho butt of tho weapon a, her side. The car remained at a stanustill. Sulphurous profanity followed, a pungent stream of vituperation that waa checked only by Judith's Inter ruption: "We've had to gag you once before, you know. If you want another taste of that keep on!" "Dut where's Barcus?" Judith de manded when, after helping Rose Into the car and running off to thank their hosts, Alan returned alono to the car. "Goodness only kno.vs," the young man answered cheerfully. "He would insist on rambling off down the can yon In search of an alleged town where we could hire a motor car somewhere down there. I tried to make him understand that we had plenty of time, but he was mulish ns ho generally is when he gets a foolish notion into Ms head. So I daresay we'll meet him on his way back or clso asleep somewhere by the road side!" Taking the seat next to the chauf feur, he gave the word to drive on; and they slipped away from tho loca tion of the mining camp, saluted by cheers from the miners. The road dipped phnrply down the mountainside to the bed of the canyon. The car moved smoothly and swiftly. coasting: only now- and then waB it necessary to call upon the engine for power with which to negotiate an up grade or some uncommonly long stretch of level road. Half an hour passed without a word spoken by any member of the party. Each waa deep In his or her own es pecial preoccupation: Alan turning over plans for an early wedding; Rose huging the contentment regained progress toward recovery of his nor ! dinging with both hands, negotiated mal sl.-itn had heen mnlil Now. sc. ! th descent. cording to a council of surgeons and physicians who had been summoned to deliberate on his case, he waB In a fair way to round out tho average ansa of a sound man's lifetime. He had apparently suffered nothing In consequence of bis accident more serious than prolonged unconscious ness. For the last twenty-four hours ho had been In full possession of his faculties mid (for some reason Impos sible to Judith to fathom) uncom monly cheerful. From this circumstance she drew a certain sense of mystified anxiety. Twice In the course of the morning she had caught his eyo following her with a gleam of sardonic exultancy, us though he nursed some secret of extraordinary potentialities. And yet (sho arpiotf) It was quite Impossible that, he should have aomo fresh selietne brewing for the assassin ation of Alan. Not a soul bad had any sort of communication wltn blm since bis recovery but the attending sur geon, a man of unimpeachable char acter, a meek mannered trained nurso, I and herself, Judith. Under such cir cumstances he simply could not have set a new conspiracy afoot. And yet . . . She was oppressed by a great uneasiness. Perhaps (she reasoned) tho weath er was responsible fur this feeling, In some measure at least. Tho day had beeh unconscionably hot, a day with out a breath of air. Now, as it drew toward Its close, Its heat seemed to be come more and morn oppressive even as its light was darkened by a por tentous phenomenon-'-a vast pall of Inky cloud shouldering up over the mountains to the music of distant rum blings. Nor was thiB all; a considerable de gree of restlessness was surely par donable In one who, from her window, watched a carriage-drive populous with vehicles (for the most part mo tor cars) bringing to the hotel gayly Tho lobby of tho hotel was deserted. Aa the ceremony nppronched Its end every guest nnd servant In (ho bouse was crowding tho doorway to tho chapel. None opposed tbo progress of this ghastly vision In dressing gown and slippered feet, chuckling Insanely to himself as ho tottered through tho empty balls and corri dors, finding an utmost supernatural strength to sustain blm till ho found himself face to faco with hla chosen enemy nnd victim. The first that blocked bis way Into (be chapel, n bellboy of the hotel, looked round nt (ho first, toueh of tho claw-liko band upon his shoulder and shrank back with a cry of terror a cry that was echoed from half a dozen throats within another liiHl.int. As If from tlm path of some, rrtsly visitant from the world beyond tbo grave, tho throng pressed back nnd cleared a way for Seneca Trine, fa ther of tho bride. And ns the wny opened nnd ho looked up toward the ultnr and saw Alan standing hand In hand with I uoso wnne inn mimst'tr invoked a I blessing upon tho union that had been but that Instant cemented, added strength, tho strength of the Insane, waa given to Seneca Trino. When Alan, annoyed by tho dln turbunco'in tho body of tho chapel, looked round, It was to see tho nged maniac standing within 'a dozen feet of blm; and ns bo looked and cried nut In wonder, Trine whipped a re volver from the pocket of his dressing gown and swung it ateadlly to bear upon Alan's head. At (hat Instant the storm broke with Infernal fury upon the land. A crash of thunder so heavy and i prolonged thnt It seemed to rock the very building upon Its foundations, accompanied the shattering of a huge stained-glass window, A bolt of blulHh flame of dazzling brilliance slashed through the window like a flaming tword and smote th Th Wlf. Again Ibrrn it us einpsrd; and Jil ill III, returning from Ihe double fu ller. 1 1 of her father and tlstir, doffed her mourning for a gown lest amain r and more stilled lo the aliiioepbere of a all krootll, then relieved tlm lints In charge of Alan, II remained aa be bad been evi r attire I Im falling of lh thunderbolt In ahsoluto coma. Hut ba 'Ived. ami or Hie ph)sli tans lied must toon regain ronaclousneas. Kneeling bealde bit brdslda Judith proved long and earnestly. When tha aroe It wa lo answer tap Ukiii the door 8 tie Admit ted Tom I'aroua and suffered blm to lead her Into tbo recrss of tha window, where Ihey converted In guarded totu-a In aplta of tha fart that th subject of Ihelr Cornaiunliatlo.it could not po.slbly have beard them. "I've come to tell you aometblng." Barcus announred with characteristic awkwardness, "I've known It for three days ever sine tha wedding. In fact and kept It to myself, not knowing whether I ought to tell you yet or not." II paused, eyeing her uncertainly, unhappily. "I am prepared," Judith assured Mm calmly. "You're nothlnj of Ihe countered. argumentative, couldn't be. It't the moat thing Imaginable. , , , See here "Well?" "You understand, don't you, that Alan must never know that Rose wat killed by that lightning ttroke?" What do you mean?" "I mean," tb man floundered ml erably, "you -tea, ha loved her ao I thought I'm sure It would be best ir you ran bring yourself to It to let blm go on believing II wasn't Koae who wat kljled. but Judith. And that' tkatlng so clot to tha truth that It makca no difference: Ihe Judith Alan knew and tha Judith I knew In th beginning la gona aa completely aa though th and not Rote had been killed." After a long pnuao. the girl asked blm quietly: "I understand Hut It It possible you don't understand that. If I were to content to thlt proposi tion, lend myself to a deception which I mutt maintain through all my Ufa (o come Alan would consider me hi wlfor Well, but you see you are bla wife. ... Oh. don't .think I'm off my bat. ' I'm telling you (he plain, unvar nished truth. You are Alan'a wife. No. listen to mo. You remem ber that day In New York when yoii substituted for Rose, when Alan tried to elopo with her, and you wont with blm to Jersey City, and stood up to ba married by a preacher-guy nntued Wright and Marrophat broko In Just nt the critical moment and busted up the party?" "Well?" she demanded breathlessly. Barcus produced a folded yellow pa per from bla coat pocket and prof fered It Read thnt. It was handed to me ns best man. Just before) tho coro mony. Seeing It was addressed to Alan and knowing he wna In no frame of mind to bo bothered by telegrams, I slipped It Into my pocket and forgot all about It temporarily. When I came, to find 11. I (ook thn liberty of reading l(. Rut read It for yourself.' Tho typewritten lines of (ho long; mossiigo blurred and ran together al ums! Indeclphornbly In Judlth'a vision. None (ho leas, sho contrived (o grasp tho substance of Its meaning. TVHY DIDN'T YOU WIRE MHJ SOONER," It run: "MAR UIA(!R TO ROSH IMPOSSIHI.R. RICV. MR. WRKJIIT INFORMED MIC YOI'R MARRIAGE TO JI'DITII I.A.ST WKHIC HAD fiONE TOO FAR WHEN MARROPHAT INTERRUPTED. J(l- DITII I.EOAI.LY YOI'R WIFE. WOULD HAVE ADVISED YOU SOONER HAD YOU LET ME KNOW WHERE TO ADDRESS YOU. HOPPl I TO HEAVEN THIS 0ET3 TO YOU I BEFORE TOO LATE." The message wns signed with tho nnmn of Alan's confidential man of biislneso in New York. When Judllh looked up alio wns nlono In the room, but for the silent patient on bis couch. Slowly, nlmoKt f-iii fiilly, sli crept to his bedHldo and stood looking down Into tho faco of her husband. And while she looked Alan's Imhosj fullered, IiIr respiration quickened, a faint color crept Into lib tiaM l die". a and bis eyes oprm-d wid and looked Into hers. His Hps moved and be. allied a word of recognition: "Judith!" With a low cry of le'iderneaa, the girl sank to hor km i t nnd endrclcd his bend with her am:. "Judith," she vhlfiporH. biding her faco in his bow n, "(milth Is no more ..." A pntmo; and Ihen the feeble voice: "Then, If I was mistaken, If you aren't Judith, you rnuiit bo Rose my wife!" She raid steadily: "I am your wife." His hands fumbled with her face, closed upon her cheeks, lifted hor head until her eyes must look Into bis. And for many minutes he held her o I" king deep Into the soul of th woman. 7auiqui!lf hald: "I know . . ,", THE END, the iext enal Master Eley 99 This will be the BIGGEST Sensation ever run in Oregon City Pictures at the v.. I , and the Big "The STAR Story in the ENTERPRISE