-
TH E LA i\ DSWO MAN
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th(' Judsre's rt t um C"eulra l ... gall to t rr lwr
n~ngth m llort lll\lks r•hont tb" )tMd•·rt.
Aft••r a Wlalle .lte W<'nl out 1nd wnnd••rf'd tow.trd the• big hO\l'•t'
HI tht> tlm~ssh~ hnl1 ~on!l a.lon~ that httk Jl3t h c-.nr.t> l1ack to h•·r
The c-old wint• r day;.. when !-he h:1d t r;m tpt•d throullh tilt "\now,
lh tret eprmp: dn)" '\Ju nth gro•mll w:a.-; .. ~. l:)hl' t hou~ht
M the g •m~" 'ht' had pla)·rtl wnh hcr..t·lf on U1c> \f'tl\oUI\h.
" ~hat .3 eh lu J llHI'I lttn•' bcl'n flH·n. Oru;1r • ..
The t•I$C bou,;c l(}()kt·d dt'111•rta·d, its doon.. .. od windows uti
h0t<11itshh· open. :o>h~' clln1ht d up to till' t-htdlo, with a !&lldd('n
loruting to ~"'C her llnftnl. fled work. lt wa. ... a far dlnJb. s nd shr
bad to 1111 down t" Ice nnd rrl'lt. When .finally !'he rNlCbcd fh(>
w-ork~hop FhP. t:4nk rlown on fh<' couch. worn out.
Nothln$l bM bl-t'n tou<·hrd th• f'l', t>V('rythl~ '\n!l a~ l'ht' h ail
lrft 1t-h~r apron on the tltlOr , ht>r brushes and pnlt'lt(' on the
rnblc. Sh4" sat a Jon:t wlulr lookln~ at ht>r unoonlplet.rd work, In
u. ~rt or languid way, n!i If .she wer~ ••n outoid••r. She frlt non(.\ or
t be Utrob and 1~ oj creatlw fore<· withi n ht>r , none of t he old
lunr.tlng to IX" up and .'lt lt ~nln. A Yngut> Ct·rlmg of wonder cn.m,.
OVI'1' )lf'J' that ~~~I' hnd I)Otlf; thu; thing.
"l think l F!1:lll OP"~;er want to p:lln~ any mon•, OmAr ," she
Jl ~Ult'd hi lll
Sh"' strekh('u •>Ut on the conrh, h•'r hrad on h<"r cros.~cd arm!!,
and J:Otudlt>d h,.r work. Omar lny nt h~'t fr<'t :mu wnlted. .Ht
loorPd him, 'IJ,rou~h the opcH \~lndOW!t the sun ~trr·ame d in.
nnd tbe law !lunun• r •ounds of Jocu .. t und crick• t tlllt'd the ai r
olromuly, The pl<'t urtod ho t~ on the d roorat ive frieze gr<'"
faint r anu f~lnt~>r to Ccctlia's <·ye!>, nnd .tlnally dl..,'lppcnrcd
dny
ah~r
alt~thN .
Ualt An l•our la.tN th1• J ud~e, \1 ho hn.d ~tiwn up the t.rlp to
town at flac LL~t moment, cam~ out o! his "tudy and rut't OmM
on tfto way dowMtltiTI> from the studio. ThP. J udgc had "pent
an mq~roftt.lbll! hour m trying to n-ac.l a legal tl't'a tlse. a.nd hAd
glw.n 1t up,
•• V. hN1) haY~ ~·ou bcrn. OmM ? " h~' Mkcd , glnncing up at th~>
gtudlo at.alrJI. Omnr Wt.'nt on down a nd the J udgtt pm,us."d bel or\'
he follo~d hJm. Jio hnd newr bren In the litudlo sinec Ct><'ihn.
IPft; he could not bt'ar the t hoU$lht of t he pLlce ~ritbout be•r, but
tr;dJ1y hi! lt'lt lLD impuh1c to JtO up. Pr rhn.ps up lbf'n • he coulrl
summon th" old, th(' vani~hed Cecllia .
~ marched up, and got well Into t he middle of the room
l,eforc he Mw hrr there a"lt>rp. llP t.nrnt'd t{) 1-'!0 awny, chlln.ged
Ills DlJOd, 11.nd rat down on A st• p of the l/\ddl'r thv.t l~d up t o the
1 rest!". }:(~ 8ll t ' vtn•rc hi' could sec her (ttee clt•tu-ly, a nd br ~azt>d
at. 1t a lon« ttmr, wonderiflA' if thts could be t hE' ptl8Siooaw
boyish crPlLttt r~ he hAd found hert' a few months before.
Th~ sP.rl bt'fore him was In till' first bloom or early womanhood.
when the <'hryattU:> of g~rU,;hnt·s<~, " likt• the wint..•r ganntt nt~ of
reJ}P.ntan(l('," hM bum oa'!t i nto the tire of spring. The long.
wmous llnt'.s of her fh(ure wtorc rt'Y~.Ued by t he whit.- I(OWI\ flh~·
wore. n er fart· , which A few months t\go wns starUing Ju it 'l
look of oxMtAbihty. hnd lY~n smootb<'d out and so!t<'n~'d. '! belle
wt•t>kll of w nder caro and devotion had brought an cx-preulon ot
~ ntlt·nt·~~~ fhat was very ewrct.
She wa~ l~<·aut lful, t his g:lrl-wonum, the J udge f hou~ht. H .-r
tll\lr curled ~o tl()ftly bsu·k from hf'r brow. and t ht> fever ha d ld t
her skin wlute, tinged wlf h faint pink. J!Pr ll_ps were p:trttd in a
luJt-qmlJ~. ·rhl' J nd,l{t' d roppt' d bis fnco on lu.s ha nds a nd sat ~o
fur awhile. 'l'llL'n he r o:.c" to ~o.
" I'd l.letter ~tc t. away," he wht!Jl('Ted to hi ~ll.
At the aound of hi!J moving CeoUln opened her e)'es. She did
not apP.ak or mv'l'l'. ~ha lny ~till and looked nt blll1 , as he s tood
and TO<>kt'd down at ht·r. Ffnully, llhc could benr i t no longer,
and turnrd 1 •r IH'l.Ld a \\>:ly fr 01n Wm
" 1 ha\'C come up tor t he 1\r:>t. time since you " ent away," he
Fllld .
" Wl1y dJd you comr t<>-di:lY ? "
" J <'~rn~ bt"csutse thl' old Cecl lJa, who came up her e
t.o pnlnt,
She w;u a part ot my Ufi.'. I thought perhaps
l1er bnck. The new CecUla belongs to
"
" !r' ou rul ~ t hl• old O'c-ili 1 ? "
" )\{ur•' tllcln I ('a:n MY."
There WA'I ttllt nCI' IJf h rern flu• m for sovt'r-.11 mlnuf.-s.
' ' l hall ncHr fini•h It.' ' she said, l ndlCAtJng the fri<'Zt' .
•· Rom,.how I should not w~ult you to tlolsh it now.''
' ' Wll) not ? "
" 01!, wdl, poq~lbly S~\ ton wil1 not want you to paint," he
bt'lon~d to UJP.
I ml~tht swnmoo
•
n:o Jt1lrd u ~'1.1 H lv
"sa,, trm, ·l\xton. uh, ay sa.xton." "'h<' muft<'red
~
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" W lt,1t di d you '''Y about Sax ton ? ., he eald, n t
C'IL \J' fER X X\ 1.
t-1'd of to 110 n 1 rbo,/
What
Jll:>t as much myl'f'lf a..'! ever , JUM a;: nhlt> to makt> m-lo' l ~n.
nnd live my own 11£1.' Why do you 1111 lnslr~t on Jtiv lll " 0 wa>
g
sax ton '! "
tilt· I o
" l)t•ga n tbl' J udgt•.
" What difftorenoc d cllln, whAt :\re you 81\) J n~ t ••
•• I nm t~aying thnt I cannot stay bE>re any longer thnt
(Ill forcing me to go ~"'~'Y I undl'rstand bow you fC(.>l nb~~r Arl!-
1 don't SCI' l!ow y ou <'O uld f~l any othe r way about Olt rn~
dtms:thtcr."
on ~
•• "hat has Olron to do with 1t ? "
.. ne bns cwryt.h!ng to do Witll it, hasn't he ? Uo hM cha d
t'WTythlng bctW\'CO ll'<,"
01(1'
" Glron f Detwren you and me ? What do y o u m<'nn 1 ..
" After wbat he did, after the revelations U1at day In cou t ,
I understood why )'OU went away the day 1 came baCk to th
~1'. I know you wanted me to see tlHlt things could U~Hro
lK' tbc same again
"
r
Tho Jt~dge st opped ht>r , his fa <:i' white with feeling
" You mean to sa.y tbat you tllou~ht I went away oocauP<' of
Giron ? You mean tha t you did not understand why I could not
be bcrc when you came T "
·• But I did understand. nnd I knew you were right "
" Ct>c!lin Carn6, I went away to give S~rton his chance ••
"To give Sax ton- hif.-cha.noo?" s he repeat~d duUy.'
" lie loved you so, and I thought you had grown to can for
him."
" You went away been use
"
" :&>cause I loved you so that I could not bear to be here Md
<;('(' your happiness."
She faocd hlm, lH•r (lyes blazlog.
"And you helped try to marry me to him. You have madP rue
e ndure the agony of this week."
" I thought you wanted him. I wanted only your happlnc.;~. "
" .And you ruwer would have told me-you would have st.ood
l•y and le t me marry him ? "
"My dear, you are twenty-five years old and I am forty -the.
What have I to offer a girl ? "
'' You have the Kingdom of Ht>nYen t o o1Ier her, in )'Our
lOV()
f"
"ceo!Ua, ceeiUa. are you tclling me that you would Jl' l<'n?
.Are you bound to Sax:ton now ? "
" I have never been bound to hiro. r have told him 11~tain
and ~atn that it could never be, that l do not love him. He
understand.'!."
The Judge put his two hnnds on her shoulders and looked into
her eyes.
" Occill~'\ Cnrn6, from the first moment 1 ~w you, you b:we
'been the very vein of my heart I "
She ttied 'to speak, to nnswer him, but she could not. fft>r
bnod.s crept to his shoulders, clasped behind his head. He
k1"5ed her bn.ir, her brow, her lips, her eyes.
" Cecilla, Ceoilta, is it true that Ufe holds this wonderful thlng
for me ? " he whlspt'red.
" Say for us, Ju~e Peter I I love you so I I love you <:0 I
All this long dn' adful week 1 have thought I should die unl<'ss l
could tell you how I love you."
"Beloved, and 1 have spent the week trying to steel my~Jf to
the thOIJ8ht of you a11 another man's wife."
".Bli:nd. blind Peter I How could you have looked at rue and
not kno wn? Why, e\'en Omar knew."
" Dear old Omar 1 be sent me to you." And be told her ot t!Jt
meetlng on the stairs and bow Om.nr had se:nt him to the 11tudio.
" We will make a wonderful studio up her(.', heart'~ de:,~;flt,
because I found both my CecUias here, the old and the new.
" .And both CeciliBB love you love you I You 1la\'C to love
me, Judge Peter, becnu..~ I am ~ thing of your mnldng. Do you
n>member what you said once about lovo bein~ like a pool, w{here
all the world could come and be hco.led?
The wn~f'l o re-
lresltment,' you called it."
'
He kissed her tor reply.
''I remember I resented tbO lden, becau.c;e I t hought lt belittled
Lo,·o nnd made it cor.nmo:npJaoe."