The Argosy — page 277: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

Edina. 261 the church at Trennach. Daisy had hardly known whether to believe the story or not; but it had shaken her. Later, as time went on, and she and her husband moved far away from the scene of events, and Rosaline Bell seemed to have faded out of sight, almost, so far as they were concerned, out of existence, Daisy had suffered herself to forget the doubt and the jealousy. But only to call it up with tenfold force now. And so, Mrs. Frank Raynor had amused herself, if the word may be applied to any state of mind so painful as was hers, with the pastime of watching her husband. Her steps, as of their own uncontrollable will, would take her to the quiet street in which Dame Bell lived, and she had on one or two rare occasions been rewarded by seeing him pass in or out of the house. Of course she could not be on the watch often. She dared not be. As it was, she knew that Sam’s eyes had taken to open with wonder whenever she followed her husband through the surgery, and that the boy’s curiosity was much exercised as to the cause. Therefore, as she was unable to make Frank’s shadow frequently, and as, with all her expectation, she had been gratified so rarely by seeing what she looked for, she drew the conclusion that fortune did not favour her, and that Frank’s times for going were just those when she did not happen to be out herself. An ingenious inference: as all sensible people must allow. On one of those rare occasions, Frank came out of the house accompanied by Rosaline. They turned the opposite way to where Daisy was standing, but not before she had caught a glimpse of the beautiful face. Where were they going together, she passionately asked herself. The probability was that their coming out together was only incidental ; for in a very few minutes Daisy met the girl coming back alone, carrying some rusks, which she had no doubt been out to buy, in a paper-bag. ll the more essential wasit, thought Daisy, after this little incident, that she should continue to look after her husband. Daisy was becoming quite an adept at the work, and might have taken service as a lady-detective. Of course the chief care, to be exercised, was to keep herself out of her husband’s view. It was not so difficult to do this as it would have been with some husbands ; for Frank’s time was always so precious, and his movements were in con- sequence obliged to be so fleet, that he went flying through the streets like a lamp-lighter, never looking to the right or the left. More than once, though, Daisy had been obliged to dart into a doorway ; and it was at those times that she especially felt the humiliation of what she was doing. But, the pitcher that goes too often to the well gets broken at last, we are told. The old proverb was to be exemplified here. On this caw, bitter January day, when of a surety nobody would venture out who could keep in, Daisy came face to face with her husband. ‘She had tracked him to Mrs. Bell’s house ; fortune for once had so far comicbooks. com