my side in the _nearest_ and _dearest_ relation of life, even that of a
husband; his face, his form, his voice, his soul were all to me an open
volume, which by that inner sight, I read in every minute detail, and then
and there were all these photographed upon my heart.

Before I had taken my next leave of Chicago I had passed through all the
phases of doubt, in which I deeply questioned my own heart, seeking there
the solution of why I had inspired an interest in this stranger. Ever
since my sickness in Philadelphia I had been a comparative invalid,
devoting much of my time to the restoration of health, and above all the
recovery of that sight which was still so dear to me, and so hard to
relinquish without a struggle. So with my depleted strength, moderate
means and somewhat darkened hopes, I seemed to myself a very unattractive
object. Be this as it may, while no formal engagement bound us, we parted
as acknowledged lovers.

Miss Rogers entered into business for herself, and I went unattended to
Ypsilanti, Michigan, to be under the charge of a physician, who was to
test the effect of electrical treatment as a means of restoration to
sight. While he was deeply imbued with interest in my case, and gave me
every care and attention while I remained under his roof, he was
unfortunately wedded to one whose cold, unsympathetic suspicious nature
made a pandemonium for all within the circle of her baleful influence. Of
such unions Watts has truly said:

Logs of green wood that quench the coals,
Are married just like sordid souls;
With osiers for a bend.

To her I am indebted for many a dark and tearful hour, when not only my