When the old maid had revolved these thoughts in her brain sufficiently,
she rose to her feet and donning hat and shawl hastened from the house.
"You imagined that that poor woman you heard addressing me as husband
that day was my wife," proceeded Barkswell, after a moment of silence,
"but that was where the trouble came in and the mistake rose."
"Do you deny--"
"It is not necessary. That woman was my sister, but she has been out of
her mind for years. Four years ago I placed her in an asylum near
Rochester for treatment, and this spring she left the place, declared
cured by the doctors. Of course I was overjoyed at this, and hastened to
remove her to my home in this city, where I have resided for more than
two years, as you know. Mother wished to keep the fact of her having a
daughter secret until we were sure that the terrible malady would not
return. It did return, and so we have kept my poor sister very close for
some time. She has strange hallucinations, and imagines that I am her
husband, and that she is ill-treated. It was a love affair that turned
her brain, and I suppose this has much to do with her present
hallucination.
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