San Andreas independent., 1856-11-29

seven o'clock-in hopes of catching my
future mother-in-law at her morning walks;
but to no purpose. After that I tried an
hour still earlier, almost before the sun
was up, and then | caught her; she went
out to bathe, it seemed, at six o'clock
The sanguine old lady evidently trusted
that nobody would be about at that hour,
for she was attired in marine costume; her
head was enveloped in something exceed
ingly like a sponge-bag; she wore blue
spectacles; her form was rolled round in
what appeared to be bed-curtain, and she
had yellow slippers. It was frightful
apparition, and my heart half failed me for
moment; but / thought of Arabella and
was firm 1t could not surely be that she
was monomaniac about dress | fol-
lowed her across the common to the sea-
beach, and took the number of her bathing
machine. | sat down on the shingle and
drew forth my cigar-case in order to medi-
tate the more calmly The sea was dotted
with countless sails, and the billows were
leaping in the sunlight; the whole face of
nature was at its fairest; but my thought
was wrapped up solely in that inexplicable
being in Number Twenty-Five. That she
came there regularly, and subscribed by
the month, was all the bathing woman
could tell me about her. Was that, | won
dered, for the disease which was otherwise
extinct in the human species? I waited
for twenty minutes, and then came out
Mrs S., precisely as before. My belief
was, and is, that she retained those spec
tacles upon her nosc--she HAD nose
throughout the immersion. followed her
to the centre of the common, and then /
spoke. "Mrs Sandman, | beg you will
excuse me; but this seems the only chance
of my getting word with you, you are
generally so indisposed" No answer
q May ! be permitted to ask question
which concerns most nearly one of your
accomplished daughters No answer
There was a wandering of the eye, aud
twitching of the lip, however, as if she was
casting about for the fit sentence, and re-
jecting various others which offered them
selves. | began to think that she was
dumb glorious mother-in-law =
but determined upon one more effort.-
:" Have Iyour permission, my dear madam,
to prosecute my endeavors to obtain your
daughters hand?" She answered indeed
in the affirmative; but it was in man.
ner that blasted every hope: by single
word, she betrayed the reason for all the
strange precautions and mysterious means
which had been taken to keep her dark
at Sandwith, until, at least, the young
ladies had been disposed of. 1t was, in
truth, utterly impossible that an alliance
with either of them could have been eff
fected without the concealment of their
mother. To the following, which [ sent
to dear Arabella-'sAfter conversation
with your good mother this morning, dear
Miss Sandman, feel it my painful duty
to withdraw my pretensions to your affec-
tions but be assured your secret remains
safe with mel received no answer
The sweet girl understood all at once, and
appreciated, | dare say, my delicate gene
rosity. Until this present writing, four
teen years after that interview, [ have
never disclosed the cause of Mrs. Sandi-
mans indisposition. So terribly did she
leave out her HIS, that she couldn't have
said heaven to have got there, and would
have called me carry to the end of her
days.