Cleveland daily leader. [volume] ([Cleveland, Ohio]) 1865-1873, 1865-10-28

: stated the object Of my visit.
is 1"Well my young friend he said, "
"a have anticipated you wishes, and have Jus
been talking with the successful purity
She is in no means memorable, but, to tel
4 you the truth, there is no ground of com
promise left. You have lost all-the wild
# ow has won all. If she aecords you any
thing it will simply be q donation-noth
7 ing more nor less.n
! ais there no resources left by which
1 can, for q time, ward off this final, and Il
: my mother, l fear, fatal blow"
"None in law
! ain what then? ?"
ain yourself"
allow in myself?p
ain your person.. You are young and
!, handsome. l don't say so to fatter you
: but to make my meaning clear"
: "Well p
"Well, marry the widow"
Marry her? l would rather hangmy-
self at once" ai-irp7ff -
You should know best how fit you are
to die. l am afraid your education and
habits have totally untitled you for bust
ness and usefulness
"But this marriage is absurd and i'm
possible"
al am not in the habit of proposing alb
surdities and impossibilities. If you will
authorize me to act you will find it no such
thing. Will you do so ~
"Not for the world.n
Understand that l have not urged
this matter on your behalf, but for the
sake of your mother and sister-and espe-
cially on account of your mother, for
whose life you pretended a moment ago
to feel an amount OF solicitude that would
enable you to make any sacrifice
"For the moment I did not think of
them"
at is time you did. Since nv counsel
is so very unpalatable, perhaps you will
condescend 10 inform me what you pro-
pose to do?" rtf .rf
The old lawyer turned his chair around
and commenced writing at his desk as
coOlly as if he had been an ingenious ma
chine invented for no other purpose. 1
thought on his proposition till / grew sick
and faint. Tine recollection of the con-
summate charms of her l loved added an
aspect of hate to such as she wore when 1
was invited to make my own and / could
not bring my lips and heart to say yes to
such destiny. At last L rose and said
~ will call tomorrow and give you my
decision"
Every well" replied the old man, with
out turning his head or ceasing to write.
AZ went home and attempted to prepare
my mother for the ruin that had befallen
US, but in approaching the subject, foundit
was more than she could endure, and /
~relinquished the effort in despair. To my
sister l ventured to tell the truth, and she
wept bitterly, not for herself, but for our
only parent, who she assured me would in
evitably expire On hearing the news.
ais there nothing on earth that you can
do, Edward, to prevent it.
ayes" .s-.4 sr.F,
"And won't you do it"
"Icannot bring my mind to it.
ais it dishonest ?'
"N-o, 1 don't know that it is, but very
r%epugnant to my feelings"
al am sure 1 would do anything for
mama
"Would you marry the man you abhor?'
"To save mas life-yes."
"Well, then, 1 will not be outdone by
you in filial affection"
"What do you mean, Edward"
al will tell you to-morr,w; in the
meantime cheer up. I'll save my mother
and you, but at g great sacrifice-Heaven
only knows how great"
My sister flung her arms around my
neck, kissed me a~ffectlonately, called me
by many endearing names, and 1 felt as if
l almost deserved them, exaggerated as
they were.
1 communicated my decision to myIaws
yer the next day. telling him that since l
could not marry for 1--we, l would marry
for hate.
He uttered a sort of grunt and replied =
Few marriages begin in that way, but
with too many love is verged into antip-
athy as soon as soon as the honeymoon is
well over. Your prospect of connubial
happiness IS brighter, as it cannot chang
but for the better. If you knew the lady
as well as Lido, you would entertain no
misgivings onthe subject.
Onthe second day after the interview 1
received Mrs. ~Barrington's card, with a
written request from the lawyer that 1
would call upon her without delay, as he
had settled the preliminaries in the most
satisfactory manner. l did not fly on the
wings of love to the mahhood'of my bride
elect, as there had been but little choice in
the matter, but walked thither like a man
who had volunteered to be hung.
On my arrival l was ushered into u
handsome drawing room, in which l was
kept waiting for about a quarter of an
hour, when, at last, the lady appeared.
She did not look handsomer than when /
met her on the stair leading to my law
yer's office. On the contrary, the relation
in which she now stood with respect to
myself, and the fnery which she piled
npon her person rendered her in my eyes
more hideous than ever.
I responded to her salutation and re-
manned silent for a few moments. She
appeared DESTROYS of mauifestihg a GER
tain measure of maidenly eoyishness, and
1 was not i~ndisposed to allow her all the
leisure she required for the performance
of her part. When she had enacted the
role to her satisfaction, and lost all pa
thence, she opened upon me with the voice
of a dying screech owl, that made me
shudder:
"Well, Mr.. Ingleton, the object of your
is, 1 presume"
"Yes, madam, it is as you say, to pro-
pose for your hand and heart; they are
conventionally supposed to go together"
"My hand and hearth" she exclaimed
laughing.
What q laugh it wasl A ruined hurdy-
gurdy, a maniaciss sereamg and the sere-
made of a starving cat combined were
music to it.
"Yes, madam; and does this appear so
absurd TO your"
"Extravagantly So"
my lawyer has been authorized by me
to make a proposition, which he informed
me had been favorably received. Has he
deceived me ~
mo, not at all, but you have made a
great mistake in the person"
. Are not you Mrs, Darlington"
"Tlat is my name, but l persume you
to my niece
"This is very ridiculous. Shall I have
the pleasure of seeing the right lady ?"
In a moment. She sent me to prepare
you for her coming"
q do not see the necessity"
persume not. l will explain, although
the subject is a delicate one to handle. A
better hearted girl than my niece Clara
lived, but she has some personal de-
fects which, perhaps only the eyes of per-
lection can overlook. l mean to say, for
instance, that she does not enjoy the same
personal advantages as myself"
1 looked at the speaker for a moment in
lmazement, and an involuntary groan es-