The Evansville journal., 1867-12-05

was that next Tuesday the ambition
of my life would be gratifed, and |
should belong to the British peerage.
We stood at the gate, and fer once
Eustace fingered and we talked. [
had a nervous habit of TESTING my
! fingers when excited; and was it my
evil fortune or an avenging Nemesis
made me fdget with them then? My
thoughts were so entirely engrossed,
thatI quite started when Lord Ruth
erford suddenly exclaimed, Mind
Magdalen; you have dropped ring"
He stopped, and, to my horror. took
up the pearl eirclet. ''Ah, that re-
minds Inc [ have forgotten the case of
delicate little affair | didn't give
you this, did I?'
No" [ replied family; and then
as he still held it admiringly, added
daringly, Papa gave it me years ago. J"
Perfectly satisfied, he slipped it on
my finger, saying, " L wish [ had re-
membered my mothers gift. Well,
never mind; all will soon be yours
Good night, dearest"
l. had never told Eustace a fat un-
truth before. though I had not hesi-
tated to deceive him; and [ felt any
thing but comfortable as [ retired to
bed that night. | was very much ex-
cited; nevertheless [ could not help
being haunted by an uncomfortable
dread of tomorrow, and directly got
to my room carefully locked up that
/ fatal ring.
| was not surprised that the whole
of the next day was passed without
! Eustace making his appearance, for [
knew he was very busy with servants
and tenants; but as the evening drew
on | grew little uneasy.
This uneasinesS increased when Just
as we were going to sit down to tea,
my father suddenly summoned Alice
out of the room.
Had anything occurred? My heart
beat so that [ could hear it above the
ticking of the clock.
A quarter of an hour passed, and
then, to my intense relief, the door
! opened, and Alice returned. She
was deadly pale, and coming up to
me, she seized my hands, and almost
dropped down on the stool before me.
" Something has happened?" [ ex-
claimedScalmly, for [ felt desperate
something has happened, Alice? do
not keep me IN suspense. 1t is about
Eustace?"
1t is. she answered, family. "Oh,
Magdalen, what have you done?"
L have been foolish, [ know;
but
Worse, worse!" she exclaimed.
" Y ou have been mad You have
given room for Guy Deveril's boast
ing
[ turned pale.
What do you mean, Alice tell out
plainly what has occurred.
| scarcely know the whole of the
story myself; but it appears that some
| chance brought Lord Rutherford and
Captain Dever.l together late a:t
| night In company, where it angered
| Eustaee to hear Guy speak of you
with the freedom he did He boast
| ed, Magdalen, that he had more infu-
| ence over you than your betrothed,
and that it was the coronet alone
which made you accept Rutherford.
4 Finally, as words got higher, he de-
clared that you wore his gage amour
on the same finger with that of your
engaged ring. Lord Rutherford gave
him fat contradiction, declaring it
was false; and you may guess the
rest"
A challenged" 7 whispered family.
| And Alice burst into tears.
| | cannot distinctly remember all
| that passed that miserable evening.
| l was like one In some terrible dream.
Somehow | found myself out in the
night air, running between the rose.
hedges; and distinctly see tn. scene,
even now, of summer stars cleaning
here and there through the foliage Of
the trees. And then | stood in the
great library of Rutherford House.
Lord Rutherford was sitting by the
table, with the light falling on his
face, writings but as l entered he
looked up. What [ said [ know not
whether [ made a full confession
and besought pardon, or whether l
gasped out few accusing sentences,
and left Eustace to guess the truth
| never distinctly knew. Some words |
of his, though, stamped themselves
on my heart, and haunted me for
years
Tell me one thing, Magdalen, he
said. sternly-" that ring, was it Cap
tain Deverils gift?"
Yes" | answered, family.
Then you told me a falsehood; |
you, Magdalen, stopped to the degra-
- -4..l T /