The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1867-10-11

-. ~ 4.
Captain Vernon, ungenefous, though
it might be, wasfully IMPRESSED with
the notion, that Hilda was meetino
some one clandestineIY, and her
lblushes and proud. manner sCf dig
daining to deny it,.still more con-
firmed the belief; though, really, if
he had reasoned the matter over in
his own mind, he might have Disco
vered that as she had no one to
control her actions, no secrecy was
needed, and if she were really en-
gagged, she could be 70 openly.
+ To me, in private, she said the
whole was fabrication, as she had
never even been in the park; but she
begged me to say nothing, as she
merely told me because she thought
1t duty to herself and my friendship
for her.
A short time after this, Captain
Vernon went into the country, but
fixed the day and hour of his return,
and laughingly said he should expect
us to welcome him back quite joyfulIy.
The day of his return arrived, but
it was not till evening that he was
to come. Just as we were sitting
down to dinner, Mr. Jones rushed in
late, and informed us that there had
been a fearful accident to the train
by which Captain Vernon was to
come; the news had been telegraphed
up to London, and every one was in
CONSERVATION, as the number of kill
ed and injured was something fearful.
We were oil in state of excitement
and sorrow ut the tidings, though
many of us would not think that our
frank, agreeable companion, so lately
among us in health and spirits, was
now lying n mangled corpse or a
manned sufferer. Lavinia was support
ed from tho room by her mother, but
she recovered sufficiently to e-appear
after dinner, and reclining languidly
on the sofa, she alternately applied
n smellingbottle to her nose, and n
pocket-handllerchief to her eyes, and
seemed to think herself an object of
interest and tender compassion.
The poor captains sad death might
indeed be blow to her matrimonial
speculations, but if she had q heart,
1t certainly remained untouched. /
meant to have slipped away to have
broken these dreadful tidings to Hilda
In the privacy of her own room, for /
dreaded the effect upon her; however,
just rs [ was contemplating making
my exit, she entered, and though
deadly pale, seemed calm and collected
as usual. She was i'm mediately enter
tanned with the news. but coldly re-
piled, "that she had heard it from the
servants, and was exceedingly sorry"
This remark was so commonplace,
that felt quite angry with her; but
she afterwards confessed to me that
she was suffering martyrdom, and
sort of supernatural strength alone
prevented her from breaking down
beneath her agony; but cruel eyes
were fixed upon her, and she knew
that they would gloat over her misery,
so she hid il deep in the recesses of
her constant heart
Mrs. Stacey hated this kind of dull
ness, and asked, as usual, for some
music; but for once her will was re-
sisted-every one declaring that it
would be most unfeeling, and Lavinia
adding "that she could not bear it,"
She tried to enlist Mr. Jones' services
for herself, first asking him to draw
her sofa little nearer to the fire, then
to fan her burning temples, and lastly
to rub her hands-and all the while
she cast such tender glances towards
him, that Miss Bella White was alarm
ed. MIR. Jones was worth catching,
and Lavinia thought that he would do
to fill the captains vacant place;
though it was, after all, amusing to
see how she gave us all to understand
that there had been something be-
tween herself and Captain Vernon.
Not that we believed it. All her
Establishments, however, could not
draw Mr.. Jones from his allegiance to
the fair Bella. Perhaps he thought
that her 10000 was more substantial
than the large fortune which was to
be Miss Primrose's portion; anyhow,
he performed the Offices required of
him very much as bear might have
done, but he would go no farther.
We had oil relapsed into mournful
silence, only broken by au occasional
snore from Mrs. Stacey, (who had
grumbled herself into second nap,
when we were startled byaloud knock
at the street door, and the same
thought struck us all-that it was the
body of the unfortunate man being
brought there, probably through some
card or envelop in his pocket bearing