The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1869-01-19

a little shudder. "You would have been Mrs.
Marsden by this time, poor child He thinks
you are to be, still. He's a right to think so,
Hilda, till you tell him you've changed your
mind And you must tell him"
4 Hilda shook her head
"Don says no I" she replied, dutitully.
"He says mamma is toe strong against us as
IL is."
"What are you going TO do, then 7" Miss
CareE asked, rather impatently.
Whatever Don tells me, dear" Mignonne
said. 81 leave 1t all to him"
81 must have q little talk with this auto
cratic Don," Helen said to herself.
There came q knock at the door.
MAY come in, HelenW Dick sJocelyn's
voice asked.
'of course" Helen answered.; and Dick
entered.
He went straight up to the log fire and
stirred it into blaze. Then he leaned tran
quilly against the low mantel-piece and
warmed himself
"Cold, amt itY" he said. "Come in to
tell you we've arranged about the sledges for
tonight. Don will drive one of you, and
the other. I've told my lady about it,"
What did she sayf" questioned Helen,
glapcipg at Hilis.
"Objeoted, of course. She always objects,
you know. However, managed to convince
her that she couldn't get more than four
the two PierTepoint women. She couldn't
very we'll offer to send them in a sledge; be-
sides, Don and l wouldn't have 'em at any
price. We don't mind driving you two. /
told my lady so.'
"On nest plus hatteur, Monsieur"
"No, is onei Well, my lady suggested the
carriage should come back for you. l said she
might think herself lucky If it got her to the
Boobies on night like this, with the snow
drifted dozen feet deep, at all. Then she
wouldn't 60. Needn't, told her; but we
meant to go-you should have seen Jeff's
face when / said that, Hilda for the fun of
the thing. And, besides, what would the
Boobies think If she stopped away,
when they came to her with four horses and a
spow-plOughY AT last she dropped into my
plan. You and Hiida are to be sleighed over.
Old JEFF, it seems, has more confidence in my
skill than in Don's, 80 Pm to take MigpOnne,
and you'll have to trust yourself to him."
"Ohl" remarked Helen, seeing an opportu-
nifty for her little tale.
eyes" Dick returned. "Crumple your
ball dresses bit the butIalo-robes will; but
it's the only way of getting there tonight, /
do believe. Suppose you want to gol"
eyes, of course !" both girls cried quickly.
"All right; then. Start at ten. Don's had
a mare he had in Canada sent over from the
Barracks expressly for the occasion; and it's a
splendid night"
Dick moved away from the mantel- piece as
If he were going. Instead of that, however,
he dropped into chair, as though the un,
wonted eloquenoe ne had INDUCED in had
knocked him up. He smootbed Hilda's
golden hair rather more fondly than usual,
too, as he said:--
go and get me rosebnd for my coat out
of the conservatory, Mignonne, will you %
She looked up at him inquirngly. He
drew her head closer, and whispered in her
ear. A stage whisper, though; Helen heard
what he said.
''Don's there, darling My lady's Dress
ing; SO are the other women; and old Jeff's
writing in the library for his life to save the
post. Don wants to speak to you"
She gave little cry, and ran out of the
room.
"Dck l'' Helen said, reproachfully.
"Pooh % returned that individual. "Hasn't
she been telling you all about il Thought
30. And you don't suppose I'm going to let
her marry that grey old iCicle, jeff Marsden
do your I'd have stopped that little
game of my lady's at first If I'd been on the
spot; "i'm going to stop it now. Awful fun
What do you meanH"
"Goipg to tell you. You're sensible girl,
Helen, and worth the trouble. Sit down and
listen"
Miss Carew sat down, and did listen. Dick
began to unfold conspiracy. When the
dressipg.bell rang, Mignonne hadn't come
back, and Dick was talking away still.
yn.-The Bodies Ball.
81 think it a most obje ectionable proceeding,
and repeat that it is my wish that you do
not GO P'
He who spoke was grim, gaunt, grizzled
parsonage, with voice that grated on your
nerves like hand saw; with thin, bloodless
lips and freezing, steel-blue eyes; clothed in
severe evening dress; in choking collar and
a creakipg cravat, and decidedly bad temper.
He was Jeffrey Marsden, banker, of Lombard
street and Roehampton; and, having managed
to catch her alone for five minutes in the
Dane Court drawipg-room before the expedi-
ton started for the Boobies ball, he was ha-
rapguipg the fair-haired child, whom he
counted on having in another fortnight undis-
puted right to harapgue for the rest of her
natural life, is his most autocratic manner,
though with hardly the same effect as usual.
Hilda stood where he had stopped her,
rather pale, and with her little gloVed ha nds
clasped tight upon each other, but neither
trembling nor submissive.
"My wish, my request that you give up
this bali, under the circumstances ~ enun-
oiated CIGsus, after an emphatic pause, and
setting down an empty coffee-oup.
''Give up this ball" Hilda repeated
he was vaguely conscious that she spoke in a
different way, somehow, to her usual one
! towards himself-''why P'
MaTsden looked at her over the creakiRg
cravat as one who finds difficulty in under
standing what he hears, or fanoies he can
scarcely hear Alright.
81 beg your pardon" he said, in his most
| icily ras ping tone; ''yOu asked me - %
II asked you why should give up this
ballH"