The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1870-05-20
#istellaay.
MERELY A MEslAL.

4 your naughty, superclllous behavior.
"LNt her notice it mamma" was Co
nelia Stanhope's seornfully y-spoken al
swer, while the young lady's handsonl
dark eyes flashed imperiously enough
"For my part, find it quite imposs
BILE to restrain my dislike to that gir
As for her being member of our fam
ily, 1 must say, mamma, that decld
edly object to her being called anything
of the sort. She is dependent on ou
kindness-sn orphan to whom we hay
charitably given shelter nothing
more"
"But she is your cousin, Corneiia-
the child of your dead fathers dead sis
ter.n
"Who made horribly low marriag
by the way" retorted the young lady
"if report speaks correctly. 1t is use
less for YOU TO scold me, mamma, abou
my manner of conducting myself to
ward Laura. Between ourselves,
think it very probable that shall trea
her much worse before treat her nucl
better. She is an out-and-out nuis'
ance."
"You are shockingly wicked to cal
her so,n exclaimed Mrs. Stanhope, who
though what is termed weak woman
was now and then given to transitory
fits of strong-mindedness in her mode
of defending those she loved. "Thert
is nothing which you have asked LAu-
ra to do since her arrival in the house
that she has refused, or even hesita-
| ted
"Nonsensc, mamma / know what
YOU are going to say 20 Miss Stanhope
broke in "Of course, Laura has ar
ranged my hair for the opera and for
balls whenever / have asked her. She
has also done several other menial SER
vices. / don't know that / am partic-
ularly obliged to her for performing
them. She is certainly weli-fed and
clothed at the household expense; and
she should consider our kindneSs ia
thus feeding and clothing her, ample
payment for the slight favors which are
required at her hands. And neB,
please discontinue this argument on
the subject of Laura. Af0ropos of the
opera, Lord Ellery has sent word to
know whether you and desired to ac-
cupy his box this evening. / immedi-
ately wrote an acceptance in reply to
the note, feeling sure that you would
like to see Faust once again"
r"Will he accompany us?ns
A faint tinge of color stole, in Corne-
liza Stanhope's olive cheek. Ofcourse
mama - she answered.
az suppose So" Mrs. Stanhope said.
"Do you know, Cornelia, that ] con-
slider the attentions of Lord Ellery
most marked and devoted toward your
self?r
"Do you, mamma ga short ner-
vous laugh followed the words.
"His father, the Marquis Of Fan
court, is very rich, is he not?"
"Worth two hundred thousand
year, believe
"And you would marry him-if he
asked you, Corneliapn
The young lady bit her lip. The gen.
tence, If he asked you,p grated very
disagreeably upon her ear. During
the past two or three weeks, it had
grown the ruling purpose of Cornelia
Stanhope's thoughts to become the wife
of Viscount Ellery. She had resolved
that no amount of stern, stcadfast en-
deavor should be lacking, on her part,
in the matter of attaining this object.
is, indeed, very probable that she had
not yet fully satisfied herself as to
whether love for Lord Ellery formed
even q slight motive of her present
course of action, but it is altogether
sure that she was aware how dominant
q motive worldly interest formed.
"How do YOU know that he has not
already asked me, mammal she said,
i'm answer to her mothers question.
"He calls here very often, and you sell
dom interfere with our tete.d-tetcs.
Then COrnelia gave a musical little
laugh, that left her mother, in doubt as
to whether she was serious or in fun,
and disappeared very abruptly from
the room. But the truth was that she
only hoped the viscount would pro-
pose; he really had not done so as yet.
Meanwhile, OH the afternoon of this
conversation between mother and
daughter, pretty blonde.haired Laura
Lyon sat in her small, out-of-the-way
chamber, Oh the third floor of Mrs.
Stanhope's residence, and wondered
what special reason Providence had for
sending her into the world, and why,
since she seemed TO have been created
to be snubbed, and despised, and tram
pied on, it would not be much better if
her thoroughly useless existence came
to close altogether.
These Were very wicked thoughts, of
course; but then poor Laura who had
known life far different from her pres
ent one, was eXcusable, perhaps, for
thinking them. Hers had, indeed,
been a life of quiet, domestic happiness,
un il that dark eighteenth year, in
which death followed upon death with
such fearfulness, and she was made an
orphan almost before she had compre-
hended the bitter fact. Then had come
the knowledge of her fathers insolvent
condition and her own utter penniless-
ness.
Silently TO hcrself-while she looked
that afternoon upon the snowy pave
ments of the streets beneath her and felt
the cold of a rapidly strengthening De
cembcr wind sweep past the panes, and
chill them more and more with every
gust silently to herself, / say, did Lau-
ra Lyon recall the handsome, genial
face Of one whom she had know II and
loved four wears ago. 1t was the old
story. They had sworn very passion |
ate vows TO each other; but the course
of true love had run roughly, indeed,
and her father, unwilling that Laura |
should become the wife of a poor man,
had forbidden their meetings. And at
last the lover had resolved to go and
fight the world; and a final stolen
meeting had taken place between them,
and he went 10 India, and-so it had all
ended. If he had ever written TO her
Laura had not received his letters.
Quite los: in her sad thoughts, she let
the day slowly darken until it had left
her little room completely III shadow.
At last, a servant knocked at the door,
saying, Dinner is served, Miss Iy-
on - and Laura presently descended TO
the dining-room.
Mrs. Stanhope and her daughter were
already seated at table when their rel
atiNc entered the room. The latter's
face, Laura could not help Observing,
wore sort of angry scowl. Miss stan
hope soon gave vocal proof that she was
annoyed.
+" Laura She exclaimed, "you have
a horrid habit of coming down 10 din
ncr. You almost always enter the
dining room after soup has been served.
Perhaps you would hc able TO appear
more punctually if we rang several
pcals Of a huge bell"
I.asra volunteered norCsponsc, under
standing how useless such Il course
would prove. She seated herself, and
with the exception of Il few words To
Mrs. Stanhope TO excuse her, received
that lady's acquiescencc, and left the
dining-room.
She knew that her calm, patient 81
lence had in no manner shamed or
humbled the naughty, supercllious ma
ture of her cousin Cornelia. She knew
that nothing could ever change that