The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1870-05-04

me with design. She had sighed a
little sigh, and had given me very
peculiar glance after she had commit
ted her flowers to my keeping and
now, as l sat and pondered, the mean
ing of the sigh and the glance was, l
Anttered myself, ineligible. Arabella
was not Indifferent to me. I had tried
to elicit whether she were or not, but
could not get anything definite from
her; but now | could interpret what
was in her heart. "You bachelors"
she had doubtless thought, ego and
Danish the thoughts awakened by the
event of this morning by means of your
billiards, and your smoking, ana your
selfish dissipation, whilst we mailens
have to sit at home, and NOPE and
gnaw our hearts, and feed on tender
recollections, and nourish scarcely ac-
knowledged hopes; but I have discoy-
cred a way of keeping one bachelor in
order; he dares not 60 among those
who would scoff.at my gift; and by the
fate that befalls my bouquet | shall
know how he estimates the giyer."''--
And now u SILVER came over me as I
remembered that ] was engaged to
dine out; aud | must take the bouquet
with me. Arabella could not surely
have intended that / should carry her
flowers with me into the drawing
loom; and then into the dining room,
and afterwards at dinner; why, /
should never have got out of the house
alive. Her. words were, Wherever
You go,"i and my promise would be
satisfactorily fulfilled if l carried the
bouquet into the house with me, and
left it in safe custody.
To the man who took my overcoat,
therefore, l committed the flowers,
with the strictest injunctions to take
particular care of them and he an
.swered fervently that he would, but
gave me lccr which would have justi-
fed breach of the peace. And l
couldn't help thinking, during dinner,
that the wretch had made confidants of
his fellow servants, for I saw three of
them examining me closely, and witt,
twinkling eyes, frcm the opposite side
OF the table. Gould the host, too have
seen the flowers in the hall, asked to
whom they belonged, and impaired
the information he had gained to his
wife If not, why have told me in
particular that certain sherry was
"Amoroso ~ And why should she
haye commended me in particular for
choosing "parfait amour" from other
liquors Other people showed the
same preference. It may have been
accidental; but conscience makes all
Of us suspicious. About eleven O'Clock
l took my departure, reassumed my
bouquet about as joyfully as Christian
reassumed his bundle and with heavy
heart found myself in a cabless thor
oughfare not far from Kings Road
Chelsea. It was quite three miles tt
my lodgings, but in the Kings Road
should be sure to find a cab in which
might hide myself and my bouquet
But suddenly a well known voice
cried, "Don't run away, Brown"
l turned, and there was my very
best friend, Jones, who, once upon ;
time, when had been very roughl.
handled in public journal, took tl'
trouble to cut out the. whole article
and send it to me-"In CASE" as h,
said, ':should like to see it." / has
never forgotten that friendly attention
i especially as he protested not to reat
! the papers generally, and never say
several articles of an opposite charac
ter,) and l therefore accosted him wit
extreme cordiality.
"What is the matter7 ~ he asked
yon seem out of sorts"
II have had rather a trying day"
answered; "a wedding this morning
and dinner party this evening"
/ "No wonder you are low" said Ii
sympathetically; ".you want ciga
and cheerful scene. But what is th
matter with your left arm?' he conclu
ded.
a".Nothing at all,"I replied sharply
producing the bouquet, which / ha
held in concealment behind my bael
'sYen call that nothing, do you
said Jones severely, II call it q yer
serious thing indeed. But don't loo
SO miserable; take this cigar, an
come with me-but first throw thu
thing over the ratings of the square
'For your cigar, thanks; for YOU
last advice, I'll see YOU mean,
wouldn't do it for a thousand pounds,
ooh, / see. Well, we can leave
with the man attthe gates.''
''What gates,W -
"Come and see..l am a few pee
too low myself and, before go hom
/ mean to try the effect of some livel
music and lively spectacle"
We had been walking along prett
briskly all this while, ard in q fe