The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1871-09-08

, even of the pawns. But, indeed, the
beginning of game of chess is very
J dull to me, and l am always longing
! to get it over"
"Some people can only talk com.
mOnplaces," Observed Phi, thinking
of his recent interview.
"Then why not keep all ones
J stock for dealing with such people ?'
, Somebody else came up, and this
saucy little lady got out of the odd
discussion. p lsa-
4 t"She goes I'm for being eccentric, y
, Phil said to himself. "She has no
4 money and no beauty, and she thinks
1t best to be odd. l suppose she envies
the good looks and the fortune of her
oung mistress, or friend, or whatever
4 She is. Poor thing! A woman with
| out money or beauty must do some
thing" 1ia 80 hi..',i- .e e'-rl
Captain Decides walked the deck
that day for nearly an hour with the
heiress, and reported her to be q nice
quiet girl, with no nonsense in her.
| He said he hated your talking women
-strong minded, and blue-stockings,
and all that. HLt I~
Yet the sweetest smiles of Miss
Alexander did undoubtedly seem to
be leveled at Phil Pembroke. Phil
felt a little fiattered, and tried to think
her delightful. But he really couldn't
succeed. She was insuppertably
placid, sweet and duh. ~ ~ y gilf.i
4 Pembroke talked q good deal to Mr..
I Alexander, and was much pleased
with the quiet intelligence and varied
knowledge Of the old gentleman. But
he was greatly. puzzled by the obvious
uneasiness and awkwardness which
sometimes took possession of the lat
when the two young women were
| near. - 1i -al -'3
| None of the other ladies on board
liked the heiress. At first they were
nearly unanimous in praising Miss
Roberts, the companion, who had
neither face nor fortune to boast OF.
But they soon found her odd and sa-
tirical, and pronounced her bold, and
didn't like her at all. Some thought
her manner highly unbecoming for a
person in her class.
The day after their first exchange of
words Pembroke came on deck and
found Captain Decides and Colonel
Sharpe, one at each side of Miss Alex>
ander, doing their best as rivals to in
terest and please the heiress. Miss
Roberts sat at q little distance reading
q book. Phil was rude enough and
inquisitive enough to draw near her
from behind, in order to see what the
book was. 1t was Moliere, and she was
reading "Le Misanthrope," ~ aprar-
emily with deep interest.
Come" he thought, "a woman
who can read Moliere is worth some
thing. Why hasn't she the money, or
even the beauty?"
Presently she glanced at the heiress
and her admirers, and an idea seemed
to strike her. She took up a scrap of pa
per and began to draw something on it.
Pembroke presented himself boldly,
and plunged into conversation at once
by asking her whether che was sketch
ing any Of the scenery of the river.
She seemed little embarrassed and
said: --t tt. Hu
ooh no; don't ever care to spoil
my impression of a river or tree by |
caricature. 1 hate silly women who
waste their time over amateur sketch
es of scenery"
"But you have been drawing some !
thing; may see it?''
"lndeed you may not. 1t isn't
worth looking at, aud therefore II
wouldn't be worth coDceaiing, but
that-well, but that l don't want to
show it," -.t 30
She tore it in two, crumpled the
pieces, and tried to throw them over |
the side. But the wind blew them |
back almost to Pembroke's feet, and
he was malign enough to catch them,
flatten them out, and put them to-
gether. He sew two wonderful little
sketches, each one in a few touches
one of Captain Decides, whose head was
SO manipulated as to look like that of
a sheep the other of Colonel Sharpe,
made suggestive Of a jackal.
"You have a wonderful gift with
the pencil" said Pembroke, grayely
and earnestly; "and you can see far
enough into people. But don't abuse
your gifts; don't be ill-natured. We
are all afraid of satirical women"
"Well, I am sorry 1 carricatured
these, since anybody saw them not
because it is ill-natured, but only be-
cause they are not worth satirizing or
caricaturing."
Captain Decides seems q very gen-
tlemanly man, think" I
ayes q gentleman in keen search
of fortune owned by any woman
foolish enough to give it to him (! And
Colonel Sharpe Does he seem to you
q gentlemanly person also? .J I
Well, perhaps not. wonder what
your friend, Miss Alexander, thinks OF
him 90 'ii '- ~
az don't believe she is thinking
about him at all, even now. But ifyou
were to try" -.s
"Should have better chance ?"
"Much better. Go test it for your
self" nl. , ',..
"Not l! Like Sir Lucius in The
Rivals, am too poor man to do
any thing shabby. / couldn't afford
to run after heiresses."
Miss ROberts's eyes flashed Oh him
full of keen inquiry. She arose, made
a quiet bow, and left him.
IA strange girl, full of TALENT" he
said to himself; "made cynical, sup.
pose, by seeing pretty idiot preferred
to herself by every man, just because
the idiot has money and she has none.
l must talk to her again."
He did talk to her again, and
again. He found her piquante,
bright, brimful of intelligence, and
for ali her occasional sharpness Of
speech, full, too, of good feeling, ten
derness, and sensibility. He began to
think her pretty, and more than pref
ty. The brave Colonel Sharpe was
highly amused at our hero for his
having taken up with the companion,
in default Of the heiresss, and offered
to bet drinks and cigars that before
the steamer reached st. Louis Penn
broke would find himself compelled to
fall back on the French waiting-maid.
But Pembroke received the suggestion
with such frown, and one or two
words so angry and fierce, that the
intervention of the gOOd-humored
Captain Decides was urgently needed
to restore pacific relations. After that
Pembroke was allowed to 90 on his
own way unheeded-which he did.
An amazing amount of interest, |
event, romance, Iove-makipg. passion,
marriage-making, may be crowded |
into a voyage from New Orleans to
st. Louis, and yet not seem crowded
neither. This voyage, thanks to an
unusual current in the river, was
slower and longer than usual. By
the time the steamer had reached
Memphis Phil Pembroke was i'm love |
with Miss Roberts, and by the time |
the steamer had reached Cairo he
knew it. f.ft. r., ,t,...o-.,.....,..f.
Meanwhile Captain Decides had be-
come hopeIessly discouraged in his
pursuit of Miss Rosetta Alexander. !