Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1872-11-14
voice ssitened, . little on .kis nsao~y,la.

veies ssftened.a little on this nsaoey,la-
ble.-eIecu,e the instrument .,-, To-.
Il appreciate your confidence. said Mr.
Pike. Believe re. 1t is not misplaced
Please pas down the iiens at once
said Belinda; for am such child in bus
iness matters. that can only tell you
Tdar I want done, and leave the legal
forms to you.' @ .T"- t' .S'r !
Nc. Pike drew pen. ink and paper TO-
wards lin.
emf, ;ssssait Nv your pleasure he said defer
'weli,' sass Miss Belioas, eAeckius Of
; ,as nesas sa on her sasers. i would Ike 10
oasapd- dollars each to nv
two sisters IN Minncapo.is-s.r,b J,rc
Smith and Cclcstia BeIlhcla ana So
thoussad to the Old Maids Refuge n
Chicago. and ten thousand to The Or.
plans Homo, in Parlcrsville !; and all the
rest. without reserve. TO my brother. ST.
mon Orr. of Wcstbrook. Carada East
Yes, exactly so; all the rest, withou,
reserve noted down Mr.. Pike, his eyes
| glittering as they followed the rapid course
Of his pen.
How soon will the instrument be read '
for me to sign 2 asked Belinda demsre.
ly.
AS soon as | can possibly prepare it.
said the lawyer. Bat. Miss Orr. i: is
getting dark; surely you will allow me to
see you home ?
I'm afraid It's too much trouble
Trouble! Meredith Pike caught his
bat from the pegs. aud never once, in his
enthusiasm, thought Of his osercoat.
lie woke up next morning in possession
Of two new things one was bad cold in
the head; the other, Miss Belinda Orr's
promised hand and heart For Mr.. Pike
was not one to let the grass grow under
his feet. The golden items in Miss Orr's
projected will had famed the dormant en-
bers Of love into an ardent blaze.
Belinda had her wish she married be-
fore Barbara Seldom, after all. For Bar
bara Rad 70 fortune Of her own, and Char
ley Hale was wise enough to wait until he
had cage Of some sort before he brought
home his little sweet bird.
My dear. said Mr.. Pike, VIXEN thc hon
eymoon was waning into the gibbons
stage, my dear, you have never told me
yet how your money is invested
Mrs. Meredith Pike poured out anoth-
or cup Of chocolate. and helped herself to
a slice of ho,-buttered toast before she
made answer, rather slowly:
We'll, to tell you the truth, Merry. my
lore. it's mostly invested in my wedding
clothes The dress-makcrs do charge so
shamcfully nova, days, that
Yes. yes, know, said Mr.. Pike, but
] mean the money that was to have been
left to the sisters in Minneapolis. and Nr
Simon Orr, and the Old Maids Refuge,
and the Orphans Home
Belinda laughed little discordantly.
That was all nonsense, Meredith
Nonsense" Mr.. Pike grew green.
why, Of course. ncros had ATTY nc
ney!
Woman" gaspei lhe ouiuitted limb
of the law, you have basely deceived me !.
You have married me under false pretcn-
ccs. You
DON'T make such a noise. Meredith, or
VIC shall have the police in here, observ-
cd his wife calmly do you mean you
don't love me for myself alone?
Do you suppose would have married
you if you hadn't led me to believe you
were rich 2
'Ah.' said Mrs. Pike. with a fresh
drau.ht Of chocolate, then we've even,
Mr.. Pike. You deceived me about love.
and deceived you about money. Itisn't
worth while to spend any more time in
calling each other names. is il 2
But Meredith Pike felt bitterly that
they were not even Mrs. Pike had the
best Of the bargain. bad though It was
She had got husband. and he-had got
his match. He had out-manevcred him
self.
'ITe can't help himself cried Mrs. Pike
g!ccfdlly. to herself, as her bridegroom
banged out the door. and went down stairs
like hycna broken loose from his cage.
And Mrs. Pike was right. There are
some corners in life from which a man
cannot escape, and docs not deserve to.