Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1873-06-12

parents, went off to the barracks TO
prepare a tremendous burst of wrath
against my brother and his colleagues,
Johnstone and Hood, who were evident
ly both in the plot. | had. been caught
in a trap, purposly prevented from pro-
posing by Johnstone, Purposely detained
from keeping my appointment by Hood,
and purposely personated by my brother.
| need not trouble my readers with my
note to Marguerite, In detail, it was
merely exposing the trick, and | con-
cluded by offering her my heart, which
| assured her had been her exclusive
property for any number of weeks and
months.
|. When / awoke from my troubled
sleep the following morning, | found
note awaiting me, not from Marguerite,
and it was as follows:
+" RESPECTED SIR My daughter de-
sires me to express the deep sense she
has of the extreme and unmerited honor
you have done her in offering her your
hand, but she feels.that with your habits
of uupunctuality she could never be
happy with you, and though far from
being mercenary, she feels that. she is
not one who could exist without the
amenities of life, that is to say, on love
alone She. cohfesses that she allowed
herself to become temporarily attached
to yo'l, sir, believing you to be one who
could bestow ON her the position her
beauty should gain for her. She finds
she has been deceived. and that your
brother is the future possessor of the
title she had reason TO fancy would have
been yours. Sir, she feels sure that such
being the case, you will resign all pre-
tentions to her hand l entirely endorse
my daughters sentiments, and beg to
subscribe myself,
Your obedient serYent,
ALFoNzo DUvAL."
My brother was most agreeably aston
ished at his hearty welcome, when he
| appeared in the course of the morning,
| looking, to do him justice, extremity like
a naughty boy / handed him the ele-
CANT effusion above Transcribed, and on
mastering its contents he laughed till |
was fearful of the consequences. He
| then, by my request, told me the whole
/ story-how he had received frantic
] note from Johnstone relative TO my fool
/ hardy determination to fan into the trap
/ laid for me, how he had run down TO
Agnesville, and he, Hood, and John
stone had laid their heads together TO
save me.
Knowing that | was supposed by the
Duval family to be the eldest son and
4 heir, they arranged that he should per-
/ senate me until he had become suf1ci-
emily acquainted with Marguerite to
| find out which way the land lay. In
the course of the evening he had quietly
| told her that l was the younger son, and
that he had personated me in order to
/ make the acquaintance of one whose
| beauty was of worldwide renown. So
| well did he do this, ard with such extra
ordinary fact, that he was Immediately
| forgiven, and Mademoiselle Duval turn
/ ed the whcle battery of her charms on
him, as representing the elder son. She
| fattered herself that she succeeded so
well that, without hesitation, she gave
me my congo. / need hardly say it was
a case of the bitter bit, and that my
brother departed and was never more
/ seen of Ia belle Marguerite; and when,
after some months, heard of the tickle
beauty's marriage to rich merchant, it
was without a regret, and with devout
thankfulness that my dreadful habit of
unpunctuality had for once saved me
| from a terrible error, and with con-
! viction that man may do far worse
! things than commit the crime of being
''ten minutes late.