The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1875-05-06

But Ainslie was far from safe. His brilliant
| talents, his enchanting manners, his devoted
| seryice-a something about him which i'm
| mediately confessed to a woman that he felt
her power-his remarkable beauty and his
utter unscrupulousness, made him very
dangerous n,al. Ainslie had no conscience
AS had found out-and no very exacting
attachment to the lady in the British prov
inces- He amused and interested Mary, as
| whom did he nots
Then Hammerstein, noble gentleman,
| was dangerous rival, with that Continental
gallantry which must be pleasing to any
| woman. l am sure, accustomed to our sell
fish American way of wooing-oh, what
would | not have given for Hammersteins
| petits soias r-I could no more achieve his
incessant politeness than l could have built
Case Grande's monument lhaye often said
| To myself, Louis Charleton, you are bad
third in this race" and had gone off with
dear Bertha Hammerstein, who was all
that was sweet, unexacting, sympa-
| thetIc, and what woman should be
in such case. Once or twice /
had come very near observing that Bertha's
lips were deliciously fresh and her figure
charming contour, when Mary would throw
a. smile st me, and the old lion In her ring
| would give me mysterious twinkle of the
If YOU please; do not faltcr in your allie
| giance!" So, like many fool before me, /
had dallied and doubted, had been cowardly
| and self-inyolved, until my pearl came very
near escaping me. would now be deter
mined-would go to Mrs. Jessamine at once.
broke up the sweetest tete-a-tete between
| herself and Carter that you ever saw. Mrs.
| Jessamine had treated her best brocade to
| an airing, and looked very handsome in her
way. Love is very becoming-cven elderly
| love.
Mr. Carter, may have Mrs. Jessamine
to myself two minutes :" | asked, in the
most foolish voice could summon.
Carter eyaporated kindly, and | sat down
so near Mrs. Jessamine that | think | sat on
several breadths of the brocade
Dear Mrs. Jessamine,h said i, Il am
| Louis Charleton, you know. | have
! very respectable, rich father, and a very nice
| mother. / am quite ready to take care of
wife | want to marry your niece, Mary
Jessamine. May address he-!"
/ paused, recollecting how much | had
been talking like Sir Charles Coldstrcam.
An angry lush oyercame Mrs. Jessamine's
face. No mention of Mary was ever agree
able to her, except when she was spoken of
as the recipient of Mrs. Jessaminc's bounty.
"Mr. Charleton, my niece has received
from me everything-food, clothing, educa-
ton, mothers love-aH in profusion.
| When / give i give bounteously of my
means, my affections-all. But like all such
| pettcd children of rare good fortune,
| Mary has no gratitude-absolutely no
from me but advice; that neyer should
advise her to marry you, surely. But nay
| advice is nothing to Mary. have just heard
that she has refused the Baron Hammerstein.
Such a match, such match, Mr.. Charleton,
for penniless girl And have no influence
with her, Mr.. Charleton. She does not seem
| to remember-ahemi-th am not old, and
that l-anem,-may enter into new-new
and unexpected relations, which may
| ahem!-alter Mary's luxurious position very
h t..af- ~
blush was alarming. 1t looked apoplectic.
So Mary had refused Hammerstein!
| could have kissed Mrs. Jessamine.
| my friend Carter has then succeeded in
| winning the object of his devoted affec-
tions?" said |, looking sideways at Mrs. Jes-
| samine.
"Wen, Mr. Charleton, since you are such
a dear friend of mine, and | believe thor
| oughly deu0ted to me, may well say that
| / think he has. | have not given him entire
reason to hope yet; and Mr.. Charleton, there
must be ar,fe-nnptidl settlements, you know"
Here the old miser's eyes glowed like a cat.
| MY large fortune must be secured to my
self. For, though have perfect confidence
in Mr.. Carter, think that is so much nicer,
don't you, Mr.. Charleton:'
| assured her that did, and after advising
the most stringent arrangements asked her
if she would tell Mary of my offer.
Really, Mr. Chareton," said she, 81 have
very little to do with Mary lately She, of
course, is not pleased with my engagement,
aud we say very little to each other"
Miserable old woman! Not knowing a
of tea without Mary, nor could she get a
| Louis dor changed or effect a single tran
saction of life Except to tiirt with Carter
without this accomplished, devoted niece.
"However, Mr.. Charleton, l will do Mary
offer. Good morning" And she returned to
her Carter.
Handyside Marbury had turned up in We
roma, and | met him that evening.
Gould you-would you, my dear young
friend, go with me to the tombs of the Seal
igers? ] am very anxious to identify Case
Grandc with the Prince in Romeo and
Juliet who says: Put up this neighbor-
stained steel (you remember the quotation).
Aud could you lend me the ridiculous small
sum of a hundred francs, When my letters
arrive | will also repay you the small sum
you SO kindly lent me in Alexandria. | do
not forget these little things, you see /
often say would rather pay five francs than
five hundred. So many people have mean
way of forgetting small debts | never for
| get them, / assure you. They impress me
as much as large ones do"
And he looked at me hungrily. ] think
that Handyside Marbury, friend of Leo ",
Charlemagne and Joan of Arc, enemy and
contemner of Cyril, Bishop of Alexandria,
defender of Hypatia, and deep student of
thirsty too. He certainly was very sccdy, so
| | sent my hundred francs after my twenty
pounds, not knowing what waters would
bring them back to me.
Mary came next day to bid me hurried
good-by. They were going over the Alps,
and Mrs. Jessamine and Mr.. Carter were to
| be married in Paris.
at was very good of you to make that
formal proposal for me TO my aunt, Mr..
Charleton," said she; lit has inspired her
with some respect for me and has alleviated
my suffcrings.n
= All, Mary, when will it alleviate mine 90
said |. She shook her head, and disappeared.
Reader it was not fickleness to Mary
| which induced me to accept the Hammer
stein invitation to their superb castle, not
far from Baden-Baden. Ainslie, too, was in
vited.
The family had lived there since the days
of Charlemagne, or near that time. i am no
| archaologist, and began to wander in my
mind as they went back through their gene
| alogy. But the castle. 1t feudal
| enough to be romantic; wooden enough to
be comfortable altogether, and perfectly
| charming.
Here the young Baron presided over his
estates with something of princely rule.
, Bertha, who had her own very pretty for
tune, was his dear delight, his pride, and his
, | sister princess.
An old grandmamma, replete with titles,
. | witty and original and eccentric, playing on
! the violin for her amusement, gave at once
piquancy and dignity to the circle, and two
r maiden aunts dressing in the habit of a re-
! ligious order (for the Hammersteins were
great Roman Catholics), gave point and
background to the picture.
We need costume in this country, and
r am not sorry to see it creeping in. These
elderly women were happy in their self-im-
posed duties, and dignifed in the dress OF
their order. A charming foil to the young
and fashionable niece. There was no jnsen-
safe rivalry here, as in the Jessamine case.
, Bertha was mistress of her own fortune, but
it was evident that she would have fortune
too from these ladies. Ainslie found out all
{ this before we had been at Schloss Elder
stein half day.
The young Baron and / went off for the
wild boar, but Ainslie walked, drove and
sentimentalized with Bertha. She was a
true German girl, and liked to play with her
emotions. The handsome American, with
/ his black eyes and his knowledge of Goethe,
became great favorite, and suddenly took
up going to church with the maiden aunts
| and Bertha; and for Protestant clergy
! man, engaged to young lady in the British
provinces, showed great iberality, both in
love and in religion.
So | was not astonished, when the time
: came for me to leave, that Ainsiie could not
go with me- There were still castles to see
!, and excursions to make which he felt 1T his
/ duty to experience. Bertha's blue eyes
: looked more brilliantly blue at this sugges-
, ton. 1t was evident she had never heard OF
, the young lady in the British provinces