The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1876-09-08
KNOWN AT LAST.
BY PHILIP ROURKE MARSTON.

A June night: such a June night
warm; blue, and breathless, and moon
lit.
1 am sitting alone in the Gear ole
London garden, and the canal which
runs by the end of it, silvered by moon
light occasionally darkened by the
shadow of passing barge, looks quite
so and Italian.
Papa has had few gentlemen to din
ner, and till they are satisfied with wine
and politics, prefer the garden to the
| drawing roOm-the garden full of moon
light and the searching scent of the
thorn. l am not long, however, to enjoy
my solitude, for here is step close by
me, and glimmer of cigar.
"Ahl Miss FALSELY ?' SAYS a low
musical voice with which 1 am very ia
miliar.
Did you take me for a ghost ?" ]
said laughing.
&" Hardly. 1 never yet heard of a
ghost wearing flowers. L left the dining
room before the others because 1 wished
to have few minutes serious talk with
you"
Oh, don't be serious" 1 cry, p;teous-
ly, and making a wry face.
ooh, put by jesting," he rejoins, in
rather a weary tone of voice after this
l shall make no further exactions upon
your time or mood
My vanity is wounded, and l say,
sharply, 4" 1 can be as grave as the most
of people when the occasion requires it
but there are persons who mistake mo-
roseness for gravity and good spirits for
heartlessness."
Very likely" he goes on, hardly
needing my sally; "but | have not come
to defend my own conduct, but rather to
plead for another. | am going-I am
going to speak about my young friend
Hamilton. Look here, Rhoda FALSELY,
you may firt with ninety-nine men and.
though it may hurt your vanity to hear
it, do them no lasting harm; but with
the hundredth it may be different; you
may at last drive him to madness or per-
dition. Hamilton is one of the finest
young fellows that ever lived"
can excellent young man, doubtless,
/ put in, with something of sneer.
Not noticing the interruption: He
is, know, not generally attractive to
women. From a boy he has been physi-
cally very delicate; his nature is high
strung and nervous. Now you know he
loves you"
Indeed, you fatter me-" say, look
ing down to hide blush, which 1 fancy
(though know really it is not visible in
the darkness) can not escape his gray,
penetrating eyes.
But he says, quietly, "YOu can not
evade me; you know he does. Now
what 1 will have from you is this: How
will you answer when he puts to you the
supreme question of his life? Silent
But demand an answer"
"And 1 command you to desist from
your present impertinence, and to leave
me-" cry, springing up in a passion,
and finging far from me the rose with
which had been toying; ''and if you
are delegate from your friend, he has
indeed been unfortunate"
" No, upon my honor l am not that"
he rejoins, earnestly. Then he stands
aside and bows gravely as l sweep
past.
1 hasten 70 the drawing-room, and
soon the gentlemen come in. William
Hamilton comes over to where l am sit
ting. He is certainly handsome, though
not in a way attractive to us women;
tall and slight, with an aristocratic, mo-
bile, though somewhat feminine face, lit
up by large, soft, melancholy eyes; his
most to transparency. He leans with his
arm on the back of my chair and begins
talking about some book he has given
me. To all his questions l reply with
warmth and animation. Colonel Gordon
is observing us; his face always bright
ems when he hears me talking less frivO-
lously than is my wont. / cannot help
the two friends; the younger
and so much the younger, too--sO fair
and fragile; the elder, certainly not at
all handsome, but strong of limb and
broad of chest, with the dark reselute
face, worn and beaten by the stormwind
of the world. / think / make myself
very agreeable to poor Mr.. Hamilton.
We sit by ourselves all the evening apart
in a corner of the room, apparently lost
in one another, till something he says
puts me out of tune, and leave him in
a tiff, poor fellow. Only, when he is go
ing away, am so sorry for him that l
can not resist saying, "I hope you do
not think me too quarrelsOme ?" Then
look up piteously in his face and cast
another look of proud defiance at his
friend. Soon our little gathering breaks
up, and l am glad that the evening is at
an end.
Another superb day, just as hot and
cloudless as yesterday: but in spite of
the beautiful weather, and all the roses
in the garden, got up feeling cross
and out of spirits Am merely firt?
something too light and frivolous? A
woman, 1 think, should be something
better. After all, Col. Gordon was
right, and when l gee Mr.. Hamilton
again will show him firmly but kindly
that he has no reason to hope. I am
somewhat comforted by this resolution,
but l have no will to read books or to
pay visits. l have no mother, and l
am an only child, so my life is rather
solitary. Somehow the day wears itself
away, and at six o'clock, punctual as
the time itself, comes the quick familiar
ring, and hasten to meet my dear old