The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1876-10-30
THE GAME OF LIFE.
BY K. r LARAND.

BY K. r LARAND.
Pretty Alice Darlington! how lovely
she looked, as she sat and puzzled and
pondered over the letter in her hand
alternately gazing out of the window, or
beating time on the carpet with the TIM
est of feet. Through the Open window
came the hum of youthful voices and
peals OF slvery laughter from the bal
cony below; for Ally Darlington sat III
the large hotel of gay watering place,
ponderlng over the dllemmas, and WON
derlng If her puzzled IDEAS ever would
arrange themselves in any definite form.
| Thus ran the letter:
~ have basked in the sunshine of your
presence until, fairly daZzled by its rays,
l could not lit my eyes to the happiness
to which L have dared 10 aspire. When
alOne-iree from that benumUing spell
which seemed 10 chain my tongue, and
parayze every laculty-l have only re-
memDered the sweet, angel-llke nature
that sympathlzes ever with sorrow, and
lost sight OF thai might and majesty OF
lOveiness' that | have seen reproYe, oh !
SO witheringly! the approaches Of slu
and guilt. Alice! twere folly to say
that l love you; every glance has shown
it--eVery word has breatheu in broken
numbers the one unendlng monotony,
unceasing as the song OF the ocean
waVes-eVery action has told the same
old tale. Answer me, Alice, for am
weary with Waiting-althOugh willingly
would L serve seven years Tor thee, my
Rachel! and yet seven more. But let
not these mild eyes gaze sternly back
over the blotted record OF the past
look TO Une future, Alice, and pardon, and
hOpe,"
Poor AlIyl No wonder that she pom
dered; alone in the world, with no guar
dian OF adviser but a married sister, she
was seldom allowed to forget that she
was the possessor in her own rigat, Of
| $50 0O0-a sum magnitied by rumor to at
| least three tunes the reality. Many had
| sought her lor this golden charm, but
| Alice remained cold to their words of
love; and suitors began to despair OF
ever sharing with her the wonderfully
magnlted tity thousand.
| People were somewhat afraid of her,
| too; Notwithstanding that she mad been
| brought up in the very atmosphere Of
| fashion, by such sister as the eXclus
| i've Mrs. RavenshaA, Alice seemed to
walk among the gay trItlers by whom she
| was surrounded with the cold purity oil
u vestal Virgln-her snowy garments
scarcely touching theirs as she passed
She was "the SAINT" and perhaps she
rather liked TO be thus IL oAed to up and
| Worshiped.
But lately there had been a change
| the statue mad smiled into life beneath
the touch Of that skillful sculptor, Love
and Alice came forth from her hermit.
| age and mingled with the word.
Now" thought her sister, "she really
will marry" and the match was all that
could be desired. Handsome, inte!lec Z.
ual and fascinating, Ha Vey Edwards
| seemed born TO be conquerUr on any
| field that he chose to enter; and his
known wealth and high position were
| with Mrs. RAvensuam sans reDrOche.
Alas! Tor poor Alice; as people who
have sharper eyes or inner smelling or
gans than thelr neignbors, are very apt
| TO see ana smell dIsagreeabe things, So
our young Vestal began to make the dis
covery that her hero was not altogether
a SAINT. htnu friends were Particularly
yigliant In opening her eyes 10 this un-
welcome fact; and could she have be-
| lieVed all their statements, poor Harvey
would hayestood before her monster
Of iniqulty. They literally tore his char
| acter 10 shredS; and when nothing more
remained to be done, they employe ed
| themselves in tearing these shreds into
Others still smaller.
| No words of love had passed between
| them as yet; such thing seemed almos t
as preposterous as it would seem to us
| Americans to be told that we were free.
! SO that when Alice gave him cold words
and colder looks, Harvey Thought him
self, at first, very ill-used; but after a
while he grew more accustomed to it..
and began 10 think it the natural cOnse-
quence of her saintship. How could
| she, from the hight of her immaculate
| goodness, look upon poor sinner like
| himself with anything but contempt? II
| a stray ray of sunshine, in the shape OF
smile, now and then played around
| him, he medestly thought it quite as
much as he deserved, and humbiy auored
at the shrine OF his patron deity.
With very little persuasion Alice had
accompanied her to a gay watering
| place, very much to her sisters surprise;
and thither Harvey Edwards soon toll
lowed them. His feelings, however,
could not always be restrained within
just such measure; and they had
boiled over into the letter that has so
puzzled Alice. She sat there for long
| time; finally, however, the little head
gave all ominous snake, and she took
out gold pen and a dainty sheet OF pa
per, aud wrote a refusal as mildly as
possible.
/ II dare not marry you" she said; 81
have not sufficient reliance on my own
goodness to do it; aud l can only pray
tnat when you do marry. it will be one
VINO, with greater strength of character,
| will love YOU as iondly as do"