Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1876-11-09

any quarter until l laid him on the
shelf. Egad! he was worse than an
Italian Count with seventeen castles in
Spainv
Although he gathered all this from
faces with the corners of the month
-oDetimes drawn ur and sometimes
drawn dOwn-according to the disposi-
ton of the swner-and from ROlly's
rstIling tongue, Gapl kept ON with
,elf-contained Indifference, until one
evening he rested on his oars in the
mid,lle of the lake, with Maud in the
sterD-sheets, trailing her taper fingers
lie the water, and the moonlight stream
ing plaeidly over all.
Miss Copeland he said, the first
day of our acquaintance heard you re-
mark that the man who married you
must be able to command circumstance,
himself and You. / have thought of
that a great many times since; and
now / wish to say to you that thus far
circumstances have presented nothing
formidable for me to overcome, but 1
have taken tOlerably good care of N.Y.
self-that is to say, have kept myself
alOOf from most of the vices that men
with as much money to spend as have
had generally fall into. With such an
tecedents, is it egotism to fancy that
possess the other qualifications
He reached forward and took the
hand that lay listlessly in her lap. Did
he feel slight pressure? AT ahyrate
it was not Withdrawn. In an instant
he was on one knee at her feet.
Maud he said, in a low tone, vi
brant with suppressed passion, Il love
your
Eagerly he sought to look into her
averted face. Suddenly she turned il
toward him, with the moonlight fall
ing full upon it. With a thrill ofecsta-
cy he clasped her in his arms, exclaim-
ing:
My darlingp
My king!' she whispered, with her
lip at his ear, and her cheek against his.
That was his answer. Could he fail
| to be satisfied
Gayl FarnswOrth's face was white and
set. There was something like fright
ened look in his eyes. His form trem-
bled with emotion, and great drops OF
sweat stood on the forehead he pressed
with his left hand.
Maud Copeland clung to his right
hand, trying to look into his averted
face. The proud fire Of her eyes was
drowned in tears now, and her beauti-
ful face was drawn into panied lines.
Don't look so, Gayl' she pleaded.
You know that shall love you all
my life. 1t breaks my heart 10 see
you suffer so my darling!
He turned to her with his eyes suf-
fused. There was nothing of reproach
there, only sharp pain and awakening
terror.
Maud he said huskily, lis this de-
cisiOn final? Can nothing move you?
She bowed until her lips and cheek
rested against his hands, and with her
hot tears streaming over it, she asked:
'Gayl, can | disobey my father?'
But he has no right to trammel your
young life. Think of my suffering and
my own. Does any right, human or
divine, warrant him in crushing u.s.
anu for a whim? There is no fault of
mine! o, my darling! such an out
rage
'Hush!' she Interrupted, checking
the passionate outburst. Remember,
he has been father, mother, brother
and sister to me from the moment of
my birth. He has been tender with
me-even you could not be more so.
And am all he has to love-O! you
do not know! he has given me some
such love as he bore poor mamma,
whom resemble so closely that he
has told me time and again that if IL
were to go it would be like losing her
over again. Be generous, Gayl. Can
l rob him to give you? Remember,
he is an old man, with nothing to love
or live for but me. What would bel
left for him were to desert now?'
Her fllial devotion, her tenderness for
her fathers desolati0n, called forth all
the better qualities of Gayl Farms
worth's nature. Taking her in his
arms, he said:
Forgive me dearest! I no longer
urge you to become my wife against
your fathers conseut. / will not seek
to break down that very loyalty which
is one of the qualities most to be sought
for in wife. l cannot but commend
your devotion, and love you all the
more for it,
%, Gayl, am so gladr cried Maud,
nesting in his arms. I'VE will be true
To each other. ana he may relent even
tually. You are willing to wait, Gayl?'
Not in inactivity. L mean to re-
move the obstacle with my own hand
But how can you? You are rich al
ready, and you don't know how to
work.
1T isn't too late to learn, pet, is it?'
1t was not until just at the end of the |
season that Judge Copeland came tot
the watering place to be met, ON the
day following his arrival by Gayl
Farnsworth, with the demand of his |
daug ghter'S hand in marriage, and this |
was his reply:
'Mr. Farnsworth, you are stranger
to me-a fact which, in matter of 80
much moment as my daughters hap
piness for life, cannot be Offset by even
such excellent references as you are
able to give me. There are matters of
temperament and manhood generally, |
of most vital importance in the rela-
tions contemplated, which such refer.
ences cannot attest. But that is a mere
question of time and acquaintance, an
object which might easily be surmount-
ed. In fact, / will say that / am we'll
pleased with your appearance. But
there is another matter, one seldom
taken into consideration, but to me of
the last moment. You are rich man
you have always been rich. The ex-
perience of a long life, in position af-
fording unusual opportunity to observe
men, has taught me that nothing is so
precarious as wealth. Sir, supposing
you were beggarded tomorrow, what
would you do ?-what could you do?I
Wait until have finished Youth is |
sanguine; but age teaches the reality of
things. Mr.. Farnsworth, man who
has begun at the bottom Of the ladder
and worked his way up has never any,
thing to fear. His muscles are trained
and tense. But man whose muscles,
physical and mental, are all relaxed by
want of use is always broken reed in
adversely. This is your misfortune,
perhaps, more than your fault; but you