The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1877-10-10

raGner, 1Or IL WAS ue IulI Alheu, oio
listened, with the lovely smile, the
musical word. His arm lay along the
back of the seat, his face was bending
over hers; her great eyes were cast up
at him in the dim light; her lips seemed
to tremble. He was noting the gentle
rise and fall of her breath, the charm of
every outline of the beautiful head rest
ing on that hand with it's cleaning sap.
phire, aware of strange quick throb
with the thought, half certainty, half a
fear, that all this was doubtless his
should he choose to take possession
"Tickets !" said some one ut his elbow
the conductor, who had come aboard
at the last station, and who mistook
them for portion of the gay party that
had been taken on with himself.
It broke the spell for that night.
Colonel Lefebvre started to find how
late it was, and went away to his birth,
leaving Mrs. D. Berrian, i'll pleased, to
order the porter about as he made up
her own.
Colouel Lefebvre woke very early Oh
the next morning from his 6tful slum-
Der, restless with feeling and with heat,
and looking from his window, saw that
they were rolling along the green flats of
New Jersey. Then he half parted his
curtains, and took IN observation down
the car. Some one was up before him
some young girl; he could not see
plainly, with all the obstruction of drap-
cry. There was familiar fling of a
scarf. Good gracious was that his
cousin Laura? The sight of her made
him fall back on his pillow and begin to
recall the events of the evening before.
1t was just then that some one came rus
tling by his closed curtains-a lady who
wished to make her toilette before the
rest of the car was astir. The sound
stopped short; the person did not go on.
Instinctively Colonel Lefebvre glanced
through the crack of his curtains. A
netting of the lady's fringe had caught
on the hook of some projecting valise-
the porter was disengaging it-an old
ish, frowzy sort of woman. One uplifted
hand grasped the curtain for support;
upon it shone cleaning sapphire. The
drops started out on his forehead. Was
it-Impossible He sat up and glared
at her. She held a'toilette-case in her
other hand. She was making for the
little dressing-room. There was the
same bronze green luster silk, the same
black lace about the throat, the lapel of
the same rosy scarf of woolen gauze had
been that instant thrown up from her
face. But that face No; it was an abb
surdity. And yet 1t had been hor-
ridly hot night; the best of paint would
run; the best of powder would cake and
roll off; the penciling of brows would
rub all about; the pigment that so dark
cned and increased the eye would smear
here and there raggedly. What had
happened to that mouth? Or was there
no mouth there. There were no teeth
there; they were in her hand. The
dimples--they were two long burrows;
the scarlet of the mouth had somehow
streaked them. And as for the dropping
curls-they were dropping off. The
beautiful Adelaide De Berrian had gone
out like the blown fame of candle, and
left only the ashes-had left only worn
and witherad woman with white lips,
and wrinkled pallor that was blotched
and bleared, whose face had mask,
"whosc mother was her painting
"'False from the crown of her head
to the sole of her foot, he repeated, in
Helen's words, and shut his eyes and
there sat Laura, brown-oyed and fair,
with her smooth hair, little Madonna
of face, rs he opened them again. An
hour afterward, the other women of the
car having clamored in vain the last
third of that time for admittance, an ele-
giant lady issued from the dressing-room,
crimped and curled and powdered, q
blooming, smiling picture, seated her
self in her re-arranged section, and
awaited her cavalier. She waited long
while. While she was in the dressing
room that cavalier had stepped off the
ain at Elizabeth.
AS Colonel Lefebvre sat in his
aunt's room in the Brevoort that
night, he replied to her query concern
ing his gloom: "Let me be. have a
right to be little disturbed. 1
lave lost friend. I have escaped q
terrible danger. I have found an in
valuable possession that I had mislaid.
What did you bring Laura here FORE
Her summer fnery9 I am going to take
her long drive in the park tomorrow
morning. Say, Aunt Maria, don't you
make any purchases till we come back.
And, Aunt Maria, don't you think it
would be stealing a fine march on them
nil at home if Laura and I went back on
one ticket -
"One ticket ?"
"Well, no, not exactly. Husbands
and wives are not ono financially, are
they Railways haven't any sentiment.
Dr-nr