The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1877-01-26

and figure the tokens of the fiery trial
through which she had passed. Her
slight form looked slighter still i'll her
soft black drapery, and the shadow of
an unforgotten sorrow still rested on
her delicate feature. Mary Hope had
been her fathers constant companion,
and she sorely missed the happy hours
in which his powerful intellect and
varied experience had been unfolded
for her benefit. But she had, too. an
other trouble the less hard to
bear that it was one in which she could
have few confdants. Maj. Howard, of
whom mention has already been made,
was not only her fathers most valued
friend, but had insensibly grown very
dear to herself and when, six months
before Bernard Hepe's death, he was
summoned with his regiment to India,
he left Mary his promised bride. Twice
he had written within the first few
weeks of his departure, since which
time there had been a terrible silence
and, inIthe same week which left Mary
fatherless, second blow fell upon her.
The 111th had been engaged in a smart
slzirmish, the number of dead and
wounded being considerable. Maj.
Geoffrey Howard was reported among
the fallen and Mary had to mourn at
once her lover and her father.
The death of Maj. Howard left Mr..
Slythorpe sole trustee of MIR. Hopes
will. This to Mary was matter of the
most perfect indifference. Suspecting
evil of no one, she was as willing that her
little fortune, amounting to some f5, 900
or $4,000. should rest in Mr.. Sly
thorpe's hands as in those of any other
person. But of late the attorney had
begun to persecute her with attentions
which, under existing circumstances,
would have been distasteful from any
one, but were doubly so from person
whom she could not help regarding with
an instructive dislike. And in truth
Mr.. Slythorpe was not precisely the per-
son to win fair lady's fancy. Under
sized, high-shouldered, with blinking,
lashless eyes, and a general angularity,
not to say knobbiness of feature, he
might have been expected to rise superior
to any weakness as to personal appear
ance but such was by no means the
case. In Mr.. Samuel Slythorpe's own
opinion, Mr.. Samuel Slythorpe was a
gentleman of considerable personal ad-
vantages, and il was his constant en-
deavor to make the very best of them.
He was obtrusively, we might almost
say Extensively, clean. His shirt-front,
collar, and wristbands were all of intense
whiteness and starchiness, giving him
the appearance of being, so to speak,
call shirt - while his hands, which
were naturally coarse and red, were
made still coarser and redder by perpet-
ual washing. He was always profusely
scented, and his short, scrubby hair was
tortured, by the combined use of the
brush and the pomatum pot, into the
semblance of the split almonds where
with tipsy- cakes are wont to be deco
rated. His hats and coats were always
intensely new, and he perpetuaily
creaked as he moved his patent leather
boots, maintaining friendly rivalry in
this particular with his well-starched
shirt-front. In his habitual gorgeous
array-indeed, if possible, looking even
cleaner and newer than usual-Mr. Sly
thorpe this morning knocked at Mrs.
Murgatroyd's door. That good lady was
at the moment engaged in busting Miss
Hopes room, and, catching sight of his
approach, exclaimed:
"There's that nasty worrying lawyer
again, do declare. Slythorpe, indeed
I'd Slythorpe him |"
1t would be hopeless to endeavor to
express on paper the intensity of mean
ing Mrs. Murgatroyd threw into her
newly coined verb; but it was evident
that " Slythorping in her mind in
cluded all the tortures of the middle
ages, with supplement of horsepond
and other modern inventions. Msry
smiled at the good lady's vehemence.
"My dear Mrs. Murgatroyd, you
really shouldn't be so severe. Mr.. Sly.
thorpe is q little peculiar, but l have no
doubt he means kindly, and you know
he is the trustee of poor papa's will"
&c know he is, my dear, and wish
he wasn't. 1 know he shouldn't be
trustee to O tomcat of mine, drat him."
"Now really, Mrs. Murgatroyd, you
are too bad. said Mary, smiling in spite
of herself. "I am sure poor Mr.. Sly
thorpe isn't nearly 80 dreadful as you
make out"
At this point the conversation was in
corrupted Dy tue eubrGlce Ol bue BeuUle-
man in question, and Mrs. Murgatroyd,
passing him with q final snig of abhor-
renee, quilted the apartment.
Mr.. Slythorpe, for once in his life,
appeared i'll at ease. He was got up
with his accustomed care, and the sug-
gestion of scented soap which accompa-
MED him was even stronger than usual
but his usual self satisfied air was want
ing. He evidently had something on
his mind-some piece of rascality, q
,ohysiognomist would have conjectured,
which he either had recently perpetrated
or was about to perpetrate. Let US
hope that the physiognomist would have
been wrong.
"My dear Miss Hope" he began,
after the first greetings had been ex.
changed, CT grieve to be the bearer OF
very unpleasant intelligence.
Mary looked up with quiet indiffer.
ence, scarcely believing that, after al
she had gone through, any news, good
or bad, could have for her more than the
most passing interest. Slythorpe con
tinued
lam sure that you will believe Idid
it for the best but misfortunes will
happen, you know, even with the ut
most care and caution Il am sure