Daily Kennebec journal., 1878-06-13
NO. l39.
Tales and Sketehes.
NATHALIE BYRNE s ROMANCE.

The matter lies this way,n SAYS Nath-
allie Byrne, folding her hands in her lap
with sigh, ''if | were rich | would be
romantic.n
Her companion laughs He is her
cousin. Jack Olney, a young fellow with
a sensible face and an athletic chest,
he is expanding by rowing, with the steady
strokes of practiced oarsman, upon q
small lake Otherwise pond) near the
| fashionable watering place. or the water
ing-pace which aspires to be fashionable,
OF V. Springs.
The question is. why should riches be
| necessary for romance ?" he asks.
"A very foolish question, replies Nath-
allie. "Romance is a luxury, and, like all
| other luxuries, it belongs. or should be-
long, exclusively to wealth. When one
is poor, one cannot afford to be roman
| tic"
''In short, you mean that you cannot
afford to fall in love-is that it P"
That is exactly it. If were an heir
ess | should think it charming to play
Queen Cophetua to beggar, if i. t.chanced
| that the man | loved was that. But as
Nathalie Byrne, pretty and portioness.
with keen taste tor all the pleasures and
luxuries which only money can buy,
| must marry a rich man--and it is hardly
likely that Providence will send any rich
man across my path whom | can love as
well AS marry
Jack looks at the piquant French face
and the bewitching gray Irish eyes for
| minute before he answers. Then he says:
such sentiments are commonplace as
| well as sordid, Nathalie, and think, if
were you, | would leave them to common
| f,l. riYl- f,,It l. -.
nal, and by Jove! the girl who has
strength OF character enough to be ro-
mantle is the one who is original in these
days.
They are certainly very mercenary
days." says Nathalie, shaking her pretty
head land. really, the way women talk
just as | have been talking-often dis
gusts one. But, at least, it is impossible
TO deny that we practice our code. Girls
who avow mercenary sentiments don't
make romantic marriages-though l be-
lieve it used to be very common for ro-
mantle young ladies to make mercenary
marriages. Now, | like honesty; don't
you. Jack ?"
Yes" replies Jack IL like honesty,
but | don't like mercenary sentiments.
or mercenary marriages, either; and
should be sorry to believe that you are
sincere in the first, or that you will ever
make one OF the last. | think better of
YOU than you think of yourself"
But you have no right to think better
of me than think of myseli,' cries NAlh-
allie. IL know what | am, and what |
am going TO do-provided, of course, that
| have IL chance to do it. As yet, no
millionaire has cast himself at my feet,
but il one ever does, then you will see
whether or not | shall make q Marriaqe
dc conuendnce-things sound better In
French than English when they are not
very nice things ~
well, says Jack. 81 am ready to make
u wager. Let me see-what do you want
most in the way of trinketp"
"A set of canoes and pearls" replies
Nathalie, promptly.
"If not beyond the measere of my
purse, then-for am not bloated capi-
talist by any means-I will wager set
OF canoes and pearls that You make ro-
mantle marriage"
Done. done, done! !" cries the girl,
clapping her hands gayly. "You don't
know how much you have intensified my
mercenary sentiments, Jack. | shall look
out tor an eligible match with renewed
interest after this. Don't you think YOU
might consider the matter settled, and let
me have the set at once 1t would be SO
much more useful to me before | find the
millionaire than afterward ~
mo, | never pay my debts until they
are e-sometimes, | regret to say, not
even then-and | cherish the comfortat 10
b, Lief that | shall never be called upon
to pay for the set OF canoes and pearls at
all. Hallua that fellow has a fine string
I.,i g .t.,ft h., 10
VERY much" answers Nathalie. look
ing after a man who, having unexpected
~ risen from seat on the bauk, was
walking away. "He must have heard all
we were saving"
THAT does not matter-he is only
countryman, turning an honest penny by
fishing for the hotel, and our conversa-
tion. ii he heard it, was unintelligibe to
him."
'He has a very fine figure" says Ma
that lie, still watching him. II find it in
teresting TO talk occasionally for a short
time to men of that order. They gener-
ally know what they do know thoroughly.
and are much more agreeable than any
educated whisker with watery smile.'
such as one i,rts with every day, and
dances with every night"
|
ness on the educated whisker with wa
terry smile what capital descriptive
phrase that is If YOU find him so unat-
tractive ?"
"Wby, my dear boy, one must live. one
must be amused. and while one is in the
world one must do all that is expected of
one. If declined to smile OH such men,
and waited for heroes with strength of
mind and force of character-heroes who
would not glance at poor. little. frivolous
me. after they came Il should soon be
pining dsconsolate in a corner, and Aunt
Georgy would be tearing her hair and de
lploring the day she ever undertook to
bring me out and pilot me safe into the
haven of matrimony."
81 am afraid you are cultivating satire
and cynicsm, Nathalie" I'd
"On the contrary. those are sentiments
of profound wisdom. Jack = sentiments
which lead to canoes and pearls.
Jack shakes his head. but they have
reached the end Of the lake by this Aime.
so, having assisted the vorldlJ,yi0o NIL