The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1878-02-09

ture than tnaL WHICH my poyisu idbcy
had pictured when 1 sat by the rectory
freside on the winter evenings OF youn-
ger DAYS. And yet, strange as 1t may
seem to you, had never mentioned TO
LAZY my hopes, nor had l given her any
distinct intimauOn OF my love. You
wonder at this. So do i. IL was hot
ill afterwards that thought OF it myself,
and then il was two late-too late.
They were more like SISTERS to me than
friends. We had studied together many
wears and had lived from CHILDHOOD IN
constant intimacy, but never doubted
that she knew my love. 1t seemed so
perfectly natural, SO much my whole lie
that thought it always evident above
all things in my action and on my lips.
1t was, therefore, terrible blow to me
when | returned from my last tel m In
college. flushed with no few honors, e1-
pecting their congratulations first OF all,
to learn that Lily. was absent from the
rectory ard might never return. Such q
possibility had never before thought OF,
nor had any OF them. Her fatner had SO
long permitted her to remain IN her
uucle's family that she had become part
OH il As Glare herself; and it WAS like
taking away his daughter from the rector
and her sister from Glare when MIR. Kay
made his appearance and said that Lily
must 20 with him to be mistress
of his house in the city. In
vain she strove, protested, begged: In
vain the rector and Glare impiored and
demanded. lie was stern, cold man,
and he came and went and with him
vanished one of the lights OF the rectory,
and when | came home it was to the
saddest welcome of stricken house. For
some DAYS after that Glare and l talked
and planned what we would do. we
would 90 and storm the city house OF
Mr.. Raw. We would coax Lily to elope
with us. We would steal her back and
keen her concealed. We would do q
hundred things that st length resolved
themselves into going together, with the
rector, to the city 10 visit her, and SO We
all went.
"She was not at home. So said the
servant again and again, as we repeated
our calls ~ the door. We left our cards
and the name Of the hotel, but she did
no. come. We called in the evening
and received the same answer. Phlilp,
We were green and simple people, and
did not know that this phrase had other
meaning than the words expressed.
But the next day | met her in the
street, and she sprsng towards me, and
then sbuddercd and looked around her,
US If she feared that some one had seen
her.
"'Ob, Stephen! where, where are
they:ailr
"tAt the - hotel
"'HeIe IN New York?
"'Of course. Did you not receive our
cards?'
"'Your cards?'
awe called four times yesterday
Stephen, | am prlsoner-my
father is and here she burst into tears
even IN the broad street of the city.
1t all came out soon. Her father
was n scoundrel who had been glad TO be
rid Of the caro- of her tor the years OF her
childhood, bat when he found that she
WAS . beautiful woman had thought II
worth his while to take her to the city to
be the mistress OF bis house. and great
or attraction to call those into his society
whom he desired to entrap and fleece.
but she was too pure for his purposes,
and he found that there WAS no hope OF
making her useful unless he could reduce
her moral character nearer to bis own
level. will not believe, never cid
believe, that he designed to wrong
her, or that no would have con.
sented 20 debsse her to the level
Of those women WHO sometimes formed
part of the evening company in his
house. lie had some sense OF shame,
some reverence for the holiness of her
mother left. His idea was not TO destroy,
only to sully the purity OF her character.
Not to make her bad, but only to make
her look without shudder on sin. But
to accomplish this he must detsch her
from her former associates and frlend-
ships, and, above all, from the old
rcctory. SO he threw every possible
obstacle in the way OF the reunion OF
those bonds which he had so rudely
sundered.
at happeneG somewhat curiously that
on the same day that | met Lilly IN the
street | met an old servant Of my father,
a man who had lived with US from my
childhood, and who was discharged with
a legacy from my father on his death.
! mad no knowledge OF his whereabouts,
but now learned that ho was in the en-
r HANNA, hann nnl
but q few weeks previously, he had just
begun TO find out the character OF his
employer, and WAS about to leave his
master, when l begged him TO serve me
by remaining little longer. L had a
plan in my brain for the rescue OF the
fair girl, which ! had not mstured IN the
half hour since ! met her in the street,
but which tho meeting with David seemed
10 make perfectly feasible.
81 need not pause TO relate to you how
the rector sought and obtained an inter-
view with his unworthy brother-in-law
or how he failed. We were not sad
party, Tor We were too Indignant for that
whom we returned TO the country. All
our passions were aroused, and when we
reached home We had an excited CONVEX
sstiOn, in the midst Of which, with char
actcristic impetuosity, l revealed my
plan.
Eve wcro seated in the old house in
the room that Lad been for many years
the scene of our hsppiest hours. l re-
member well that Glare stood near the
west window, into which the last twilight
RAYS were streaming. She had just fn-
ished some furious sentence about her
uncle, and her eyes were flashing with
indignation. Mr.. Milbsnk was seated in
mis- old chair in the corner, listening with
a smile TO the earHGs:nCss OF his beautiful
child, and was walking swiftly up and
down.
"'Sjr will you help me marry her?
"Cla sprang with bound 10 the mid
die of the room and looked ~ me. The
rector rose from his seat ana took my
hand in hIs.
care YOU serious, my boyT
"'Mcst certainly am
"'Then, # God will help you will,
and we will be happy again. is it not s
fNl.-ap'