The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1879-04-26
THE LOVELY N1HIL1sT.
Why a Russian Beauty Refused an Eng
fish GReFdOn.

From The London Week.
Rather less than week ago. during tn
spring season, at E, pleasantest {
German watering places, three person.
who seemed inseparable, walked daily Il
gether in the grounds Of the Kursaal. On
was a beautiful Russian girl, Ida Koratiu'
who was always attended by her brother
ex.Colonel in the Cars army. The thir
was a young English officer, Captail
the Hon Charles Guerdon Of the Eigh
tenth Lancers. Itwas evident to all VIII
observed this gay youngster that he wa
deeply in love with his Russian iriend'i
sister.
Was she in love with him? On thl
point Guerdon himself could have mad,
no satisfactory answer. He had been or
dered to Ely doctors to recruit hi
health alters hunting accident, and hat
made the acquaintance Of the Koratinel
at the table d'hote. They were persons
OF high birth, in affluent circumstances
and Of very pleasing manners. Count
Koratine, who was not more than 80, had
seen good deal Of military service, had
travelled much, and was the most compan.
ionable Of men always ready to join in any
amusement, to chat or TO listen to othert
chatting. He quite won Charley Guer.
don's heart by his Workmanship (for he
had two or three splendid animals and
rode every morning with his sister, and
also by his bright manner at ecarte table,
for he played any stakes you pleased,
without caring whether he won or lost.
As for Ida Koratine, she was the most de.
liciOus OF girls. Tall and graceful, with
the fair waVy hair and pink complexion
which bespoke her Lithuanian blood, she
had large dark eyes, at once graveand soft,
and little mouth which could smile with
exquisite sweetness. Ida was, like most
high.born Russian ladies, capital lin
guist, speaking English and French with
faultless accuracy, and with Just slight
foreign accent, which lent piquancy to her
talk. She was, moreover, an accomplish
ed pianist and singer; so was her brother.
Sometimes after dinner the Koratines
would invite their English enemy" as
they called him for fun, to come to their
apartments to take cup of Caravan tea;
and then, at his request, they would sing
him some OF the ballads OF their country.
Koratine played on the Eithern, Ida on the
piano; and the counts well.trained bari
tone voice blending with his sisters pure
soprano made rare melody. Their Lith-
unian songs were pervaded by dreamy
sadness which grew upon the Englishman,
making him fall into long reveries, during
which he was glad that there were no
candles in the room, but only the spring
twilight that yelled his emotion. After
every one OF Ida's songs Charley Guerdon
became more and more in love with her,
though he gradually discovered that she
had a few strange. ungirlish tastes, which,
at first pleased him less than her piano
playing. She was a deadly pistol shot,
and practised every day with her brother
at a target which had been set up in an
alley Of the hotel garden for their convent
ence by the landlord. The rapidity with
which the brother and sister loaded, the
cool quickness Of their aim, their unerring
precision in making patterns OF crosses or
lines on the cards at which they fired,
filled the Englishman with surprise the
first time he witnessed their performance
~ say, Miss Ida," he remarked, ait
won't do for me to quarrel with you. You
would very soon call me out and pink me. "
"0h, we are not practising for duels, "
laughed Ida. ave have wolves in our
country and girl should know how to
protect herself"
The peculiar way in which Ida empha-
sized the word wolves" and the light
that kindled for moment in her eyes as
she spoke, ought 10 havearrested Guerdon's
attention, but they did not. He had no.
ticed, however, that the Koratines appear.
ed to have mystery in their lives; they
had induced Count Koratine to leave the
army, and they expressed radical or nihil.
ist opinions rather curious to hear from
persons OF their station. Ida seemed to
be much more OF a revolutionist than her
brother. She often questioned the En-.
glishman about his country's free institu.
tons and listened with a wistful eagerness
to his confused explanations, for constitu.
tional law was not much studied in the
18th lanCers, and Charley Guerdon was
puzzled to define in what his birthright oil
liberty consisted. Now and then Ida be.
trayed too unguardedly her love for politi.
cal conversations and then her brother
would interfere with joke and caress,
which always checked her, for every word
Of his was law in her eyes.
@>Guerdon had been struck and touched
from the outset by the whole.hearted al.
lection which the brother and sister bore
to each other. They were orphans, and
Koratine's love for Ida had much in It oil
paternal kindness; but Ida looked up Ia
her brother as o hero, an infallible being
q demigod, and her mere manner Of cling
ing to his arm when they walked, o.
Frightening when he spoke to her, Of put
ting up her forehead to be kissed when
she wished him goodnight, revealed the
extent OF her devotion. Now 1t naturally
occurred to Guerdon that so excellent {
sister ought to make perfect wife, so tina
when he had known and loved her abou
q month he began to hint timidly at pro
posal, but she always parted these nd
vances merrily as though he were joking
II he sulked she smiled at him with II
resistible archness and sung him ballat
about miserable Russian peasant VIII
had fallen in love with Lorelei, or water
witch, who persisted in asking him at th
end Of every stanAa whether be Coll,
change his nature and live under waite
with her?
"Well, but you are not a I.orelei, Mis-
Ida,h Guerdon exclaimed impatientl
when be had heard this song twice.
"perhaps am Pyrie, though" sh
answered with SMILE,
4, MWhat Ia eyhe! al
"a fre-witch, In the modernized form
o girl who delights in firearms, shells, D,
troleum and other horrid engines Of revt
lutlonary warfare" saying which Sh
laughed with rather forced gayety.
Guetdon made no answer, but hope
that time might work for him. It thr
befell that he remained two months
e, seeing Ida every day, and he vi
lust beginning 10 feel diSpirited by Il
consciousness that his suit made no pr
gress enunexpectedl herecefyed sun
mons to hurry back to England on accoul
Of his elder brothers, illness, As Il
younger son OF peer, Charley Guerdc
might be said to have "expectahonSH
l.. aaaa ~ hf5 hrakhApta SaaKh. t,ak !