Western sentinel. [volume] (Winston [i.e. Winston-Salem], N.C.) 1856-1886, 1879-02-13

the fellows at my house the latest
accounts of me.
Il did not return to Eaton till
after the Christmas HOLIDAYS, and
Nora was gone-where I could not
learn. In vain | made inquiries
of different people in the town who
knew the girl by sight, All could
learn was that neither she nor her
mother had been seen since the
beginning of September. was
nearly frantic with anxiety. l give
you my word, George, that never
but once again Ia my life have I
felt anything like the utter grief
and desolation of that time, when
| thought of Nora, with her ex-
tfaordinary beauty, thrown upon
the wide world with no other pro-
lection than that drunken old
mother.
well, time passed on, and when
L was eighteen [ left Eaton and
went into the Guards. My mother
took a house on Hartford street.
aud | lived with her. 1 went every,
where, and was made much of.
was heir to " Nyville Castle, and
fifteen thousand a year-to say
nothing Of the haronetcy /; and |
could have married-as nv uncle
and mother was always telling
me-almost anybody / choose
But | did not choose. Strange as
it may appear, [ never met a girl I
could care for-naver met any one
who could make me forget for one
moment my childish love. l grew
tired of everything sooner than
most men, and at twenty, having
obtained several months leave of
absence. | started for tour in the
East with old friend Bayusford
who was then Captain Fellowes.
When we were at Smyrna | receiv-
ed letter from my mother, telling
me that my uncle was gong to be
married. AS | had been taught
from childhood to consider myself
his her, you may fancy, George,
with what feelings Of disgust [ re :
celved the intelligence. My mother
wrote a very illegibIe hand, and
moreover always crossed her pages,
deciphering her bet
ters was no easy task. [ could not
make out the name of my uncle's
75ancee, although FelJowes and |
sat up half the night trying to dis
cover it. My mother said Sir
had met her in Paris, and
| thought the word We could not
decipher looked like French
name.
sLondon was no place for me
now, | decided, and determined to
leave the Guards and exchange in
to some regiment going to Canada
a country / was particularly anx-
ious to see. We fingered a good
deal OF the time on our way home,
and were a great part Of the time
in ont-of-the-way places where we
saw no newspapers. Thus | miss
ed reading the announcement of nv
marriage When [ arrived
in town heard nothing but the
beauty of Lady Wy
vile and many were the warnings
L received-half in iest-half in
earnest-not 10 fall in love with my
aunt. 1t was very odd, but | felt
no curiosity to see her. On the
the idea of making her
acquaintance was rather repugnant
to me.
i left a card for my uncle in
Grosvenor square, day or two af-
ter l returned home at an hour
when l knew she woul6 be out and
L declined, on the plea OF a prior
an invitation to dine
with them the following evening.
"a few nights afterwards there
was large bali given at the Rus
sian Embassy. | heard, directly |
entered the honse, that my uncle
and his bride were there but there
was a great crowd, and | never
caught sight of them. Towards the
end of the evening, just as ] was
going away, the Duchess do
came mp to me in the conservatory,
and told me that my uncle and aunt
were Just then on the staircase.
You must come and see her.
George she said to me; SHE is
perfectly beautitul.'
I made some commonplace re-
ply, such that it was only very pret>
ty women who ever admitted beam
ty in others, and then, with the lit
tie duchess on my arm, went to
greet my uncle and his bride.
She was dressed all in white
not the faintest trace of color about
her-and her lovely face turned as
white as her bridal wreath, as she
came face to face with me. 1t was
N Nora-Nora whom [ had last seen
in rags, barefooteh, asking aims
from the passers-by, AM! not met
again thus-at an ambassadors ball, !,
and talking to foreign prince a
My uOf.la iptroCo<,ol -