The Sunday mirror., 1880-07-25

| 1ou dOi want W huOW 1Ou iN III LIN
lDGpse, do you ?"
ty minutes later there glided into the
the sweetest witch of about eighteen
summers that ever was, and Bel introduced
her, as "My cousin, Jennie Vaughn, from
Devonshire, Mr.. Fernleigh."
What lovely dark eyes she had, land shin.
mering golden hair Why, even pretty Bel
couldn't hold candle to her Who could
resist making himself fascinating to her !?
And before he had left, Mr.. Fernleigh had
engaged her for drive, telling Bel, as he
slyly pressed her hand in parting, that of
course, as friend of hers, he would do al
he could to make her cousins visit agreeable
How the girls rushed down into the parlor
after he had left, and what a screaming and
laughing there was Will rolled on the
floor almost in convulsions, very much to
the detriment of his long train and fair
tresses.
"What a lark it was, he gasped, "to
see him sitting there, casting his killing
glances at me so that you shouldn't see
them, Bel +"
And he went.off into a fresh outburst of
laughter, while the object of their merri-
ment wended his way leisurely toward his
hotel, thinking to himself;
"By Jove, regular beauty Bel herself
is thrown in the shade, although there is
family resemblance. A lucky thing
Thought Of that drive; but I'll have to be
sonfoundedly careful, or I'll rouse Bells
kuspicions. Why, l do believe that girl
considers herself engaged to me, the way
she acted to-day Well, it's only polite to
play agreeable to guest Of hers, and Pm
going to do it."
The fun that followed the next few days!
verywhere Miss Jennie went Mr.. Fernleigh
Pas her devoted cavalier.
"Solely for your sake" as he reassur-
ingly told Bel, and "to obtge Miss Rath-
bourne" the rest of the girls understood it.
: Every evening Mr.. Fernleigh took Miss
Vaughan for stroll in the elm-groves, and
perhaps his attentions would have been a
little less loverlike, and his words a little
more carefully chosen, had he known that
behind the trees were hidden score OF mis-
chievous girls with their handkerchiefs
stuffed into their mouths and tears stream
ing down their cheeks in their efforts to
keep themselves unobserved.
But the ending came, as it always does,
sooner or later, and Mr.. Fernleigh awoke
one morning with the unpleasant conviction
that he was deeply in love himself He, the
impregnable, the invincible, was in the tolls
at last And, stranger still to relate, with
young lady of whose affections he was not
at all certain.
Miss Jennie had persistently rejected all
his advances-had given him to understand
that she did not approve of flirting-in fact,
had piqued him, and close upon pique fol-
lowed love that is, as much love as his
shallow heart was capable of feeling, and he
determined that she should yield And
yield she did that very evening, very sweetly
and graciously, much to his surprise.
"Had | been so sure of my prize might
at least not have been in such hurry" he
thought, fuefully; "but shall have to face
the music now"
"And you will come over tomorrow and
announce our engagement" asked Jennie,
confidently.
How should he explain matters to Bel,
and to all the others What an idiot he had
made of himself But he really loved
Jennie he told himself, and so would brave
it out as best he could.
The next morning, when he stepped into
Mrs. Rathbourne's drawing-room, he found
himself in the presence of not only Bel, but
A dozen other girls, every one of whom he
znew-alas, only too well Jennie was no.
where in sight, but Bel, coming forward,
offered him seat, saying
"You will excuse us, know, Mr.. Fern
eigh, if we go on with our parts; we are
for private theatricals."
And turning to Tiny, she went on;
ooh, Jennie, my darling, but for one lit
L ray of hope love you so dearly Why,
why do you persist in thinking l am
kg with your feelings3 love you too
Ir that, my darling"
IN Tiny:
Eut, Horace, you have made love to my
y, and to other girls, too; that am
of"
may have firted with them a trihe,
lg, only because / knew you did not
but you, my darling va pause, only
ken by the subdued giggle of every girl
he room.
What did it meanf His very words to
ME the night before
MIR. Fernleigh listened in blank amaze {
nent. What could it mean? Had the
,irl been fooling him3
"Young ladies'" drawing himself up
tiffly, I" | am happy to see you are enjoying
rather unintelligible joke. If Miss {
Taughan is not in l will make my adieux." {
"Oh, you want Jennie? :" asked BEL
Here Will I - and in tunnh1ed Will tb;e | J