Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1880-10-28
lContinued from first Page. ]


that Millais had painted his two sisters.
both of whom were great beauties and
celebrated bellies and both + whom were
married TO persons of the realm They
were the youngest brides Of their respec-
tive seasons" he added. ''lda was only
sixteen
Sixteen my ager' she exclaimed in
establishment.
Eyes, by iove, you are sixteen Bat
my sister Ida looked much more Of a 40
man. She had no end Of offers: but my
mother knew that st. John would come
on at the end Of the season, so Size kept
Ida Free
ut was lucky that your sister Ida didn t
care for any of the others she suggest
ted timidly.
"She did though She was an awful
goose about fellow called Bartie Friel ;
but he's ST. Johns cousin. and introduced
st. John to Ida. lie thought the boy
paused, and laughed lighsly at the absurd
ity Of it-'that Ida wonld win old =.
Johns liking-sie won the title a-d cor
onet."
And his heart 20
"His heart don't know about liat
he's popularity supposed 10 have lost his
Then he must be quite old p. Tell
me, Lionel, is he quite old and gray p
''Of course he is. He's fifty aud Idt j.
eighteen
Poor thing" May calculated with
honest pity.
"yery lew people speak OF the Lady
st. John a. poor thing. / can tell tna. :"
he said laughing. shes the leader "f
about the best cotere in London.
Poor Mr.. Friel. then" she then said
softly.
The boys face cloudcd. ''Buiic Fii.I
is He then stopped abruptly.
''Never mind; / can't tell sou. pet.
Something you ought not TO hear ;ii. ,nu
are Il fashionable young LADY. - he ai.icd
half snceringly then he ended by saving :
'He's not half such good fellow as old
St. John. after all
They were summond TO luncheon soon
after this, AID May went in dreamiy. her
head being full of faint outlines Of The ro-
maDces in real lie, of which Lionel sister
Ida was the heroine.
The dining room oil the picturesque vic
arage was a. dreary an apartment as dr;lb
furniture and dingy papered wall could
make it, Nature al done great deal
for the room by throwing gaIlands of
blush roses and French honeysuckle It.
cross the lattice windows and through
these floral shades the sunbcams fell in the
dancing. graceful way in which sunbeams
do play through leaves. But, alas, all
beauty and grace came to an end here
The coarse. crude. time worn children
torn furniture could not he beautified even
by the sunbeams. We are apt to accuse
the mistress of a house ola "want OF taste
II her surroundings are ugly and stiff and
spoiled. But how can woman with an
empty purse and full hands drapc wind
ows artistically, and polish up her house
hold goods perpetually? Poor Mrs. Baron
most certainly had not solved the difficult
problem OF how this was to he done. She
had seen things fade and grow more and
more dilapdated year by year. aud she
had made strenuous efforts Ia repair them.
But repairing is not replacing. and things
had been meagre even at The beginning
so now il was but small wonder that an
air OF dull though decent poverty should
reign over everything inside the house.
Ii may be asked But with daughters
who were grown up. should the taste o
Identifying, or of attempting to beautilv
have been left To the already ovcrworkct
mother aud manager The answer i,
simple enough
Tine Two elder girls were wearing then
way through the world rs goveruesses
And Mays education was incomplete sh,
being only sixteen Truth to tell. Ma,
had never troubled her handsome It'll,
head about any of these shortcomings o
her home before this awakening day. Blu
now when she sat down To luncheon
something about the dinginesS of tn,
room struck her as being sorld and ut
terly inharmonious utterly out of keep
ing with the refinement that surrounded
Lionel Hastings like an atmosphere
Her meditations on this subject wcr,
put TO flight abruptly. Her father spok,
in agitated tonos-tones which the poor
wife knew So well portended fresh nm xie
ties. fresh struggles. fresh combats witt
poverty. Lionel. | have had letter
from Lady Hastings. this morning: she
thinks that the sooner YOU 90 To Oxford
the better" Mr.. Baron's voice tremblcd
very obviously. Lionel going to Oxford
meant the direct loss of three hundred q
year to the poor overwrought vicar Of
Balton.
II is useless to recapitulate here all that
was thought and felt and said after the
keynote of separation had been struck
In the midst of the boys natural delight
at the proposed change. there was pane
of regret at the idea OF parting with May
Pleasure and sorrow were delicately
blended in his heart. and hey filled the
situation with emotional interest But in
Mays heart ii was all pure sorrow. mixed
with no pleasurable sensation at all. lie
was leaving her, going to Oxford; going
to be man going to begin life =
and in these facts he found compensation
for leaving her. But she only felt that
she was losing him.
Continued tomorrow