The weekly register. [volume] (Point Pleasant, Va. [W. Va.]) 1862-1909, 1880-04-14

side, and for j long 4dd been
silently gazing up At famil'
lar face. At last my 4bedthe
question which / hi 5teed to
ask, and | broke the of the
room BY my abrup Aunt
Claire, why it you 7lffisd?''
The dusky eyes ga |reamily
into the FIRE we're fill ia sudden
pain and a look Of Isl oyer
spread her beautiful f sle turn.
ed her head TO answd he did
not speak for a naome hen. .in
a broken voice, and M It'll The
remembrance Of som sorrow,
she said:
81 know not VI mt. TO:
~ ~ I IL ]. d b j IS. ,oll Is.e
secret Of my life. Listen, my child,
Years-ago Invent to spend the sum
mer with my dearest friend, Mildred
Argyle. | was just seventeen then,
and possessed of a moderate amount
Of beauty. Mildred was older than
me, and had been married for two
years to Herbert Linger6eld. | had
not been with her very long ere a
young friend of her husbands came
TO visit him, Guy Earlsford by name.
He was a very handsome, fascinating
man, with some Spanish blood in his
veins, his mother having been a Gas.
tilian. He was pursuing the occu-
patton of an agent fora very popular
book, and had already succeeded re.
markably we'll. |, as you perhaps
know, supported my mother BY
teaching school. She was an invai.
id, and that summer was staying in
the country with a dear friend Of
hers. l met Guy Earlsford many
times, and a mutual attachment
sprang up between us. The sum-
mer was far advanced when he asked
me to be his wife,, and l ioy-
fully consented. He had one fault,
intense jealousy. | never saw such
a hot-tempered, fiery disposition as
he had. | fear | did not act in the
manner best calculated to set his
jealous fears at rest, for ia those days
| was lively, pretty, and too fond Of
admiration.
"In the village was a Mr.. Thorn
ton, who was very attentive to me,
and |, foolish girl that / was, liked
and received his attentions because
he was rich and sought after by the
maneuyering mothers3who had mar.
riageble daughters. One night we
were to attend u large party. How
well remember that: fatal evening,
for it was the commencement of the
bitter trouble that followed. Guy
was TO take me. and SD il ead ad,
m1ration were at their height. New
er, never he declared, had / looked
50 beautiful, never so bewitchihg.-
i did look well, | believe, and | new
er was in gayer, wilder spirits. All
went merrily and well until the close
Of the evening, when l allowed Mr..
Thornton to take me out upon the
balcony. There he declared his love
for me. | was grievedaad surprised,
for | thought he knew Of my engage
ment, and thoughtless and silly as
my behavior had been, | had meant
no harm. | had no idea he loved
me with: such intensity. In fact L
imagined what had been to me u
pleasant Irritation had been to him
the same. refused his offer gently
but decidedly. His grief was terri
BILE, and seeming to lose all control
over himself he caught me in his
arms, and passionateIy pressed kiss
after kiss on my burning face. l
struggled to release myself, and just
then, hearing slightnoise, | looked
up and saw the pale, set face Of Guy
Earlsford just disappearing from my
view. l wrenched myself free from
Mr.. Thornton, unheeding his pray
ers for forgiveness for his temporary
madness, and rushed wildly from the
porch. Two miserable weeks passed
by, and | heard nothing from my
lover. AT last one nightI | met him
quite by accident as l was returning
from walk upon the cliffs. He
seemed not to see Inc, but desperate
in my great misery, approached
and spoke to him.
"Oh! how altered he was, merely q
shadow Of his former self. But his
eyes, they haunt me yet. Can | for
get them2 Would to heaven that |
could" she moaned, covering her
fuce with her hands for moment
81 besought him to let me explain,
He interrupted me. sThis is no
place to talk, come," he said, ''to the
Cliffs" 1t was growing dark, and
the silence was SO intense us TO be
oppressive. Ibegan tospeak, but he
motioned me to stop, and fixing his
burning eyes on my face he told me
he knew all l would say, That l
found had not the courage to wed
II poor man, and | had thrown him
over for a richer lover. His words
were wild and sometimes incoherent,
and looking at him closely saw the
fire of fever and delirium in his seyes.