Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1880-09-09
The Sturw Teller.
HARRY MARTINS WIFE.
BY G. B. STUART.

"I'm afraid I've finished all my yarns, y
said the Lieutenant, thoughtfully drawing
a match across the sole Of his boot, as ne
spoke, for we were smoking in the verandah
of his mothers house at Southsea.
"Then tell US true story" suggested,
innocently.
The Lieutenant took no heed OF my i'm:
pudence, but pulled away at his pipe tor full
five minutes, in manner which was sup
posed to assist the deepest reflection. Pres
emily he began: =:
"Did ever tell you how got Harry Mar
tins wife tor him? p
"Now very incredulously from every
body; and from chair in the back ground,
II should think that Captain Martin was
perfectly we'll able to get wife for him.
SELF"
There you are wrong" said the Lieuten.
ant, so superbly that we all felt abashed, and
humbly begged for the story.
believe it or not" asserted the some
what molli6ed sailor, "but I can assure you
it's as true as-as true as-Old Boots -
This was the Lieutenant's usual formula
before beginning one of his wonderful ad-
ventures, and it never failed to convince us
outwardly, at least; for who can withstand
the undeniabe existence of old boots? Hav-
ing thus successfully closed all interrupting
mouths, the Lieutenant graciously proceeded
to recount the following episode in the life Of
Mrs. Henry Martin
"The Valeria was lying in the bay at st.
Michael's, one of the dullest holes we ever
put into in all my experience. Harry Mar
tin was first lieutenant, and / was second.
Grips was our captain-a good old sort
enough, only he bothered US rather with read
log out sermons on Sunday, for he was a
rigid Presbyterian, and was forever inveigh-
ing against the errors of Rome Rather a
queer line for thoroug going sailor to take
up, wasn't it 2"
"Of course could get frequent leave when
I wanted run on shore, but did not much
care about taking it, for, really, there was
nothing earthly to do in the place. had
bad leg at the time, remember, the remains
of a frightful hack at football, when we play
ed the Excellent, and beat them into fits,
in this very place, the Autumn before, so l
wasn't up to much walking, and couldn't visit
the places beyond the town, which Martin
was always talking about and sketchiug.
"By and by began to notice, that though
he spoke of the general beauties of the is
land scenery, he appeared by his sketch-book
to haunt one spot almost excluslvely--t
convent of Santa Agata, on the top of hill
Just beyond the town. There were pictures
of Santa Agata from all points of the com!
pass. 1t was only to me, as an old chum, that
he showed those pictures and it wasn't long
before got out Of. him, by dint of a little
chaff and little judcious sympathy, that
he was madly in love-or fancied he was,
which is just as bad, every bit, while, it
lasts-with one of the sisters at Santa Agata.
Why, you might just as well have been in
love with the moon, for all the response you
could get to your finest feelings, if you cen,
tered them on Spanish nun. And so told
Martin, for I had been through the very iden-
tical same case myself at Vera Cruz, aboard
the Rapid.
"'But Jim,' said Martin, quietly, looking
shy, and red in the face, for he was an aw-
fully modest man, and not half as we'll sea-
soned in these matters as | am; suppose
there has been some response"
"'You don't mean to say you've spoken or
corresponded with her?'
"For answer Martin pulled little packet
of letters out of the breast pocket Of his
Jacket, tied with piece of brand new blue
ribbon, which the poor old dufer must have
bought for that purpose.
"Bg degrees the whole story was told
He had seen -Dona Dolores for the first time
three weeks before, when he had strolled
into the convent, at the visiting hour, to buy
some of the nuns famous lace for his people
at home That was how the acquaintance
began by looks Of admiration on the one
side, and apparent appreciation of them on
the other. After this, Martin confessed, he
was always buying lace every visiting day,
until the old gorgoness who assisted at the
lace selling began to grow suspicious, and
changed her companion for another sister
more of her own calibre than pretty little
Dolores. With the latter, however, our pre-
cious first lieutenant was by this time on
pretty intimate speaking terms, and by means
of market.woman, or mule.g or some
such emissary, managed to carry on cores
pondence Of frequent notes.
II started with astonishment when he told
me all this but, really, there are no lengths
that shy man won't 60 to when he's once
reused. Of all lovers, I've heard girls say,
there's nothing to come up to shy man
when he's in earnest.
"Well, so far the affair had gone, and there
it had stuck for who was to say what could
be the end of such hopeless attachment
Hopeless, in so far that there was no chance
of the girl ever being released from the con:
vent, which, she now intimated to Harry
Martin, she cordially hated. She was an Or
phan, and had lot of money, and though
she had not taken the vows as a professed
sister, you might just as soon expect shark
Z to leave hold of your leg when he had once
grabbed it, as the priests and the sisters of
Santa Agata to let poor Miss Dolores out OF
their clutches.
"There was nothing to advise Martin to do
but to cut the whole affair; not see the girl
again, but just keep close by the ship until
we got our sailing orders, which most Of US
were hoping for every day. It's thing sail
ors have to do, all the world over, for one
can't marry everybody, and it's astonishing
to find in how short a time you don't
want to.
"But you should have seen the fury Mar
tin got into when l suggested this everyday
course to him. He talked about honor, and
Christian feeling, exactly as if 1 hadn't got
either one or the other. Upon my word, if
he hadn't been my senior officer, and such
an old chum, and such big fellow, too, l
should have knocked him down for what
he said At the same time, was sorry for
him, for by this time saw he was in earn.
est in the affair; so when he had quieted
down bit, said to him
"What do you say to rescue?"