The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1880-03-26

I suppose he made no will, SO that my
cousin, who is no doubt married by this
time, might get the property, while
might die out here, and never know of
his DEATH
SsThe cousin will not thank you for
turning up" says Merton.
mo, but for the sake of the old name
l must go. Will you come with me, old
fellow? I'm rich now, and we can have
fine time of it at home," replies Sir Ed
ward.
''No, thanks; England is too far. I
love Australia too well to leave just yet,
and I should not like to go with no pros
poets. So, sorry and all as I shall be to
part with you, am afraid it must be so,
old man" says Merton, somewhat sadly,
for the two were very dear friends.
They talk on for more than an hour
after this, md then, as night descends
over the great, silent forest, they spread
their blankets inside the tent, and go to
sleep for the last time together in the
bush.
The soft blue haze of twilight is steal
ing slowly down the hills overlooking
the Bay of Naples. A yacht has just
furled her snowy wings, and is rounding
to her anchor about mile from the
shore.
Leaning on her bulwarks is girl of
some twenty summers, with pure, Eng
lish face, and large liquid eyes of no par
ticular shade. She is watching the golden
moon creeping up behind the hills, and
almost unconsciously repeating Byron's
beautiful lines
s.The moon is u o, and yet II Is not night,
wi IhA Hk ~
Ofelory streams along The Alpine height
or blue Frinland's mountains-"
She has got thus far when she is joined
by handsome young fellow whom we
have seen before by an Australian camp
fire.
''Well, Flo! what are you dreaming
of % he says, passing an arm round her
waist with an unmistakable air OF pro-
prietorship.
Quoting Byron, and thinking with
Coleridge, how beautiful it is to hvep
is the answer.
s'And fit thought, too, for one whose
very existence makes life more beauti-
full"
"Flattering, as usual" replies 'Flo,'
or Lady Florence Fermore. stBut what
have you been doing all this time in the
cabin ?"
"Writing my letters, and making a
great discovery" replies her husband.
"What? A paper less than fort
night old ?'
"No; one apparently about twelve
months old ?'
can Australian love-letter ?"
''No, you little mink! I never had
such things when I was vagabond.
But, Flo, want to tell you story. Are
you IN the humor to hear it %
eyes; I'm all attention. Is it long ?"
"No, and think it will interest you"
"'Get under weigh then, as you
sailors say"
"Well, one evening, in the Australian
bush, wanderer, who had left his home
some years before, CHANGED to find on
piece of newspaper, in which his tea was
wrapped, an advertisement, which told
him that his father was dead. Hullo!
What are you turning so red about :?
Nothing? That's all right. Well, the
wanderer came back to England, took
possession of his title and estates, and
married most angelic cousin, for
whom he had had a weakness before he
left England. No, you shan't run away,
for you must be interested in the story.
Now, one thing which puzzled the said
wanderer was, that he never could dis
cover who put the advertisement in the
Melbourne Argus. The lawyer to whom
it referred him would tell him nothing.
so it remained a mystery, till one even
ing, during his wedding trip in the Medi-
terranean, his wife lent him her writing
case to write some letters. Searching
for more paper, he found this.
Here Lady Fermore makes a snatch at
'this;" and, failing to secure it, is
clasped in her husbands strong arms,
and forcibly prevented from making her
intended escape.
And what is ''this %
"Only sheet of note-paper, with the
name "Florence" embossed upon it, and
a few words in pencil, running thus
s'If this should come under the notice
of Edward Stanley Fermore, he is in
formed that"
Here the paper is torn across. but
there is enough to tell Sir Edward to
whom it is that he owes his rescue from
exile, his title, his estates, and, better
than all, the lovely little wife who gave
them to him, when she might have kept
them for herself, instead of giving up
rank and wealth ut the dictates of
Woman's Honor.