The Portland daily press., 1881-08-01


to entreat but message for Gretton. She
had been living in FOOLS paradise in sup
| posing he would ever have anything else to
entreat.
Another long silence.
A little fame blurted out from the fire,
| Lighting the room, and throwing their gigan-
| tic shadows on the ceilin1.
''Fm sorry mamma isn't here to bid you
goodbye" said the girl in dry voice, with
out turning her head. "For my part | hate
| leave-takings."
The flame flickered little and then went
out; it seemed somehow to Beesly, gazing
duly into the fire, as if with it his hope
went too
"You don't hate saying goodbye more
than l." he murmured as he dashed his
hand across his face.
Then he got up and took possession of her
hands.
''There are Moments" he said, looking
with kind of ferceness into Fer ewes.
when we cannot ask ourselves what we
| like; we only know what, with heavens help.
we must try to do"
The next moment the door was shut and
| he was gone.
| CHAPTER III.
On Elliott Beesly's arrival in London he
was greeted by thick yellow fog. Driving
to his rooms in Gray's Inn, he remembered
he had no time to send word of his coming,
| so he was prepared to find Gretton out.
Turning the key of his door he found the
carpets up, the blinds down, and general
unaired dampness pervading the rooms
"Gretton is still away, then" THOUGHT Bees
ly. when shall get this intolerable bust
ness off my mind?'
make fire. he said to the servant.
! Were there any letters? Yes, number on
| the mantel-piece for both gentlemen,
Beesly picked the bundle hurriedly up:
perhaps there would be line from Gretton
saying he was coming back. Nothing but
long blue nvelopes-unmistakab bills and
small square epistles from Gretton's train of
admirers. All! there at last was Andrews
| writing.
Gretton hailed from Scotland, and wrote
a long letter, describing his various visits,
| and the invariable success of his voice and
acting connected Herewith. He ended by
asking after the Woods, saying that, as he
should not be in town for another fortnight,
( Beesly was to say all sorts Of imaginable
pretty things for him. ''Pretty thingsr'
The letter made him vince more than once.
What was the fellow doing comfortably in
Scotland when Miss Wood was coming to
London? Would he be content, Beesly
asked himself, to be tuning his pipe in the
Hebrides while there was Violet Wood in
the South?
He threw the letter aside and resolved to
dine at the club.
The fog was thicker than ever in the street
but on arriving at his destination he was
hailed by number of his friends.
"What have you been doing, old fellow:
Haven't seen you. Paris, eh?'' exclaimed
one OF them, as the dinner went on. "What
did you do there?"
Usual sort of thing, SUPPOSE" said
Beesly, with no very great show of interest
in the topic.
"Ah'' exclaimed a rubicund and beam.
ing old gentleman, the jovial man of the
club, "you should stay in London-nothine
like it; weather is always nice and seasons
ble.''
$50 it ISL said Beesly, gazing out through
the window into an ocean of pea-sonp
"Ye," exclaimed the old gentleman, cast
ing round for some statistics which he haG
nearly but not quite got right 'London i:
the most healthy; Berlin"
so sorry L have to go to the theatre, .
said Beesly, getting up and wondering VIII,
the whole thing seemed such an intolerable
bore.
The Frivolity Theatre, however, proved
little more amusing than the statistics. Bees
ly lounged back in his stall, and wondered
what all the large audience about him found
W orth coming to see.
He turned his eyes from the stage an6
glanced around the theatre In the SECOND
box from the stage there was a lady whose
turn of neck reminded him of Violet. III,
eyes kept wandering to that box, until the
young lady turned round and revealed a face
OF unredeemed nominees. Beesly seizet
| his hat and hailed the first hanson, There
was the same air of discomfort in the cham.
beers. when Beesly got back. He lighted ;
pipe, and then, with an unaccountable feel
ing CT restessness, wandered from room tc
room. de lounged almost unconsciouslv
into Gretton's bedroom, when suddenly
something on the wall atttacted his eve.
1t was the photograph of slim youns
| girl in white dress. Stuck into the core
that held the frame was bunch of faded
roses. How well he remembered the NIGH
that Andrew had begged for that nosegay
He wondered that it had seemed of so LITTLE
Importance then. He unlocked the nor
trait gently, and as he did so the roses fel
all dusty and shivering to the ground. I
was a photograph of Violet Wood. How
true to life it was There was her trick O,
hand-clasp, there her frank open brow, he
clear direct gaze in which you seemed to Sc,
her. very soul. The hair was thrown littl,
back, and the lips just parted for a smile.
my darling, this is all I may ever be t,
you," he said, and he stopped and kissed
the portrait on the lips.
Then he hung it up on it's hook and CAM
out and locked the door. 1t was as if h,
had just buried the best piece of his life
The next day, in the more hopeful morn
ing light, he resolved to give himself anoth
, er chance. Why should he not appeal 4
Gretton? He wrote to Andrew and tolt
him all that had passed. He did not con
) ceal for one moment the fact that he was j,
: love with Miss Wood; he considered that h,
) owed it to his friend to be perfectly opel
and direct. He knew, of course, the ugl,
t light in which his conduct might be viewed
but he assured him that he had made n,
sort of proposal to Violet. Beesly coniuret
} him finally, by all that he held sacred, t,
tell him if he were serious in his attachmen
so that they might come to an understand
ing at once.
In answer to this letter came an unmiti
gated attack from Gretton. He considered
that ne, Beesly, had betrayed trust; tina
all intercourse from that moment had bette
cease between them, and further, that h
should not dream of entering into the ques
ton OF his attachment with man who hat
proved himself to be deficient in the com
monest sentiment of honor.
In the meantime Mrs. Wood had beer
much perpleXed by Violet's behaviour il
Paris. First of all the girl evinced a strange
desire to go back to London at once, and
when the mother demurred on account O
unfinished finery, and the thing was put of
for day or two, Violet expressed a wish t.
winter abroad. This lastidea gained grount
as the days went by and no sort of wore
came from Elliott Beesly. "What is there
in me that he should care about?' she Otter
, asked herself, drearily. "He must, sup
pose, have seen that cared about him, anC
thought it best to go away. OF course hi
could not do anything else" She made u,
her mind to carry her mother then ano
there off to haly, SO that Mrs. Wood fount
herself that winter, somewhat to her sur
prise, in Rome.
1t was in Rome that they first heard
through mutual friends, of Beesly's depar
ture for Australia; and it was in Rome
later en-, that Violet grew seriously ill. Sht
was ordered change of scene and air, Sc
that Mr.. Cadbury-who had joined them il
Italy-managed to get them charming
villa on the heights above Florence, where
they passed the spring and early summer
| months.
1t will be wondered in the face of Elliot
| BeeSlV'S departure for Australia whv n