Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1881-06-09

music! don't know whether 1t Is out
of my regard for the old Highlanders
but the very name of anything Scotch
warns my heart. Kiss your old father,
Vic darling. You sing like seraph. y
Victoria bent over her father.
Shall | sing another, papa dear?''
"Oh, no-I--that is-pray excuse
me" burst in Sydney impulsively, and
then be looked embarrassed.
The Colonel and Victoria turned to
him in surprise.
"You were going to say something's
said her father
The young man looked more and
more confused. After few moments
he stammered out:
"Well, / was going to ask Miss Kemp
not to sing any more"
"Ahl" exclaimed the old soldier, de-
lighted. There's compliment for
you, Vic. Mr. Chevilstona thinks as |
do-that, after that, nothing will do.
He prefers to retain the impression of
old Robin Isn't it so Mr.. Chevil-
stone?" tt
eyes, / confess it is" returned their
visitor, looking at Victoria in fashion
that made her feel strangely and cast
down her eyes involuntarily.
GLOW absurd | am" said she to her
self angrily: yet she felt pleased and
gratified as much by the tribute to
herself as by the compliment to her
singing.
"Was there ever such a charming
woman" thought Chevilstone.
A month or six weeks had elapsed,
and Sydney Chevilstone had become
thoroughly domiciled at the Beeches,
Colonel kemp's seat. Already was the
young Anglo-Indian on such friendly
and atfectionate terms with his host
that they had many a laugh over the
ambiguous wording Of the letter writ
ten by the formers father. indie ed,
the young man habitually called the
Colonel guardian" and the old sold
ier's ward had to undergo much bad
mag from visitors to the Beeches, the
fact, of course, being that there was no
real guardianship in the question
The whole mistake had arisen from
the Colonel's too hasty Interpretation
Of the letter of Mr.. Chevilstone Sr.
Yet the veteran could not but notice
that when the subject was alluded to
there was a sort of sly smile on the
young mans lips, as if there were some
secret behind all this that he-tne
not a sharer III. 1t was
not long, however, before the owner of
the Beeches was enlightened Oh this
head.
AS to Victoria Kemp and Sydney
Chevilstone, both being young, good
intellectual, accomplished and
Of similar tastes, what possible termi-
nation save one could there be to such
an acquaintanceship2 Sydney Chevil-
stone and Victoria Kemp were lover
head and ears" in love with each other;
and, though no explanation had yet
taken place between them, each was
of the truth.
1t was the month of October. The
woods were one mass of brown, pur-
pie, copper, and gold. The copse
bushes bent beneath their weight Of
nuts, and the pheasant and the hare
reveed over their banquet of beech
mast. The gardens were ablaze with
scarlet geranium, China asters, chrys-
and few late dahlias.
The air was pure and warm, and the
sky blue and without cloud.
For day in mid-October the Col
onel and Victoria had planned their
last picnic of the year, and by the per-
Of the ranger it was to take
pace in Windsor Great Park.
Victoria Kemp understood the art Of
making fete champetere go oil well.
She possessed the tact necessary for
crowd composed of miscel-
laneous elements, and people strove to
get an invitation to one of her outdoor
The picnic now on the
tapis, however, was to be small and Sc
lect and to consist of only fifteen or
sixteen very intimate friends of the
Colonel and his daughter.
For a more exquisite day than it turn
ed out for this their last picnic for the
season it would be impossible to wish.
The whole of the party were charmed
with the success of the undertaking,
Never were there such champagne and
such lobster salads, or such genial mas
ter and mistress of the ceremonies as
the old Colonel and his daughter. SO
declared everybody.
The eating part of the business was
happily concluded; the Colonel and one
or two of the older men were defying
the rheumatism by lying at full length
on the grass smoking their cigars, while
MS matter of course, the younger
members of the party had paired off
and were talking all sorts of nonsense
in couples.
Victoria X emn and sydney Chevil.