Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1882-12-03
in A BALLROOM.
A SrORY.

MUSIC naO Deen SOhuuiuS AhSlihy Nh
sometime, when two ladies came in, evil
IDENTIFY mother and daughter; the one,
middle-aged, calm and sedate; the
other, young, eager, and excited. The
latter flung of her cloak, gave hasty
glance at the glass, and stood quivering
with impotence, while her mother
leisurely Invested herself Of her wraps
md afrsHEoa her cap. \
t.fon,f k,ong, mother darling" the
~ 1<.> 81 Isl. "EOur cap is all right
1n1 .c<i 500 lovely. We are so late.
o<1. rtt eill be quite tired Of wait
iee,nt nsna % said the mother dryly Z:
ssiG n,.st hsi4s dreadful fidget lest sli
NE >unrr aides should be engaged,
net tN.rs os no partner LEFT for him."
The girl flushed and laughed.
"Never mind, Florriei If anybody
wants to dance with you, they will
manage Il somehow"
Florrie blushed again, while smile
: of the most perfect content broke over
her face. ,Is was s. fair young face,
pretty not with any wonderful beauty.
but with freshness, - innocence, and
sweet temper; face that weary Pater-
famllias, yawning in dOOrways, would
comment upon with appreciation; that
Jealous mothers would not pick to
pieces, and that daughters would adj
mire without envy.
They found. 'pOOr papa warmly dis
cussiDg some magisterial difficulty with
q county neighbOr, and bearing this
enforced delay Of his entrance TO the
ballroom with perfect equanimity;
How Florrie'S eyes roved round as
they entered hOwabsently she respond
ed to the greetings Of various friends!
Even the gentleman who solicited the
favor ola DANCE received but nan her
attention. size. was only seventeen,
.apd had not yet learned the art or the
necessity of cODcsaling her feelings.
Every emotion wrote itself in clear
letters on that childish face.
I'm and down the room her
gray eyes wandered rs she stood by her
mother, eagerly scanning the groups OF
dancers, and then u sudden light came
into them, u rush of color into her
checks, as a young man detached him.
self from q knot Of relocated sports
men and approached her. With what
a radiant smile she greeted him! Her
mother noted il and sighed; a sour
maiden of forty seeing it, sighed too,
and said to herself: "What tiirt that
Yirl is, but even while saying it she
knew she was unjust. The young man
did not sigh. He smiled a smile al
most as radiant as FlOrrie's Own-al-
most, not quite.
-'Oh, Miss barley" he began, ~
thought you were never coming
al thought we never WERE" she re-
plied naiYely; "but we are here now
She added in tone of extreme salts
faction.
Eyes you are here now," he said.
rand You will stay To the end aud give
me great many dances. Wouldn't
YOU like some tea" OF course she
would like some tea, and aS she was
going 70 dance the next waltz with him
IL was hardly worth while to return to
her mother for the few intervening
moments.
- Elnrria- WAS no tlirt, but she was only
lust out, had seen nothing OF tie u~-li
and had never stirred from under her
mothers wing. What wonder tina
She was completely captivated by 1T
handsome young soldiers who eont-ived
), IN SO many little ways TO imply,
though he had not said it.. hat he
es loved her. She was over heSI and ears
l4en hove, never doabted that he was Or
"a sialned to be her husband, and had the
vejpost perfect faith IN him.
:, He asgefAinly very happy in her
society, andWould willingly have sat
by her side and danced with her the
whole night But Florrie had been
we'll drilled on this point. She looked
wistfully at her programme when he
handed il back to her half filled with
his own name.
"You must scratch them all out but
two. | should like it, but | mustn't,
she said simply.
A look came over his face that half
charmed, half frightened her.
"Ahw he began eagerly, and then
: checked himself ~ should like it,
but | mustn't" he added half under his
breath.
She looked at him wonderfully.
ibid you speak" she asked.
"No, no; there il the music. Come
To say that Florrie enjoyed the bal
would be- to express it feebly
She was simply stepped
unnoticed by her mothers side, she waS
profoundly happy. Then she had thai
second dance to look forward to, and
resOlutely refused to 60 to the tea-room
till then, that she might honestly want
some refreshment after it. Then fol-
lowed another ten minutes, of which
each moment was q lifetime of bliss,
never to be forgotten.
As they passed into the ballroom
they met q girl coming out who had
already attracted Mr.. Peyton's atten-
ton by her extreme beauty-her daz'
cling complexion, her masses of golden
hair, and her big blue eyes. She was
leaning on the arm of q miserable-lOOk-
ing little man, who had been heading
the train of her admirers the whole
evening, and who did not appear, iudg-
ing from his cOuntenance, to have de-
rived much comfort from the amuSe-
ment. The young lady stopped Florrie,
saying:
hWell, Florrie, are you enjoying your
self? ] have tried vainly to catch your
eye the whole evening, but you have
been so occupied you would not look at
me.h
There was an undercurrent of ssr-
casn in the tone which was quite lost
on Florrie, who replied enthusiastic
ally:
81 am enjoying myself immensely"
The beauty smiled and passed on,
giving Mr.. Peyton glance nom under
her long eyelashes that kept him silent
till they got back to Mrs. barley.
"Who Is that young lady?r be asked.
"She is Miss Talbot" Florrie said. ais
she not pretty% .------..
Over Ter, too, had come 5 vague in>
definAble sensation Of something, she
could not tell what, that Jared upon
her.
A few minutes after Mr.. Peyton had
moved away Alice Talbot came up,
and, dismissing her disconsolate partner
with q careless nod, she said:
& 'DesT MTs. barley, may sit by you?
Pspa is always in the middle of a group
bfpeptlemefl, and L never can get near