The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1882-07-22

eau. Il lie IdCt Is, mT. Sculcy Outeva'
Lathrop is somewhat in love, or
rather, very much in love, and men
when laboring under such an infiu-
ence are apt to be exactIng and sus-
picious.
Mr.. Lathrop, about fortnight ago,
travelled all the way from Philadel-
phia to st. Augustine for the express
purpose of being near a very charms
ing young woman with whom he is
enamored ; but lately the powers that
have been most provokingly against
him. Miss Estey, upon his advent
at st. Augustine, was most gushingly
delighted to see him. and for five OF
six days he lived in elysium but
then change came, and 1t daWned
upon Sedley Lathrop's mental vision
that Ethel Estey was d sad coQuette.
To be sure, there was some excuse
for it, as she was an uncommonly
pretty and attractive young woman,
and wore her gowns and hats with
such bewitching grace that a dozen
or so men at the hotel were as en-
thralled as Sedley Lathrop. When
Mr.. Lathrop arrived, and Miss Estey
appeared so to approve his admira-
tion and devotion to the exclusion of
all others, there was gnashing of
teeth, and bitteranathemas pronounc-
ed upon his devoted head by the
young men in question.
But now she seems to tire of the
attention of only one man, so she
throws out her lines again, and the
twelve young men are soon wriggling
on the hooks; then comes Mr.. La
thr0p's turn to gnash his teeth, but
what is one against so many? He
sulks and he mopes, and COMPLAINS,
but all to no purpose she still con-
tinues dancing three times in success
sion every evening with that miser-
able snob, Tom Wilton. On all
sailing and driving parties she takes
particular pains 10 snub him most
numerically. and his life. to Sedley
Lathrop, grows, to be burden and a
misery he loses faith in human ma.
ture generally, and the milk of hu-
man kindness within him is rapidly
eyaporating.
On this particular windy March
day he has told Miss Estey, at the
conclusion of another gentle remon-
STRANGE, that he sees now clearly that
they are not suited to each other, and
he intends returning to Philadelphia
the following day. She looks little
startled when she hears his last words,
and her under lip and eyelids culver,
but she replies that she has long been
of his opinion, too. that he has done
nothing but scold and annoy her, that
he is horribly suspicious and Jealous,
and it is probably just as we'll that it
should end now. So, as a preliminary
to the long journey home, he takes
the walk on the sea. wall.
AS Sedley Lathrop sits on the ram
part, idly digging little stones out of
the wall, and tossing them into the
yawning mouth ofa cannon near him,
he suddenly hears low laugh, and
coming round the projection behind
which he lounges at full lengths
Ethel Estey with Mr.. Wilton. Mr..
LathrOp il on his feet in an instant
and uncovering his head, returns
Miss Estey's naughty recognition
with a low, grave bow. They pass
without comment, and SedIey, pick
ing up his stick, starts toward his
hotel with, if possible, even more
bitter feelings in his heart than when
he left it. all his good resolutions to
apologize for his quick temper, and
in the future to overlook Ethel's
caprices, being completely knocked
in the mead by the late encounter.
AS he again steps upon the sea- wall,
he fully realizes the force of the wind |;
it is now pounding against his back,
and it rushes him along. He has not
as much time to be angry as he would
like to have, for it requires all his
mental and physical powers to watch
his steps and keep his hat on his head.
He is seriously thinking of taking to
the safer width of the road, and leav-
ing the narrow ledge of the wall the
thought causes him to look at the
former, and he falls about ten feet
fortunately the tide is rapidly falling.
and the muddy water is only about
two feet in depth. Sedley I.athrope
is on his knees, with his hands buried
to the wrist in the mud. There is
sharp pain-a cross between a red
hot knife slowly cutting and an elec-
trict shock ck-somewhere In his right
side, but he is too dazed and bewil-
dered to locate it. Drawing his hands
out Of the ooze, he attempts to stand
but his right foot will not support
him, and he sinks back with a sharp