The daily Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1878-1???, 1882-03-05


aristocratic profile bent over his work,
everything about him eloquent of culture
and refinement, and she felt sickened
sense of longing and pain come over her
AS he raised his head and saw her averled
look, her attitude expressive only of sullen
indifference, nothing of the truth came 10
him; only was reused in him the desire OF
success and the impulse to combat that is
always born of opposition and sense OF
antagonism. Arthurs vanity, which played
no mean part in his life, did he but know
it. awakened to the contest,
" | wish you would look at this" he said,
rising and coming toward her; "Ive been
working at ii for an hour, trying to eabor
ate the first sketch which took yesterday
on the shore below. 1t was like II then, |
don't know whether you know the spot
| just where the turn comes in the shore and
the cliff rises abruptly"
"Know it?" At least she knew the
ocean, but why did he ask her? To mock
herr Did he not know that she had never
seen sketch before? 1t was like mira.
Gle TO her. She had heard of such things
as drawings, but she had never seen. any
one before with pencil in his hand.
"Yes, | know the place, but | don't
know anything about pictures"
"Then you're just the critic for such a
sketch. Is it like, Miss Anderson, frankly
nowy" His laughing blue eyes looked
into hers as much as to say, Come now, a
civil answer will have"
She hardened herself. ~ will not anu
him." she thought, and straightway-"I
don't think this looks like the cove; the
| rocks are not the ripht color ~
whats wrong with the color?" said he
calmly, quite unannoyed. "Too grayt
Yes, that is just it; could not make it
out. 1t is red or purple that will make il
rght9" He paused and waited.
purple, / Think" she said, interested in
spite of herself.
He mixed little color on his palette and
reseated himselfto make the suggested alter.
alton Five minutes went by, and he lifted
his head for the first time and turned to
see the effect allow will that dor" was
trembling on his lips, She was not there.
She had gone back into the house as he had
begun to work, and he now caught glimpse
of her slight figure fitting about within.
He was really annoyed for a moment. He
had worked, feeling as if her eyes were
watching every touch of his brush, and
stimulated by this imagined consciousness.
1t was too bad But in a moment more he
reflected that nothing like courtesy could
be reasonably expected from her, and smil-
ing to himself he sat down again before his
sketch, weaving plans of conquest the
while.
In this way more than a week went by,
he losing no opportunity of making his
points, and meeting with constant rebufis
and ungraciousness. But beneath the sur.
face she was melting fast. Little did
Arthur Middleton dream what spell his
mere presence wrought upon this poor girl
He was like young divinity in her eyes,
She might in her heart hesitate to acknowl.
edge him as such, but only for moment;
in nature like hers there Is but step be-
tween the recognition of its object of wor
ship and the prostraion before it. He of
tercd her books and showed her sketches
She refused these, and turned away after a
careless glance from those. Still he went
on, half irritated, half amused, and quite
absorbed in the accomplishment of his oh.
ject, Her detences were soon undermined,
and at last nothing remained but the
merest crust of opposition. Still that crust
was impenetrable, and Arthur began to de.
spair Of ever tanning this savage, when a
fortunate trifle did the work that his most
ingenious efforts had hitherto failed TO &C.
compish. One morning soon after his ar.
rival he had been standing at the door
snuiling the morning air, and, seeing her
within few steps Of him, he said, at
seems absurd but doyou know, can smell
orange blossoms in the air." 1t was part
Of his system always TO address her rs his
equal, and with sort Of assumption that
she would sympathi2e with and understand
whatever he might say This she invaria.
bly, met with blank want of comprehen.
sion, which did not daunt him, however
so y, !his occasion she had said abruptly:
never smelt an orange blossom
"Whatl but II is not strange, because
you have never been where they can be
had, | suppose Well, they have a whole
South in their fragrance"
81 am not used to perfumes. / don't be.
lieve should like them"
Possibly not, but think you would :"
and then the conversation had been broken
oil by Jake's announcing that the boat was
ready for Mr.. Middleton.
About week after, tiny box came
among Mr., Middlcton's packages from the
village He smiled TO himself and took ii
up stairs with his letters. An hour after.
ward, when the sun was setting, he came
down stairs and looked about for Meg;
she was sitting on a low stool, with some
coarse sewing in her lap, by window
opening toward the west; her beautiful
hair was alive with the light which flooded
it from the dying sun, and she made pic
turesque if not pretty picture, as he stood
and looked at her. She had not heard his
step, and started as he came forward and
laid something in her lap.
81 have brought you an odor from the
South" he said; tell me now what you
think of orange blossoms"
She opened the little paper box, and the
wonderful scent, heavy with sweetness rose
up and filed her with sense OF delight
All the faint, delicate suspicious Of fra.
GRANGE which were all that the few wild
flowers she had ever gathered could tell her
of that supreme dover Of flowers odor
seemed cold and poor and empty compared
with the intoxicating delight which eman
atcd from these thick creamy petals
"Did you get them for mc'' she said
flushed with pleasure, her reserve swept
away.
ayes, | wrote for them; It was only con
fiscatlng the product of certain green
house | knew Of and I wanted you tc