Smyrna times., 1882-03-22

W hat was the result
Her naughty spirit broke down, and
she lay limp upon his broad bosom vbil,.
the choking tears flowed in torrents
We will not depict the scene which
followed on the verge of Devil. ,;nrCra
! before the rest of the party came nm hnt
suffice 1t TO say in brief that from rb,t
moment there existed between the two ;.
perfect understanding.
And this Is why our hero dreaded tba
| oenOuement of the disgraccful duel into
whlch he had been unwiselv drawn NOT
! from It's criminal consequences 30 usual
as the reproach he knew he would merit
ana receive from the one girl whom be
loved on all the wide earth.
CHAPTER III.
THE REGATTA.
! lhe sun rose brightly in a cloudless sky
upon the morning Of the dav set apart for
| the crystal Lake Boat Club Regatta. and
the members and all the village folk in
IOrce, VINO took uncommon interest in the
aIlalr' nailed the welcome fact gladly.
rom early hours extensive preD3ra-
tiohS were made for the great event
faVilllOnS were erected a substantial
/ grand stand constructed, and the buat-
house put in order
he boat house, from whence the con
testanla We're 10 start. was gaVlv decorated
with flags. ahd banners, and frStoons Of rod
and blue cloth, the colors of the club and
the immense dance-hall which i, contain.
! ed was put in readiness for the EVENING
bail after the sports of the dav were over
such carnival Fairview had seldom
before experienced, and was moi again 10
witness for many day
Nearly all the contestants in the differ
ent races were upon the river carly
taking their customary exercise,
Hartley Brandon was among them in
his costly cedar shell. made by one Of the
most experienced boat builders in th4
State. and which had cost the owner a
| good round sum.
Brandon was undeniably ii good oars
man indeed being counted the crack of
| the club by many, and had been coached
many weeks by one Of the most experien-
ced boating men in Maryland
! Bat an expert would find certain lack
IN what Is called i'll boating parlancc, his
delivery, that is the manner in which
he made his stroke Professionals gener-
ally made fuller and less ierky stroke.
not allowing the oar to leave the water so
soon.
| Of this Brandon had been warned bv
his trainer, but i'll his usual puffy manner
| the son OF tairviewsS great magnate had
affirmed that he believed he knew what
| stroke he could make the most speed at,
and that was in fact the stroke he wanted
and intended TO adhere TO.
1t was really not a bad stroke. and
would have required no ordinary profess
Slohal TO equal it, and among the gamb-
lerS Brandon was the tavOrite.
There were three pitted against him.
one OF whom was Tom Hathaway, and
reckless Tom was the only opponent
| Brandon had cause t0 fear.
1t was not really known whether Tom
would participate in the race or not.
nothing having been learned from him
since the previous night
lie was not upon The river this morninm
at the customary pull, and this fact gave
! Brandon much satisfaction.
The ilapudent puppy" he inuttered.
as he rounded the "l'per tWo-mile stake
and glanced homewarf over the clear
. shimmoilng surface OF the lake. One
thing in nay favor. he will not he in nrac-
tice. Perhaps he will not make an ap-
pearance when the race will surely be
mine. hope though that he will be pres
ent, for know that / can beat him. and
1t will be great satisfaction ;or me to do
So
! Tom al that moment was pacing the
shore at Crystal Lake below the hoat-race
in terrible whirl nf perplexity and
doubt
1t was HOt the approaching race that
troubled his mind, but the prospective
! duel which weighed most heavily upon
his conscience.
Conscience whispered to retrace his
steps. apologize. and seek to settle the
affair amicably. but an exacIing sense of
honor and false pride imp&lled him on
ward to the verge of the fearful abyss.
lie dreaded TO meet Minnie Stockwell.
although ii was nOt possible that news Of
the affair had as yet reached her ears.
But he felt an overwhelming sense OF
guilt, and told himself that he would
never dare looI, her in the face again.
He had come down to the lake to take
his regular exercise at the oars, but 30
troubled was the state of his mind that he
could not compose himself sufficiently to
enter the boat house, and 50 had sought
the solitude 0I a little strip OF sandy beach
just below the boat-house, where a growth
of oak came down to the waters edge.
He paced restlessly up and Down,
wrapped in thought, and aoted not how
fast the time passed until suddenly he
heard a rustic in the shrubbery on the
bank above his head, and lifting his gaze
his heart almost stood still to perceive
Minnie Stockwell, the beauty OfFairview
and his pledged love, gazing down upon
him in surprise.
Why T0Tn : exclaimed the beauty
What are Van doing here in this strange
place, ! have been locking all about fol
you. Your services are much needed
think at the boat-hOuse. There is much
decorating yet to be done, and nobody
knows how to do that but YOU"
YES, said Tom, huskily, after several
Intellectual efforts to clear his throat
Yes, Minnie, will go now, l got into
one of my thinking moods and forgot my
self. BY gracious, did not know it wa.
so late One hour of noon, and the re
gAtta IS TO commence at two o'clock"
Minnie, keen little maiden, gave Tom
} searching glance as she scrambled dowI
the bank to his side.
With kind of womanlY instinct sh,
guessed that there was something weightN
upon her bsy lovers mind but she be
} trayed not the knowledge.
Yes, and my brave knight, it is ever
aigh time for you to don your armor ant
) and enter the list See, l have choSel
your color, blue, for you. May it give yOl
good luck"
II pray heavep it may" said Tom, il
an unusually devout tone, Then a
, though he had forgotten hinself g,
! thank you for the good wish and will try
) to prove myself worthy knight"