The Magnolia gazette., 1884-10-30

twelve months than he can At home.
in two years man may have msde .
fortune and lost i, and Be on his way
TO make it again. John Gordon had
suffered no rererses, ami with twenty
four Quarter-days, a. each Of which lie
had received ten or twenty per cent,
lie had had time 10 become rieb. he
had bv no means abandoned all bis
shares in the diamond mines but, hay
ing wealth ct command. he had deter
mined 10 carry out the purpose tor
which he had come 10 South Afr e2-
Therefore lie returned 10 Norwich. ard
having there learned Biary's address,
now found himself IN her presence 81
Croker Han.
Nj Whttlestaf, when he heard JOHN
Gordon name. was as much astonished
rs had Teen Mary herself. Here was
Mays loyer-the very man whom
Mary had named 10 him lt
had All occurred this very moruing
% that even the look OF her
eFe- and the tone ot her voice were fresh
in his memory. He used To come u
our home 1t Norwich -and / loved
him. Then she had told him that this
lover had been poor, and had gore
away. H. had, since that. argued il
ont with himself and with her, too on
the theory, though not expressed, that 4
lover who had gone away now nearly
three wears ago. and had not been heard
Of, and had been poor when be went,
was of no use, and should be forgotten.
.Iet there be no mention Of him be
tween us, be had intended TO say,
'anl tie memory Of him will fade
away But now on this very day be
was back and there was Mary, hardly
able to open her mouth in his presence.
He had bowed twice very stiiiiy when
Gordon had spoked Of all Ne had done
on Mary's behalf. q Arrangements
have been made, he said, (which may,
! trust, tend to Miss Lawrie's advan-
tage. Perhaps | ought not to say 50
myself, but there is no reason why !
should trouble q stranger with them.
II hope may never be considered a
stranger by Miss BawriGe, said Gordon,
turning round to the young lady.
no, not a stranger, said Mary;
certainly not q stranger"
But this did not satisfy John Gordon,
who felt that there was something in
her manner other than he would have
it. And yet it seemed impossible now,
II this first moment, TO declare his love
before this man, who had usurpei The
place of her guardian In fact he could
not speak to her mt all before Mr. Whit
tles'ai lie had hurried from the dia.
moud-iiclds III order that lie might lay
all his wealth at Mary's feet, and nov
he lelt himself unable To say word tc
I Mary unless in this mans presence,
+ lie told himself rs he hurried home that
there might be difficulties in his way.
] He might iind her married or prom
I iscd in marriage. He had been sure oI
her love when he started. lie had beer
confident that, though no absolute prom
ise had been made from her to him, ol
/ from him to her, there had then beer
no reason for him TO doubt Ip snite o.
/ that, She might have married, or beer
promised IN marriage. He knew tina
She must have been poor and left ii
want when her step-mother dicl. Sh,
had told him OF the intentions Of hel
life, and he had answered that perhaps
something better might come up fo
her Then he had been called pau
per, ana had gone away TO remedy tha
evil if 1t might be possible. He iat
heard while working among the dia
monds that Mr.. Whittlestatf had taker
her to his own home He had heard oi
Mr.. Whittlcstaf rs tire friend OF hel
father, and nothing better. he thought
could have happened But Mary might
haze been weak during his absence, ans
have given herself up 70 some othei
man who had asked for her hand Sht
NJ Z