Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1884-04-25

away and ran to the rescue. Between
Miss Travers and himself the combat
ants were separated, each carrying
away . few fragments of the Others
person; and Miss Travers, flushed,
painting, covered with dust, but looking
~lovelier than Richard had ever seen
woman look before, sank back against
the rectory wall and tried to laugh. The
stranger lifted his hat looking straight
at her with . pair Of piercing, brown
eyes.
excuse me Miss Travers!' he said,
In rather an of-hand manner, ''but that
was about a. rash . thing as any one
could possibly do. The dogs might
have both turned on you and bitten
you badly"
'sThank you, Captain Hardwicke. I
had not the least fear" was her only re-
Spouse, given with a little haughtiness;
and the gentleman, with a nod to Rich
ard, turned and strobe away as rapidly
as he had come.
"Miss Travers! are you hurt?" Rich
ard was able to articulate at last. "You
never should have done q thing like
that. Hardwicke was right; it was aw-
fully. rash! By the way, you know
Hardwicke?"
mo, I'm not hurt a Bit" The won
derful gray eyes were dancing with fun
now. "Don't scold me, please. I know
it vas a silly thing to do, but I didn't
stop to think. Pray don't look 30 hor-
rifed."
..But if you had been bittenp"
"Well, I wasn't" And her face
dimpled with a friendly smile at his
shocked look.
"But you know HardwickeP' he per-
sisted, unable to get owe his surprise
in that quarter.
30, yes" Her face grew cold in
stantly. Captain ardwicke was in hos
pital with an accident some months ago
my hospital. I had charge of him
there, that's ALL" And she pulled a
rose so sharply from the hedge that it
fell to pieces in her hands.
'Look there!" she laughed, shower
ing the petals on the ground before her;
''let us cover over the battlefield with
flowers" and she laughed again.
Richard went home more thoughtful
than ever. Surely this woman was a
novel thing in his experience of men
and manners. She acted with the skill
and daring of a man; and yet he would
rather not think what his sisters faces
would be like had they but seen it.
Was it actually lady-like? Of should she
not rather have fled from the scene of
conflict, or even have screamed and
tainted? To be sure, she looked as
beautiful rs an avenging Amazon; but
was it quite correct conduct for a girl?
And Captain Hardwicke's manner, so
abrupt and dictatorial; he seemed to
show her the difference in social posi-
ton between a nobleman's nephew and
a hospital nurse. 1t must have been an
awkward.meeting, as his sisters had said.
And then a cold SILVER came over him,
as he thought of Miss Travers intro
duced as Mrs. Richard Allerdyce at
Belmont castle, and Captain Hard
wicke's stony stare of surprise. And
yet-and yet-she was so beautiful.
Nearly three weeks since the dog
wavered in the balance. He had grown
to know Miss Travers well in those
three weeks, and to know her well was
but to love her better. There never
was a woman so sweet, SO clever,
SO sympathetic, SO beautiful-he
was certain of that-no woman he more
ardently longed to have for his own;
ana yet-and yet! That terrible
strength of character, that profession,
that lack of pedigree! Only last night
in the moonlit rectory garden, he had
almost flung all prudence to the winds,
she had been SO dangerously, fatally
sweet (she was always especially kind
to him), but he reeled back from the
gulf just in time, when she mentioned
casually, without a change of voice or
countenance, that she had ar uncle who
was a chemist in Rochester. ga chem
list! Shades of my ancestors protect
mel" Richard recoiled again as he
thought of it, and fancied Hardwicke's
look if he could have heard her. For
Captain Hardwicke was still at the
"White Hart" and perhaps his pres
ence, and the atmosphere Of exalted So
ciety about him, had been one of Rich
ards restraining though unconscious
influences. Now, as he slowly worked
his way up the steepest hill in the
neighborhood, on his new tricycle., he
was bordering the old question in his
mind. Couldhe take the fatal plunge,
or was it too costly?
A trim, graceful figure on the road
before him, as at last he gained the
summit, drove all else to the four winds;
and in an instant he had overtaken the
object of his cogitations, and sprung to
the ground beside her.
'.Mr. A~llerdyce!" she said, turning
with her own bright look to shake
hands; chow like a ghost you stole upon
me! Oh, l see, it was on a tricycle.,
and whata beauty! Do let me look at
it." And Richard, nothing loath, be-
gan to display his new toy-a perfect
thing in build and finish-the Aller-
dyces' possessions always were the most
perfect of their kind.
He began to explain it to her, forget
ting all about the chemist uncle, but she
interrupted him.
eyes, I know all about them, thanks.
I see, it is a regular bit of perfection. I
should so like to try it; may II"
Once more Richard was dumb with
surprise. A lady on a tricycle. was as
yet an unheard Of thing in rustic Chel-
lowdean, and it seemed an outrageous
idea to him.
81 really don't think you could" he
faltered. ''My sisters never have done
such a thing"