The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1884-03-06

|
drawing-room windows, Just as Agatha,
accompanied by Arthur, stroIled up the
terrace toward the wood.
The sight was past bearing; this then
was TO be the end of her loving care for
Arthur; he was to marry Hannah's pen
niless companion. Nor did Hannah's
remark, as she, too, perceived them,
tend to calm the excited mothers fears
"Ohl they are going to have little
chat. l told Aggy the sooner it was
over the better"
"A chat with my son? Has this
this Miss Burghley met Arthur be-
fore?"
Hannah laughed. "Did you not
know? Oh, then must not tell the
secrets of tho prison-house. But pray
don't look so rueful, aunty mine. The
secret is not of a very dreadful nature.
Lady Best was, however by no means
comforted by this intelligence. arthur
had been carrying on with this girl un-
known to her, and hence the reason of
his detection and listlessness; of course
the neighbors were right, love was the
root of all evil. And to think.tof the
little mink forcing herself in here under
Hannah's auspices! Oil it was too bad
very much too bad; she had been
treated shamefullyp
And, her heart too full to speak with
out committing herself, which pride pre-
vented when she remembered that this
niece had been conniving to deceive her,
she went indoors, up into her own room,
Of which she locked the door, and then
INDUCED in the luxury of tempestu-
Gus burst of tears.
For more than an hour she remained
there, sobbing and composing herself
under the window. Carefully conceal
ing herself. she peeped from behind the
curtain.
There they were, all three talking
and laughing, a "woke-up" look on
Arthur's face which she had not seen
there for months.
1t was strange, very strange; and, az
she stood and watched them, she could
not make mp her mind whether she had
not made a mistake in asking these
people to come. After all, if his love
for Agatha saved Arthur from despon-
dency and made q man OF him, she
ought to consider her object gained.
ANY why, she made up her mind to
be silent for the present and take notes;
and, 80 deciding, she washed her face,
smoothed her silvering hair, set her
cap daintily on her head, and went
down stairs, whore the luncheon was
decidedly far more CHEEKY than the din
ner had been on the previous evening.
And the days passed on-life at the
Cottage seemed very bright to all but
its mistress, who could not reconcile
herself to the fact that she had been
deceived-not even though it gladdened
her heart to hear Arthur laughing
merrily, al he sometimes did at his
cousins sallies, or to see him take an
interest he never took before in the
farm and it's workings.
Agatha's pale, beautiful face would
come between the mother and the
change her presence seemed to have
effected, and Lady Best felt that she
could never love Agatha, even though
Arthur's whole happiness was conferred
IN her.
But if she had lost son she had
gained daughter; for, approaching
Hannah's merits as she did TO the
lhllcSb, bllc ltlI Jldb Bio WIS cuCu
learning to love her more and more.
Many times was it on her lips to tell
her how g1ieved she was at the direc-
ton Arthur's fancy seemed to have
taken, but pride held her back.
At last, almost before they could be-
lieve in its approach, st. Partridge ar
rived, and with it letter from Mr..
Milton, saying he should be back in
less than week, that he would take
the Cottage on his way, see his sister,
and escort his daughter home.
What tears and heart-burnings did
this letter produce! Hannah was evi
IDENTIFY in despair at leaving the Cottage.
Arthur became as despondent as he was
two months ago; only Agatha seemed
to have no regret.
"Of course not, since she expects to
stay here always; not with me, though.
She will not live here with me-" ragged
Lady Best to herself.
And in this mood Arthur found her
one morning when he sought her in the
little morning-room she called her den.
He broke the ice without any pre-
liminary skating over it.
Mother, will it not be o pleasure to
you if l bring you daughter to well
Gomez"
ooh, Arthur, if you only knew how
have dreaded this question"
dreaded it, mother? Thought you
would be delighted"
"How could you? A penniless, lack
adaisical, intriguing the rest of
her sentence was sob, interrupted.
however, by an exclamation from Ar
thur.
Pennies - Hannah? Why, her
only fault in my eyes is that she has
money, and my uncle may think
"Hannah2 You don't mean to say it
is Hannah you love? Oh, you dear
Arthur my own boy!"
"You did not think it was Agatha?
Why, she has been engaged to my old
col ege chum, Laurence Wilmot, for
the last year. They had little breeze
just before she came here, which 1 had
the pleasure of making up. L could
not tell you because the whole thing
was q secret on account of his uncle.
The old gentleman, however, has given
in, and they are to be married very