The Arkansaw traveler., 1884-02-16
[ chat I told Agxy the .ooaer |, ~as over

~ Hannah laughed. Did you not know. Oh, then must no, tell the se- crets of the prison-house. But pray dont look so rueful. aunfy mine The secret IS not of very dreadful nature" Lady Bes, vas. however. by no means oemforted by this intelligence. !" Arthur had been carrying on with this giri an- known to her. and hence the reason ot her detection and listlessness of course the neighbors were right love vas the root of all evil. And to think of the little minx forcing herself tn here under Han nah's auspices Oh. il was too bad very much too bad she had been treated shamefully
 And her hear, too full to speak w,,hou, committing herself. which pride prevented when she remembered iha, this niece had been connivlng ,o deceNe her. she went indoors up into her own room. oi which she locked the door. and then ln- dulged Tn the luxury of tempcs,uous burs; of tears.
 For more than an hour she remained there sohb,ng and composing herself by ! turns. till al las; she heard saiee- andci the window. Carefully eoncealns her seii, she pe~ped from behind the curtain.
 There they were, all three talking and laughing, ~oke-up look on Arthurs $ face which she had nol seen there iof months.
 l, vas strange. very strange. and as she stood and watched them. she could not make up her m,nd whether she had not made a mistake in asking these peo- pie to come After all. fl hls love foi \ sfSa ! I Il and made man of him, she oush, te consider her ob ct galned
 Anyway she made up her mind to be silent for the present and take notes and sa deciding. she washed her lace. smoethed her silvering hair. SC; her cap i daintIy on her head and went down stars, where the luncheon was decidedly more cheegy than the dnner had been OF the preNiau, evening
 And the days passed on life l, the cottage seemed very bright ,o ail but its mistress. who could not reconcile herself te ,he fac, tha, she had been de.eived ID, even though il gladdened her heart to hear Arthur laughing merrily. as he sometimes did at his eousn's sallies, or ,e sec him take an interest he never took before Tn the farm and iis workings. i Aga,ht's pale. beautiful face would come between the mother and the change ! her presence seemed te have effected. and Lady Bes, fel; that she could EeVet love Agatha. even though Ar,hur's whole i happiness was centred tn her
 But If she had lost son she had gained daus h,er. for. appfeelstin Hannah merits As she did To the fullest. she felt that she was each day learning 10 love her more and more Many tunes vas II on her lips to tell her how gr,cved she was al the direction Arthur face seemed to have taken, but pride held her back. i Al last. almost before they could be l,eve in its approach. St. Partridge al rived. and with |, letter from Mi Mtl. ton. saying he should be back ,n less 1 than week tha, hc would take the cot- tagc- on his way. see his sister and escot, his daughter home.
 What tears and heArt-burnings did lhIs letter produce Hannah WAS evidently n despair at leaving the cottage Arthur became as desponden, as he WAS two months ago. Only Agatha seemed to have no regrets.
 "0f course not. since she expects ,o stay here always; not ~ith me. though She will not live here with me. ragged Lady Bes, to herself
 And m ;hls mood Arthur found her one morning when he sough, her m Inc h,tle morning room she called her den He broke the ice without any prelim- mary skating over |.
 Mother ~lil II not bc pleasure to you fl brsng you daughter 10 vel come;"
 "Oh, Arthur, If you only knew how have dreaded thIs question
 "Dreaded It. mother though, you would be delighted.
 How could yous 4 penuiless. lack. adaisioal, intriguing - the rest ot her sentence was a sob interrupted however, by an exclamation rom Arthur
 pennlless Hannah, Why. her only fault m my eyes IS that she has money, and my uncie may think
 Arthur You don't mean n say |, IS Hannah you love On, you dear Arthur
 my oWn boy.
 '' You d,d no, think II sas Agatha Why. she has been engaged tn my old college chum, Laurence Wllmot. for the las, ,ear. They had li,tie brcere just before she came. which had the pleas urc of making up. 1 could not tell you. because the whole thing was a secret on accoun, of his uncle The old gentleman. however. aas gwen in, and they arc ,o be marned very soon
 Lady Rvsi soon forgo, All her anSlc;y and the unhapplDess o' the iasi few eeks .n her present loy and of course she mlsed tG negotiate matters wiih Mir Milton xhen he should srnve and she did so mos; effer,u4iiy, for he seemed a. pleased as she was. and from the day the fnaFFiage ~as finally settled she be gan 70 unoend and and place for i Asatha IT her capacIous heart. shower .a. upon the gih-in very gratitude for tand.ng tha, her love for Ar'ryI ~as al A mistake AS many kindnesses and pres ent> as she bes,o~ed on her ~ell-beloxed Hannah
 And when, at las,, the iSo marriages took place a, Milton hall on me same day the tinfplffz.ed woffid have airnox,