The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1884-10-03
A DANGEROUS LOVE.
SCENE 1.

A winter day;a cold sky full of snow,
dancing down in joyous vivacity, to
cover. with negligent charity, the ugly
little town and hide Its curious air of
incompletion. The walls of adobe and
stone, the incongruities of design, the
irregular, uneven streets full of rock
in the rough, together with hill-setting
of numerous abandoned prospect holes
and rudimentary tunnels. gave q whim-
steal suggestion that Titians had left
unfinished town they had been cut
ting out from the earth's raw material.
This was the outside aspect as seen
through pair of tall windows, with
curtains stretched back to gather every
ray of light from the dim, dull sky.
That light, scant rs it was, brought
out the homelike cheer within. The
warm red of carpet and casual fittings
comforted the eye. At the windows
broad shelves full of plants that gave
the sole suggestion of luxury, barring
the aromatic brlliance of fragrant
cedar fire. A room of whose POSSIBLE
tiles the most had been made, full of
the personality of its tenants-a room
where man was very apt to get n
sense of repose and ministration-
chief requirements of the masculine
nature.
Edward Lamb found its effect like
that leaning ut ease in q homely big
chair that had the knack like all the
chairs at this house, of fitting the hui
man frame. A large. fair man, slight
ly inclined to stoutness, lie was of that
type of Irish beauty that involves
wholesome, clear skin, flushed with
delicate rosiness, abundant blonde
hair, and deep blue eyes, with more
sleepy tenderness than was strictly es-
sential behind their long, thick lashes.
Ppm very fearful I'm in for another
fortnight" he said, mot much chance
of the roads opening while this sort of
thing goes on"
Miss Soulsby left the window and
came back 10 her low easy seat on the
hearth, laughing. The impatience of
his words was SO completely at variance
with the elaboration and contentment
of his tone.
possess your soul in patience" she
said, ''it is only q question of days for
you, and then" She made an ex-
pressive little gesture of farewell and
departure.
"And youP-are you coming east
some dayp"
"Oh, yes" she answered, with GER
tain blithe skepticism, "when we sell
mine!"
Mr.. Lamb smiled at her satirical
touch upon the sanguine creed of the
camp. 'Ledyard was wondering what
could keep me here" he said, incon-
sequently; 80 Bohemian born, for
whom the noise and hurry of cities is
as the breath of life"
Madelon Soulsby looked at him in
tently. ''Well," she said, q little sharp
ly, "what has kept youP"
And yet he knew that she was per-
fectly aware what had kept him. Idlers
both, they could hardly have counted
the long, companionable afternoons
they had spent together that winter.
The little town was agog with the Irish
mans infatuation. 1t would have
needed more than their joint assertion
to have convinced the gossips that be-
tween those two no lovc-making had
been.
"Yes. I ought to have gone last,
week, y" he said, ignoring her audacity,
'when Ledyard went. !"
"Why did you not goP" she persisted.
The household cat had leaped upon
her lap-a vicious big beast, whose
claws had wicked way of unsheath-
ing themselves upon fondling fingers.
Mr. Lamb found himself dwelling on
the fact that he had never seen Dick so
requite Miss Soulsby's careless endear-
ments. The lazy creature laid himself
luxuriously across her knees like
great, gray muff. rs the girl nestled
her hands on his warm fur-delicate
hands those, always cold; not clammy,
but cold with firm and reticcnt force
of their own.
Some day-who knowsp-it may be
made penal offensc-their exercise of
this capacity some women have for in
direct challenges; this tacit wooing that
perhaps overweighs mans preroga-
tive of out speaking.
Edward Lamb was phlegmatic
man enough ordinarily, and little given
to impulses; but just now he would
have bartered his souls salvation for
the right to displace Dicks parted fur
with his own handsome fair head to
AOOi ehos OaiOSoiuS toucu PiOSo uVWh
his throbbing eyelids. To his dying
day he would not forget the picture
that instant photographed on the re-
tina Of his heart, For him, hereafter,
no wonder of art nor revelation of liv-
ing beauty could dispel the memory of
the graceful, girlish shape whose
quietude told Of repression, not iner-
tia; the air of absolute self-confidence
and cool. impartial self-disdain; the
bright face, with that mocking phase
of mingled wooing and warning; the
grave, childish usefulness on that
rounded brow; the sweet lips just now
curved in scorn; the intent, amber eyes.
Mr.. Lamb averted his gaze and took
up novel from n couch in the ingle-
nook. BY the malignity of that per-
verse fate who misregulates to mop
portunity these crucial moments, it was
novel treating of the domestic adj
ventures of young journalist and the
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