The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1884-05-01
established reputation for good sense and

~ Chu VI Ah6uo LIE A"N
BILE and her two nieces left London for
North Wales, and, after a long and tire
some Journey, reached Abermaw, in Mer-
lonethshire, and took rooms at the Cors-y-
Gedol Hotel. They were accompanied, as
usual, by the two maids and the green par
rot; but the courier and the man-servant
being males and their services not being
imperatively required, they were left be-
hind in London. Lucy had just celebrated
her twenty-third birthday, and Amy was
just to celebrate her t~wenty-irst; and
although l am sorry to have to recordlt-
lam by no means astonishedt THAT they were
both in love. Lucy, during the whole OF
the previous season, had been determinedly
flirting with a designing young artist
named Robert Rhodes; and Amy, younger
and less experienced than her cousin, had
been carrying on, even more sentimentally,
with Mr.. Vivian Jellicoe, who, being heir to
a ~baronetcy, found that position Sc arduous
and fatiguing that he was quite untitled
for any active occupation of a laborl-
GUS character. OF course Miss Mar
rable knew nothing of these affairs.
Had she suspected them she would per-
haps have nottaken her nieces with her to
Abermaw; for it happenedtha at that very
watering place, Sir Thomas Jellicoe and
his son Vivian were staying when the
three ladies, the two maids and the green
parrot arrived. But no foresight on Miss
Marrable's part could nave prevented Mr..
Robert Rhodes from following Lucy to
North Wales. That adventurous artisthad
madeu up his mind to spend the autumn in
Miss Larkspur's neighborhood; and even
if Miss Marrable had carried of her elder
niece to Timbuctoo or the Society Islands.
Mr.. Rhodes would have gone after the pair
by the next train, steamboat, diligence or
caravan available.
Upon the morning, therefore, after Miss
Marrable's arrival at Abermaw, she and
her nieces were comfortably installed at
the Cors-y-Gedol Hotel; while at the Red
Goat, close by, Sir Thomas Jellicoe and
Vivian occupied rooms on the first floor,
and Mr.. Rhodes had a bedroom on the
third.
In the course of that afternoon Miss
Martha Marrable, accompanied by her
nieces, and followed at a respectful distance
by the two maids, walked in the sunshine
upon the hard sands that stretch, for l do
not know how many hundred yards at low
water, between the rocky hills behind the
little town and the margin of Cardigan
Bay. The weather was hot n sultry,
and the unrippled sea looked like molten
lead in the glare. Much exercise was
therefore out of the question; and ere long
the three ladies sat down on the seaward
| side of a rush-grown sandhill to read,
leaving the two maids to stroll farther if
they chose to do so, and to explore at their
leisure the unaccustomed N of the
seashore.
Miss Martha having arranged her sun
shade to her satisfaction, opened a little
volume on "The Rights of the Slaves of
England" while Lucy devoted herself to
n of Ouida's novels, and Amy plunged
deep into Keats. In five minutes "The
Rights of the Slaves of England" fell
heavily to the sand; and in three minutes
more Miss Marrable was emitting sound
which, but that 1 know her to be a woman
| who has no weakness, I should call SHORES.
From that moment Lucy and Amy, as If
by common consent, read no more.
"Lucy," said Amy, mysteriously, to her
cousin, 81 lave seen him."
nave T." said Lucy.
"What a curious coincidence!o
"Not at all. He told me that he intended
to follow u.s."
"Whatl Vivian told you?"
go, mol Bother Vivian! You are always
thinking of Vivian. Imean Robert"
"He here, tool" exclaimed Amy. 81
meant Vivian. saw him half an hou go
with his father"
swell, l advise you not to let Aunt
Martha know too much," said Lucy. "II
she suspects anything she will take US bach
to London this afternoon"
Miss Marrable m uneaSily in bel
sleep. A fly had settled on her chin.
"Hushl" exclaimed the girls in unison
and then they were silent.
Not long afterwards they caught sight oil
two young men who were walking arm il
arm along the sand, a couple of hundred
yards way.
"Lookl There they are!" whispered
Lucy. "Aunt must not see them. We
must go and war; them" And, %stealthily
accompanied by her cousin, she crept away
from Miss Marrable, and ran towards the
approaching figures.
Ineed not describe the greetings that en-
sued. Such things are the commonplace
of seaside encounters between young mer
and young women who have likings fol
each other, and they have been described
a thousand times. Suffice it to say that
l a fauy r,,in,Jtac1 otor nov ond Pohork xrarr
sitting together under the shadow of g
bathing-machine, while Amy and Vivian
were confidentially talking nonsense q
| dozen yards off. More than half an hou1
| elapsed ere the girls returned to Miss Mar
rable; but fortunately the excellent
| spinster was still murmuring sleepily al
| the fly on her chin; and when she awoke
she had no suspicion that she had been de.
| serted by her charges. As she walked
| back with them to the hotel, nevertheless,
as if with a strange intuitive comprehen'
sion of danger in the air, she held forth to
| them upon her favorite topic-the unfath.
| enable baseness of man.; and gravely
warne them against ever allowing them.
| selves even for a single m to enter.
tain any feeling, save one of polite aver
sion to the hated sex.
Thus matters went on for a week OF
more, Lucy and Amy meeting their lovers
| every day in secret, and Miss Marrable
suspecting nothing. Although she knew
Sir Thomas Jellicoe and his son, she
treated them, whenever she encountered
| them, with such freezing courtesy, that
they did not seek her society. As fol-
| Robert Rhodes, she did not know him; an
he therefore escaped her lofty Sights.
But in due time a crisis arrived; anG
order that the full bearings Of the
situation may be properly under
stood, 1 must briefly explain the charac
tiers of Miss Martha Marrable's undutifu
nieces.
Lucy Larkspur has but little romance il
her compositions; she has strong feelings
but not much sentiment; and she is n o
those girls who are perfectly open will
their hearts. She loved Robert Rhodes
and, as she knew quite well that he also
loved her, she made no secret to him of hel
affection for him. Amy Allerton, on tn,
other hand, is, and always has been, senti
mentally inclined. She believed, rightly
or wrongly, that it is a very charming
thing to
Let eoncealment, like a worm i the bud,
Feed on her danIask cheek;
and she would as soon have thought of per
hitting Vivian Jellicoe to think that sh.
The Sultan of Turkey. The consequence
was that Miss Marrable. who fondly i'm
agined that she knew all the Thoughts OF
her elder niece, trusted her much NOR,
han she trusted the younger. She regarded
Lucy as all open book that might be easily
lcdu uilu LII % q h1lO u idCuldr VOlCl
that, while saying, or appearing to say on,
thing, might mean exactly the opposite
Miss Marrable was destined to discove
that she was to some extent wrong in he
estimate, so far, at all events, as Lucy wa,
concerned; and her discovery of her erro
was, 1 grieve to say, accompanied by
good deal of pain and modification.
Ten days ~hadpassed, andthetwo pairs O
lovers had made considerable progress
Amy, it is true, had not declared hersel
to Vivian, who, being a bashful younj
man. had, perhaps, not pressed her sufi
GENTLY; but Lucy and Robert understoo,
one another completely, and were s~ecretl,
engaged to get married at the earliest OF
portunity. Vivian's bashfulness could not
however, endure for an unlimited time
One morning, he and Amy found then
selves together OF the rocks behind tn
town, and the opportunity beingfavorable
he screwed up his courage, told her that h
had never loved any one but her; and oil
tained a coyly given promise that sh
would ha his