The Penn's Grove record., 1885-07-04

OI Illt INE0y dilh u AIAh ohhphHbiJ fNN
ant to hold in my own capacious paw.
| wished it had been the left; | did so
want to know whether she wore a we'd
d%ing-rlng.
Good. bye" she responded. 81 do
hope your friend will be much better
tomorrow. And II hope you Will
forget my rudeness."
"PIease don't say another word about
| that" | broke in hastily. THE fault
was mine, If any ones; and | have had
| such a pleasant drive. May | bring
my mother to call upon your"
"Oh, yes, if you llkel Good night,
Mr.. ShiEleyl"
Good night, Miss" [ could not
finish; 1 did not even know II she was
Miss OF Mrs.
The carriage door shut, and she was
taken away quickly from me, while |
walked to the house thinking-to my
shame, be it confessed-more of her
than of poor old Jerry. | could not of
course be smitten with "A girl whom /
had known only for an hour-a girl too
who wore her hair esthetlcally short
and wdvy-a fashion | always strongly
condemned. How often had praistd
| Grace Castlemaine's silken dark plaits,
and warned her against ''fringeS and
other innovations Of modern culture. y
Yet Grace had never had the power to
STIR ia me the queer feeling l expert
enced as | stood gazing idly down the
road along which Doctor Fairholme's
brougham had disappeared.
Gerard was better. My heart was
full of praise and thanksgiving as |
walked briskly along III the sunshine,
with nay dog at my heels, on my way
to the La6urnums-the LaburnunS was
where Doctor Fairholme lived. | had
driven my mother over to the Castle
maines' early in the morning, and we
found Gerard so much better that the
doctor said he would go home ana rest
IA bit; and presently my mother and
Grace wanted a MISUNDERSTANDING
about medicine-taken to him; and,
with wonderful aIacrity, | volunteered
to go.
too young to be married, p" lsald to my
self. "Besides, if Fairholme IS a mar
ried man. | call it beastly the way he
behaves to Oracle. | shall make it a
point to find out; but of course she'll be
out. Women always are out when you
want them to be in; and Uice UerSa."
SO thinking, | strolled up the lane to
the Laburnums, pushed open the wicket
gate. walked up the pretty winding
path which led to the house and caught
sight of a slim girlish figure training
the roses up the porch,
Yes; it was shell She was in white.
If girls only knew how nice they look
\ white, j believe they would always
veal 1t. But | suppose it is expensive
at least Grace always says 80. My un
known was looking full at me Her
dress was of some soft material, and
she wore an amber sash; her hair was
ruflied by the wind, and her arms were
raised TO Irvine up the tendrils of the
roses. Why was 1t that my first feel
ing vas one of Disappointment lcould
not tell. To begin with, she seemed
rather taller than | had imagined her
to be, also older. On the previous night
| should have guessed her to be eigh-
teen; now she looked two or three and
twenty; and her eyes, which somehow
| had guessed to be only deep, not dark
we're dark brown, almost black, in
point Of fact. However, she was sur
prisingly pretty, graceful as a willow,
and with a very pretty arm and hand.
1 raised my hat with a half smile, hop
ing for "a CLEAN of recognition. There
was one
81 hope" quoth /, "that you don't
feel any the worse for your long drive
last nightp"
"Oh, no." said she, as if suddenly
recollecting herself-''that is, you are
Mr.. Shirley"
Yes. | have brought a message for
yourxfor Doctor Fairholme, and | am
very pleased to be so fortunate as to
find you at home"
Sh, aade me "A little bow. | suppose
with hJr foot on her own threshold,
she felt secure; certainly her manner
was more confident than it had been on
the proceeding night She tossed her
gardening-s scissors into a basket and
united her apron.
81 am very pleased to see you Mr..
Shirley wont you come into the draw
ing-room? Yes, we had quite al ad-
venture last night had we notp"
She laughed brightly. Her laugh
anu ucI fOitO Was HhibC ohShhoh6Cu W
the transion from moonlight to sun
light. Erect and handsome, she led
the way into a tiny cosy little drawing
room from which the sunlight was al
most excluded. 1t was sweet with the
fragrance of roses, my feet sank noise
lessly into the carpet, and the big wick
er chair into which she motioned me
was the most comfortable | ever sat in.
/ sat, feeling awkward and SHY; she,
on the contrary, was perfectly cool and
| could not help thinking, rather anus
ed. | made a few remarks, to which
she replied appropriately and demurely;
then she made a few remarks, to which
| answered blunderingly and at random
and in a few minutes | rose to go. She
held out her hand to me, standing the
while by a tall prize DieH chair OF which
her left hand rested. Quick as
thought | glanced down at il. Yes
the third finger was encirclet by a plain
thick band of gold protected by a pearl
hoopl She was married.
"Good-bye," / faItered. "You will
remember to give my message to the
doctor, Mrs.-is it Mrs. Fairholme9"
She bowed a smiling aequiescence;
ana L IOuHu myself OuCo ulOio ouI III
the sunshine with Roswal at my heels.
What a different place the world
seemedl l felt like a man just waken-
ed from a delicious dreaml Who would
have thought that one drive in the dark
together would have been enough to SO
thoroughly upset meme, Hal Shirley,
who had lived six-and-twenty lrrespon-
sible years without having been once
In lover And now | had fallen despe-
rately in love with another mans wlfel
1t was preposterous; the idea must be
forcibly put out of my great stupid
headl
Fortunately Jerry was too i'll for me
TO conhde in him, | must keep it quiet,
But was not the doctor attempting to
make love to Oracle? The idea made
me tingle with indignation. half
looked on her as my property, and
was certain that that infamous doctor
was attempting to iirt with her. And
with such a cTeAture for his wife too.