Daily Republican. [volume] ([Wilmington, Del.]) 1874-1890, 1885-12-04
Woman's Power
BY aUINEvER

"Mr. EldridRe, have you seen Miss
Trevanion-Ethel TrevSDion, you
know"
Ernsstine Gaylor was sitting near the
end OF the little wooden pier. wrapped
In a hsecy white shawl, from which
her blonde face shone fair as lily.
You would not think there could be
aught OF malics beneath that smiling
nAss, and eyes Of innocent blue, but
there WIS that In her tone that brought
a Il ash to the face Of Neil EidridRe, and
made the frail little woman beside him,
hts wife, look up suspiciously.
"Miss Trev Anion? ID she here? he
asked, with An assn mption Of indiffsr
erenco.
"Yes, indeei, and more charming
than eyei--at least, they all say, 30,
though u At m ~ be duo 10 the fact that
she 10 row the protege Of Mrs. Halliday
Stevens, with ripping little laugh
that was not echoed by either of her
hearers.
"They say shells q coquette, too,
went on the blonde, Have you ever
seen her since that summer"
Never" Ncil answered, gravely.
"Ah, then Why, she is coming
here now, straight In our direction.
What . regal beauty she isl"
Ernst mes cold, blue eyes turned curl
ously upon the approaching figure
Neil was looking, too, with q dark
shadow in bis eyes, but his wife never
looked away from his face till the wo
man STE had never met, yet whose
presence now gave her a strange sense
of unrest, stood before them, and she
heard her husband say:
Mias TrevaDion, it ID pleasant sur
prise to meet you here. Miss Gaylor, an
old acquaintance of yours, and-this IL
my wife, Miss Trevanion"
Viva Eldridge raised her eyes to meet
the gaze of those other eyes ABOVE, great,
dark, lustrous wells of limpid brown,
whose lashes dropped in q way tina,
was half-scornful, half.nonchalant.
Face to face they stood at last, the
woman he had loved and the woman
Ia had wedded. and what were Mel
Eldri ige's tn d ghts 1t that time nont
could tell.
His wife knew the whole story how,
two years before, he had met Ethel
Trevan!on, then a school teacher in a
country town, and how poverty had
stood between them, and no was not
brave enough then to fight his way, aud
they qusrreled and parted how he
had sought her again, and she was too
proud TO forgive, and lie had welded an
heiress from the South.
She YVES the heiress, and since that
time, two months after their marriage,
when abe had heard the story Of his old
love, there was always dark fear in
her heart, fear that she had been won
for her fortune, that the old tenderness
and regret were not dead yet, that some
day Ethel TrevaniOn would cross her
path, and Ethel Trevanion's shadow
would blot ont all the sunshine OF her
life. Now they had met at last.
She saw, with sharpened gaze, the
graceful, stately form In its white drap-
ings. The costume was of rough, heavy
material, plainly made. and bordered
with strips of black velvet. There was
O scarlet scarf round the waist, and q
bunch Of scarlet roses on the wide,
white hat.
For the rest, WAS own features
were smaller and more regular, but
there was charm in the brilliant tints
of the com plexiou, the expression Of
the eyes, the smile that lowered upon
the full. red lips, that was ~ fascins
ting az it was feeting and incompre
hensible.
Nell Eldridge watched her in sort
of silent wonder. Only two years sincs
they parted, and here before him sal
the modest, plainly-attired,, unassuminG
girl he had loved, transformed into Q
woman of brilliant beauty and sur.
roundings, worldly and experienced.
Mrs. Halliday Stevens was always
partial to me-" she was saying In hel
low, mellow tones. 1t was because
so closely resembled her daughter
who was abroad and, when word
came that Grace WAS dead, she adopted
me, and has been IS . mother evei
since. That was two months after you
left the village, MI. Eldridge."
She spoke the last sentence with hel
eyes glancing up under the sweeping
fringe. There was . hooking light II
them before which his own dropped.
To Viva the new conner was more
| than gracious. She unbent to the deli
cate little woman with her pale fac.
and quiet, gray eyes as she seldom die
| to stran gers, and, against her will, thu
| young wife found herself fascinated.
They walked across the sands to thu
hotel together, Ethel and Neils wife II
front.
As Neil bent forward once to hear I
remark Of WAS, the breeze caught q
waving strand of Ethel's dusky hair
and drifted 1t across b 10 face he start
cd as though 1t had been the lash of ,
| whip. No one saw but blonde Ernes
tine, and she smiled significantly a
she gathered her shawl closer, ant
watched the face of her companion.
| SHELL" said his wife, when they
were alone together. al have hear(
that you-loved Ethel Trevanion be
| fore"
"Do not call up the past" he sait
bending above her with panied lool
In his eyes. will be frank, Viva
did love her."
Better than you loved me ?"
| A" Yes, even better-then," he said II
| low voice. Butt listen, l hav
learned to hold you dearest of all, Viva
believe ne Your love and sweetness
have made me- forget what is now but
fading mt moIy. Will you not be con