Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1886-09-26
absolutely nscssssry that Lady Olivia

e. 1
Mrs. Mountchsstsr says she was des.
psrAtsIy 10 love Of seventeen with wnss-
she called . mere sailor---I believe be
was the third son Of an admiral. Ans-
way, Il came to naught, and Lady Olivia
ffoze up and bad remained frozen up
ever since. She was twenty-seven, and
in tho full prime Of her stately and
rather marmoreal beauty, when she de-
scr,ed Joseph Euston on the far hori-
zon. His blood, Of course, was many
degrees less cerulesn than hers. lie
himself was sfarchy and stiff and tire.
some; but he had money aud was
amensble on the que, ION OF settlements,
80 there was q little preliminary
lowering. and then came an extremely
frieid proposal. Lady Olivia bent her
stately head and accepted the substan-
tisl banker. I. was October now, and
the marriage was fixed for the ealy
spring. Once or twice q week Joseph
called on his intended. They sat in
state In the hartford drawing-rcom, in
Eaton Square. Sometimes be kissed
her band at psrting--it seemed matter
Of supreme indifference to her whether
be X ssed the fan or the hand that held
it-snd they conversed always In this
way Lady Olivia is lying back in her
chair looking very beautiful and bored,
Joseph is seated on the other side OF
the fireplace.
"Olivia." says her lover, "we have
had bad news Of my unfortunate bro
Their"
81 imsgiDe oil news Of him must be
bad" she replies in her level accents.
ait is an extremely painful subject;
need we discuss it?"
81 think must claim your co-opera-
ton" he answers, sin preventing his
return. He is going from bad to worse "
"Tbat is immaterial," says Lady
Olivia. i" so long as he does not return
| home"
"His letter to-day" says Joseph,
ESTATES that he has squsndereG all his
capital and that he is absolutely
starving, ard has taken berth as
farm laborer. lie seems to have asso-
ciated with the lowest"
"Kipdly spare me any details. 1t is
extremely distressing. He is your
brother, unfortunately, but he has long
since been social outcast, and, as you
are aware. it is most painful feature
in our future relationship. | should
prefer dropping the subject"
From which you can see that the
Lady Olivia was possessed, among her
other high qualities, If not exactly of
what Carlyle calls soft invincibility,
still an invincibility Of q very definite
character.
But although this extremely admira-
bic couple found Jack such distress
irg subject and declined to discuss him
las. in fact, society in general did, to
me be was q subject Of undying inter-
est, and am never so happy as when
am talking Of him, either on the. sly
with his poor old father, when Joseph
is safely cut of the wsy,) or quite open
" AZ d ieyfully with his aunt, old Lady
Betty Pimlico, of whom more anon.
Wasn't Jack nv godsOn? wasn't re-
sponsible for half my dear lads sins?
lie was my dear bad lad all through.
Was there ever such scape-
grace? Surely he was possessed by all
the devils of mischief, frolic, riot, and
uproar. His school days we're one long
rebellion he infected the whole school
be was the ripglesder in all mischief.
But how the boys adored him and fol-
lowed him He could wheedle round
the sternest of masters. At last he got
beyond all bounds. In moment OF
utter recklessness be arranged an infer
nal machine composed Of battery |
of bottles Of Bass, which by an in
genious device was timed to open
fire land actually did) upon the head
master in the dead of night as he lay
peacefully sleeping in bed. After that
there was nothing to do but expel him.
I went TO try to make peace, but old
Doctor Turner was infexible. The lad
was demoralizipg the whole school, and
be must 90. But for all that the Doc
tors eyes were full Of tears as he rest
ed his. hands on my poor lads
shoulders and spoke his little fare
well sermon of warning and ad-
vice. So he went home to his
fathers house--be was then fif-
teen. He had demoralized the school
and he demoralized us. He kissed all
the servant girls, and they all dotted on
him; be had four pet dogs and three
horses he was the boon companion OF
all the menservants. know that old
Tomkins, the butler, lent him $50 out
of his little savings, and the very stable
bows would have laid down their lives
for Master Jack. Joseph came back
from Oxford just about then, 1t posi-
bic more decorous than he went. 1t
had been arranged for some years past
that Joseph should enter the bank and
Jack the army; so in few years Jack
became Captain Jack.
1t was one Of the loveliest sights in
all London to meet old Sir Peter am.
bling along Piccadilly arm in arm with
handsome Jack. How the old man
dotted on him! And amid all his vices,
and they were many, Jack had this one
tremendous virtue-he always adored
his father. And nov old Lady Plmlico
drifts into this family history, and she
plays an important part in it.
She was Sir Peters only sister, q
widow, childless, supposed to be
wealthy, and known to be mean. She
lived in little house in Park lsne-a
narrow, lean little house, wedged in
between two big ones. She had the
warmest heart and the sharpest tongue
Of any old lady l ever came across.
Ask her maid Jenkins about the tongue
and leave Jack to vouch for the heart.
/ have several photographs of this
venerable old lady in my album.
Whenever / entertain my friends and
conversation flags my albums are
produced and doom my guests
to the social penalty of gazing
at and saying something appropriate
about hosts q people they have never
known. Every body says, directly they
see Lady Betty's photograph, "Whst
an extraordinary old lady ~ She wore