Weekly commercial herald. (Vicksburg, Miss.) 1884-18??, 1886-03-12

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sble; they would MARI naturally in their
own rank, which has so long been kept con-
eealed from them. Right-minded young
men, be went on, would not require 10 be
reminded Of a thing 20 obvious He Is, In.
deed, a delightful old man"
what did Norah sayl'
"She looked at her father, who laughed
As for me, ! made a little speech. / said
that Norah and | were above all things de-
sirous OF pleasing our parents-which il
quite true, isn't it3 so long as our parents are
reasonable and try to please us. : But mar
riage is a thing, | added, which Is so curl
ously personal in is nature that the most
flial sons and daughters are bound to con.
slider themselves first Therefore. I said
that Norah and / intended to continue our
engagement, and to complete it as soon as
we possibly could, even if we had to trample
on al the distinctions of rank
Calista sighed. II wish this dreadful title
had never come"
80 dol A white elephant would have
been much more useful. One might at least
kill him and dissect him, and put his bones
together in the back garden. l should like
to have a white elephant But what can be
done with a peerage when the income re-
mains the same, and you have got to GO on
dispensing your own m~edicinesT'
But is there nothing at ala 1t mi be
an extraordinary ~peerage."
There is nothing, your father tells me-"
"Ihen am sure the best thing to do will
be to make no difference at all, and to 90 on
as II nothing had happened. What does
Daffodil sayF"
He takes it pleasantly, after his manner.
and laughs at it. In fact, no one would take
1t seriously if it were not for Uncle Jo,eph.
who has got a fixed idea, which he has com
munlcated TO your mother, that every title
is accompanied by a princely fortune. 1t
appears that at the hospital there is
come excitement over the event. They
haven't had an honorable at the hospital for
a long time, and they naturally desire to
make much of the title. So they have
raised his rank, and he is now Baron Daffodil
Viscount Daffodil, and even Earl DafRodil
and while we were taking our cold mutton
and pickles a post card came for him adj
dressed to the Right Honorable and Right
Reverend His Grace the Duke Daffodil."
And what does your mother say, HughF
"She says everything that is kind, ord
something that is surprising"
And then the young man began talking
about himself, and Of the time, not far dis
tant, when he would buy a practice and set
up for himself, and start that partnership
with Norah, and combine the serious work
OF a physician with l%ovemaking, which
should be as blackberry jam to dry bread,
or Soyer's sauce to cold mutton, and should
turn the gloomy doctors house-presumably
in Old Burlington street or Saville row.
into a palace Of e%nchantment.
Calista was a good listener, and she heard
itau with answering smile and sympathetic
eyes, and the young man, in his selfish hap
piness, accepted her sympathy and interest
In his fortunes as if they were things due to
him. Everybody used Calista in this
fashion.
But the babies, watching their long talk,
grew suspicious. They were neglected. This
young gentleman, whom they knew because
twice every day he bent over their cribs,
was not a baby. Why did the sister waste
her time upon him9 So great and so wide
spread was the uneasiness. that they first
began with the cough preliminary already
alluded to, and then with one accord burst
into that wailing which was familiar to
Virgil from his acquaintance with the hos
pital near the Porta Navalis.
1t was just what you would expect of
a man that, at such a juncture, should
meanly run away, and leave the babies to be
wrestled with by the sister. This is what
Hugh did.
He went to his private room, a snuggerv
whittier the babies could rot follow him. and
where he proposed to spend the short re-
mainder of the morning In an easy chair,
with a book in his hand to assist meditation
on the virtues and graceS Of a certain young
LADY. he did not immediately carry out
this intention, because there was a visitor
occupying the one easy chair in the room.
why, Dickp said Hugh. II did not ex-
pect to see you here today"
The visitor was a young man about his
" age. When Hugh opened the door, he
was sitting with his head bent and his face
net in deep gloom. But he fastened to put
on a smile-rather a weak and q watery
smile.
II had nothing to do this morning, and so
] took the omnibus to the Bank and walke
over"
Are you come to congratulate me, DickT'
mo, I'm not. Daft told me about the en-
gagement. I suppose you know you've cut
me outf Did she tell you how she'd refused
meg
mo. l have not talked aboutprevious as
~pirants."
"Yes; 1aske1 her to marry me. Half a
dozen times l asked, and she refused-that's
all wei, III congratulate you if you like.
But ought TO have been told by some OF
them that you were in the field. Idon't like
being kept in the dark"
There has been no keeping in the dark.
because l only came into the field, as YOU
call it, four days ago"
"Weu-when are you going to get mar.
riedP'
Dick looked as if a doubt might be raised
as to this assertion.
u don't know. Perhaps we NAV have IN
wait some time. must find out first. what
my mother will be able to do for me. I
haven't seen her yet since our engagement
and l don't know how she will like Norah
What is the matter, Dick3 You look pretty
bad this morningl II you weren't such a
steady file, l should say you had been drink.
ing and keeping late hours"
Dick Murridge was at most times a young
man Of gloomy and somber aspect. At this
moment he looked as if sunshine would have
no place in his c%ountenance at all; his face
was pale, and his hair black and straight:
his eyes were black and set back in his head.
he had a short mustache; his mouth was set
and hard; he never laughed except in the
primitive and primeval manner Of laughing.
namely, when anybody suffered some griev-
Gus misfortune, or when he was able to say
q rnnIr LinnA-aanhla 49, - :.