The clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1883-1888, 1886-05-19
BOOK TWO.
LADY BE4UTY's SISTERS
CHAPTER L
-ur p1rTrpr

I
my old friend put me in position to relate
| this story. / more than once ventured to re-
/ mark that he had surprising acquaintance
| with a number Of facts and conversations
| which b might be supposed to be bevond the
earshot of an ordinary z iGnd He smiled il.
| a very peculiar way. and sa ~ a faint streak
| OF red coming out upon his cheek Then.
/ with & sigh be answers! that / might lie
| satisfied that his story was a truthful one
| How he came TO know 1t 80 fully need rot
| inquire Fhe sadness with which this was
said set me thinking. but Tor thar time !
understood no more.
| Little Mr. Brent returned home that day
| heartily and thoroughly ashamed Of himself
! HIs bitte1est enemy could not have vishes
| him = more huul5Ijlsg fail Being 4 great
| man Tor letter -vritisss,, aud firmly impressed
with the fatal belief thst the large number Of
| human complications can Dc adjusted by cor
respondence. be sat c swn after his dinner to
write an explanation a8G apology to Mrs
4 Temple The nuInss1. of sheets he tore I'd,
| tie enormous variety of openings which hA,
| adopted and cast aside at the fifth line tho
| sheets beginning Dear Madam then my
| Dear Madam" then Dear Mrs Temple
then My Dear Mrs Temple, falling subse-
quently into Mr. Brent ventures 10 present
| his respectful compliments; and besides these
| the Il am overwhelmed with confusion;r 1T
is, assure You. with the most poignant sen
saiions of sorrow = What can sayF' What
can urge in extenuation Of my behaviour
SO many of these were begun, cast aside and
torn up very small, lest any one should find
out what he had been doing, that as the
| night wore on the recaor gradually began TO
| look like man who is being showed up.
| When, at twenty five minutes past four a. m
| after nearly nine hours of unintermitting
/ head work, the apology was finished, there
was not left enough clean stationery in the
| house for washing bill; but in place of il
there were fragments of paper lying on the
! floor sufficient for the manufacture of six
| fuilsized paper pillows With aching head,
yet little consoled withal, the rector STUN
| bled up stairs 10 his weary pillow.
| If he used thousand sheets for his letter it
may be safely computed that one thousand
and one was all that was required for the en-
| tire correspondence Small was the paper
and few the lines of Mrs Barbara Temples
answer
"Deal Alr BrentT-thus il ran-"I have
received your letter of apology, and cannot
| say that il is at all more than the occasion re
quired- At the same time. as you are sensible
of the impropriety OF your behavior, hope
| you viii now forget il. as I shall One stipu-
| lation only make. The subject of marriage
- or indeed any aIlusion to what passed be-
txeen Us yesterday-nust never be made
On these terms YOU arc free to resume your
| intercourse with my daughters and myself
| Truly yours, BARBARA TEMPLE
"A very handsome letter" Mr. Brent said
q shall take her at her word" and after
| lunch he drove over to the house with q
| splendid present Of fruit and flowers, and be-
| ing received II the usual friendly WV by
mother and daughters, and his character be
| ing n slight one, not permanently impress-
| bic, he half forgot tie misery of his exit from
the place yesterday. Only when he first
| spoke to Mrs Temple there was trepidation
In bis voico and manner; bat she was 50 OBJ
viously determined to keep her promise that
! he gradually grew composed. Once only his
courage quite failed him. Caroline, the
student, was reading history, and with that
slight aTectation of intellectual pursuits, from
which not even Ter mothers lectures could
| guard her, she tried 70 call the rectors atten-
| tion to her lofty employment. The question
| she asked him was an unfortunate one. She
was an ardent Liberal, and inquired in a
| pause in the converse ton, If he did not think
that great good had arisen from the French
revolution. The rector was so confounded by
| this iEapposite interrogation that he nearly
tumbled Off his chair
The next day his thoughts were driven into
| from MS son announcing his arrival in Lon
| don, and saying that he would be In Kettle
well at half past four that afternoon. Amidst
| the vexation of the last two DAYS, this was a
| prospect fun Of relief, aud the young fellow
| was received wiki more than a paternal vel
! come. Before dinner vas over, between the
| influence Of meat and wine and the society of
| his son, al acting on q trivial nature easily
moved. the rector was quite comforted. Now
| ha could have faced Mrs. Barbara Temple
| with Jest and look Of pleasantly. At least,
/ 50 he fancied.
Brent junior was 8 good-looking young fel-
| low of three and twenty, with a frank, sim
| pie manner well suited to MS vears Men
/ tally he was much superior to his father, and
| every sentence showed it; but he behaved
| with filial Difference which was pleasant to
| see All through the dinner there was
| touch of preoccupatiou and STen sadness
about him, and upon this his father remarked
| as soon ms they We're alone.
Il hope you have not left any one behinds"
| the father asked humorously.
NO. the son answered, with blush and
laugh. You don't think me quite a simple
| ton in this matter, do youf"
! Wen, Percy, you are young" the sage
| father replied. AT my time of life If a man
| fell in love with a picture, l think he would
be bit of an ass But then l am forty-nine,
| have age and experience, and knowledge of
I the world
you are very kind TO take it in that way
| the son answered u really don't want to be
laughed at"
@ls this wonderful picture in your posses
sioni" Brent senior inquired next.
yes the young fellow answered eagerly
and he was darting up stairs to fetch it.
Pausing on his way, he said: 4 had better
| tell you the story of it first"
He made no bad picture himself, leaning
carelessly against the sideboard, his face and
eyes kindling as he spoke with the delight of
the subject. Little Mr.. Brent regarded him
| with 10 small pride; and the young fellow
| with light bashfuiness which made the
| little narrative the more interesting, told his
story.
Il met an artist out there, and he and be-
! fame great friends. lie fell Ill, and nursed
1 aim. AMI when he wgs getting better, one
lay, to pass the TING, he asked nc to look
| over his portfolio Tuere was great deal in
{ for which care'i nothing; hut iast at the
md h, drew ont a lit:la sketch of : girl
head and shcullers-Eith border Of simple
white dres, and, as thought the lCFeliest
lace | ever saw. / was quite dumb as ]
looked at IL, and there and then. father
fell in lore: and / declare TO you l felt that
even if this wer-an We're Only painters
ldeai still, 80 had she oaptivated ne, that
-ouid never give nv heart TO any living
woman The memory OF this picture would
cossess me- and would hang, as it were,
above the living face. and rebuke it's irapeT
fections You are not laughingFf
II am forty mine. Percy. the father said,
With the ealnness of wisdom ~You are
| twenty-four"
Wen, | shall not trouble you with long
I - Ar
for me, nv friend was lying on a couch, and
did not perceive my agitation. or he might
have laughed me cut OF ths dream | found
the sketch represented q real living girl-a
real living girl. father unmarried, English.
and. best OF all, living not far from here. I
asked for the picture, which he gave me
readily Cuiously enough, he did not seem
; ! to see in 1t the superlative beauty which
: saw Oh. how I hung over that picture, How
! I idolized it. II was near me night and day,
and at every glance my love for the original
increased Father, that Is the woman ] shall
marry, R ever marry at all =
sYou must see what her character Is
: Percy the father said 4And we must make
few inquiries about faInily-and property
Her origin must be reined!T the lover
cried Her character eculd be nothing but
: the noblest. As for property-property.- -
E give me that girl and | shah work hard
! enough to earn q woridis
/ | So saving, he ran up stairs, and In q mo
/. ment returned, bearing the precious picturs
wrapped up in folds Of silver paper With
4 | trembling haste, but with more than womanly
/ care, he put back one smooth sheet after an
: other until the cardboard lay On the tabl,
face down; then, drawing . long breath, b.
turned the picture up before his father
@There, he murmured. ss,et her plead hel
own cause
I At the same instant his father uttered Al
exclamation OF surprise.
81 AWhv Percy > he said s1fhis Girl Is a frient