Indian chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1882-1902, 1888-06-21

10 such an ahNirf with what eyei
would they regard itP What would
Miss Douglass think, for whom had
been destined. but who had been d
hobbedehoy girl OF thirteen when had
last seen herP or course she could
care nothing for me; it would be
wound to her vanity at the most;
had never intended to marry her; IhaC
mover consented. in fact; that bony,
shy schoolgirl. with the big eyes ant
lank figure, had never appealed to me
/ had never been able to forgive hei
for stammering and blushing Besides
there had been some rumor that the
Golfers Of the family had suffered dur.
ing their sojurn abroad, and had lost
sight Of them through their own neg.
ligence. But landlady's daughterl
Tho idea would wither all my ac.
quaintances.
However, love not only laughs al
locksmiths, but at ones relations.
When Isunned myself in Estelle's pres.
ence / cared no more for the world $
opinion. or for that of any Van Huy-
sam but myself. than for the inhabit.
ants Of Flatland; but once away from
that subtle magnetism. then my poles
changed. / saw thousand reasons
for giving her up--if one can be said
to give up what one does not possess.
Such thing as a Van Huysam marry
ing out Of his sphere had never been
known in the family annals. But how
did know that Estelle would marry
meP To be sure, II had been quite
certain Of that perhaps should have
hesitated to proceed further The far
of, unattainable. and dim is dear to
the soul Of man-at least till 1t is to
take or leave.
One day, when we were reading "A
new poem together. card was brought
in. Tell MIR. Chester that am en-.
gagged. and can not see him tonight, a"
l overheard her say to tho servant
mir. Chester does not appreciate our
author" she apologized to me, "and
l am not self-sacritcing enough to ac-
cept him in exchange for Browning. {"
1t occurred to me at that time that
there were other young men belonging
to ar.stocratio families who had no fear
of a mesaliiance with a landlady's
daughter, although. to be sure, they
might be simply amusing themselves,
as gilded youth were wont to do. Es-
telle would never go out with me; she
had no chaperon. she said. l wondered
what my sister-in-law would answer
should Iwrite her to chaperon my land
lady's daughter to "Lohengrin." she
who chaperoned only the very elect so
TO speak.
One evening the conversation drifted
into the subject of marriage. Mr..
Chester and some others were present
and led the theme. 81 would marry
the woman l loved" said Mr. Chester.
elf she were a beggar, and my father
disinherited me on the spot"
"Beggary signifies nothing" re-
turned another lone would not ask
has she a dot. but has she blue blood"
IAN ancestral tree, in short, with
more roots than branches" spoke Il
third. As for myself. / confess /
should prefer my wife to belong to the
impecunious old families rather than
to the nOuUedH riehe. Poor Bishop.
how his world came down upon him
when he fell In love with shop-girl,
with neither blood nor bullion, his
mother espcciallyl but Bishop stood to
his guns; 1t must have taken lot of
pluck to weather all he did from friend
and foe"
"You call that pluck3" said Ches-
ter. IL call 1t obstinacy. in his case.
1t was such an easy thing for Bishop
to fall in lovO that he might have
pleased his mother and given up the
girl"
"And what do you think, Mr.. Van
asked Estelle
ZIP think Bishop was a fool; that
ISL mean-there may be exceptional
shop-girls. who have all the refinement
and cultivation, all the traditions of
good-breeding in the world; but
Bishops choice was not one of these.
She was simply beautiful. and he was
a fool to allow himself, at his age, TO
be hoodwinked, so to speak. by mere
flesh and blood"
81 quite agree with you" she said.
l could have bitten my tongue out
when | called Bishop. fool-in fact
the whole converse alton had seemed
to me. and l went away
with a sense of defeat But how could
| tell her that although might draw
the line at the shop-girl. marrying a
landlady's daughter was quite another
affairP Every day. TO be sure. made
up my mind that l would seek Es-
telle no more. that the difficulties in
the case were too great to be sur
mountedi but every day, all the same,
found me beside her, without self
denial enough to resign the infinite
charm Of her presence. and yet too
weak Of will to accept all the conse-
quences Of such an alliance.
You will say that If / could thus /
Judge and weigh circumstances was
not in love. But what is It. when all |
your soul is saturated with thoughts |
Of one being, when you seem to be not !
so much yourself as another The he
roine in "Wuthering Heights" asks:
" DO love HeathcliTe? am Heath /
cliffe;' and so, am sure, felt with |
regard to Estelle. / am certain that 4
In time 1 should have overcome all
obstacles. that the nobility within me
would have got the better Of any mean
pr qualities but every mans nature
Or temperament Is in a manner his
Dwn fate. Had ] not been quite GER
-ain at this time that pleased Estelle.
N spite of her gentle hautour. per-
laps / should have been able to over
come my social scruples sooner. A
ew weeks later was called away on
business. and IL was a month or more
4 10