Milford chronicle., 1889-03-22
ONE LOVE OF HIS LIFE.

inc grounds or hotel at fashionable water
ing place He was in a corner hidden by
dropping vines, and his face expressed deer
and apparently painful thought The re
frain of his sad musing was:
"Only one person in the whole world to
love me, and shall lose even that love nowr n
On the other side Of the summer house, di
gided from the side the old gentleman occu
pied by a rustic partition, two ladies, young
and fair rustled in, and taking out some
fancy work, settled down for chat
One was tall, aud dressed in a pretty cos
tune, that was at once youthful and ma
sronly; the other was petite, blonde, and not
moro than eighteen Mrs. Courtland spoke
first.
Embroidery, Alicefo she said. "a hand
kerchief corner. For your trousseauG"
] Yes, and the sweet voice faltered, while
burning blush orimsoned the fair cheek "Is
It not prettyT"
Very. l want to talk about your pros
poets, child. Your Aunt Marcia tells me
you are making n splendid match"
Did shea l think So Blanche. Malcolm
is SO noble and good and a true Christiann
But your aunt tells me he is tho favorlte
nephew Of the great oil merchant, Hiram
Bates, whose wealth is something enormous
You have only to help him play his cards
we'll and he will probably be heir to n mag
nihcent fortune. But what ails youi You
BOX as if was telling you piece of news. -
Il think Aunt Marcia has been misin-
formed that is ALL"
"Then he is not Hiram Bates nephewl
Il never heard him speak Of a rich uncle,
and am quite sure he has no hope of inher-
iting money. He has good salary, and my
little fortune will buy and furnish n small
house, so we can make a comfortable, and, I
hope, a happy home"
Did he never speak to you Of his uncleg"
mot Of n rich uncle. He has told me Of a
lame uncle, his mothers brother, who has
been very kind to him, given him his oduca-
tion and a start IN business. He always
talks Of him with the deepest love and pity"
"Pityw
He suffers tortures from the effects Of a
fall that has lamed him for life and often
causes him weeks Of ngonizing pain. Nal
colin tells me with tears In his eyes of his
fear Of losing this dearest friend and kind
uncle and think he hopes l may be useful
Sometimes in nursing him"
Il wonder if it is the samela
Tho old man leaning upon the cane was
thinking:
Can it be truel Does Malcolm think SO
little Of my money, that will be his, that he
has never even mentioned it to his promised
wife! Can it be that / shall gain a loving.
tender niece, instead Of losing my nephew,
when Malcolm marriesTn
Loving his nephew so deeply, Hiram Bates
had felt keen pain at the news Of his be-
Tothal. He had never seen Alice Hunter,
but he knew she had been brought up in
circle Of fashion and was the orphan niece Of
one Of society's gayest votaries, Mrs. Marcia
Hayden. He ascertained by inquiry that the
young girl had inherited $4,000 from her
father and that her winters were spent with
her Aunt Marcia, her summers with maiden
sister OF her father. She was quite a belle,
though only in society one season, pretty and
accomplished, and the Old man groaned in
spirit over his nephew's choice.
A belle, and with head full Of fashionable
rnvolity, he was convinced that the girl had
been won by the prospect of Malcolm's heir
ship to his own fortune. He had seen in the
future his nephew estranged from him by the
Influence of dreSsy, empty headed woman,
Or, still more appalling, his niece-to-be max
ng false protestations of affection with q
nope of winning golden favors
While he unused upon the conversation he
lad overheard, the sil very voices of his young
still sounding beside him, there
Tas a sudden crash, something struck him
lpon the head and he lost consciousness.
Cries from the summer house, from groups
If people collected in the grounds, brought
larty of mon speedily TO the spot The rot
en- posts supporting the roof upon one side
lad given way and the side and roof had
allen in. Mrs. CORTLAND and Miss Hunter
we're buried under tho fallen timbers, the
doorway being completely blockaded, but
we're uninjured. Not so the old gentleman,
Who had been their unsupported listener. He .
vas taken out pallid and senseless.
Nobody knew him. He had come by the .
morning train, had taken breakfast, but no .
'oom, and asked the hour for the return .
rain. A surgeon summoned as speedily as
,oSsible announced a broken arm and injury
0 the head, making likelihood Of a long,
edious illness. There was some animated
discussion, some suggestions Of hospital, a
earch through the pockets of the uncon-
cious victim, resulting in the discovery Of
small sum of money, but no letters, papers
r cards, and finally desertion of one and
mother, each going his or her way, with the
reflection:
"lt is none of my business
But when they had all deserted the in
ured man the surgeon, still busy binding up
is arm as he lay upon bench brought from
he ruined summer house, felt a light touch
n his hand, and looked up, to see a little
gure in mourning, with sweet face, very
ale.
"Can help youl" Alice Hunter asked.
mo, child. not now.n
"What viii they do with himP
II suppose he must go to a New York
ospital"
"But the ride-the Journey
"Will cause great additional suffering, per-
APPS result in DEATH"
Doctor, will they keep him here if he Is
aid forT7
Certainly; but there is not money enough
bout him to pay his board a week.
II will pay itl'
"Your
Eyes; will not let him die for want of
loney have. Hen-and her lip quivered-
he looks like my dear father who is deadr'
"H'm-yes. Here come the fellows to
lrry him to the station. l think will have
i'm taken to the little cottage where board.
will cost less and be more quiet
Mrs. Courtland declared Alice was outrag-
ig the proprieties most dreadfully when the
oung girl went to the cottage and offered I
1k HeINACeo Us uulse 70 Tue QoclQIs DQB Aunt
ophie silenced comment by moving her be- ,
ngings from the hotel to the quiet boarding
0use, and the doctor found he had valua-
10 assistant.
Alice explained in her quiet, low voice that !
r father was i'll for nine months before he !
ID, and she was his nurse. This accounted
r the noiseless woolen dresses, the velvet
ID feet, the quick eye and ready hand, and &
len the sufferer recovered consciousness,
. gentle voice and tact that quieted him in
roxysms Of pain and fever Aunt Sophy
IS too much Of an invalid herself to help {
she sat beside the bed while Alice moved S
and fro, made dainty soups and tempting c
hes, and performed all nursing duties. z
The invalid had one long talk with the doc q
and then submitted to the gentle minis
Ition Of the two women, only insisting upon
nan the doctor provided being with him at ]
,ht and within call
The season was over, and only these three t
NAMED Of the summer boarders at the lit c
cottage, when one cool October day the '