Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1889-05-30

extreme, but, scrutinised nearer, there
were indelible marks of suffering and
sorrow upon it, and those it WAS in
reality which gave Dorothy Testers
face its greatest most subtle charm,
as the never-to-be forgotten expert
ences which caused those marks had
lifted her character high above the
ordinary level.
The guests departed lingeringly,
and welcomed TO the end by their
charming hostess; then Dorothy stroll
led hatless out from the window and
across the lawn into walk winding
among the lime-trees.
She plucked bunch of deep crimson
roses as she passed along, and fasten-
ed them in her waistband, and with
just that touch of color to make her
beauty perfect, she came face TO face
with her husband as she turned cor
ner.
my darling!'
Volumes were uttered in that one
ejaculation, and Lord Lester c:asped
his wife in his arms as she happily
ran into them.
"Dear Eberhard,' she said loving
ly, "you are late, or it seems so 10
me-"
"a good seeming, sweetheart; |
came the instant | could get away.
Have you had II pleasant afternocnP"
"Oh yes; a great many people. They
were all very nice"
You think the whole human rAce
nice, don't you, Dorothy"
Il have my prefcrences-I like one
person better than others" saucily
glancing up into his admiring eyes.
lie kissed her for answer, and she
went on, twining her arm in her hus-
bands the while: "Some of them were
talking about the mutiny this after
noon, Eberhard. 1t brought back 80
to my mind those awful scenes"
IL won't have it! You must not
think OF them, darlingrn quickly.
"Ah, but | never could forget! My
husband, do you know what was the
greatest trouble-the keenest pain |
had to bear in all that dreadful time9"
she spoke half shyly, with her earn
est eyes raised, and color on her
cheek.
You bore horrors that would have
killed another woman, like the heroine
you are, my own!'
"But this-this was silly and selfish,
and yet it was the worst. | fancied
you loved poor Elvira still, and pic
tured to myself your marrying her,
Eberhard, and / thought imagined
i fancied things that gave me pain
like nothing else could give. OF
course her death, poor darling, put an
end to everything"
Quickly, firmly Lord Lester spoke,
and as he spoke he stopped dead, and
placing his two hands on his wife's
shoulders, looked straight into her
eyes.
Her life altered my feelings utter
ly. l did love her-I proved that by
all / sacrificed for her. but with that
sacrifice my love expired utterly. Had
you never existed, should never have
turned again to Elvira! She was my first
love, / own. but the last is best He
smiled into the sweet eyes as his voice
| thrilled, and his arm drew the slen-
der figure close to his heart. "1 ou
are my last love, Dorothy-my true
| love; my best, the love which can
never falter or flicker for it is founded
on no attraction of face or form
Though you have all that as no other
woman can have. my OWN, but upon
the ever enduring foundation of deep
est respect and generating esteem.
When l watched you day by day in
that terrible time, darling, l learned
what love akin to worship could be. !
learned to look up to you above all
other women, admire you, adore you
then, my wife; but loved you, ver-
lily believe, from the day in which you
in your sweet kindly tenderness gave
me this he opened his vest and
showed the glitter OF the little crescent
-"the thing that saved my life, Dor
othy-my talisman!'
THE END.