The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1889-09-25
HOW MY WIFE DIED.

words, Inez Argent will be your wife be-
fore another six months have come and
gone"
laughed when Harry Archer said this.
and thought OF two pretty blue eyes and a
round. rosy, smiling face far away in a
little country town.
mo, no." ! replied, with decided
shake of the head, ''Inez viii marry a
rich man. Besides, speaking candidly,
she is not the sort OF woman / admire"
''She is not the sort OF woman whose
fascination you could resist, Bert She adj
mires you. That is enough. Her eyes
will do the rest"
"What on earth do you mean, Harry"
1 asked perplexedly.
Nothing" and he smiled mysteriously.
"Wait until you know more OF lnez than
at present. 1 pride myself on my power
of reading character in faces. You will
not be able to resist loving Inez Argent,
set yourself against her as you will.
"But," | demonstrated, my affections
are already engaged"
"Stuff and nonsense! At all events, if
they are you will soon forget it. | tell
you, Bert, it is fate. can read it in
Inez Agents eyes. You must and will
marry her"
had seen very little of Inez when
Harry spoke thus to me. When next |
saw her | took more notice of her than l
had done previously. She was staying
with her cousins, the Agents Of Newton,
for a few weeks, and | also was on visit
TO them. Jack Argent and | had been
great college chums, and REGULAR y once a
year went TO Newton to do little shoot
ing In the well-stocked Newton preserves.
There were other visitors in the house be-
sides Inez and myself, Harry Archer being
one of them. Why he should have spoken
as he did about Incz-connecting her
name with mine in that manner could
not understand. / had never spoken of
her to him, and l certainly had taken
very little notice of her. Ii anything,
had rather sighted her, and singled out
the youngest daughter OF my host, Jacks
sister, for special attention.
After Harry's remarks, however, re-
solved to know more OF lnez. prlded
myself on my power of resisting fascina-
ton in women. My heart was leo l
thought so wholly and thoroughly given
to certain country lassie that no other
woman in the world could have any at
traction for me.
At first sight had not considered Inez
beautful-rather the other way in fact.
She seemed to me ''all eyes" But when
came to know her better to watch her
more closely, to see her flushed and ex-
cited, and all life and animation, | altered
my opinion.
shall never forget that night on which
the full force of her beauty took possession
of me. She was half reclining on couch
NJ p11 Of
crimson plush, cut low and revealing her
exquisite neck and arms. Her hair, which
was of soft, golden brown, was coiled
high on her prettily poised head, and two
| diamond stars were placed Just above the
center OF the forehead. Her face was
/ flushed with the daintiest of coral pink
| tints, and her eyes sparkled like twin
stars. They were really violet eyes, but
! by night, yelled with their long, jetty
/ lashes, they seemed almost black. One
fault only could | find, and that was that
her mouth was a trife large. Still that
fault-if fault it could possibly be-was
redeemed by the whiteness and regularity
! of her teeth.
| stood, as it were, spellbound before
/ her. Gould it be possible / had been in
! the same house as this divine creature for
/ four whole days and failed to acknOwl-
|
my admiration in nv face, for, raising her
eyes, she smiled.
"Well, Mr. Meredith. she said in a
curiously low yet dreamy voice, you
/ don't mean to say you are actually COM
/ ing to talk to me. don't think you have
| addressed more than a dozen words, and
those of the most ordinary kind, to me
/ since you have been here"
The corner of the room in which we
| then were was deserted by the rest of the
/ company. Jack Argent had brought out
! a whole heap of photographs-views of
foreign countries, portraits of notabilities,
etc.-and was entertaining beyy of ladies
and gentlemen at a table by the window
with graphic descriptions of places he had
visited and people he had met during a
! long tour from which he had only recently
! returned.
dropped down on the sofa beside Inez
! Argent.
IL think l must have been in dream
ever since ! have been here" I answered
softly. 81 am wide awake enough now
though, and / humbly apologize if have
treated you with what might have seemed
studied neglect"
"0h, no." and she smiled and began
languidlv tanning herself. Il did not
think you neglectful. | know, of course,
there are so many other ladies in the
house | could not expect any attention to
be paid TO a poor cousin like me. But,
! Mr.. Meredith" and she touched my arm
gently, you cannot tell how grateful
am that you have come to talk to me now.
/ am very unhappy"
Unhappy! you!' and I drew a little
nearer to her. "Is it possible?"
1T is. My life has never been very
happy. And now," here her voice be-
came tremulous, 81 am in great distress.
/ should like to ask your advice. can
not appeal to my uncle vet. Will you
help me P
The man who could have resisted the
pathetic appeal in those glorious eyes,
and in those gentle, tremulous tones,
would truly have had heart of adamant.
II will help you if l can, certainly" l
replied. 81 shall only be too pleased to
do anything in my power for one who is
so beautiful"
She frightened up wonderfully at that
compliment, and certainly looked any,
thing but UNHAPPY, as, acting on her sug-
gestion, we went out onto the terrace
together. This terrace ran along the
whole side of the house, and the drawing
room windows opened onto it,
An how swiftly forgot all about Elsie
Maybrick, my little country lassie! This
magnificent woman at my side was a
woman whom a man might be proud to
love and 10 be loved by. Elsie's blue eyes
xvora DoyvharQ aop,rarod IN thooa 1aox