San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1890-11-17

DuG uOW dll ILLS was ONeI-lJ udu ultu
out Of her, she did not know when or
how, and she never wished that he had
been born in position like her own;
seemed to her finer thing by far that
he should have lifted himself up by his
own worth to the place he filled than
that he should have been born to fill it;
she had become so blindly loyal to him
in that foolish impulsive little heart of
hers that she would not have changed
him in any jot or little, if she could
have done it, by word or wish.
AS these winter weeks went slipping
OH the time began to grow very near
when he should have to go away, and
the thought of this departure of his
used at moments to brighten her; but she
was young, she was naturally hopeful,
she had a power of turning away from
things that gave her pain. She said to
herself Once-"Even if he goes away,
and never thinks of me or comes back
any more, it will be better to have cared
for him than to be loved by anybody
else in all the world" She said this one
way, can hardly say that she felt any
other pang of remOrse at all.
In fact, | have on the contrary to re-
cord that she went home from this
mornings chance interview with Mr..
Gilbert more comforted and cheered-
to judge by appearanceS-than she had
been by any thing else that had happen
ed since Esther's flight. Nay, even in
deed consciously comforted and cheered.
For it does one good to speak to a
man-at least to some men. Women
are so foolish; they get into such way
of making fuss about things, thought
Gabrielle to herself; and it was no doubt
this feeling flor, of course, she enter
tanned natural unwillingneSs to OBJ
trude so uncomplimentary an opinion
upon her sister and Aunt SuSan) that
prompted her when she arrived at
WreXham to make so very slight men
ton as she did of the fact that she had
walked to the village with George Gill
bert.
''Imet Mr.. Gilbert when was out
TO-DAY, when was out in the morning,
l mean," she merely said. And then all
at once-''Oh, Nelly, are you not doing
that work wrong2" she exclaimed
hastily, making sudden diversion to
the subject of her sisters embroidery,
who, doing fancy-work to perfection,
was up in arms in moment in defense
of herself; and in the discussion that
followed nobody thought of George Gill
bert any more. AT least Helen did not;
if Gabrielle, did, that was her own con-
Germ.
Foolish Gabrielle, who had told him
her secrets, but did not know that he
had not told her his! For, as she talk
ed to him, and specialized over the
mystery that enveloped part of Esther's
life, he never by syllable diminished her
curiosity, nor said to her-''I know her
story" He had promise Esther to keep
her secret, and it never occurred to him
as even a possible thing that he should
betray her: it would have been contrary
to the mans whole nature to have done
it, even by single hint,-and though
Gabrielle was more to him than Esther
was, a thousand times.
"Why should you puzzle yourself
with it, or try to understand it?' he
merely said to her once. Better take
your uncle's word for her. If you love
her, you will find it easy to trust her
too"
And from this she could not suspect
thing which she did not know herself.
Gabrielle Lynn had come by this
time, in rather an odd, half-unconscious
way, to mind good deal what George
Gilbert said to her; she had begun Curl
ously to adopt his opinions, and to think
that she liked what he liked, and was
Indifferent to what he was Indifferent
to. She had slipped into the way of do
ing this in large degree because he
had fattered her by talking to her. He
had grave way of talking that was
little formidable to light creature like
Gabrielle, and yet, to vain creature,
when it was addressed to her, singular
ly soothing and gratifying too. For so
few people considered that she could
care for or understand anything like
serious and thoughtful talk, and yet
this man never seemed to doubt that
she could understand it, and he had
given it to her when they were together
quite simply and as matter of course,
till he had made her more grateful to
him, and more proud of his good opin-
ion of her, than either he, or she herself,
well knew.
During the last month or two, may
also as well say here, there had been
growing up in Gabrielle's mind re-
markable sort of senSitiveneSs with re-
gard to Mr.. Gilbert. She had lost the
greater part of her own original feeling
as to his being in any sense her equal;
but she had grown singularly,-and, as
one would have said quite gratuitOusly,
-thin-skinned on the subject of other
peoples thinking him their equase so
that, if by any others reference hap
pened to be made in her presence to the
subject of his parentage, accordingito
the tone in which it was done, she was
sometimes half disposed to vince, and
sometimes to blaze up like skyrOcket,
exactly as if the matter had changed
entirely from being a matter of general
and common interest. and had become
one of purely personal and individual