Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1891-01-31

/ NohaioitdDie CcfHeT- IldCe WHICH JQe
! youthful professor had secured for her;
: and then, as her eye caught the square
shouldered back of check, coated man
in the distance, she added, mentally:
THAT looks like nice man. His hair
is cut beautifully short, AMI he's got
brown neck and properly ironed collar.
He reminds me of poor Dick.
But, directly after, the train steamed
out of the station and Lady Loveday's
"reminiscences came to an end. She had
to make conversation with her cicerone
for the day, and whole carriageful of
other people. By the time they had
arrived at the pits mouth and were
waiting their turn to go down, Lena was
not sure that she wanted to engage in
such periloas experiment.
Only quarter of the trainful of PEG.
pie could be accommodated under the
shed which covered the shaft, the rest
were waiting outside. Finally, however,
she was jammed with some seven or
eight other people, including her sclenti-
tic admirer, in the baize- covered bucket,
and was emptied out, after an uncanny
descent through black void, into the
brown-walled cavern at the bottom. The
mine had been decorated with thousands
of candles in honor of the event, and each
visitor was provided with tallow dip
stuck into wooden handle. Down in
the depths of the mine the Scotch pro-
fessor waxed confidential.
"This man is getting BORE thought
Lady Loyeday, ~ must really evade him
somehow" and with another turn
of the rock she managed to slip away
from him. Candle in hand, she followed
group Of people in front of her. Pres
emily one of the party-the young man
whose back she had seen on the platform
stopped, and, with an action which
she rec ognized at once, struck match,
stopped his head, and lighted cigarette
"Why, it is Dicki" she murmured;
and just then he turned and saw her.
81 thought you were in-Afghanistan,"
she went on, hurriedly, as he stood gaz-
ing at her.
$50 / have been, for the last two
years. That frontier business took
longer than l thought. And youl"
Lady Loveday blushed and looked
down. Here was an adventure after her
own heart. She was curious mixture
of practical wor'dliness and theoretical
sentimentality, She had liked him, hand
some, penniless Captain Bramwell, more
than any man she had ever known, aud
newell, she was quite aware he had
worshiped the very ground she trod on,
But all that was three years ago, and In
three years there are many changes.
Il saw you the other night" he CON
tinted, presently; ''you came in an aw-
fully fetching cloak, with white, fluffy
thing round your neck. I've been trying
to find you out ever since, but nobody
that asked could tell me anything about
Miss Gardner. "
Lady Loveday smiled He did not
know of her marriage, then1 The ca
price took her not to tell him just yet
she wanted, womauike, to sec ii he had
remained faithful all these years.
"Oh, Pm sucl an insignificant person
in the midst of all these bigwigs. :"
Dick smiled back at her-he had
charming sm;le-and they wandered
along together, each with a tallow dip
Pickering and spluttering, and itfully
lighting their handsome young faces. She
had not altered one bit, he said; and she
declared he was as brown as a Hindoo,
and would have to be scraped white.
Time flies when old lovers meet, and
nearly an hour had gone before Dick had
told her that he had come down to the
association to read paper in the geo.
graphical section. Would she come and
hear it, Of course, of couse, she would
Poor old Dick Why, he was just as
hard hit, she firmly believed as ever.
When they at length got back to the
bottom of the shaft, there was not soul
to be seen. The awful truth began to
dawn upon them that they had been left
behind. How easy that might be, with
the five or six hundred people who had
come with the excursion, they both saw
at glance. What was to be donel
Nothing-absolutely nothing. Lady
Loveday turned greenish white as
she leaned against the rock.
''Sir James," she moaned-"Sir
James would never let me die like dog
in a hole"
tsir James3' said Dick, surprised.
'You mean the President? Is he a
great friend of yoursl"
"He is-O my poor Dick!- is-my
husband.' she faltered, not daring to
look at him now. Captain Bramwel
gave little whistle and turned away.
What a farce, aud how like Lena the
whole thing wsts Lady Loveday did
not see him smile.
Forgive met" she murmured, step.
ping nearer TO him, aud, laying caress-
ing hand on his arm. She was very
fond of the drama, and that was always
what they said III plays, when the old
the heroine faithless.
My poor child, he answered grave
'ly, .'1'll forgive you anything-as long
as we ever get out of this pit. V
Lena could hardly conceal her disap-
pointment. Was it possible
possible that he did not care, that he
did not rememberl 1t couldn't be he
bad loved her too WE'LL He must be
pretending, just to look as if he were in
different.
They waited long time, and it was
o'clock before the whirr of the bucket
was heard coming to her relief. An ex-
PLANTATION of Captain Bramwells equan-
unity with regard to her marriage was
afforded Lady Loveday on their arrival
at the top of the shaft. Hurrying toward
the pits mouth was seen Sir James, ac-
companied by pretty girl in blue,
girl whose naive delight at seeing
Captain Brrmwell was obvious to all the
bystanders.
"And who-who is the exuberant
young woman in bluel" queried Lena,
with not quite pretty smile.
"That, dear Lady Loveda,,' said
Dick, quietly. as he handed his COM