The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1891-12-19
MERELY AN EPISODE.

Carroll Frere had gone to the
French bal masque. 1t was all very
wearisome to him. He had been to
dozens such balls before, and he
wondered now what he had come
for. 1t was not as it had been when
he was boy it was nothing but a
nuisance, and yet he staid wearied
and disguised, yawn1ng until the
tears came in his eyes, wishing him
self elsewhere and lingering about in
dreary isolation.
The night went by in loud noise,
cank of music, clamor of voices,
rhythmic fail OF feet The fallen
warriors were pushed under benches
or sat bundled in chars, sunk in
heavy slumber From the boxes
laughter tell in silver cadences on
the hubub of the dance beneath and
mingled with the brazen blaring OF
the orchestra Sitting in cor er,
his shoulder pressed against the
gilded grating of an empty box, h s
eyes fastened moodily on the wild
throng, Carroll remained immovable,
prey to cynical reflections. He
seemed 10 himself being Of another
sphere, a reality among phantoms,
or was it, perhaps, a phantom
among realities? So silent was he
that no one notices him in his de-
serted corner, with bis shoulder
against the grating of the empty
box.
In the depths of his reflections,
trembling into the gloom of his
revery, softly breaking the chain OF
his thoughts like the gentle touch OF
beloved hand, came OF a sudden, a
sigh, long, quivering Sigh, almost
sob. Carroll was startled, but he
made no sign. There was some one
in the box, after all. Without NOV
ing his head, he flashed a glance
through the grating out OF the
corners of his eyes. There was a
woman sitting there, quite close to
him. She must have moved from
the back OF the box since he had
come, for he was certain that she
was not there when ne took MS seat.
She evidently had not noticed
him, and believed herself unobserved
In his brief glance Carroll had seen
that she wore black domino and
mask OF the plainest kind ; that her
hands were clasped in her lap, and
that she appeared to be looking at
the dancers. They could not see
her, he thought.
He stole another look al her, and,
as he did so, she sighed again-a
sigh OF WEAKNESS and pain. Then
she moved, and taking up a fan in
her lap began 10 nolselessly fan her
self. The flap of her mask moved
in the faint winno wing all made by
the fan, rose little, then tell. Sud
denly, at a wider sweep OF the fan,
the flap curved upward in deep
wave, and Carroll saw a corner Of
her mouth, and, near 1t, toward the
chin, a small brown mole.
Almost simultaneously she raised
her eyes and saw him looking at her
through the grating. She dropped
the fan and made grasp al the edge
of the mask. Through the two Sits
for the eyes Carroll saw hers, and
though he could not tell whether
they were light or dark, he saw that
they were full OF terror The thought
flashed through his mind, 81 will
know her again" and he knew that
she had thought the same OF him.
The next instant she had Withdrawn
into the back of the box. Carroll
went home wondering about her.
A few evenings later he went to a
dinner at the house of fashionable
lady, who was a relation OF his. ust
before dinner she came to him, and
said
Carroll, | have a favor to ask OF
you My niece Helen, a little
country lass, is in town for the
winter, to stay with her brother who
is going to college. She is under my
wing, and is very young and bash
ful | am going to ask you to take
her into dinner and be kind to her
she has seen SO little society. She
was here moment ago, but has run
away again for something or other.
| will introduce you 10 her when she
comes back
Carroll assured her that he would
be delighted, which had more truth
in it than such remarks usually have
1t would be less trouble to talk to {
young miss like tbs than to more
tried veteran, and il she couldn't
talk he could eat his dinner in -,