The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1891-12-27

him quickly. Her fathers manner touched
her deeply. The lamplight falling on his
head showed the paris where his hair was
thin Che which il he had but known would
have incenSed the Colonel greatly, and
something in the inert stOop of the usually
erect figure gave him a curious appearance
of incipient old age.
The girls soft heart was throbbing with
pain. She kne!t down beside her father
and took up the dropping hand. what is
it,dear?" she asked softly, stroking the hand
gently
at is the story of the one eve lamb, my
child" he said, still in the same panied
voice. They want TO take my Trix from
me, and l must not be selfish and refuse to
let her 60"
''Oh, no. fatherT she cried. the rich color
spruging to her smooth cheeks. In her con-
fusion she knew not what she wished she
only saw that her father, her idol, was un-
happy. and she felt it was in her power 10
save him misery.
'Ah, but yes!" murmured her father de-
prccatlnsly. You must not think OF the
poor, lonely old man. You must go away
aud be happy. OrmistOn tells NE he loves
you and has good hopes of winning you,
subject to my consent, which | give, my
DEAR for l can deny you nothing. Only it
Is hard to lose you, my one companion"
And then an awful thing happened For
the first time in her life Irx saw tear in
her fathers eye-a tear that ran down his
GubShS anu lOSl llSctl III Tue gIlLL Ell lus-
tache!
She had known him to suffer grefs, but in
silence, stoically. How great, then, must be
this grief Il was too much for the girls
self-cOntrOl. She lost her head completely.
Father" she cried with n sob that seemed
to rend her heart, "do not weep. | beg of
you, do not; l cannot bear to see you. |
will not leave you yet-not until mother is
stronger, ii even then. You must write
and tell Ralph so. Tell him it is from no
z.
not ashamed to say that | love him. Tell
him that / will never look at another man,
but cannot leave you"
God bless you, my dear" said the
Colonel There was just suspicion of re-
lief in his voice, but his manner was still
chastened by the remeni brance OF the agony
he had gone through. 81 Will rite to him
at once" sad the Colonel "Of course he
will suffer; no one could lose my Trix
without suffering, but it will be best for him
TO know at once"
Trix's lip quivered. Ralph's pain was
thing she could not bear to dwell on either;
but both she and he we're young and must
sacrifice themselves for the old, whereas
her poor old father had suffered SO much
already.
her to him and kissed her tenderly and
would have caused her to stay, but some
how she felt that she did not feel quite at
ease with MIN, she knew not why, and she
loDSeu 10 De alone ana tnIDk over the letter
she was about to send Ralph; perhaps, too.
to cherish the remembrance of his last
words to her; to burn few grains at the
altar Of the ''might-have- been" She walked
along blndly, weeping gently all the while,
and stumbled against her mother, who was
standing erect and very white at her own
bedroom door.
What is it, Trix?" she cried almost
fiercely.
Il have made a mistake" said the girl,
COMPOUNDED by her mothers unexpected
vigor, and feeling the necessity of jusiifying
herself to her. Il cannot leave my father
and you for any man"
rs not one victim enough for him, then ?"
asked the other bitterly.
"Mother" cried Trix in n panied voice
other it is all mistake, | tell you. |
love you better than Ralph; | am about to
write and tell him So"
Then you will be untrue to the best in
stincts Of wOmanhood," answered her
mother quickly; then, with a gesture of
despair. she added: ''And it will avail Won
naught. 1t will satisfy him for so short a
time. aud you will have sent away the kind
est soul that ever loved womanv'
IL