The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-07-26

havior is-well, to put things plainly-a
little silly, and people who know no better
might even have accused Lady Strettell of
trying to get up Irritation with her juve-
nile guest. Very likely it may be all
right over here, though" thought honest
Richard Best. What do 1 know about
the manners and customs of fashionable
society ?"
After dinner he had a short talk with
Mr.. Luscombe, whom he found to be
pleasant. manly fellow of the usual sport
ing Anglo-Saxon type, and when he joined
the ladies in the drawing-room he made 3
point of telling Lady Strettell how favor
ably he had been impressed with that
young sprig of nobility.
$50 glad you like him" answered her
ladyship. Harry Luscombe is a dear
boy! Quite one of our intimates, in fact.
You will generally find him here when you
come down to see Us, which | hope will be
very often"
HE isn't too well provided with this
worlds goods, hear"
"No. indeed, he isn't. poor fellow! But
that is no fault of his, you know. Now
tell me what you think of dear Milly."
He was glad to be able to say with truth
that he thought Milly an extremely fasci-
mating young lady. but he was sorry that
no opportunity was given him of mention
ing what he believed to have been one of
Strettell was apparently satisfied with the
bare statement that he liked her STEP
daughter, and, as she had other guests be-
sides himself to entertain, he obtained
little further speech of her that evening.
Nor, for that matter, did he obtain much
speech of her during the ensuing ten days,
although it was his privilege to spend a
good part of each and all of them In her
company. He was made very welcome at
the Wimbledon villa; he was invited to
play lawn tennis; ne was treated as a
friend of the house and he was permitted
on two occasions to escort the ladies to the
theater and to entertain them at dinner
beforehand; but he made no progress with
his suit nor did it seem to have occurred to
Helen that he could have suit to urge.
The funny thing-or at least what seemed
to him the funny thing-was that,
whether he was playing lawn tennis, or
making conversation, or watching from
the stalls the unfolding of a drama which
did not particularly amuse him, the COM
panion assigned to him was invariably
Milly. Young Luscombe (for young LUIS
combe was always of the party) was mo-
nopolized by his potential mother-in-law,
who evidently enjoyed chatting with him,
though 1t was difficult to believe that she
could be blind to the imprudence of giving
so much encouragement to man who had
neither means nor profession. As for
Mllly, her reserve and timidity were not to
be overcome. She was civil and amiable
to Mr.. Best; but, for some reason or other.
she appeared TO be rather frightened of
him, and his tentative efforts to gain her
confidence met with no success at all.
At the end of ten days the Australian
took leave of his friends for a time. He
had to go down to the country on business.
he said to Them and he did not specify the
nature of his business, which was nothing
less than the fulnllment of one of the
dreams of his life. During the whole time
that he had been laboriously heaping M
riches in the southern hemisphere he had
had before his minds eye two powerful.
albeit somewhat vague, incentives to ex-
ertion. The first had, of course, been the
ultimate winning of his only love: the
second had been the repurchasing of
that estate in Berkshire which had
once belonged to his father. and
which was associated in his memory not
only with the irresponsible happiness of
boyhood but with all the hopes and fears
and joys which had attended his wooing
of Helen Lawford And now. by the
lucklest of lucky chances, that estate was
in the market. He was a man of business
and he knew very well what the property
was worth, but rather than lose IL he
would cheerfully have paid three times its
value, so that he did not do badly when
he concluded the transaction at a figure
WHICH was ds satisfactory 10 the vendor AZ
II was TO the buyer.
superstition, as everybody must have
observed, is not incompatible with hard
headedness. Into Richard Best's head
which was considerably harder than his
heart, there had found its way an ira
tlonal notion that if he could go to Helen
Strettell and say, Il have bought back the
old place, | am richer than | ever should
have been in the older DAYS and have not
Tor one moment faltered in my allegiance
TO the old compact" she must straightway
fail into his arms. Then he could exnlain
how he proposed TO contide the manage
ment OF his Australian affairs
to Mr.. Luscombe and thus TO Sc
cure the future bliss of Milly and her
handsome young lover. 1t was with a
view TO the carrying out of this promising
programme that he hetook himself to
Wimbledon after making his escape from
the lawyers, and sanguine man was he
when he found Lady Strettell and Milly
ana young Luscombe sitting on the lawn
Just as he had expected TO md them. be-
meath the shade OF a large Japanese UNI
brella
$50 you have got through your bust
ness :" Lady Strettell said. smiling yerv
graciously upon him. "A little bird
whispered 10 me that it was not wholly un-
connected with place in Berkshire which
you aud | know of -
The little bird had been little LAWYER
who happened 10 be ono of her iadyshin's
trustees; and II may be mentioned. in
passing, that lawyers are not always as
discreet as they are popularity supposed 20
Dc. III. Best was tribe vexed Of having