Lyon County times. [volume] (Silver City, Nev.) 1874-1907, 1891-02-28


of being agreeable or sdisagreeable.
soon discovered that my lovely hostess
was by no means devoid Of a certain
spice of humor In truth she was over
flowing with spirits and gayety, and
left the house that night as far gone in
love as a man may be. On my walk to
chambers made up my mind that Miss
Bruce was girl who, under any cir
cumstances, could be depended upon to
run straight" that her past was an un-
sullied page; that she was as innocent
as she was pretty, and as clever as she
was innocent, all Of which take to be
us great rarity among the girls Of to-
day as black pearl in a Whitstable
native or a red Indian in a blue frock
OF course | had determined long be-
fore | ever heard Of Mary Bruce that
under no circumstances would allow
myself the luxury of falling in love. But
love unfortunately is like measles; it
comes and it goes and there is no help
for it, Accordingly fell madly in love
with Mary Bruce. We met at parties
| dined occasionally at Inverness ter
race. and at last one day at water
party came to grief; ell my stern reso-
lutions vanished and proposed.
We had gone by the z. W. L. to Hen
ley, party Of eight There were Miss
/ Bruce and her aunt-a married sister OF
Mr.. Bruce-two daughters. the two
Bolds and myself. We had arranged to
lunch at the Red Lion, Henley. thence
/ ta row ieisGra'r to A.,r!O.g. dine at the
Complete Angler and 50 home by the
last train. It was o baking July day,
tropically hot, but bright and glorious,
reminding me Of Honolulu or Leyalza
more than of rnuggy England. After
lunch we padded gently down through
Hambledon Lock to Medenha1n, by
which time the Bolds had developed
strange if not original viewsas to shandy-
gaff. We strolled about the abbey and
made much fun Of its bogus character;
had game of romps with the pretty
children of mine host of the Terry
hotel, and then rowed on to Harley
Lock, which was then in a disgraceful
state of disrepair. The Bolds went of
to pay d flying visit to some friends
of theirs who lived at the Mil house,
close to the lock. While the water was
running OF, Mary Bruce, who was in
charge of the hitcher aft, allowed the
boat to come too close to the sill. and
suddenly the stern was lodged on the top
of a broken pile.
In ten e.conds the boat would have
been overturned and we should have
been shot into the lock- But Mary re-
tanned her presence of mind. With a
vigorous shove of the hitcher she pushed
the stern of the boat OF the pile, and by
the greatest good luck we avoided what
must have been a most saious catastro-
phe. Even as it was we got athwart the
lock and nearly came to grief. This
episode has been thus particularly re-
ferred to because it was the ono that
settled me. / made up my mind as we
rowed down to Bisham after exploring
the baclwater ut Harleyford end the
tumbling bay at New Lock that would
that day ask Mary to be my WIFE, That
she liked me felt sure, but whether her
liking had developed into love, whether
she would entertain my proposal, or
whether my proposal would entertain
her. | knew not. But | was fully re-
solved to put the matter to the proof; !
would risk it il L could get the opportu-
nifty to do so, and opportunities can be
manufactured.
We landed ut Bishain to look at the
church and inspect the fine Old menu
ments of the Hoby family and others for
which Bsham is celebrated. Then
proposed that the Bolds should scull Mrs
Macfarlane, who was tired, down to Mar
low, while l took the girls through the
Quarry woods to the point and back over
the meadows to NARROW. Lhcmme pro-
pose. He does, indeed! I, for example,
proposed to ask Miss Bruce to be my
wife, and chat was the only proposition
that came Off. Whether Mary had given
the Macfarlane girls hint, or whether
those young ladies chow l hated themD
acted of their own volition, | do not
know, but they were limpets; or, rather,
taking into consideration their lanl1y and
faccid structure, they were barnacles
They stuck to us with the pertinicity of
ungorged and unsated leeches. and gave
us no chance of q moments unintecrupt-
ed talk until at length they landed us at
the Complete Angler. Fortunately the
dinner was u good one, or the faculty for
making myself unpleasant would have
been abundantly exercised. My devices
were not as yet exhausted.
After dinner persuaded the Macfar
lanes and the Bolds to go up the town to
see the house where Shelley lived and
where he was visited by Byron. Mary
had once before made a pilgrimage to
that shrine and so had l. Mrs. Macfar-
lane'syiews inclined more to forty winks
than to poetical associations, and she at
last fell asleep in her armchair. Mary
and | sat ON the lawn for some minutes
and watched the passing boats. Neither
Of us seemed to have any remarks to OF
fer. Finally, l asked her whether she
would cross the road few yards only
and inspect Mr. Borqus's garden. She
consented, with so1ae dihldsace.
1T isn't right TO leave auntie." she
said. What win she say if she wakes