The Portland daily press., 1892-10-15
LUCY'S LOVERS.

would be an unfair allowance in these
days, but fifteen years ago there were
more marrying men in India and fewer
maidens. Besides Lucy was really sweet
enough and pretty enough and adorable
enough to monopolize the attentions OF
any number. OF these two SWANS one
was an elderly swain-that is, if the col
lector Of district on two thousand and
some odd hundreds of rupees month
and s'fund" Of the most liberal nature
can properly be called swain at all,
which is doubtful. He was a good fell
low, was John McAllister, but at least
twenty years older than Lucy, and, what
was more to the point, very prim and
stiff and solemn and serious, and in fact
destitute of not only appearance, but the
thoughts and ways Of youth.
And 30 when Colonel Watson cited
instances of the happy marriages he had
seen between elderly gentlemen and
youthful lassies-he used occasionally to
draw on his imagination little-poor
Lucy would piteously reply:
Eyes, papa, but it isn't his age; that's
nothing, nothing''-oh, Lucy, LUCY
ssbut he's so old in his ideas and habits;
he has nothing in common with a girl"
And then there would be a little break
down in the voice, and tear would fall
on the colonels hand, and he would
turn away to smoke a cheroot and make
the best of it, for he did not want to
force his child into a distasteful mar
riage; he was too fond of her for that;
but with six sons ranging from fifteen
to five, that his one daughter should
marry a well to do man was distinctly
desirable.
Pensions were good in those days, but
even 81, 100 a year seemed small with
such troop of boys to educate and put
into the world. And then there was
trile of debt which McAllister wonld--
but what was the use of thinking about
it if it would make little Lucy unhappy?
It is almost superfuous to say that the
other adorer, whom Lucy did like, was
a hopeless ineligible. George Farleigh
was a subaltern in her fathers regi-
ment, of about five years service. A
fine young fellow, good at sports, but
with absolutely no prospects. There
was no chance of the adjutancy falling
vacant for long time, and there were
no departmental openings, so far at
least as he was concerned.
In small, up country station these
two had many opportunities of meeting,
and to do them justice they took advan-
tage of all they could get. But Lucy was
not without mixture of sound, COM
mon sense, and she would not pledge
herself to George until he could show
some reasonable grounds for believing
that his position would soon justify mar
rage; she would not listen to the idea
of an indefinite arrangement
Matters were thus at deadlock, and
there seemed no hope of a solution.
Months passed by, weary months to all
concerned. Then all of a sudden came
a change. The new governor general
arrived in the country, and it SO hap
pened that in former years he had
known Georges father rather init
mately. The natural result followed.
For boy who had passed nothing but
the higher standard in Hindoostanee it
was not possible to do much at once,
but still he might be tried. So down
came the offer of semipolitical APP
pointment in native state for six
months, the continuance of which was
to depend on Georges progress and abil-
ity.
There was fearful parting.
"Now, mind, you are not to write to
me hnless write to you first. Papa
would be very angry if you were to write
direct to me, and of course won't have
ANYTHING done in a roundabout way.
When write to you, if do write at all,
sir, then you may answer"
So, half crying, half laughing, Lucy
dismissed him, and both the colonel and
McAllister said goodby with a sigh Of
relief. The sagacious Lucy had reason
for the condition she imposed. Over
and above the difficulties of a CORE
spondence to which her father would
object, she wanted to test her lover.
Married ladies often prone to dismal adj
vice had snifingly told her of the incon-
stancy of man, and she had also read
about it in novels and poems, SO she
thought that an experiment should be
made.
s.If we begin by writing to each other"
she argued to herself, she won't have a
chance of forgetting me, but, if there is
no communication between us for some
time, then that will show whether his
affection is sincere"
Left alone in the field, good, honest
McAllister could make the running at
his own pace, but somehow he never
seemed to get any nearer the winning
post.
But the three months never passed,
for one fine day the colonel, with a
white face and broken bones, was
brought back in dhooly from the
parade ground CHS horse had fallen),
and though the bones were soon mended
complications set in and the doctors
ordered him home internal injuries;
never get right in this place; voyage will
give him strength, ETC." Then the poor
man told Lucy that she really had bet
ter make up her mind, that he could i'll
afford the expense Of taking her to Eng
land, and reminded her that she did not
oct; On too easily with her stepmother,