Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1892-11-04

The colonel's brow contracted for
moment Had his nephew's words
brought to his recollection certain
incident of his own younger days
which he gladly would have forgotten.
but could not?
'In that case " he said
dryly. lit is only charit-
able to assume that he has i'm
proved in his shooting between then
and now. All! here he is
Vivian Darvill came slowly forward.
twisting a finger round his watch
guard and smiling one OF his facile
but pleasant smiles. Before he was
well inside the door his keen glance
had swept the room. He seemed TO
breathe more freely. Emma was not
there. 1t was well. 1t would give
him n chance OF pulling himself to-
gether and of feeling his way with
these others before the crucial mo-
ment came.
Il was beginning to fear that our
pure country air had had the effect of
u soporifc, and had soothed you to
sleep" began the colonel. You and
Mrs Asplin have met already to-day.
This is my graceless nephew, lvor
Penleath. How many years you and
he have been acquent' is best known
to yourselves. This is my young
friend Roden Bosworth, whose name.
| feel sure will one day be far more
widely known than ii is now. Roden.
you have often heard US speak OF Cap
tain Darvill. And now we are only
waiting for Enie. TO be an complet"
Captain Darvill was a tall, broad
chested. fair-compleYioned man. with
steel-grdy eyes and tawny mustache.
Few people would have disputed his
right o be considered eminently good
looking He had an imperturbable
temper together with n genial CHEEKY
manner the result Of careful cultiva-
ton, and on the possession OF which
be secretly pridel himself lie was
usually great favOrite with very
young men. but scarcely so much SO.
perhaps with those of his own age.
or his seniors In conversation with
ladies he puts on softly deferential
and embarrassing manner which
many OF them seemed TO find singular
ly IA ,cinating. while 90 others it was
exactly the reverse.
'Eilad TO make your acquaintance.
Mr. Bosworth. he said, as he took
in" Roden smilingly from head to foot
Although have not known you per-
sonally before, / have by reputation.
Mrs. Darvill is dying to have her por-
trait pa nted. You and must have
talk together later on. lie had not
forgotten that Roden's mother was
one Of the witnesses to his Scotch
marriage.
And so you're going to leave us
old boy in the course OF an hour or
two" he went on as he turned TO lvor.
',Awfully sorry 10 hear 1t"
Pm about 10 leave England, If
that's what you mean" responded
Ivor in his chillest tones; though
why that fact should be a source OF
sorrow to you ia Il TO perceive"
'Oh. come. Penleath. you take a
fellow up too sharp really. / was in
hopes. now I've come back and shall
have plenty OF time on my hands that
you and would see a good deal of
each other-eh2"
1T was kind Of you to think OF me
at all.
"Oh. I'm not one of those fellows
who forget old friends Out of sight
out of mind was never my motto. AS
some poet has said: Though distance
may DIVIDE. ;"
But lvor had turned his back on him
and was crossing to where Mrs. AS
plin was sitting with her hands loose
ly folded on her lap
Darvill looked after him with his set
imperturbable smile and drew one end
OF his noustache through his finger
and thumb. "a queer fellow. Pen
leath. he remarked in an aside to
Roden. But n fine heart and n
splendid disposition when you come
10 know him. only you waat to know
him first you know"
At this moment the dinner gong
sounded through the house. With
the first stroke Miss Penleath entered
the room. Her dress was OF dead
black silk, proIusely trimmed with Jet
She wore necklace and bracelets Of
malachito and coral set IN filigree
work OF dull gold. The heavy coils of
her hair were shot through and held
In place by two arrows of gold. feath-
cred with emeralds Her face was
perfectly colorless except for the rich
carmlne of her lips its clear ivory Like
pallor being accumulated by the in
tense blackness of her eyes. with her
somewhat heavy brows drawn clio err
over them than usual in which
glowed a sombre. intense fire such as
no one there had ever seen in them
before. Roden stared ut her in as
constituent; for the first time in his
life it dawned upon him that there
might be potentialities about this girl.
the sweet familiar side OF whose
character was all he had hitherto
known. as to which as yet he was an
utter stranger. Darvill started and
drew in his breath as If he were gaz-
ing on an apparition. IL seemed i'm
possible that the clinging timorous
blushing girl no remembered so
we'll who looked rs if made for
nothing but love and kisses. could
have developed into this stately. ice