The Bossier banner., 1893-05-04

Nina would be delightful anywhere,
and found himself so much engrossed
with her that he forgot to think at all
about himself.
This was the state of affairs on this
moonlight night, with that green ex-
panse of bush and ocean stretching in
front of them, over which her limpid,
gray-green eyes looked dreamily, while
he stood. his face in the shadow, watch
ing her intently. He had come out to
smoke cigar after dinner, and she
had come to keep him company while
Bruno was, as usual, in the office at
tending to business; all according to
natures laws-youth in the moonlight
and middle age at the Golfer.
What is wrong with you tonight,
Volto? You are very silent, and have
not lit your cigar yet" observed the
lady, as she turned her large eyes from
the landscape to that shadow face,
speaking in the soft, tender tones which
seem to mean so much more than is
uttered.
81 was thinking, Nina" replied the
young man, with heavy sigh.
"HdL.
"The moonlight and-:you."
"Yes!" murmured the lady, echoing
his sigh. ''It is lovely, is it not?-the
moonlight, mean"
"And you?"
"Hush! or Bruno may hear you"
''Then let us go into the garden,
Nina, for have a lot to say to you"
Mrs. Algar took up little lace shawl
from the ground where she had thrown
it, and drawing it over her slender
shoulders she raised herself with a
graceful movement, and taking his arm
she went with him down the veranda
steps and into the shadows of the trees
beyond. AS they did SO, John Agar
came from the French door of the din
ing-room, looked after them for mo-
ment or two, and then with grunt
went back again to his work.
For the next half-hour the murmur
/ of their subdued voices came waiting
in with the perfume of the exotics, a
large spider completed the web he had
begun before they left and which, ere
they could enter again, they would
have to break through, for he had bar
ricaded the doorway, and as the dew
| fell upon his web it looked like close
curtain of silver and gems.
| Inside the bank the manager had also
completed the task which had occupied
him for several of the nights the young
couple had been sentime mentalizing out
side, and had carefully replaced the
cashiers key to his room, after locking
the desk where he kept his set of
books. A delicate task Mr.. Algar had
been engaged upon, which required a
small bottle Of acid and good deal of
practice of Reginald's handwriting;
however, it was at last very neatly ac-
complished, and the manager reap
peared again at the veranda and
called out with those strident hon
est tones of his:
| where are you, Lavina?"
Here, John" came back the liquid
accents of his youthful spouse.
"All right, dear, don't disturb your
self: l am going into the town for a
little while, but I'll be back for sup
per-"
AS John Algar went out the back
way, nina" and "Volto'' returned by
the front, and, after ruthlessly demol-
ishing that foolish spiders web, they
made themselves comfortable in the
drawing-room, she sitting down to the
piano while he leaned over her tender
ly, feeling as nearly happy as 1t was
possible for sinful mortal to feel at
any time, while she played soft chords
to him and looked at him now and
again with the tender glance which
made him so completely her slave.
They did not speak much during that
interval of waiting, and only when the
sound of her husbands loud footsteps
were heard, as he entered the house,
was the spell broken. STOPPING
quickly over her, he kissed her and
whispered:
81 love you, Nina; I love you"
"Hush! Volto-or Bruno will hear
you"
John Algar came in. loudly slammine
the door behind him, and sat very
grimly all through the supper; so that
Reginald Cleaver hardly dared to look
at him and shortly afterwards retired
to his bedroom in a tumult of remorse
and passion which kept him awake
nearly half the night He had kissed
her for the first time, and she had moi
resisted, so she must love him al
though she had not yet said so. How
beautiful she was-on the morrow per
haps she would give him the assurance
he wanted.
At breakfast however, Nina did no
look at him. neither did she speak, bu
kept her lovely head bent over he
plate in confused, shy way that wa!
very charming, and when afterwardi
he was asked into the managers room
and found there couple of stranger
watching him curiously, he was SO en-
crossed with that charming picture
that he hardly looked at them or list