The Opelousas courier., 1893-04-15

nant little queen from the room.
"What a strange child she is really
upon my word" he muttered then.
Miss Ruby St. Maur was a somewhat
indolent, luxurious little body. She was
very fond Of curling herself away amone
silken cushions and dreaming sometimes
waking vision. She was occupied pre-,
:isely thus one morning, of which | am
going to tell you. She looked like a
feminine edition of Cupid asleep among
the roses, though she wasn't asleep, or
It The was she was decidedly talkative
In her slumber.
"Now, then" she murmured, bring
ing her little rosy palm emphatically
down upon the cushions, eff I could
bring that fastldious Hunt to the point,
I'd fix matters in a twinkling. What is
It to him if papa has got money? 1t
isn't papa's money he wants-it's me,
and why he can't say so I'd like to know.
suppose, NON, if I was his washerwo-
mans daughter he'd find a way to tell
me he loved me in very short order,
but"
"Mr. Dusenbury, announced the SER
want at the door; and, not seeming to
have heard, Ruby sat still, anil pretend
ed to be very sound asleep indAed.
If this were Mr.. DusenbufFy, he must
have drunk at the fountain Of youth since
yesterday, for this gentleman could not
have been more than twenty-five, and he
carried himself with the handsome grace
of Apollo.
As the door closed behind him he ad-
.vanced slowly down the parlor, not see
ing the sleeping beauty till he came be-
side her, and pausing then in rapt adj.
miration before so charming a picture.
; It wes an admirably counterfeited
slumber-the jetty lashes untremblingly
prone upon the velvetry cheeks, the
breath coming at regular intervals
through the rosebud mouth. It wasn't
much wonder that Mr.. Hunt Dusenbury
caught his breath, and murmured.
81 wish l dare!"
The lips of the fair sleeper moved
slightly, and bending to catch a faint
u%tterance, he heard something that
sounded wonderfully like his own name
with a c~aressingly expressive prefix.
Mr.. Hunt Dusenbury rather doubted
the evidence of his own ears, but he
quite as though he didn't, for,
an arm under the little curl
dressed head, he drew it to his shoulder,
and when Ruby opened her wide, bright
eyes in profound establishment, he kissed
them shut again, murmuring:
"Oh, Ruby, Ruby, my darling, / love
you?"
She flushed like a rose under his
kisses, but she couldn't resist the temp
tation to be tantalizing, so she said,
poutlngly'
"Well, Hunt, what if you do? You
know papa has got ever and ever so
much money, and I'm all the girl he's
got, aud don't know how you can have
he audacity to tell me that, under the
circumstances"
Hunt looked perplexed a minute, but
ne caught the mischlevous sparkle of
roguish eyes, and sealed them
again with his lips.
"Confess now" he whispered, laugh
ng; 'sbe good, Ruby, and own up hon.
as | have. If you don't, I'll tell
what you said in your sleep just now"
sob, I wasn't asleep, Hunt, I only
pretended to be-"
stYou-did2"
Hunt looked Mortified incredulity, and
made a movement to withdraw his arm,
ahd put the little head back upon the
muttering something that
ounded like, "The young couquette"
tut Ruby, stealing an arm around his
eek. said, half saucily, half in earnest:
''Don't scold, now, and I'll confess.
1ou see, Hunt, you were SO long IN COM
ng to the point, and-and-somebody
lse came a woolng last night"
"somebody else2"
Ruby laughed.
81 sha'n't tell you who; a regular old
money bags, though, from whose clutches
wanted you to rescue me-"
ssRuby, | wish / ever could tell when
on are making fun of me-"
The other Dusenbury came again very
oon-"Moneybags," Ruby called him
nd did the honors for him more be-
Eitchingly than ever. How entertaining
he was and how delighted Papa st. Maur
vas.
And then, in a few days, Moneybags
again, and this time he brought
st. Maur the most magnificent
resent with hlm-a set of rabies that
,ade her pretty eyes sparkle with de-
vivacity.
s'These,' he said, significantly, 'sare
the future Mrs. Dusenbury."
"Ohl" Ruby said, innocently. "I
bought they were for ma"
ado you like them2'
81 never saw anything half so beauti-
1I."
''I'd give you them, and a great deal
besides, if you'd promise to be Mrs.
)usenbury."
Ruby played with the sparkling stones,
nd looked persistently at her slipper at
east two minutes. Then, lifting to her
ged sutton a pair of eyes, whose radl-
nee dazzled him so that he didn't know
whether he was in his counting room,
nd somebody had thrown a brick
the window, or a thunder storm
ad come up. and the lightning was
ftfully around his wrinkled old