The Opelousas courier., 1893-11-04

N"SS1AS
riage.'
She laughed gayly, a sweet, ringing
infectious laugh, in which he joined.
cit must have been quite a Rlief t.
find me such a plain, every-de9 sort O.
person."
"Not exactly that, he replied, ''but
a really nice, sensible girl
Involuntarily she glanced at him re.
sentfully, but he was watching the
waves as they splashed and tumbled
upon the beach, a little higher every
time.
"And I pictured you as a veritable
woman-hater, caring for nothing but
your books. Positively, I dreaded to
see you enter aunty's sitting-room ct
the hotel"
"Why?" asked the young man, in
some surprise.
II was afraid you would knock
something over"
They both laughed again OF this
sally.
However, we have got along cap
italy, have we not?" he said.
'Indeed we have; ever since that
night when you said: Miss LOOMS,
let us be good friends and comrades
"That was the night you discovered
that with practice l might develop a
rather good tenor voice."
eyes, and the same night you offered
to put me through q course Of reading
that would be really improving to my
| mind"
"Our friendship" she went on,
s'has been so much pleasanter, SO much
more atisfactory-than-than"-
"Well, than the typical seaside af-
fair" he suggested. GA filtration, for
instance"
EXACTLY" she answered, gazing
TRANQUILITY at the small feathery clouds
that were scurrying along overhead.
81 think that we have proved to our
circle of friends that there can be such
a thing as platonic friendship, the
generally accepted opinion to the
contrary Notwithstanding"
"Ye-es," he replied, absently.
After a little he said:
81 shall miss the good times we
have had together. Without my
teacher that fine tenor voice of mine
will soon be a thing of the past"
"DcTI't say that. You are doing SO
we'll, 1 am quite proud of the way you
sing ooh, Promise Me-"
There is no use trying to sing or dc
anything else without some one to help
and encourage one," he replied.
ooh, WE'LL" she said, cheerfully !;
"New York is not such a large place.
/ suppose we shall get back there after
a while, when we have exhausted all
the resorts and points of interest in 1.-THE
country. I Am usually allowed to
spend December and January at
home"
"You know very WE'LL" he said,
shat you will have no time for me in
New York. Besides, supposing you
were kind enough to allow me to call,
what pleasure would there be with a
dozen other fellows around SO that q
quiet talk would be an impossibility ?"
"That is the way you look at it, is
it?" she said, quietly. every well,
then, we will have to rest content with
the memory of the pleasant times we
have spent together in Florida"
He made no reply, and at this juno
ture the crowd on the beach was seen
to be augmented by fifteen or twenty
newcomers. Bits of greeting and gay
laughter we're waited to the couple on
the sand.
"Heigho! Whom have we here?'
he said.
IT remember now hearing hat an
other party would be over on the Jack
Tar" said his companion. 'There
are the Belmonts and the Smiths and
the Mallards-yes, and Charlie Bellew
but who is the little woman in gray?"
Don't know. She is stunning,
isn't she?"
t'She halls from New York; I can
tell from the cut of her frock. Why,
it looks like-I believe-yes, it is
Nellie Mayfair"
"Not the little widow? By Jove,
it is and she sees u.s."
A dainty figure in a gray gown, with
the latest thing in hats to match, car
rying a fluffy parasol, and walking with
some difficulty over the sand in small,
high-heeled shoes, approached them.
Her round, childish face was flushed
with excitement, and her large, brown
eyes sparkled with evident delight.
"Now, aren't you surprised?" she
called while still some distance from
hem. 81 came last night. Dear, dear |;
Dora, how glad I am to see you"
"And I you,' returned Dora, warm :,
y. "You have, indeed, surprised u.s."
"Have I? I wished to. I am SO de-
to be here. And how we'll you
ook! And you, MI. Hampton-how
10 you do?"
After rapturously embracing one and
hands with the other, Mrs.
placed a hand on each of her
friends shoulders, and, regarding her
With the deepest reproach, said:
ooh, Dora, how could you treat me
70? When poor, dear Jack and I were
Engaged, weren't you the first to know?
Didn't I tell you even before I told my
nother?"
"Why, yes, my dear, of course"
"And yet, you have never in any of
7our letters SO much as limited at your
Engagement. I had to hear it acct
lentally-from a perfect stranger"
"My dear Nellie" said the girl, 81
lon't know what you are talking
bout. I am not engaged. Where
-. - 1--.1 - - p,; l