Blackfoot news. (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1891-1902, 1893-09-02

senior, advise her to marry you in
| accordance with Uncle Selah's will
no. not for all the moneyl-until
had refreshed the impression | had
kept of you. That is why / wrote
you to come here at once. Mrs. Kin
nick, to the elder piece of feminine
responsibility in a black dress now
entering. owill you please show Mr..
Meadows to his room?n
| Fifteen minutes later, q hasty
toilet made. Benedict found himself
seated opposite his cousin at the tea
table of polished mahogany. Behind
the cleaning silver tea urn of anti
! quated make her clear-cut, charac-
teristic face looked out toward him
in way which he could not but
think very charming She had re-
moved the semi-masculine walking
dress and wore something straight
and white and guiltless OF any fur
below, however small, but which
followed all the curves of her strong,
young figure with the freedom of a
gymnasium suit.
II have concluded" she said at
once, '.that am willing to let Lydia
marry you. / read faces quickly. /
rarely make mistake. / have been
thinking you over in the last fifteen
minutes, You are. as q man, l am
convinced, just what you were as 0
boy You once, when we were chill
dren together. attacked a youngster
twice your size, because he had been
making himself disagreeable to Lydia
and to me. Perhaps you don't re-
member it; but / always did. l feel
that Lyd will be happy with you. 1t
will be nice for you both to have the
money. For myself, | shall not care
for it. | have been interested in
kindergarten work for several years,
and shall always prefer to be self
supporting. But Lyd is different.
She was not brought up in the West
as | was. She lived, as you know,
with another aunt of ours here in
the East, and she has luxurious
tastes. Money is needfui to her.
Yes" she gave a musical buoyant
laugh, Il am sure that poor Uncle
Selah knew what was best for you
bothr'
"Of course he is in love with youl
A bat, blind as it might be, could see
as much And you must see it too!
Except that its u rule always to
pretend otherwise, you'd have to
acknowledge it. And it's not the
first time. Twice before when men
have been in love with me you've
stepped in with that boyish way Of
yours and all your talk about never
getting married, and you've cut me
out. | never cared especially before.
If men want to care for girls of your
new-fashioned, Independent sort all
can say is that their taste is very
poor. But it's different this time.
Uncle Selah's money"
The peevish torrent OF Lydia's
speech was interrupted for the first
time by Vesta, who hitherto had
stood motionless in the middle of the
room. The girls had retired for the
night. Lydia was letting down her
hair about her round, childish face
and was half sobbing with vexation,
her mouth meanwhile clutching a
tortoise-shell comb.
"Oh! it's money, then, you are
thinking off" said Vesta.
''Yes, it is the money. toor cried
Lydia. ''You need show no contempt
or sarcasm. | don't pretend to say
that I'd marry Benedict If neither Of
US were to have anything for doing
SO. We had little Irritation last
year and we liked each other very
we'll, but not up to the marrying
point Uncle Selah's money, though.
makes a great difference. And |
don't see why you should step in and
take it from me. And, besides, il
makes me angry that girls like you,
with all your hypocritical airs of not
wanting any of the things that other
women want, should get the best 0
everything, after all!''
The torrent had ceased even to ar
rest Vesta's attention. She knew
Lydia--knew that the torrents wa
tiers were not very deep. A half-hour
later Lydia was sufficiently consoled
to be sleeping soundly. Not so
Yesta. She lay awake and questioned
herself She thought over the week
just passed. Benedict was to leave
on the morrow. Could it be possible
that what Lydia said-the child was
shrewd enough-could be true?
Long before Lydia had opened her
blue eyes Vesta was down stairs the
next morning. She had resolved to
speak to Benedict alone. And her
wish promised to be Immediately
gratified, for, because of some, to
her, unaccountable reason, her cousin
also We 5 early afoot.
When she saw him her ready
tongue became strangely embarrassed.
She felt her color mounting and mar
yelled at herself, angrily. for the un-
familiar phenomenon. But Benedict
seemed to notice nothing. He was
grave and absorbed.
II have confession to make he
said. II am glad of this opportunity.
came here week ago fully decided
IN m appv u6i1 dfd not -,