St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-03-18

The day being delightfully."- pleasant, the
windows were open, and the air seemed
drowsy with the hum of bees and the odor of
the orange and almond blossoms. The sound
of music behind a screen OF tree ferns and the
murmur of happy voices, breaking at time
into rippies and peals OF laughter, perfected
this picture of loneliness and satisfied every
sense.
When Ralph Holmes=was flying over the
continent, he SHARED in bis uncle's hunger
for justice-is might be for vengeance, but he
was intensely in eafnesti and there was moth
ing he could imagine but death, that could
move him from his purpose. But as he
changed his dress and prepared to go down.
he forgot the reason for his being there. for
got everything, indeed, but that vision of love
illness that had flashed before him for an in
slant and was gone.
He was no more fit to reason than if he had
been drinking wine, nor did he try to reason.
He was in the atmosphere of Eden, why then
should he think Of the serpent, or give
thought to the great busy world OF fraud and
failure OF ceaseless strife and bitter disap-
pointment, which it seemed to him was for
ever behind?
The lunch, to which he sat down with the
Colonel and Doctor Etlerton. was in keeping
with everything else about the place chi
nese servants silent as ghosts and white of
attire as the proverbial spectre, waited on
the table. Game and flowers, and fruits and
wines, the best things OF that favored land.
and of all lands were there, but Ralph Hol-
mes, as the doctor humorously put it,
seemed to be going back on his feed
As Ralph did not smoke, when luncheon
was over, the Colonel sent for his daughter.
and said:
my dear Dora, I shall leave dir. Holmes in
your charge. He viii no doubt feel more at
home with the young people than with old
chaps ike myself and Doctor EIlerton"
OF course, Ralph protested that ne was
happy where he was, and that the Colonel and
the Doctor were anything but "old chaps -
but even while protesting, he felt a light hand
on his arm, and he was led out on the broad
verandah, and down through the shaded
grounds.
Dora introduced him to scores of pretty
girls, and other scores of handsome stalwart
young men, all of whose names. as is ever
the case, he forgot as soon as they were
uttered. One man, however, he distinctly
remembered. This was sWarthy Spanish
American, with a 1.-THE tigerish FORM q heavy
black moustacne and dusky black eyes, Gap
tain Almedo."
The Captain bowed in cavalier way. but
did not attempt to shake hands, and there
was that in the expression with which he re-
garded Dora, that reused Ralphs anger at
~ Il I
can were not going to be friends.
by the way" said Dora, as she led Ralph
on, you must know Lord Pelham: he is
such an odd character, and so entirely differ
ent from my preconceived notions of an Eng
Gsh nobleman."
Lord Pelham, short, ford, full-bearded
man, with a single eye-glass, dress rather
slovenly in cut and loud in pattern, was found
seated on q rustic bench, smoking e briar
wood pipe and playing with a centipede,
which he was keeping out OF its tunnel-like
burrow.
"An glad to meet you, Jim Shore" was
Lord Pelhan's salutation, after he had given
Ralph his hand [ know its bit unsocial
to get off in this way, you know; but car
not go the cigars out here, and as I was
almost fanlished for smoke, thought I'd
sneak away.
every WE'LL laughed Dora, 4" finish your
smoke, and tell 3Ir Holmes what you think
of this awful country. But don't forget that
for to-day the dinner will be at five, and the
dancing will follow sunset.
She waved her dainty hand and vanished
like figure in phantasmagoria
"By Jove, don't cher know" said Lord
Pelham, as ne pointed his pipe-stem in the
direction Dora had taken, * that's no end of
fine girl
'Shes a perfect Hebe," said Ralph, not at
all displeased with the Englishman, by whose
side he took a seat.
''She's a Hebe, and Juno and Minerva and
all the fairest OF the goddesses boiled down
and rolled into one. Now, she's the typical
American girl OF which one hears so much in
Europe and sees so little of in America, said
Lord Pelham, between audible pulls at his
briarwood.
Anxious to get away from 4 subject which,
no matter how precious to himself, he felt it
to be a sacrilege to discuss with another,
Ralph asked his lordship how long he had
been in America.
ooh, 1 have been over here no end of
tines was the reply. II used to come for
the game, but the railroads and pot-shooters
have played the devil with that By the way,
is this your first visit to California, Mr..
Holmes?" and his lordship wiped his mon