Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1894-04-12
4.
The Prelude to the Play.

tA&ty Wv oCSh oIIloAhb Az -
and walked away together In the moon
light The younger laughed as he paus-
cd TO light a cigar. What funny peo-
Pile" he said. Did you ever meet any
body quite like them before"
81 don't think 1 wei did," replied the
other. But they are none the worse
for that, 1 suppose"
"Oh, Of course not; they are a good
deal better, in fact l like funny peo-
pie. That's why I 60 there, you know,
res Is just a tiny wee bit over my
head. / wonder why you go there,
EverardT'
1t was to be inferred from Mr.. Eel
lowes's manner that this was only a
way of speaking, and that he was not
really in any doubt as to the nature of
the attraction which drew his friend to
Bayswater. As his remark failed to
provoke a response he went on present
ly: II should never have supposed that
4 girl Of that kind would have been in
your line; she's too unconventional al
together. Fancy her asking You to drop
into dinner quietly any EVENING""
why should't shey'
II can't think; I'm not Mrs. Grundy.
I'm a guileleSs being, and l bow to the
rules and regulations of society, with
out understanding in the least what 1t
Is all about"
He walked on In silence for a few
minutes, and then resumed, pensively:
IT should like to hear that girls his
tory. 1t must be a queer one, / fancy"
How queer? What do you mean by
queer" asked Everard, turning upon
him with some aseprity.
Il don't mean any harm. You need
got show your teeth at me in that saw
age way. / was only thinking that she
must have passed through some
strange experiences. You know who
her father was, don't your"
mo; at least 1 haven't heard much
about him.
Perhaps you would like to hear?"
Everard made an i~narticulate muir
muir, which might be construed into an
assent; so the young man proceeded.
III vas on the turf once upon n
time. 1 have an aged relative who re-
members him perfectly. He was a
brother of the late Lord Denham, and
uncle of the present man. Well, he
came to bowling grief, went off to the
continent, and never came back again.
He used to be seen at Monaco, and
such places, l believe-the sort Of in
dividual who ear suits of a big
check pattern, wakes his mustache,
plays a very good game Of billiards,
and goes by the name Of the major
don't you know? Married somebody in
the course of his neutrality-suspicious.
knows ~who-sister Of the lovely and
accomplished Patterson. ] suppose she
had a little money, and I suppose he
spent II. As for the girl, he meant her
TO earn her living on the stage, and had
her educated for that. She was TO
have come out at the opera, at Naples,
the year that he died"
That's rather odd, considering that
she has no voice"
"Oh. wei, perhaps It wasn't the
opera; he may have intended her to
play at concerts. Anyhow, he died Just
In the nick of time; and what was still
better was that his brother died direct
ly afterward, and left the girl a small
fortune. Thereupon she came and es-
tablished herself In London with her
aunt, as you know"
Il don't know that I am particularly
concerned with Miss Denham's his
Everard remarked AFTER a pause.
You can call her unconventional If
you choose; but she Is a thorough lady
In her manners and feelings"
Who said she wasn't? 1 thought per-
haps you might be interested in hear
ing about her late papa, that was all.
/ like her; and / like the
old woman too. / can be happy with
1t will always give me pleasure
TO dine with them. By-by." And
with that Mr.. Fellowes hailed a pass
ing hanson, and was driven off.
Everard pursued his way thoughtfully
toward the Albany, where he lived.
He had reached a time of life at which
If a man falls in love at all, he does so
after a serious fashion,; and, indeed,
Mr.. Everard had always been Of a
nor or less serious temperament.
He had left the army a few years be-
fore, because he had grown tired Of
ioafing about garrison towns, and had
not had the luck to see any active SER
vice. He was now, like many other
retired officers, engaged In the wine
trade; for he had felt it necessary to
have an occupation OF some kind. and
the selling Of wine, II not exciting,
might prove profitable. This girl. with
'A0M hS a. Ohiy icCtuuy UttO1nc
acquainted, was to be his wife. If she
would have him; as to that he had
made up his mind, and he did not much
care whether her father had been dis
reputable or not. So that, If Mr.. Eel
loves had intended to caution his
friend good-naturedly against forming
an m-considered alliance, the warning
thrown away. What preoccupied
Everard was not a doubt as to the wis
dom of his choice, but a very reason
able n as to whether so young, SO
charming and so fastidious a girl as
Miss Denham would be likely to ARE
for a commonplace, middIe-aged per-
son like himself.
1t might have been some relief TO his
mind could he have heard what Miss
Denham was saying at that very mo
in reply to certain disparaging
comment uttered by her aunt.
II like him just because ne is what
you call ordinary" she declared. TT
rests me TO talk to some one who is
perfectly sane and reasonable. and has
a clear, sober head on his shoulders"
MY dear, I hope you don't mean TO
imply that my head is not sober and
"Oh, no; not yours-though I do wish.