The Forrest City times., 1894-11-09
DASHED HOPES.

In the dim corners of Lady Airing tons big drawing-room in Grosvenor place rose shaded lamps were casting a tender glow. but near the three tall windows and in the center of the room there was still sufficient day light to illuminate the faces and frocks of the guests who were assembled for dinner.
 Lady Arlington, clad in shimmering white satin and wonderful pink pearls, fitted like spirit from group to group: now greeting fresh arrival, now pairing off her friends.
 Lady Susan. Lord Marrable will take you down. He's awfully dull, know, but Bertie Fancourt is your other side. Sir Charles. you're des- tined to the tender mercies of Dolly Lansdown. Take care of yourself; she's a dreadful little firt. and boasts of her victims. An. Olivia. I'm de- lighted to see you. Col. Egerton. take care of my friend. Mrs. Abinger. for a few moments till her cavalier turns up. What nuisance your sex is, colonel. Here we are. twenty-three hungry souls, all waiting for one tiresome man. Olivia, my dear, if in five minutes he does not turn up I'm afraid you'll have to go downstairs alone"
 And with gay little laugh Lady Arlington turned away.
 Mrs Abinger smiled after her re- treating figure, and Col. Egerton, catching sight of her slightly-curled mouth. thought she had the sweetest lips he had ever seen, and so thinking, he looked the closer.
 He saw slender woman, with . shapeiy head set upon round. white throat. The low-cut bodice of her plain black gown clasped slight waist and made a fitting framework for her dimpled shoulders. Her big black fan seemed all too heavy for her tiny wrists and small pink-tipped fin- gers. In the fast-fading light he could scarcely distinguish her features. but he noticed that her hair was soft and fair, and that her eyes were large and just little sad.
 The gallant colonel was still won- dering what kind of a voice so charm ing q woman could have, when the door was flung wide and tall man strode into the room. Lady Arlington heaved an audible sigh of relief, waved rather than spoke an introduc- tion between Mrs. Abinger and the newcomer, and then. like multi colored snake, her guests rustled down the wide white staircase to dinner
 There was a momentary dragging of silken trains under chairs and q gen eral settling down before the last ar rival turned to scan the woman at his side, whom in the swift transit from the drawing-room to the dining-room he had only vaguely concluded was slight, and pretty, and fair-haired.
 "Olivia. You"' His tone of aston ishment was too loud for good breed ing, but the chat about the table was lively, and no one heard his voice save, indeed Mrs. Abinger.
 ..Yes. it is I. I knew you the mo- ment you entered, though the room was almost dark.
 And yet we've not met for so many years" he said; then. with the gal lant after-thought of A man of the world, he added: Not that ydh look one day older than when"
 She finished the sentence for him: "We parted"
 There was sigh in her voice and a touch of pure sentiment in her sad aves as she spoke, and recalled. as women love to do. the agony of that hour, fifteen years ago, which had torn her from Angus Ferrers' arms.
 She had been so young then-iittte more than n child but her whole soul had been given to her boyish lover, and the parental edict which had ssnt Angus to India and herself to wretched marriage had nearly broken her heart.
 But the dream of the past was dis pelled by him who had recalled 1t