Waterbury evening Democrat., 1894-05-15
CHAPTER IL
A HALT IN THE ROAD.
coPgRIoHT BY AMERICAN PRESS Assocn


 A HALT IN THE ROAD.
 "You are an artist, " said the man on the front seat of the sleigh, turning about that he might talk more easily with the young man who sat beside the pretty girl on the rear, seat "You are an artist. What do you think of the workmanship of this:''
 He had taken from an inner pocket a small leather case, which he now passed to his companion. When the young man had brought to light the contents, he held in his hand medallion, set in a jeweled frame-a medallion upon the convex surface of which was graven the attractive features of a handsome wom- an- The work was so delicate, the sitting so rich, the effect of the whole so ex- quisite that the artist involuntarily ut tered cry of pleasure.
 ''Why, this is really admirable, La mar! Who is it? Where did you get it:?"
 The man on the front seat answered in a voice as cold and international as a voice could well be:
 ''Inasmuch as this is the woman whom I am to marry, thought toler- ably fair counterfeit of her face would be interesting to my friends y
 The pretty girl, who had been admir- ing the dainty valuable, became, as he spoke, somewhat pale.
 "Oh," she said in a constrained, con- ventional way, ''this is Mrs Forsythe?'
 Mrs. Forsythe, '' assented the man on the front seat.
 ''She is very pretty ' said the girl in the same tone.
 As she spoke she put the medallion quickly into the hand of the young man who sat beside her and averted her head.
 Another choice" exclaimed the man on the front seat in brisker tone, glancing at fork in the white road which the ooct horses were rapidly ap- preaching. Shall we take the inland road direct or go by the roundabout sea road: We shall see more life by the first way, but we shall have better sleighing and plenty of cold wind by the second. Which shall it be?'
 (Which shall it be, Ellen?" repeated the young man to the pretty girl
 Ut makes no difference to me-
 Then let us have the sea road and the sleighing. We are in no hurry, and a little cold won't hurt us
 "Jacta est alea- The sea road it shall be-
 The sleighing party was now within eight miles of the city, the location of which was marked by vague glow in the wintry sky. Gradually the laughter had ceased and words had become infre- quent. The bells on the horses jingled merrily as ever, and the rapid hoof beats on the hard crust came to the ear through the biting air ill the same inspiriting pulsatiOns, but for all that it was cold riding after sundown along the sea road, with the bitter breath from the darken- ing ocean full ill the face.
 Every moment the fences and hedge rows were becoming moro indistinct, and the drcary white landscape between the observers and the fading streak ill the horizon, where the sun had lately been, was rapidly losing all significance or intelligibility as prospect. Truly Dr. Eus5ace Lamar had forgotten the flight of time ill his enjoyment of the eX- hilarating sport, or he had sadly miscal- culatcd the distance Not that there was anything to be dreaded in the ordinary course of events of a ride in the pale starlight CT under the mellow rays of the moon. The road was d good one, and very sUCu 1t would be well lighted And if the three pleasure seekers were trif1e cold they could console themselves with the comforting reflection that there was a cheerful fire waiting for them in the agreeable sitting room of the uppermost fiat at 20 Ballavoine place. It was not an elaborate affair, this abode of Julian Maxey, the artist, but it WIS a pleasant, interesting and certainly on a cold night like this a very comfortable and desira- ble place ill which to be.
 Perhaps it was not owing altogether to the cold that an unwonted silence had fallen upon the occupants of the sleigh. Pretty Ellen Maxey, the artists sister, who sat beside her brother on the rear seat, had dealt a deathblow to the con- versation when she ceased to take part in it But she was not asleep, and her face, protected from view by abundant N-aps and the growing obscurity, had gradually settled into an expression at once wistful, pathetic and resigned
 Maxey, whose power of observation was not wholly matter of eyesight, had become annoyed and solicitous, but he took pains not to betray this fact.
 As for philosophic, middle aged, handsome Dr. Lamar, the prime cause Of the whole trouble, he was supremely unconscious of any unhappincss on the part of his friends. He sat bolt upright all by himself on the front seat, his hands busy with the reins and his at tention apparently completely absorbed in scanning the road as far as he could see in front of his sw1ft team. The truth is that Dr. Lamar had blunderingly and unwittingly touched upon topic ex- ceedingly disagreeable to his friends be- hind him when he mentioned his ap- preaching marriage with the wealthy Widow FOrsythe.
 If Dr. Lamar had only known how fine and handsome he appeared in his pretty neighbor's eyes, it would have as- tonished him a great deal, and he would have been henceforth very much more discreet in his remarks If pretty Ellen Maxey had imagined how well her keen and penetrating brother had guessed her secret, undoubtedly she would have dis simulated great deal of glee and mer- riment in a despairing endeayor to have thrown him off the scent, for the heart beats proudly in the breast of girl like her, and this was such secret as she would wish might die with her.
 They were all young. The doctor was the eldest, and he had barely reached 40. He was brilliant young man who had made something of a name in the medical world by a recent remarkable publication, and whose practice was al- ready established on a firm basis.