The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1894-04-16
'MIsCREDITED.


EFT hate herl, Dora Martin exclaims
passionately.
"whom, Dollie'" queries a voice at her
elbow, and the girl catches sight Of the
broad shoulders Of her barrister cousin,
Nigel Forester.
''Shall tell you, Dollle'" he continues
grayely, bending down over and looking
very earnestly ut her. "You mean Marga-
ret Dolboa. wouldn't have thought"-t
"WhatG" fiercely demanded Dora, dart.
ing sudden look at him.
"That you would have been so unwom.
anly as to even think cruelty Of that girl
sit doesn't matter to me Bit" she an.
swered ficroely, "what you, Nigel Forester,
are gracious enough to think about my
womanliness OF otherwise Margaret Del
hos is something more than deceptive in
appearance Is actually deceitful"
How do you know that" cries Nigel,
all the color fading from his cheeks.
"Some stupid village gossip says so, that s
ALL"
1T Is not stupid village gossip at all,
Nigel" says Dora steadily. do you REL
member Ethel Cheveley?'
"Tho poor blind girl you introduced me
to at the last garden party aunt gavea OF
course do. She's poet, isn't sheS"
"Yes," replies Dora. "And that was
the cause of the mischief. She sent some
lines on Earth Music to The Ladies'
Budget, and Margaret Dolbos inserted
them, but
"But what'' intcrposcs Nigel hnpa-
tiently. "Do go on"
"Butpu them under the title Editorial
Musings and affixed at the bottom her in
Az II - IN -
wrote to her about the plagiarism she sent
q very abusive letter back. The Chevelcys,
as you know are dreadfully poor, too, and
when Ethel sent her bill in the publisher
of the paper replied that the editor had re-
ceived the money due for the poem, Earth
Music, and that he could not for one mo
ment entertain any other claim. SO poor
Ethel never received penny for her
work"
at seems shameful. I am sure it can
be explained" ..--
at can't, Nigel" wistfully replies the
girl, with sad shake of the head. "Ethel
came here to see Margaret yesterday, and
she refused to talk Of the matter even and
indignantly ordered the visitor out-poor
Ethel, who is quite blindl'
''Still, l shall not give up faith, re-
turns i,igcl, coming to a standstlll, But
! l will tell you what 1 wdl do to prove you
are quite wrong about Margaret Delbos. I
will send her long story have just writ
ten at my chambers, entitled A Drama In
Colors.' will persuade my laundress to
copy it out and send 1t to The Ladies' Bud
get in her own name and from her own
quarters. II Margaret Delbos is as dishon-
est, inefficient as you suggest, she will
probably buy 1t and publish 1t, under her
To-,
Seated alone in his chambers in Pump
I Court temple, few days later however,
4 Nigel Forester is not so sure that the trap
he has SO carefully prepared is either man
ly or honorable.
! December has come at length. Dora
{ Martin and her aunt haze hurried up from
sleepy old Thevdon and scampercd all over
Oxford street and Bond street and Bur
, lington arcade In search of Christmas pres
ents for their kin.
At last, tired and breathless, they hail
one of the crawling hansoms that move
I perpetually through London's buster thor
oughfarc and arc whirled eastward to tho
temple, where Nigel awaits them with
some Impotence.
\ A few minutes later she and Nigel and
her aunt are being whirled toward Liver
pool Street station ON their way to their
Essex home.
To-day she notices he is strangely silent.
For n second she is puzzled to know what
makes him SO quiet and speechlcss.
Then she suddenly remembers that this
Is the day on which most of the leading
I papers issue their Christmas numbers.
1nstinctivcly the two of them wend their
way to the bookstall, and the vivid green
covers of n special number of Tho Ladies'
f,,, lttT
before Dora's eyes.
"oh, come away, Nigel" she cries i'm.
pulsively, scizing her cousins arm and
, trying TO draw him toward n platform.
"Never mind about Tint stupid plan OF
ours; 1t was wrong, 1t was foolish; let 1t
pass. "
! But Nigel does not move. Bending
down, he looks ut her with gravcly ~.
proachful eyes.
'Dollie," he says, with a strange ten
dorncss that draws her closer to him all in
spite of herself "have you forgotten Ethel
: Chevclcy grievanccsf"
"No not that, gasps Dora, crying at
, last, with tears rolling down her checks,
, shut you know you care for lcr, Nigel,
and it will hurt You"
"Dolliel"
II is such small word, but spoken ms
IL was, WITH such depth OF expression, II
reveals to the trembling girl that tho
! months that have passed since they two
met have not only taught Nigel the secret
-. of hcs heart, but the secret of his own also
The Christmas number Of Tho Ladies'
Budget has this year been "A great success.
E The place Of honor is fillcd-at least so
says The Weekly Builctin-by an exceed
ingly clever story by tho cultured editor,
Miss Margaret Delbos, entitled Drama
In Colursl' 49,.
Rumor has 1t that this exceedingly tai
cnted author is so pleased with the popu
, larity of that work that she has resolved
to reproduce it at an carly date in book
form.
But Nigel, happy though he is in Dol
, lies great hearted love, does not permit
this
A curt letter from him. returning the
check for SIS she sent to his laundrcss
and warming her that her frauds were
known, cuts short tho literary career of
Miss Margaret Delbos, and Tho Ladies'
Budget is without an editor.
Now Dollic wants to 60 up to London
and to help, if possible, her old rival. And
| Nigel says she shall do SO, and he will aid