Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1894-08-04
klTTY'S WARD.

our gown is very becoming. Kitty:
no end becoming, in fact
NO end becoming!' | retorted scorn-
iully. What Il sentence. And be-
sides. jack"
An! PARDON, I'm sure" llnguilly;
1T suits you Merveillc. Miss Del
her-down to the ground-anythn.
You Will"
but jack
ANA your hat | like. too" critically.
those gray plumes are so graceful
dlld-ef-droopy, you know, and"
Jack Vale Montague!' | intcrposed
Wrathfully. Il will not listen to your
nonsense any longer. You are simply
trying to gain time, Jack
"lcs'm," meckly
Have you invited Maud Ellis for
Thursday yet?'
"No'm. miserably.
'Do YOU intend to or not z"
"No'm." in little weak voice.
Jack! | cXpostulated warmly. this
is outrageous lts-it's very shabby
of YOU brsides'
"Well?"
well! Why cant you be obliging
for once in your life?"
"Obliging. ALI" burst out Jack. "Et
tu Brute: Do you deny that l walk
ed two miles in the blazing sun of this
same blessed August day for two
yards of impossible lining and the
PillSbury mail? What do | want of
the lining? What do | want of the
mail-onc copy of the Pillsbury Adj
vocate. at best? You cannot deny that
| did this thing. And if you cannot,
dare You question my oblgability:'
Here Mr. Montague paused Il little,
stunned by his last effort in Webster
ian coinage. and | remarked calmly:
'rhat isn't at all what l was talk
ng about | said that there is no one
TO take Miss Ellis Thursday. If you
don't throw yourself into the breach,
| shall have to. l shall give up my
escort to her-;lsk it of him, that is. as
Il special favor"
'Who is your escort. may l ask!'
'AIr. Beverly Donovan"
"AIr. Beverly Donovan be hanged!'
'If YOU are going to swear about it
in that odious way. you are at liberty
to do so. of course" | observed. cold
ly. 81 am ashamed of you. jack
Il dare say. Well. I'm notr mood
lily. "And if you call that an odious
way of swearing | can produce plenty
of others. Why are you so wild to
have her go-ths Ellis person? Who
is she. anyway"
Miss Ellis" | returned with dig
nifty. lis Il dear friend of mine. and
because the one with whom she was
going was called away suddenly no
one was left to ask her Every one
else is invited. too"
EVERY one but Jessie Wulis'
ssJJocp't cha hanp ocl.oJ do
mandcd. eXcitedly.
"YeS. she has
'Wcll. what do you mean. them
Il mean to take her. of course. see
ing | asked her to co.
lack! Why. that's different. Why
didn't you say so hours before this?
Any way. maybe-why. of course
Maud Ellis will go with her brother"
Il didn't say so before, BECAUSE"
said Jack meellly. 81 expected to do
exactly as you told me. guardy!''
"Guardy!" l could hardly get used
to it vet. This tall. handsome man.
every line of whose features when in
reposc showed an indomitable will
and Srlf-reliance. to be addressing me,
quite three years his junior. and Il
tritie above his shoulder. as guardian,
and the law sanctioning the epithet
1t was very ridiculous and even now
when | had known my ward six
weeks. it sounded absurd. To be sure,
Jack became twenty-one three years
ago. and virtually assumed control of
his own affairs. Nevertheless in name
l was his guardian.
1t had happened this way: Quite
thirty years ago my mother and Jacks
father had been sweethearts. They
We're distant cousins. and my mothers
uncle. who was also her guardian. had
approved of the match thoroughly
and had made them joint heirs of his
fortune. which was a large one. But
one day there had been a quarrel. over
what exactly | never knew. and they
had separated. my mother in a fit of
piuuc marrying another man. a good.
kind man. who eventually became my
father. But first they had adopted
my dear aunt's child as their own.
Meanwhile. Jacks father had married.
too. and two years afterwards Jack
was born.
When the little girl my mother had
adopted was almost five years old,
four events occurred. one after an
other. which complicated matters
afterwards. First. my uncle. with
whom my mother had not correspond
ed for over a year, died. and left
his fortune to my mothers hcircSs,
until Jack should become of age, when
it was to pass to him with its former
owner as his guardian. Six months
after this my father had died.
Only few weeks after this my
mother had followed him. leaving mo,
Il week-old baby. as her legal heiresS.
instead of the adopted child: for she
had left no will. Jacks father and
mother were both dead. and he spent
the last six years abroad. attaining
his majority three years before | had
ever seen him. SO this summer Il sis
ter of my uncles had invited us both
to spend the summer with her at her
country home. A stray cousin or two
had run down from time to time. but
| had stayed six consecutive weeks,
and Jack had. too.
The much-talked of Thursday came
at last 1t was a soiree and dancing
party given by Mrs. Paul Weatherby,
who was. in her own eyes, at least.
the flower of the aristOcracy of the