The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1895-05-30

The accident took place near the
White Lodge, and we had to pass out
by the Star and Garter gates. Long
before we reached them Twas madly IN
love with Ella, and had already in
formed her that this was the happiest
hour Of my lie, when to my dlsmay l
learned that she was Miss Ella Barr
ington, eldest daughter Of "Barring-
toms STARCH" as We called him at the
bank, where he lodged a portion of the
wealth be had acquired by the manu-
facture OF that commodity.
Darlington Starch lived in a brand
new stucco palace he had built for him
self near Richmond Hill; and, al.
though he was not exactly q Perkyn
Midd!ewick, I could never understand
how he could be the father Of SO re-
fined and lovely and fairy-like be-
ing as Ella.
Before the gates of Darlington Hall,
as he called his bricks and mortar mon
strosity. We psused. Wewere friends,
dear old friends, 10y this time. l knew
that she was nineteen, and that she loved
nothing in the world so much as her
bull terrier pup, except her father and
her brother Bob, and she knew every
detail of my uneventful lie Of seven
and twenty summers.
She asked me to come in; pepa
would want to thank me, she said.
found papa genial enough, s3hs:!
somewhat condescending. sThe young
man from the bank" afterward
found he called me, although my name,
Ernest Wynter, was known to him,
and he himself had begun life as mill
hand Mt six shilEngs week. Still l
was allowed to visit at Darlington Hall
and to play tennis with the girls, and
every day I grew more abjectly in love
with Ella, whose unaffected charm OF
manner no parstnu surroundings could
impair.
Of course I dared not speak of my
fove to her. In my position that was
ont of the question. could only Try
to kiss the dogs head just after her
lovely lips had rested there, and to
detain her hand as long as possible in
greeting and parting from her.
Yet she must have guessed something
Of what | felt; for she took me one day
into the kitchen garden away from the
children, and there, looking at me
with lovely. tear-dimmed ewes, she
suddenly remarked:
s'I an so unhappy, Mr.. Wynter.
Papa wants me to marry Alderman Sir
John Westbury. He is nice old
thing, and papa says I shall be Lady
Mavoress. But I think he is quite as
fond o. my sister Bertha as he is ofme,
anil am in love with some one else. !"
The look with which she accom-
panied her last words was a revelation.
She grew very red the next moment,
and began rapidly talking of something
else, while 1 like fool, stood and
stared at her until her wretched young
brother Bob came bawling down the
garden after her, and so took my
chance of speaking from me.
For the rest of the afternoon Ella
avoided me, and, cursing my stupidity,
went home and wrote her the follow
ing letter:
MYDEAR Mss HARRINGTON don't know
whether you will think me the most con
ceited ass alive for supposinS that a few
words of yours to-day encouraged me to tell
| r {o hot
since first met you. three months ago,
have been 50 madly in love with you that ]
| can think of nothing else. But as my entire
income does not exceed $3.50 a year have
| thought it would be presunptuous to talk OF
marriage to you. even had l felt hopeful q
gaining your love. l will not venture into
your presence again until have heard from
you. Only, entraat OF you, Tor the sa ke OF
our delightful friendship, if have made a
mistake, and il is some one else whom YOU
love, not to write to tell me what fool have
been. I shall understand and respect your
silence, and, much as l may suffer, will not
intrude upon you again.
Always. my dear Miss Darlington, what
YOU wish me to be-your sincere friend o:
your most devoted adorer.
ERNEST WINTER
! suppose other men have watched
for the postman before now; but surely
no man ever waited upon his footsteps
as I did for two whole weeks.
Even at the end of that time I should
have gone on hoping, but for the fact
that, meeting Ella and her sisters in
the street, her manner toward me left
no doubt as to her decision; for,
whereas the younger members of the
family were as friendly as ever, Elias
manner was chilling to degree. She
would not even look at me, nor would
she shake hands when we parted.
I own + was thoroughly miserable,
and developed a faculty for caustic ep-
igrams at the expense of the sex in
general, writing several stories, en-
titled respectively, 'Jilted," ''No
Heart" ga Coquette's Conquest" etc.
Then, one dreary November day, I
met Mr.. Darlington in the streets Of
Richmond. He was unusually genial,
and insisted upon my coming home to
dinner with him.
"Never mind about DRESS" he said.
cit is quite an unceremonious occa-
sion. And, to tell you the truth, l
shall be glad Of a strangers presence
to control the family weeping. My
Ella leaves US tomorrow, as suppose
you know, upon her marriage with
my friend, Sir John Westbury, tho
future Lord Mayor of London. %
No, I did not know, and I could
have gone home and blown my brains
out. But, instead, I went to dinner
with him, feeling that must see Ella
for the last time.
She was looking very lovely, bnt
extremely pale, and her red-rimmed
eyes seemed to dwell on me reproach-
Iiiir. l c":iii not congratulate her.
The words stuck III my throat. Si1
Toxin Westbury YVES there, handsome,