River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1895-08-22
HIS MAIDEN SPEECH.
ny r. wHELAN-BOYLE.


whom all men had a kind word; hence
their sympathy. This was .he position
of affairs, and state IL in the bland
simplicity with which Cheesemau de-
scribed his troubles to ali his friends.
for he was a man much given u conf
dences- He was engaged to Lady
Helen Oldacres; was indeed. her slave.
and she gave him ample opportunity
OF approaching the fact The engage
ment was one of those which society,
in general, applauds, and the British
uatrOn, in particular, regards with a
respectful admiration In other words,
lady Helen brought TO the bargain an
ANCIENT name, and the reputation
which surrounds the belle Of two sea-
sons, while Cheeseman contributed
thirty thousand pounds a year. seraped
together by his father. a successful
mOney-Iender. who had recently gone
10 his reward. and a pedigree which
wise people did not inquire into.
Lady Helen. there is no denying il,
was very beautiful. IL she had not heav-
en- in her eye. she at any rate had grace
In her steps and dignity of the most
dueal description in every gesture IL
was these qualities which had subdued
Cheesemau. who himself did not pos
sess them in any PROPULSION She had
been going To marry a marquis. at the
very least, in her first season, there
not, very awkwardly. being at the
time single duke wanting a wife.
But the marquises were shy, and the
rest of the peerage-matrimoni in
clined-was unanimous in neglecting
Lady Helen II was the same the next
season, positively not a single member
of the house of lords-except one old
gentleman of seventy. who lived on a
pension and who was generally ac-
counted mad-made an offer. and the
dowagers heard, not without a certain
malicious delight, that she had cOnde-
scended 10 accept Cneeseman after a
brief cnurtship at a country house in
the autumn Perhaps the old earl of
TOwness could have given a very good
reason for this projected union, penuri-
Gus peers and rich plebeian sons-in-law
being occasionally met with outside
the realms of fiction.
But this, of course, was not the
reason why men said it was hard on
Cheeseman. Most declared, when
they heard of the engagement, that he
was a ''doOsid lucky fellOw"-in
which sentiment Cheeseman cordially
concurred. and the rest, who had their
own opinions As to the advantages of
being Lady llelen's husband. con-
graduated him in that kind of way
which makes congratulatiOn a triie
more CALLING than a curse. 1t was
only when the conditions of the
marriage leaked out that commioera-
ton become common. Lady Helen had
told him, and he made no secret of the
fact, that she could never wed an I'M
distinguished man. and that before he
led her To the altar he must do some
thing. One would have imagined that
thirty thousand pounds sterling a year
was distinction enough for anybody,
but then Lady Helen was peculiar. As
he was not a member of the upper
house, though she was determined he
should be some day, he must enter the
lower as y step towards it She would
marry him the day after he made his
mark in the house of commons.
To man who had never made .
speech in his life, and knew rather less
about politics than a lady canvasser,
the task of getting himself returned to
the Legislature of this great country
by the people. To- say nothing of MAX
ing figure when he got there. might
well appear hopeless. A philosopher
has remarked somewhere that there
are few things money will not buy. A
seat In parliament, even In these
democratic days, Is not one of them,
and Cheeseman was shreVyd enough to
perceive that money must be his open
sesame To Westminster.
BY ono OF those happy chances with
which fortune favors the brave. there
was at that time a certain member of
parliament 81 the particular party To
which Lady Helen and Lady Helen's
ancestors belonged. who wished TO re-
tire from the political game. lie would
have retired before. as he was particu-
larly anxious TO take a holiday t.
some part of the world where the
climate does not agree with a gentle
mans creditors. il he had but
possessed the means of getting there.
A friend who was aware of Cheese
mans ambition and the honorable
gentleman's difficulties made the two
\ acquainted. IL is unnece ssary for the
purpose of this story to tell what
passed between them; suffice il TO say
that one morning il was announced
that Mr.. x, the member for the
Claverly division of Wyshire, had ac-
cepted the office of the stewardship of
the Chiltern Hundreds: and if anyone
had had the curiosity to examine the
60 - q l.
which sailed from Queenstown that
very day, he would have found that
Mr.. ". with an utter disregard for
the duties of his important Office, had
booked passage by her.
The seat was n particularly safe one,
but il cannot be said that the fort
night preceding the polling day vas a
period of happiness TO Cheeseman.
even though Lady Helen came down
TO canvass for him. and her brother
presided at more than half of his meet
ings, on the distinct understanding
that expenses on the most liberal
scale were to be allowed him There
are few pleasures in the life of the
wOrkingman, but heckling is one of
them, and. TO do him justice. he makes
programme that nearly finished poor
Cheeseman. With diligent examining
he was able To murmur feS coherent
platitudes TO the free and independ-
emit when his noble chairman called
upon him 10 address the meeting, but
the crOss-examination by the village
cobbler and his friends. which fol-
lowed, was . trying ordeal
of course, he was returned, though
the majority dwindled 20 q thousand,
and the other side claimed moral vic
tory ana talked about q dissolution.
Cheeseman was in ecstasis not so
much because he could write VI. p after
his name as because Lady Helen al
lowed him 10 imprint . kiss upon her
blooming cheek when the poll was de-
elared- He begged hard for a marriage
at once de said-artful fellow-that
as Lady Helen's husband, and with her