The Dickinson press., 1895-11-23

and spent most Of his time, when In
London, listening to learned disouisi.
lions, when In Wiltshire in opening
"barrows" and excavating encamp-
. ments. He vas tall, end near-sighted,
with the expression Of dwelling, a.
Ethels governess used to express 1t,
"zwischen himmel und erde." George
Falkner's letter lay on the slab az he
passed down the hall. Ethel raised It
and followed her brother into the
study.
Il am certain that fellow was mac
curate In his statement on the subject
OF the theological views Of the Anda-
man islanders," said the Hon. Willie,
nndoing the Mcdonald tartan that he
la bittially wore as q ~neckcrchief.
whats that letter you've gOty'
II imagine 1t Is from one Of the men
Cissie wrote to for this evening""
You had better open 1t, then, hadn't
you"
81 think 80. There is not very much
time left In case Of q refusal to ask
any n else and nothing Is 90 de-
pressing as two women alone In an
opera box"
Ethel vas as fresh and pure as tho
white hyacinths that were sent from
b Mersham co~nservatories to deck
d GrosvenOr palace drawing room.
In spite Of its seal she opened the let
ter. read the first few lines, turned
scarlet and dropped 1t on the table.
Her brother, slow in the observation
OF most things, was quick to zee q
change of expression on the faces Of
those he loved. Taking the letter, he
read 1t also. For those few seconds
Ethel felt as though she were living
through "Some Emotions and q
Moral" When he had done he sat
down on the edge of q chair, brushing
Ills hat the wrong way; his was not q
Quick-moving intellect.
Those are Mr.. Fane's initials, are
they not?" he asked presently.
Eyes"
'"That is his address,"
II think So"
Deliberately he folded the Macdon-
! tartan across his chest, put the
letter into his pocket and left the
room.
His feeling for Cecilia. Macdonald
was the n romance of Gerald Fane's
life. She was in Dresden with her
mother. studying art, as she phrased
1t, when he first met her. Gerald was
also studying art to the extent Of play
Ing the violin very much out Of tune.
He and she had many an evening
crunching the gravel Of the "Bruh-
ltsche Terasse" together, gazed at the
moonlight and the vine-clad hills, and
talked Of their respective pursuits.
He rather bored her, but, as the only
alternative was conversation with
German officers, she honored the En-
glishman with her: undivided atten-
tion. His passion for her during these
few weeks. entered, wedge-like, into
his life. He accepted his doom when
he heard that she was engaged to the
Hon. William Macdonald for he knew
that he was too poor to take the bur
den of her life rs we'll as his own. In
course of time he became a foreign
office clerk, and, not a model Young
man. He often drank more cham.
payne than was good for him; he fire.
quented q private gambling club in
st. James, and lost larger sums on
horses than he could afford; but, as
among the poor Indians rags and tat
tiers was found hidden a diamond Of
great price. so among the rags and
tatters of Gerald Fane's life might be
found hidden his love for Cecilia Mac
donald. Now he sat thinking of her
and George Falkner, with a certain
amount Of perplexity and q great deal
Of detection, for, though constant to
his idea, he could not avoid hearing
the gossip of Mayfair drawing rooms.
The tinkle Of the electric bell. a
step on the stairs, and the sudden
opening Of the door, startled him from
his brown study. Disheveled and agi-
tated the honorable Willie ut that
moment formed as great a contrast to
the urbane man of letters he had been
accustomed to associate with Cissie's
husband as 1t was possible to imag-
Inc. The wrath Of q habitually calm
maj Is always more p%ortentous than
the wrath of q violent one. Gerald
could not resist a passing feeling of
amusement as, setting down his hat
among the cigars and c%igarasll, his
visitor fumbled In his pocket. 4. full
comprehension of the situation, how.
ever, when George Falkner's letter
WAS produced, soon chased away the
faintest inclination to the shadow Of q
smile.
The Infatuated husbands maledic-
tions did not last long. Even in the
midst OF the absurd, pathetic, irrels-
want harangue, Gerald was forced to
admit that scathing remarks on the
morals OF the young men Of the morl-
Dund century came with q certain in
cisive truth from a man who had
hitherto been absorbed in studying
the manners and morals of his remote
ancestors. When, toward the end, he
f1Ourished his stick with a declaration
that IL he, Gerald Fame, ever spoke to
his wife or put his foot inside his
house again he would feel called upon
to resort to justf1lable castigation,
Gerald felt, for one lurid moment, that
1t was just as much az he could 40 10
resist the temptation Of Fastening N
unbidden guests departure by cosro.
i've measures; but he only folded his
arms and bent his head, knowing
that. for her sake, not q movement
must be made, not q word must be
spoken.
When Gerald found himself at last
In possession Of his own hearthrug, he
laughed consumedly for at least i've
seconds; when that was over, he sank
into the armchair beside him, and fell
to figuring up what it all meant to
him. After a certain amount of time
spent in this occupation he came to
the conclusion that he would neither
marry his landlady. nor cut his
throat, nor take to drink, but that life
would be a confoundedly dull bust
ness.
/.
II say, old fellow, when In future
You write compromising letters to Ii.
dies, that may fall into their hus-
bands hands, I wish you wouldn't
use my note paper and write from my
rooms" said Gerald Fame, meeting
George Falkner III the hall Of the
Sloughborough house that evening.