The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-07-07

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/ oh. please, IL is no bargain yet said
| the young lady, hastily, and clutching
I the tea pot little more tightly still Mr..
/ Hale has not given II 10 you yet.
Tut, tut. no need 10 quarrel over IL.
/ anyway, put in the pacific Mr. Hale, while
: his quick eyes darted from one 20 the
7 other OF us. Surely the matter OF
/ tea pot can be ordered without high words
| It's the ladies that should by rights go
/ first, N told, though in this matter N
Z bound 10 confess that my own feeling
stands all on the side Of the gentleman.
It's because Of the long acquaintance ani
sore disappointment il would be TO him.
| he added, apolCgetically to the lady Gus
toner.
Would it really be such a disappoin5-
ment?' she asked, more mildly, and turn
/ ing toward me again.
Her softened siance made me feel faS
| moro ashamed Of my want Of galantry
/ than Mr.. Hale's words had done; yet the
/ pang OF relinquishinG my prize was too
| great to be lightly endured.
It would be a disappointment, GER
tainly' ! said, and I think my tone, too,
was milder LAS time. When I left home
| this morning ! had sworn not to come
back without a tea pot in my hand
| Oh, she said, and a most becoming
expression Of distress began to disturb
| the serenity Of her features. Perhaps
/ you wanted one very badly for breakfast.
But why need 1t be just this one? II 1t is
only for making tea in. then. surely. an
other would do as well. Plated tea pots
/ are really much better for keeping the
water hot, you know.
| Il could not forbear a slight shudder at
! the thought Of a, plated teapot upon
my sacred shelf.
" Then why should not you buy plated
! one? ventured to suggest.
| Because of the pattern was the
/ en-
to be sure
% Not the right One?' I interrupted, be-
1 ginning to grow warm again. You can't
/ have looked az the mark IL you say that
Oh. I understand nothing about those
hairbrained marks, she replied. I only
| know that my teacups have got bigger
/ and much prettier blue flowers upon them,
/ but still the design is something llbe it,
and the color about right
so she was an outsider after all, as
now realized, hopelessly blind to the mer-
| its of the prize she held in her hand Even
should l bring myself to relinquish my
| claim, this treasure of art would not be
| appreciated. would be looked at by care
| less eyes and handled by Indifferent hands
reflections which surely could not fail
to make the sacrifice grow double in
my eyes.
q" You see she went on. speaking with
| childish eagerness, my teapot was broken
on the day we had my birthday picnic
l looked into her face and mentally de-
cided that il could not have been more
than her eighteenth birthday which had
been celebrated. I have been hunting
for one like IL ever since. for the set was
given me by my gOd-mother, and should
like to keep il complete. II was to pleas
her that l took it with me on the day that
l went 20 the Kings Fores-'
The day you wore a lilac dress I
put in.
she stared at me for some seconds. her
blue eyes round with wonder. Then some
thing seemed to stir within her mem,
! DRY.
Then it was you? I thought I had
! seen your face before. am almost GER
tain now that you are the man who in
| terrupted us while we were drinking tea
! am quite certain of it, l said, with
| conviction.
quite certain she repeated, how
can you be quite certaing
- Because 1 remember your face
said.
Then you knew me at once? was her
| remark. You must have a much better
memory for faces than / have
Not for faces, but for a face was
on the point of answering. but swallowed
| the words in time. Was it a wonder that
| for the one before me my memory should
have proved reticent? The longer l look
/ ed the less was l inclined to think so; the
more did I become aware that, though
my prospects of gaining the desired tea
pot were no brighter than FIVE minutes
ago, the irritation of disappointment was
fast calming down.
LAS yet l had no notion of what was
happening to me, but already l had ar
| rived at the point of finding it more bear
able to see that tea pot in her hands than
in those of any other purchaser who could
have entered the field against me- In
| deed, by this time l was looking at her
face far more than at the coveted piece
of china, since there was no denying that
of the two ii seemed to me the better
worth contemplating. Had she not al
| least as many points upon her side as
had the tea pot? Though the article was
| undoubtedly genuine, / felt equally certain
that the innocent child's face before me
was as far from being a fraud The flow
ers in the pattern were deliciously blue
but so were her eyes
Well, miss have you come to any
| conclusions? interposed MIR. Hale, whose
presence had been somewhat overlooked
during the last few minutes. Don't yol
see that the gentleman's heart is just sci
upon it?
i But so is mine, she said, with the
| fagment of an almost fearful laugh
What are we to do? We can't both have
the tea pot, you know, Mr.. Mr.
'Sinnart,' l put in
The only way for you both having it.
drawled Mr.. Hale, Unexpectedly, and witt
a faint little grin. would be to set III
house together. You don't seem entire
strangers, anyway, I'm thinking
This time my fair antagonist fairly
burst out laughing, and laughed with sucl
childish heartiness that 1 gladly listened
to the clear sounds echoing among tn,
orm-eaten furniture piled up on all sides
" oh, Mr.. Hale. what delicious idea
she exclaimed. You are really too anus
ing. 1 myself was laughing, though no
by any means so heartily, for strange t
say, Mr.. Hale's ridiculous suggestion hat
reused some undefinable uneasiness with
in me.
" Have you made up your mind? wa
all that Mr.. Hale said in reply. Are yol
going to break his heart or not?'
- shouldn't like to be so unkind' sh
said, as she recovered herself And thel
for a minute she looked at the teapo
with a pretty frown upon her face. Sh
sighed ever so slightly. as she put it dow
upon the counter. 1t is a very Difficult
matter. I must think over it. Good morn
ing, Mr.. Hale, shall come back again to
morrow. Good morning. Mr-Mr. Sin
mart and within the same minute sh
had turned and was out in the street.
IAN interval Of cifpuce folIou.o1