Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1895-04-10

never feel again can never feel again
as did then. You ask me now for my
heart? You stole it then. How dld I
get it back? Only through your neg
lect and utter indifference. But |
ha it now-fast; never, never to part
with it more. No. not now-not again"
as he on more enGeavored to speak
and to be heard. ''Not again. Once
in a Lifetime is enough. Oh, you had
it that once"-here her voice was al
most lost in convulsive sobs-''that
once" she whispered, "but-but "a
second-time-never and with sud-
den rush, she flew past and vanished
from his sight, leaving him dumb,
motionless, and alone.
CHAPTER XVII
CoNCLUsIoN-GRANN TO THE FROM.
Hao she then all this time been but
revenging herself?
Bellenden asked himself the humil-
iating question thousand times,
smarting with shame, disappointment,
and. worse still, disenchantment.
Had the girl to whom he had given
such high place in his Imagination
as well as in his heart, been playing
towards him part so unworthy? Had
she. whom he had all unwittingly
sinned against Tor it had been unwit-
btHsiN' lCh oil NbS Sdll uouS-
hal this bright, beautiful creature,
with her noble bearing, and her proud
3 orn of all that was false and mean,
stopped on his account TO q vengeance
so far beneath hers elf!
He could hardly believe it. Had an
angel descended to soil its wings he
uls not haze felt his faith in COOL
ness, purity, and truth more cruelty
shaken.
Could this have been Geraldine W he
had just fled from him, as though his
touch were contamination? Could 1t
have been she who had poured forth
such derisive taunts, and announced
such petty, base, and degrading
scheme as her own? Could it have
been her sweet face. so many time and
oft turned towards him. shy as blush
ing rose bud, which had now been over
spread by the angry glow. and whose
features had been, alas. distorted
with fury which he had been tho
object?
He felt as if rough touch had been
laid on his shoulder. ani q rough voice
in his ear had bidden him awake
from fair dream and face hash
reality. His idol had been shattered,
and lay in pieces at his feet.
She, for her part, spent the night in
cars. " uN Ldhc d IllN SIcFf I'll
OF course the whole had been Cecil's
work. He had contriveo, goodness
knows how, to draw his cousin apart,
and get her to himself at last, on the
second day of the festival: aud he had
then first pleaded his own cause, and
pleaded, as we know, in vain: and sub
sequently. and doubtless with more
acrimony than might otherwise have
been vented, turned his attention to-
wards blasting the hopes OF his pre-
,umably more successful rival.
He had meant to order his plan OF
action on this wise. 1t was to have
been thus: Clear the course OF Bel
lenden, then walk the course, Ray
mond.
But lovers seldom keep to their pro.
grams on such occasions, and Cecil at
the critical moment had come to grief
His own wreckage had been a cer-
tainty almost from the outset; but he
had done himself none the less damage
in that he had sought to involve Bel
lenden in his ruin.
1t must be supposed that finally this
had been apparent to him. But there
Is, as every one knows, q certain fierce
consolation in hitting back, even
though each blow recoils on the head
of the striker; and Geraldine's suitor,
may be pardoned if, not being a man
OF fine character, he had not taken the
downfall of his hopes quite SO well as
he should have done.
He had been as unable to bride his
tongue as woman. and sore from his
own wounds, had recklessly delivered
as many as he could in return.
Nothing he knew would heart the
proud spirited girl more than any re-
IL 81 r.
accordingly-we are sorry to say it
it had been to this that the defeated
candidate had turned at once.
A very Indifferent tale it had been
to hearken to. He had been watching
his cousin, he had allowed, and had
been very mu:h afraid, very apprehen-
| sive and anxiO on her account. He
had hoped against hope that he had
been mistaken. Not less on her
account than on his own ON his own
he would now say nothing that was
past-and, therefore, and only since it
was past, was he now free to raise q
note of warming but, on her account,
he thought he really ought now to
SPEAK. He must speak as relation,
as trOther, since she would allow him
no nearer. and dearer title. A certain
| Tightly friend OF his-she must know
to whom he aIluded-was now, he
| feared, PLAYING the same game that he
had tried on with Geraldine before.
All had known this, and had noticed
| this. 1t did not become him to Judge
whether or not he would this time
meet with like success; but Geral-
dine knew, Geraldine must rememb Der
how her fancy had once been caught
by Bellenden's foolish and unmeaning
yallantry-he had got no further.
So far he had Teen heard out, since,
in her bewilderment and consterna-
ton, she had no words wherewith to
stop him; but all .. once she had real
lied that her cEildhoods romantic
dream which had cost her so dear. but
which she had deemed all her own,
had been, and still was. the sport and
scOff OF others.
Cecil had exaggerated. perhaps ma
turality, in saying that "alf' had
known and noticed, but he had cer-
tainly, in furtherance of his end, been
happy In the hint; it had been caught
up at once by the sensitive ear on
hich it had fallen. and had been con-
strued into something yet further
from the truth than was actually the
case.
She had been gossiped about, giggled
over, smirked at-oh! how terrible.
Never, never could she hold up her
head again among those who had made
her their jest; never again could she
meet Bellenden in their presence, nor