The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1895-03-15


with himself and explore the deep re-
Dolly. Adorable she certainly was--thut
lie admitted Beautiful, just sufficiently
rrtiring. bookishly Clever and full Of SYM
m.thy for his literary ambitions, she
seemed just the woman to make hin hap
~. though hurried. But-hut-but-
well, it Is impossible to- conceal the fact
that tenella was continually in the back
ground of Ri%hal'rs thoughts. Although
the memory Of her WAS connected with
the one miserable incident of a brilliant ca
rcr, he liked to call NJ the picture, as she
moved rapidly about his yacht, engaged
in saving it and him and Dolly and Dol
ly's mamma from a watery grave.
One Day he had sailed the Kestrel=to
him gettine " her T back before ni hIi
and he determined to walk home to Port
Erin, ten miles over the mountains and
return for the yacht on the morrow. The
route from Peel, provided one avoids the
carriage roads, is as wild and weird as a
person could wish. After leaving the
quaint old town and the quaint old towns
new, vast hotel one begins to climb al
cloud-wrapped top of South Barrule al,-
pears and disappears like a revolving
light. 1t was late in the afternoon when
Richard started, and he found the hill
paths, at no time congested with traffic,
now quite deserted. Four miles from
Peel, one Of those drifting, binding
mists, for which the I sic of Man is ia
and when it happily: cleared away after
about quarter of ain hour, Richard was
we'll lost. He sat down ON boulder to
study u small pocket map, but to no purc
pose. Then he jumped up for he heard
a man whistling: Presently the whistler
appeared in sight, but she was a woman,
q woman in a serge frock and a Tam
was walking rapidly and when she
caught sight Of Richard she suddenly
ceased marking music and inyoluntarily
slackened her steps. Richard emitted an
ejaculation of surprise, which is unneces-
sary to repeat here.
Now; the experienced reader will have
guessed that this woman in the blue
Fcncla herself. Everything points to it,
and such indeed was the fact
Richard greeted her, blushing furiously.
Fortunately he was spared the necessity
of cOnfeSSing that for the second time
she found him in fix. He said boldly
that he was walking to Port Erin. -
But this is not quite the nearest way
have turned off toward Daily, about half
T. mile back
YES. | know" was the menda cious
reply. But | wanted long walk"
Miss Marston refrained from referring
to the yacht, no doubt out of delicacy,
he thought. Bit she was willing to chat
ter about the scenery and the people,
and Richard said that more delightful
chatter he had never heard. Dolly could
walk like that. 1t took Richard all his
time tS keen hy her side
II have never properly thanked you,
Miss AlarStOn, for your valuable assist
ance last year. Let me do so now. And
you may be interested to know that since
then | have acquired Il little more mari
time skill.
"Oh! To.a girl used to the SET, all her
life. it was really nothing, Mr.. Lacy"
"lou know my name, them" he blurt-
ell out. for he remembered that his aunt
had introduced only herself to Fenella
last year.
."Oh. ycs,' returned his companion II
just asked one of the fishermen. l want
ed to find out
What delightful ingenuousness," he
conventionality! Now, if she only knew
as much as Dolly. Poor Dolly was very
conventional, in spite of certain advanced
views
by the way. Mr. Lacy" she went on,
II have often thought about you, and
wondered whether you were any relation
to the. short story writer of the same
name
II ana sort of distant connection"
said Richard. But surely, you don't adj
mire that fellows work.
Indeed. I do: Did you see that tale Of
his in; the: last ::Yellow Book" l thought
it was equal:to De Maupassant's. best"
The yellow Book De Maupassant!
X, ,oI nt A,o., NINA
self compared to- De NIaupassant. The
thing had occurred before. But that the
comparison should be made by a girl such
as be lad taken Fenella to be was GER
family surprising.
He confessed to be Richard Lacy. the
short story writer. She laughed: with
naive pleasure. They began to talk books
Henry James. of Flauber of Prosper
AIerimee? And what did he think Of
George Egerton and the other revoltees:
The air was thick with views" Rich
ard was enchanted. Poor Dolly! SHE
was nice girl. but Fenclla- Fenella was
Il revelation. How lucky he had not
THAT house there" Fenella said,
after a long argument upon w. D.
Howells, pointing to an old, farm-like
structure which stood near a tiny hamlet.
in the valley below them, lis where /
have lived nearly al my 1ife: It has
fine library, my: fathers. He's the local
'littery" gent"
Really" said Richard. "And that, L
suppose pointing to an active figure
in clerical attire which was rapidly COM
ing toward them up the steep path, lis
the local curate"
Fenella seemed amused. Eyes" she
laughed, that is the local curate.'
The local curate approached and care
lessly raised his hat.
Mr.. Lacy" said Fenella; dry!y' I "may
lie. this is the Mr.. Lacy l met last year
you remember, just before our mar
riagc. -.
Richard was up very early the next
morning taking last look at quiet, un-
obtrusiye Port Erin and it's tiny harbor-
Hour by hour of the wakeful nj ght his
rufflcd heart had gone out to Dolly in
Normandy for solace. Twelve hours ago
he was dcspising her. and now the very
thought of her was like Il soft pillow
He had finally decided that he loved her.
Presently he was at the village postof-
fee writing out Il telegram.
= 'SWhat's this?' said the postmaster,
who was also grocer. pointing to II
word in the address. Richard informed
him.
"What?'
=. "F. O.. e, a. N, p
And in forty-eight hours he was there.
Hartford Times.
A Ready Wit.