The McCook tribune. (McCook, Neb.) 1886-1936, 1895-04-05

and look at the river with him; nor
was it quite natural that he should
gather all the flowers she wore, and
talk SO much poetry to her. l thought
often of her simple words to me,
..How nice it must be to have some
one to say loving words to you and
bring you nice flower5!' She had
both row-iowers and words.
tried my best to take care of her.
I often sacrificed the time / might
have spent with Captain Fleming in
sitting beside her, trying to take some
little of her attention from Colonel
North. i might as well have tried to
fly over the moon; but, thank heaven!
no n saw it except me.
The boys loved Colonel North. He
was their beau-ideal of a soldier, a
gentleman, and a .'man who had no
nonsense about him." which was Bob's
favorite description OF him. Give
them half an hour with the colonel,
and they were quite happy. ''He
knows how to treat a boy; there is no
make-believe about him." they said.
To my wonder, establishment. indigna-
ton and dismay, they preferred him
to the heir of LOTIONS Cray. They
all wanted to be ''tall as the colonel,
handsome as the colonel, and just as
upright" In fact, the colonel was
the hero of the hour. Captain Flem-
ing came next, but, as Bob %irrever-
emily expressed it, he was not ''real
jam"
During this happy month of Sep
TENDER, Lord Latimer did not forget
my father and mother. Every day
there was a dispatch of game from the
hall to the vicarage, and every week,
at least, they joined us at dinner.
They saw nothing of what troubled me
so greatly; my sweet mother would
not have understood such a thing.
They considered Colonel North a king
among men-so brave, SO gallant, SO
courteous; they quoted him and adj
mired him. He was a Chevalier Bay
ard in their eyes, but they preferred
Captain Fleming.
One night, when they dined at Lor-
tons Cray, l sat next to Captain Elem
ing at dinner. We talked, as usual,
laughed and amused ourselves; a rose
that l had been wearing was trans
planted to the buttonhole of his coat.
After dinner he talked to me again.
We had dancing that evening and he
danced with me. l am not quite sure
whether l remembered the existence
of any other person. When the eve
ming ended l saw an expression of
anxiety on my mothers face. She
called me to her side in the great en-
trance hall, and, raising her face to
mine, she looked straight into my eyes.
audrey" she said, ''for the first time
in my life | am anxious over you. I
am not quite sure if l have done q
wise thing in letting you come to live
here. My dear, the heir of LOTIONS
Cray is a very handsome young man"
He is as good and brave as he is
handsome, mother" l replied.
Her face cleared a little; this open
praise disarmed her.
''He seems to like talking to you,
Audrey" she continued; ..but, of
course, my dear child, you always
bear in mind the difference in your
positions. You have too much sense,
Audrey, to let your mind get filled
with absurd ideas. II should not
like you to be made unhappy because
l I'm not here to look after you; it
would imbitter my whole life"
| smiled. | had never hoped, l had
eve thought of hope, SO that I could
safely look in my mothers face and
smile.
l took her to the great hall window,
whence we could see the stars shining
in the sky. 1 pointed to the brightest
and the largest.
"'Do you see that star, mother?" I
asked.
YES" she answered.
81 should sooner think of asking it
to come down from heaven to me than
of filling my mind with foolish ideas
about Captain Fleming"
TO BE CONTINUED.