The Roanoke daily times. (Roanoke, Va.) 1895-1897, 1896-10-08
MRS. LEVERSON'S
NIECE:

| was the only son of his mother, and she
was II canon's widow. 1t was at her de-
sire that he set up his household gods I'M
der the time worn gables of Norman IS
Inn; for there also dwelt II kinsman of
the late canon, Arllwright by name,
| who was always alluded To in the famly
ais "a steady, podding young man. and
was supposed to live. amid II picturesque
litter of briefs and books; and Che
canon's widow hoped he might exercise Il
mildly restraining influence over johnnie,
being nearly twice his age.
Now the steady, Flooding young man
looked forward to his arrival without en-
| thusiasm He remembered Johnnie as IL
very inky schoolboy of phenomenal lung
| power and unprepossessing appearance
| and felt assured that by now he should
have developed into II raflish young man
with II taste for small dogs and large
neckties and greatly given TO entertain
| ing noisy company; we'll knowing that
| the chastened atmosphere of Il cathedral
| town does not necessarily induce an affec-
| ton for quiet living III the youthful
| breast.
Johnnie, however, proved to be n
freSh-coorcd, amiablc youth of %, more
plentifully endowed with muscle than
with brain power, and with no apparent
tendency to come Immediately to grief
he sometimes wrote for the papers-the
shoals and quicksands of London life.
He neither gnmbed nor drank, nor gave
his mind too entirely to the lightly clad
allurements of light opera. On the con-
trary, he read with industry, as though
already covctous of the woolsack he
danced and dined assiduously at houses
of irreproachable respcctability; and, in
Arkwright's company, when he did not
talk cricket he talked shop.
Then by degrees, when returned from
nocturnal adventures, he began to favor
Arkwright with many condolences re-
gardng his attitude toward various
members of the other sex; for Johnnie's
affairs of the heart became at last alarm
ingly numerous. Not that ,hc aimed at
playing the part of Don Juan; but being
of highly inilammable material, his heart
was successfully ignited by IL pleasing
variety of damscls.
Fate brought him face to face with the
one and inevitable damsel at last, how
ever. Audrey ST. Clair was IL dark-eyed
girl of 20; Johnnie thought her charm
ingly fresh and natural. Mrs. Ieverson's
ball WAS rapturous occasion to him,
| and Mrs. Leverson's niece, Audrey, en-
tirely dispossessed of all other idols, from
that date, of the pedestal upon upon
them.
| OF Mrs. Leverson herself her enemies
said that she had been pretty; elderly
gentlemen had been known to call her a
| fine woman; while young ones thought
her mot half bad fun She possessed
! an abundance of obviously dyed hair, Il
| somewhat ELUSIVE manner, and fault
less taste in dress. The late lamented
| Captain Leverson had INDUCED Il taste
for speculation, with disastrous results;
and hence the few people who remember
| ed her were surprised to find the widow,
when she returned from Il long absence
abroad, so comfortably installed as she
was in her house Mt Chelsea.
| Johnnie she seemed to hold in high
favor He was allowed to take her and
her niece through the polite mobs of the
| picture galleries: he never failed to ap-
| pear at her At Homes; and he frequently
made one at her theatre parties. But
| although he thought Mrs. Leverson
fly kind, and all that sort Of thing, y
he would have preferred to see her niece
subject to less worldly influences than
those brought to bear upon her.
In accordanc with the fitness of things
he vaguely imagined she should always
| be dressed in white, wandering Through
| sheltered rose gardens, and indulging an
/. amiable solicitude foi birds and dogs and
old cottagers-a village Lady Bountiful,
i'll short. And to tell the truth the I'M
| conscious maiden would infinitely have
! preferred Il more natural way of life, and
| her happieSt moments were spent on her
mare in the park; where Johnnie, .ean-
| ing against the ratings, watched her
wistfully; he could not afford horse.
lie never told Arkwright anything
about this particular flame OF his. 1t
was Tommy Blake who posted up the
plodding young man in his youthful
| kinSmans affairs one afternoon Mt their
club. and both women seem dead nuts
on your young friend" he said Incl
dentally, ,.Prctty we'll off, | SUPPOSE
Hes worth precisely two pence half
penny n year." said Arkwright, with
more figure of speech than he usually
permitted to himself
Tommy raised his eyebrows as high as
nature permitted, and said it was I'M
common queer.
| And there was IL sort of Indian
prince-no end of IL nabob, I'm told
wanted to marry the girl, and Mrs. Lever
son sent him to the right about in double
quick time, and she's not the sort to feel
shy about bowling down to the golden
calf, either. Can't make her OUT
Perhaps she thinks her niece toe
young to marry yet, said the ploddine
young nan. she may he acuing merely
from proper regard for her happiness
"a proper regard for fiddlcsticks, .
said cynical Mr.. Blake.
Arkwright was sitting up late one
night to finish in erutlitc paper upon tn,
Ethics of Modern Drama when John
ME stole noisclesslv into the room and
sank into the easiest chair. Arkwrght
wrote to the bottom of the page, and
threw down the pen, thinking he had
| nm inf