The herald., 1896-08-23

i ~
"BUT I'M NOT VET
and that Lady Harston was more or less
mad. But might just as we'll have told
| her the truth, for it was impossible to
spoil her. I think she knew that she was
very beautiful. and l suppose she was glad
| Of it. But compliments on her beauty.
however delicate and indirect, bored her
when they came from women and frighten-
| ed CT displeased her when they came from
| men.
| Bertha gave a dance soon after Wilmay
came out. Certainly, that night Wilmay
hardly looked like a fesh-and-blood mortal,
an ordinary thing that danced and could be
taken down to supper. Her beauty was not
only that her features were perfect in
shape and that the coloring of her eyes
and hair and skin was so lovely; she HAD
rare sweetness of expression, an
expression that is only found with
an absolutely uselfish and noble nature
saw Stenling, the portrait-painter, looking
at her with undisguised and reverent ad-
miration. Later in the evening" Bertha
touched me on the arm.
isn't she splendid?" she said.
"Who?"
"Wilmay, of course" Bertha went on,
| speaking rapidly in a low voice. EVERY
body's talking of her. Stenling's in greac
state of excitement. He goes about say
| ing, Either l paint Miss Amory-or I die
But 1 mustn't wait here" and before l
could reply she had passed on.
| Wilmay gave me two dances. l danced
the first with her. and we sat out the Sec
ond.
ITS good of you, Wilmay," said, "to
take pity on the aged and infrn. like this"
"Do you know, Edward" she said, that
you've always been the same age ever since
I've known You. You've not changed in
the least. You'll never be DID,"
Its my fixed intention to be forty next
year"
But you've not changed, and 1 have
And women get old so quckly-it's very
sad. Yes, of course I'm young enough
now. But'-she stretched out her hands
Il feel the nasty little slippery moments
running through my fingers and laughing,
and l can't hold then.'
"Wimay,' l said. "this will not do at
all. Your time is now. The night is
yourg-a night of triumph. You must be
very happy"
She smiled. 81 am not really very mis-
cradle. But I'm not very happy either"
why not?"
'I'm-I don't know-restless. Did you
ever want something and yet not know
what it was?"
reflected, and said that knew what she
meant.
There was moments pause, and then
she said
"You must not tell Bertha that I'm not
quite absolutely happy, because she would
not understand as you do, and it would dis
tress her. I should not like that-Id do
anything for Bertha, you know, and any
| thing wouldn't be half enough"
| Yes, that was precisely what was afraid
of-that Wilmay would do anything for
Bertha, even to the imperiling of her own
| happiness.
Besides" Wilmay went on, "it is really
nothing-a fit of sentimentality. Why
don't you laugh at me, Edward?"
| Tonight" I said, "you are too beautiful
to be laughed at.
She looked at me with wide-open, trou-
bled eyes.
| cor else" I said. perhaps I've grown too
sentimental myself to do any laughing"
I left the dance early, and went home.
But it was long after that before l went to
bed. had to make up my mind one way or
the other, and I found it difficult. The de-
cision came at last, and it only remained for
me to act upon 1t, and as far as possible TO
avoid the weakness of plying myself.
When my man called me in the morning.
he was little surprised to be told that
we should leave for Paris that night.
In the afternoon I went round to Bertha's
house. Wilmay was out. Lady Harston
was taking her to some picture-gallery.
| Which," as Bertha remarked, ''is all very
well when you're very young. But per-
sonally 1 don't go to picture-gallerles the
fternoon after dance.
| Bertha looked at me up and down.
What's the matter with you? What have
you been doing with yourself?"
Nothing. Never been filter"
"Well, you don't look it. Go home, and
then go to bed"
mo" said, 81 shall go home, and then
go to Paris
Bertha got up, walked to the window, and
| looked out.
"Going to be away long?"
"Oh some little time, believe"
| Bertha sighed. ''You won't think me un
sisterly, but I'm not altogether sorry to
hear it,"
| 'Unsisterly? Why, only q near blood
relation could have said that. And why are
you glad?"
81 think you know"
"And I'm positive l don't.
! She crossed the room, and sat down again,