The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1896-03-13
miscellaneous.
FALSE DAWN.

may whisper it to one another after
| dance when they are putting up their
| hair for the night aud comparing lists
| of victims. \ man of course cannot
assist at these functions. So the tale
must be told from the outside, in the
dark-all wrong.
Never praise ~ sister to sister in
| the hope of your compliments reach
ing the proper ears and so preparing
the way for you later on. Sisters are
women first, and sisters afterward.
and you will find that you do yourself
harm. SaumareZ knew this when he
made up his mind to propose TO the
elder Nj ISIS Copleigh. SaumereZ waS Il
strange man, with few merits 50 far as
men could see, though he was popular
with women and carried enough con
ceit to stock Il viceroy'S council and
leave little over for the commander
in-chief's staff. He was Il civilian.
Very many women took an interest in
Saumarez, perhaps because his man
ner to them was offensive. If You hit
pony over the nose at the outset of
your acquaintance, he may not love
you, but he will take Il deep interest
in your movements ever afterward.
The elder Miss Copleigh was nice,
plump, winning and pretty. The
younger was not so pretty, and from
men dsregarding the hint set forth
above her style was repellent and un
attractive Both girls had practically
the same figure, and there was Il
strong likeness between them in look
and voice, though no one could doubt
for an instant which was the nicer of
the two.
Saumarez made up his mind as soon
as they came into the station from
Behar to marry the elder one. At
least we all made sure that he would.
which comes to the same thing. She
was two and twenty, and he was 80,
with pay and allowances of nearly
400 rupees a month. So the match,
as we arranged it, was III every way
good one. SaumareZ was his name,
and summary was his nature, as a
man once said. Having drafted his
resolution, he formed a select commit
| tee of one to sit upon it and resolved
| to take his time. In Or unpleasant
slang the Copleigh girl hunted in
| coupies'-that it to say, you could do
nothing with one without the other.
They were very loving sisters, but
| their mutual affection was some times
| inconvenient. SaumareL held the bal
ance hair true between them, and
| none but himself could have said to
which side his heart inclined, though
| every one guessed. He rode with
| them good deal and danced with
| them, but he never succeeded in de
| taching them from each other for any
| length of time.
| Women said that the two girls kept
| together through deep mistrust, each
| fearing that the other would steal Il
march on her. But that has nothing
| to do with II man. SauInareZ was
silent for good or bad and as business
| likely attentive as he could be, having
| due regard to his work and his polo.
Beyond doubt both girls We're fond of
him.
As the hot weather drew nearer and
| SaumareZ made no sign women said
| that you could see their trouble in the
eyes of the girls that they were look
| ing strained, anxious and irritable.
Men are quite blind in these matters
unless they have more of the woman
| than the man in their composition, in
| which case it does not matter what
| they say or think. | maintain it was
| the hot April days that took the color
out of the Copleigh girls cheeks.
| They should have been sent to the
| hills early. No one man or woman,
feels an angel when the hot weather is
| approaching. The younger sister
| grew more cynical-not to say acid
| in her WAYS, and the Willingness of
the elder wore thin. There was more
| effort in it.
! Now, the station wherein all these
things happened was, though not a
| little one, off the line of rail and sui
! fered through want of attention.
| There were no gardens or bands or
amusements worth speaking of, and
| it was nearly a days journey to come
into Lahore for a dance. People were
grateful for small things to interest
| them.
About the beginning of May and
iustbefore the final exodus of hill! Soers,
when the weather was very hot and
there was not twenty people in the
station, SaumareZ gave moonlight
riding picnic at an old tomb SIX miles
away near the bed of the river 1t
was ''Noah's ark picnic, and there
was to be the usual arrangement OF
quarter mile intervals between each
couple on account of the dust. SlX
couples came all together, including
chaperons. Moonlight picnics are use
ful lust at the very end of the season
! before Vic 10 ~ away W YIN Ai'ti'
They lead to understandings and
should be encouraged by chaperOnS,
especially those whose girls look
sweetest in riding habits. knew a
case once. But that is another story
That picnic was called the great pop
picnic because every one knew Sau'
naraz would propose then to the eld-
est Miss CopIeigh, and besides his af'
fair there was another which might
possibly come to happiness. The so
/ cial atmosphere was heavily charged
and wanted clearing.
We met at the parade ground at 10
The night was fearfully hot. The
horses sweated even ut walking pace
but anything was better than sitting
still in our own dark houses. WheI
we moved off under the full moon, We
= were four couples, one triplet. Mr.
Saumarez rode with the Coplelgl
girls. and | loitered at the tail of the
! procession wondering with WHOM
= Saumarez would ride home. Every
one was happy and contented, but W,
all felt that things We're going to hap
pen. We rode slowly, and it wa!
. nearly midnight before we reached
the old tomb facing the ruined tani
in the decayed gardens where we wer'
going to eat and drink. | was late II
/ coming UP, and before went into thu
garden | saw that the horizon to tn
north carried IL faint, dun co!oret