Santa Fe daily New Mexican., 1897-10-28

feelings to such an extent that he went
home impressed with an awful sense of
some impending doom, some terrible ca
lamity that was about to burst on his of
Tending head
Meanwhile the situation had become as
unbearable to Sydney as it had to Doris,
all their plans for communicating having
so far failed, the natural course of events
having taken turn for which no pro-
vision had been made. A love so intense
MS his could stand the separation no lon
ger. That very afternoon he would go
boldly to the house and ask to see his be-
loved; her father might say or do as he
pleased The resolution once formed, he
was in state of feverish impatience to
put it into practice. He would start at
once. And start he did, wondering what
reception he would receive at the hands of
her parent and hoping that he might not
be invested with the order of the boot
But Providence had prepared for him a
surprise, one of those Kaleidoscope changes
which ever make the best laid schemes
of mice and men gang aft agley.
Scarcely had he reached the gate when q
telegraph boy ran up and handed him a
message Sydney first thought, of course,
was Doris-then, some dire disaster. AS
soon as his inpatient hands had ripped off
the covering he read:
Come at once in friendship
RICHD SHIRLEY.
An invitation from the very man whom
he had been mentally picturing as kicking
him out of the house! "Say I'll be there
like a shot," he said to the astonished
messenger, then recollecting himself, "No
| answer" and the next instant he was
speeding to the station to catch the train
| then due. His reception surprised him as
much as the telegram. He was welcomed
at the threshold by Mr.. Shirley and taken
| into the study his host beaming with the
very essence of affability. After a few
| preliminary "haws' and vicious clearings
of the throat Mr.. Shirley addressed him
thus:
"In refusing your ardent request for the
hand Of my daughter believed that was
acting in the best interests of my only
child. know nothing against you--in
deed much to your advantage-but the
principal reason that induced me to take
the course that I did was your openly ex-
| pressed disbelief of matters Of which you
could not possibly be a judge. Young
| man, read that'' And with dramatic
flourish he handed him the message.
After minutely detailing the circum-
stances of its arrival he continued:
SIN compliance with the command
therein expressed l have sent for you, to
| give my consent to your union with my
| daughter, and l am not without hope that
| the mysterious message you have before
! you may be the means Of converting you
by its tangible existence and the forgiying
nature of it's contents.
Sydney gazed at the paper bewildered
speechless. This was complete hoorer.
''Well, now go to Doris. Sheawaits you
in the drawing room. Leave the paper
here. 1t is too precious to trust out Of my
sight have to go out now on business,
but if you give me call, say, tomorrow
evening at o'clock, shall be prepared to
| discuss matters with you"
| 1t is needless to attempt to describe the
rapturous meeting of the reunited lovers
Those readers who have experienced such
blissful moments can picture it for them
selves. and those who have not may rest
assured that to them the gates of paradise
still stand unrevealed
The next evening Sydney kept his APP
pointment with Mr. Shirley, whose exu-
berant delight seemed to show that a
heavy load had fallen from his mind.
| Then he would go through the incidents
| of the mysterious arrival again, taking
Sydney by the arm and leading him round
the room, all the while explaining how
matters stood on the eventful night.
"You see, the gas was alight, just as it
| is now and the window was fastened
| look at it,; cannot be opened from the out
side-and the blind was drawn right down
| like this. The only other means of ingress
is the door, locked. All, have not locked
it!' And as he spoke he shot the bolt At
| the same instant loud ting" caused
| both men to spring round and rush to the
table There, floating ON the liquid in one
| of the glasses was another tiny roll of pa
| per- Shot from somewhere, 1t had evi
| IDENTIFY struck the glass, making it ring.
| Unfolded the contents ran:
cit is WELL We are satisfied" Again
| from Tibet and the date the current day.
| 1t was with very different feelings that tho
| two men gazed at the piece of paper Mr.
| Shirley's face bore a calm expression
| which told Of a thankfulness that danger
was past and that he felt once more at
peace with his masters, while Sydney
| stood aghast in the presence of the unfath
| omable, his hair bristling on his head and
teeth chattering from very fear At last
| he could bear it no longer, and flinging
| open the door he rushed out, nor paused
until he found himself outside the front
door in the pure night air, with the canopy
| of heaven and the twinkling stars above
| him.
A train is throbbing swiftly northward,
bearing among it's passengers two that
have that day been made man and wife.
| The bridegroom sits absorbed in his
thoughts, seeming oblivious Of the fact
that what should be all the world to him
| sits by his side 1t is not that one deftly
thrown slipper had made bruise on his
forehead nor that sundry grains of rice
| had slipped down between his collar and
his neck. What, then, was the causeS
| "What makes you so quiet dcarF" asks
the bride.
He starts as one called from another
world
~ am bewildered love. Those mes
.sages-how real and yet how very impos-
| sible! cannot believe, and yet-therel
know not what to think
Doris laughs little, musical ripple, and
then, laying her hand on his arm and nes-
Ting closer, she says:
"Shall explain the mystery, lover
sent them.
"You How could your The gas was
| locked, mean the door-I--I--but you
how could you2'
| II will tell you, but you must not let
| papa know Tho paper came from India,
| wrapped round some presents that / had