The River Falls times. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1894-1933, 1898-04-19

CSleUIdIlOH Oh the departure or an Arc
tic expedition from their port. The
ships of the expedition are two in num-
berthe Wanderer and the Sea-Mew.
They are to sail lin search Of the
Northwest Passage) on the next day,
with the morning tide
Honor to the Mayor and Corporation!
1t is a brilliant ball The band is COM
plete. The room is spacious. The
large conservatory opening out of it is
pleasantly lit with Chinese lanterns
and beautifully decorated with shrubs
and flowers. All officers of the army
and navy who are present wear their
uniforms in honor of the occasion.
Among the ladies the display of dresses
Ca subject which the men don't un-
derstand) is bewildering, and the aver
age Of beauty Ca subject which the men
do understand is the highest average
attainable in all parts of the room.
For the moment the dance which is
in progress is quadrille. General ad-
miration selects two of the ladies who
are dancing as it's favorite objects.
One is dark beauty in the prime of
womanhood-th wife of First Lieu
tenant Crawford, of the Wanderer. The
other is a young girl pale and delicate,
dressed simply in white, with no orna-
ment on her head but her own lovely
brown hair. This is Miss Clara Burn
ham-an orphan. She is Mrs Cray
ford's dearest friend, and she is to stay
with Mrs Crawford during the Licuten-
ants absence in the Arctic regions.
She is now dancing, with the Lieuten-
ant himself for partner, and with Mrs.
Crawford and Captain Helding Com
handing officer of the Wanderer) for
vis-a-vis-in plain English, for oppo-
site couple.
The conversation between Captain
Helding and Mrs Crawford, in one of
the intervals of the dance, turns on
Miss Burnham The Captain is greatly
interested in Clara. He admires her
beauty, but he thinks her manner, for
a young girl, strangely serious and sub
dued. Is she in delicate health?
Mrs. Crawford shakes her head, signs
mysteriously, and answers:
TN very delicate health, Captain
Helding'
"Consumptive?
mot in the least"
81 am glad to hear that. She is
charming creature, Mrs, Crawford. She
interests me indescribably. If l was
only twenty years younger-perhaps
(as l am not twenty years younger) l
had better not finish the sentence? Is
it indiscreet, my dear lady, to inquire
what is the matter with herr"
1T might be indiscreet on the part
of a stranger" said Mrs. Crawford can
old friend like you may make any in
quiries. l wish 1 could tell you what
is the matter with Clara. 1t is mys-
terry to the doctors themselves. Some
of the mischief is due, in my humble
opinion, to the manner in which she
has been brought up"
aye! aye! A bad school, 1 sup
pose?"
Very bad, Captain Helding. But
not the sort of school which you have
in mind at this moment Clara's early
years were spent in lonely old house
in the Highlands OF Scotland the ig
norant people about her were the peo
pie who did the mischief which l have
just been speaking of. They filled her
mind with the superstitions which are
still respected as truths especially the
superstition called the Second Sight.
God bless met cried the Captain,
''you don't mean to say she believes
in such stuff as that? In these en-
lightened times, tool"
Mrs. Crawford looked at her partner
with satirical smile.
I'm these enlightened times, Captain
Helding, we only believe in dancing
tables, and in messages sent from the
other world by spirits who can't spell!
BY comparison with such superstitionS
as these, even the Second Sight has
something-in the shape of poetry-to
recommend it, surely? Estimate for
yourself" she continued seriously, the
effect of such surroundings as I have
described on a delicate, sensitive young
creature-a girl with naturally mag
NATIVE temperament, leading o lonely
neglected life. Is it SO very surprising
that she should catch the infection OF
the superstition about her? And IS 1t
quito ;neomnrphnnsihIat that her merry