Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1898-10-03

he ordered a cab and drove out to the
fashionable boulevard, where Ruth
lived with her aunt. He found the
shutters barred, the storm doors
closed to protect the inner entrance,
the house wearing a general air of de-
sertion, like many of it's neighbors.
A ring of the bell brought to the
door an old negro servant. She knew
the professor, and readily admitted
him to the desolate, linen-swathed
parlor, with its musty air and shroud-
ed windows.
A question for Mrs. Chapman
brought the information that she and
Miss Ruth had gone, abroad to meet
the formers Oldest nephew, who was
a student in one of the academies Of
Paris.
Had Miss Ruth been ill?" asked
Prof. Atterbury.
''Not i'll, exactly, but out of sorts
and under the weather." responded
the servant.
when would they return?"
Probably not until after Miss
Ruth's marriage"
Ruth's marriage! The news fell
with the weight of blow on the pro-
fessor's ears. His face paled visibly,
and his hands shook, as he drew the
blind the old servant had raised at
his entrance.
''Who is the lucky man." asked the
professor, with quavering lips and
voice that shook visibly with emotion.
Mrs. Chapman's nephew, Master
Charles said the old woman. "You
know, Marse Charles is done squander-
ed his fortune over in Paris, and
Missus wants Miss Ruthie to marry
him to put him on his feet agin.'
Suddenly it flashed across the pro-
fessor's brain that the girl, mayhap,
was forced to this marriage through
her aunt's personality. The Chap
mans were not wealthy. Ruth had a
fortune, and to secure it for her ia
vorite relative was excusable in the
fashionable society woman.
won't you bring me glass of wa
ter?' begged the professor, anxious
to relieve himself of the servants
presence that he might recover from
the shock the unwelcome news had
given him. From the first he had
made up his mind that he would
marry Ruth. He had hoped to
win her love during the long
days which he expected to spend
with her at Narragansett. The
present aspect of affairs was entirely
unlocked for, and he feared that he
would lose her forever.
The old servant was gone for some
time. She knew the professor was a
welcome guest in the house of her
mistress, and instead of treating him
to a plain glass of water, she set to
work to make a refreshing glass Of
lemonade.
Meanwhile Prof. Atterbury strolled
about the parlor, gazing earnestly at
Ruth's picture, which hung on the
wall, and picking up the books that
lay on the center table. Out of the
last one he lifted from it's resting
place fell a slip of paper. He was
about to replace it when his eyes
caught his name.
II was very much pleased to have
met John Atterbury, and | only fear
that 1 shall never see him again. All
my fond hopes for the summer, to be
with you and him, are shattered.
This was more than the excited
man could comprehend. He opened
the sheet and found it was a letter
begun by Ruth to his sister, Lucy.
"She loves me-" he cried, "and I
will find her."
Before the old negro returned with
the lemonade the professor had left
the house. The first train took him
back to Narragansett, where he placed
his sister in charge of friends, telling
her that he must at once go to Paris.
Ruth fondly whispered Lucy, as
he babe her farewell, 81 hope you will
find her"
Two weeks later Prof. Atterbury
sent his card to Mrs Chapman and
her niece, Miss Kennerlu, at the Ho-
tel Normandie, in Paris.
The two ladies welcomed him joy
ously. Mrs. Chapman had no suspi-
cion that her plans were about to be
frustrated, and was really glad to
meet an old acquaintance. Ruth
blushed deeply as she held out her
hand, and in her eyes John Atterbury
read his fate.
That night while they were alone
for a few moments, he avowed his
love, and she told him that he had
possessed her heart after that first
meeting on her graduating day-St.
Louis Republic.