The Opelousas courier., 1899-03-04
FOR MARGUERITE

leart!' The words were lJw anC
pleading, the voice very tender ant
true, but the girl on whose dainty ears
they fell threw her beautiful head q
little further back, and laughed out
her half vexed, half defiant answer.
"When you are on the road to sue.
cess, Gerard, I'll marry you at once,
If it be soon, for I can't wait forever;
but as yon don't apparently wish for
success, then"-with a lovely willful
smile and the prettiest of petulent
moues-"Good bye"
The man listened, his handsome
face turning white, as ii carved in
stone.
Success with you is only another
name for"
Money" the girl interrupted, with
that lovely little laugh again. 81
know it, Gerard, and despise me for
it if you will. If you had been
brought up in poverty, if you had
wanted frocks and pretty shoes and
pleasures Of every kind-and oh,
thousands of things that you couldn't
get-then yon, too, would spell sue
cess with an NJ, a very big NJ, and
call It money! You would know
you would" she ended, bitterly.
The mar sighed heavily. Fate was
indeed against him now, and his ca
reer, light and hopeful as it looked a
short time ago, seemed sadly dull and
sombre now, and why? Because OF
that lovely face that was turned away
from him SO petulently; because of the
hooking words that fell like the
strokes of a whip across his loving
heart. And while he thought the
music in the distance ceased its soft
throbbing, the dance was over, and
he had his answer, he supposed.
He would say II more thing be-
fore they parted, he determined sud
denly; he would have at any rate a
clear understanding with the woman
he loved so madly. And, after that,
then the venture-to the right, Oh to
the left.
He put out his hand to stay her as
she would have risen. 81 want to
ask you M thing more" he said, so
gently that her wandering attention
was fixed on him once again.
'If [ went into business, my
fathers business, which, as you know,
l hate-if I gave up my dreams Of the
bar, and a life which I should love, a
life which would be poor, perhaps, but
full Of promise-if 1 had the prospect
of success in the business of which
you speak so highly. what then?"
She turned to him with a new light
sparkling in her beautiful eyes. Had
she conquered at last-everything,
every hope, every ambition at her
feet?
"rhen," she said, her voice tender
with feeling, and her soft e,yelids
dropping above the brilliant eye
'then I should say no more" and her
tones trembled into silence, and her
white hands played %nervously with
the ~violets at the bosom Of her deli
cate gown.
"But would you love me and be-
lieve in me, my love?" he urged. his
voice strained with passionate love,
his hands clasping hers. "Will you
love me, darling; will you let me hope
again?-will you, darling?-tell me,
tell me now" And the soft music
rose and fell again and the air was
laden with the scent of lilies and
heliotrope as Marguerite the beautiful
bent toward her lover.
The snow fell outside very softly,
wrapping the sordid city in tenderest
white coverings and transforming it
into a kingdom of crystal and pearl.
Inside one of the greatest of its fair
houses there was r%evelry and the
ripple of silvery voices and the ring
of tuneful laughter.
One of the lands richest men en-
tertained his guests and feasted them
right royalty, so that they spoke in
creasingly well of him and of his en-
tertainment, and Of the beauty Of his
peerless wife.
She stoodin the great drawing room
in purest white with diamonds on her
snowy neck, and beautiful stars in her
golden hair, and around her a little
company Of the gayest and wittiest
and cleverest kept in her count, and
pleased her with their %sallies, until
her clear laughter rang out above all
the gentle badinage around.
The husband heard the silver ripple
of laughter and it awoke some of the
old thoughts and old memories that he
had striven to lay by, as a child lays
by its dear toys when playing days are
over and done with.
All of a sudden he felt very weary
and tired-tired Of the lights and the
scent of the great banks of roses that
his wife had ordered the skilful florist
to arrange-tired of the music, and
the faces and the crowd and he slipped
away unnoticed to his quiet study, and
sat there awhile to dream.
He had gone into the business that
he had heartily disliked-for Marguer-
ite-and it had proved asuccess in his
hands.
They had spoke Of him for a knight
hood this year; but it did not elate
him much but his wife was delighted
and he was not much tired Of pleas
ing her yet. Only he had pleased her
SO much once, he had given up so
much for her sake, that every sense
had been tur!ousiy deadened to him