Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1899-06-15


off fight tomorrow, and that you are
responsible for the duel?"
The lovely cheek grew pale. He felt
her arm tremble beneath his touch.
Her lips quivered. His own glance
softened at the signs of womanly
weakness.
Then she leaned back in her chair
and laughcd-a little, low, ripping
laugh.
"Fight for a ribbon or flower? Tru-
ly, mems lives ON trifes hang. Which.
may ask, is the better swordsman OF
the two?"
Nothing could exceed the languor and
utter Indifference Of her tone. 1t would
have defied the closest scrutiny to have
discovered what was the fact-that her
heart was beating madly, suffocatingly
and the blood congealing in her veins
to ice.
Over Harry Arkwright's face swept
q look of almost horror. Before him
sat the woman whom he had enshrined
in his soul as the one perfect being he
had met. He had worshipped her for
years. Her pain, her suffering, had
been to him acutest torture. She ideal
lied womanhood in his sight. And now
she laughed when he told her that one,
perhaps two men went for her sake to
their death! Laughed! Vetoed help
him! he murmured inwardly-he loved
her vet; loved her with the blind, wor-
shipping alteration of old. Woman or
devil, he would love her to the end!'
"Florcnce," he said, and his voice
rang out clear and stern, "tell me-
what made you do this thing?'
"Listen, then, my inquisitor," she re-
Piled, as she rose from the table. MY
conscience (ah, perhaps you did not
know l had a conscienceY whispered to
me that had been overland to the
! prince, who loved me through his van
| ity-less kind to the boy, who loved
me through his heart. Poor Carlo! He
| cunceals his passion poorly! There
fore, need not hesitate to speak Of it.,
and. after all, he is but a child. He
needs the lesson. Well, as you know. l
| mot:oned him to give me his arm. He
| did so, murmuring the while words in
my ear of passionate reproach. AS we
entered the drawing room my bracelet
became entangled in one of the but
tons on his sleeve. In disengaging it
the clasp broke and it fell to the floor.
Instantly he stopped to pick it UP, and,
snatching the ribbon from his coat, tied
it together by the silllen strand upon
my wrist Poor boy! His uniform had
lost it's bright bit of coloring, and he
had sacrificed it for my sake. What
less could 1 do than replace it by an
other? Consequently, the rose took it's
place. For the moment I was abso-
lutely forgetful that it was the princes
| off rNhic ic 10 ctn G IL tho story
OF Il crime?"
This, doubtless, was the explanation
which, later, she would murmur in the
princes ear. Him it might satisfy.
Not so with Arkwright. The cloud lift
were stern. His lips quivered with the
anguish at his heart. Could it be that
Louis Gervase had stamped out from
this exquisite frame it's soul?
"Florence," he said. after moments
pause, "God knows love you too well,
to deeply, to be either your censor or
your judge, nor will words repair the
evil wrought. Can you find no way to
prevent this duel being fought?"
Her face hardened, and the smile
died.
II am not the princes keeper nor do
l control his majesty's guards. You
| put strange questions, Captain Ark
wright"
cat least you will not say 1 leave
them unanswered he replied, with
the old imperiousness she so well re-
membered; eat least. you shall not re-
proach me that l suggested ends with
out the means. There is one way in
which you can prevent the murder of
this boy, for it will be murder. let the
world call it what it will. There is a
way open by which you may yet es
cape the haunting memory of this
nights work, and. Florence, the way is
this: Let me go to these men tonight
at once-and say to them: THE lady
for whom you fight tomorrow is my
atfianced wife. The dispute has been
Il mistake, an error. AS her future hus-
| band, ask you to drop this matter be-
tween YOU The prince is gentleman.
He will apologize to Dameroff for his
hasty words when he realizes that you.
indeed. are hopelessly lost to either
Oh, Florence oh, my love! can you
guess the pain which stabbed my heart
tonight, when you let these men whis-
per in your ear their batteries, and an
swered them with the glance you know
so we'll how to throw into your eyes?
Give up this false, this artificial life
Remember the old days-the old
hours!'
"Hushv' she cried, springing to her
feet. An instant before she had list
ened. her lashes sweeping her cheek,
her breast heaving, her lips tremulous.
But. alas, at the last words, all woman
ly weakness had fled. "Hush!' she
commanded. "You dare bring back
that past here? You dare fling Flor
ence Vane in the face of Madame Flor
ence? What living thing. think you,
she hates as she hates the girl who
bore that name? Go show to the Grim:
inal his portrait when, little lad. he
knelt at his mothers knee, when deep
in his soul he knows that at his door
lies that mothers early death! Go
point to the beggar and the outcast, the
rich man feeding by his warm fireside.
Tell Dives to look up to Lazarus, and
whispering. so might I have BEEN
find content. What these pictures are,
each to the other. so is the picture YOU