The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1900-08-02

evil language years ago. But she was
quite deadly civil now. II met him
through a friend. Were you at the
dance last night?" she said.
''I'll tell you about that later. Tell
me about Mr.. Calverley first, dear. Are
you perfectly sure about him? One has
to be SO careful of these Englishmen
who are not properly accredited
Miss Porter laughed naughty
laugh. Not properly accredited, indeed!
Afriend OF the prince, a relative of more
or less half the peerage, on nickname
terms with all sorts of dukes, and lords,
and things, man of his perfectly ap-
parent means! Not properly accred-
tied, indeed! Her rebuke was terrible,
though brief She mentioned her own
judgment and knowledge of the world,
and her mothers friend withdrew, BAT
fled yet doubling.
AS she went she caught sight of CAL
verley in a big leathern chair before
the fire, smoking his briar pipe, and
that night she told her husband about
it. "What can John Porter be think
ing of?" she demanded.
His own troubles, perhaps" he sug-
gested.
''The man is taking possession of the
whole place"
Her husband dropped into poetry:
His easy, unswept hearth he lends
From Labrador to Guadaloupe:
Till, elbowed out by sloven friends,
He camps. at sufferance, on the sloop.
The Spanish is bad, but the sentiments
all there"
"Some one ought to put stop to it. -
"Don't you be the some one, then.
Let her work out her own-salvation.
If she is in love with him, she'll do as
ahe likes; if she isn't, it won't matter
There was presently no doubt about
her being in love with him. She was
frank in most things, was Miss Porter.
There was but one matter in which she
could bring herself to dissemble, and
only then because Calverley impressed
the great necessity for it upon her.
! ggc explained that though he loved her
to madness and must marry her, there
were sometimes reasons which Amer.
leans could not understand why it was
best for Englishmen who were friends
of the prince, and SO very well connect.
ed as he was, to keep their marriages
secret for a time.
The girl from the French convent
might have seen through that. But
Miss Porter believed it. Anyway, the
notion of an elopement rather appealed
to her Californian love of the pictur
esque. Upon the day set she went over
across the bay with light heart ano
made her way to the sequestered spot
where he was to meet her and take he1
to the church. He was not there. She
waited, but he did not come.
At sunset she recrossed the bay
alone, sadder but not yet wiser girl
Such was her judgment and knowledg'
of the world that she thought Calverle.
must have met with some horrible &C
cident.
A note which she found at the hous'
explained otherwise. 1t was all abou
circumstances over which he had NJ
control, and sudden financial reverses
and how he should always love her ant
therish her memory. Miss Porter be
lieved it. And her heart was broker
really broken. She even went so ia
as to be desperately i'll for six weeks
At the end of which time she cam
forth again, pale, subdued and Nilted
but with unshaken faith in Calverley.
The faith remained unshakel
through long months of silence, 81
; lence so profound that she thought
must be of the grave, and decided tha
he had probably killed himself. Bu
one day that happened which filled he
constant heart with hope once more.
81 say" man said to her. casually
II saw your friend, Clayton-CalverleJ
down south the other day."
Miss Porter turned white, after tn
, most approved fashion of the shillin
, shocker, and clutched at her throa
The man very naturally wondered wha
, the deuce he had gotten into, anyway
| and explained, in answer to her hoars
, entreaty, that he had been in Rand'
burg on business and had met the Bri1
+ isher in the street.
Miss Porter asked il he lived there.
. "Give it up. I didn't speak to hi1
and he didn't see me. Only he doesn
20 by the name of Clayton -Calverle
down there. They call him Myers"
There was the suspicion of twitc
: about the corners of his mouth, br
Miss Porter could not see that it We
funny. She could readily understan
. why he had chosen to hide his identit,
s A name like Extraordinarily woul
I naturally be unwieldy in rough mil
s ing town.
Now, she was young woman WI
:. had always done exactly as she please
:. without asking anyone's leave-fr
t quently for the excellent reason th'
there was no one about of whom to as
d it. Such was at present the case. Juds
d Porter was away, to be gone indefinit