The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1900-03-21

child; her heart IS as sheet OF Whlte
paper on which no man has yet traced
the first letter of his name. Clarence,
my friend, be it your pleasing pastiE1e
to place thereon your full image and
superscrIption.
And with a triumphant smile, Stan
ley once more locked away the cryptic
graph and his Interpretation Of 1t.
Then, as he caught up his hat, there
came quick knock on the door, which
was Immediately opened in answer to
his response, and Professor Henri Van
Tassel entered.
He was so changed, and the change
was so great an Improvement, that
Stanley did not at the first glance
recognize him. He was still pale, but
his thin face was no longer cadaver-
Gus, and though there was in his man
ner the same mir as of submission to
master, it was willing bondage, more
than willing-almost joyous. His
clothes, from his jaunty hat to the
tips of his polished shoes, were new.
and even the smile with which he
greeted Stanley's surprise was bright
and fresh.
"Halloa, old fellow! Is it really
you? You have come in good time.
I was lust about to dine. Come on,
and we will make a night of it." And
together this strangely assorted couple
set forth.
Early on the next morning, Polly
Hamilton received by the hand of a
messenger the following brief note:
Polly, dearest. may I+bring an old
friend OF mine to call on you this afternoon:
He may not interest you, perhaps ne may
even bore you, but he is poor fellow to
whom fate has not been over kind, and
should be glad to put a little sunshine into
his life il 1 might. But fyou would rather
not know him, don't be bit shy about
saying SO. -.
Ever yours: CLARENCE"
"The idea of asking leave to bring
any friend of his here!' said Polly
Hamilton to her mother, who was
looking over her shoulder while she
read Stanley's note. ''But it is SO
nice of him, too, and I like it. I sup
pose it is remnant of the Old World
punctiliousness that makes him so
particular, mamma. And he likes Eng
lish phrases, too, I have noticed, OF
perhap he uses$hem unawares." Polly
suddenly lasped into silence, almost
fearing she had said too much already,
and wishing that Clarence hadn't
asked her to be at all secret IN regard
to their engagement.
But it will only be for few days,
anyway" she thought, consoling her
self with that reflection and fastening
to write a line of answer to- Stanley, to
send back by the messenger.
'It is so like Clarence to wish
everyone else to bask in the sunshine
of his own happiness" she thought;
chat is exactly how I feel myself;
and the only objection to his friend is
that I can't have Clarence 80 entirely
to myself as if he were coming alone.
But no matter. Lorita will engage
his friends attention, perhaps, and it
will really amount to the same thing" !"
And that was how it came to pass that
when Mr.. Stanley, accompanied by
Professor Henri Van Tassel, called on
Miss Hamilton and the Senorita Men:
doza, Dolores found herself acting
the part of hostess to the stranger
while Polly and Stanley sate by each
other in distant corner and we're
openly devoted to each other; at least
Polly was a little more ELUSIVE than
usual and 80 happy that she did not
observe that Clarence only smiled and
placid!y accepted her. eVident prefer
ence for lis society while he observed
carefully the manner of Dolores and
Van Tassel toward each other.
From the moment of first meeting
this stranger Dolores felt herself pene-
trated with feeling of pity and pro.
lection toward him. What Stanley
had shrewdly said to himself in re.
gard to her lack of experience and
knowledge OF mankind was singularly
true. In her isolated and filially de-
voted life she had scarcely been aware
of the world around her; and on the
days when she had been engaged in
the fashionable cloak-room, displaying
handsome garments on her slender
and elegant figure, her mind had
lived in world of its own instead of
observing and studying the people
around her. But what Stanley was
not capable of understanding about
Dolores when he complacently put
his comprehension of her into form
was that she possessed a faculty OF in
tuition worth the experience of a long
life, by which she read as if in mir
ror the true character of those with
whom she was brought into close rela-
ton. This intuition now told her that
the character of Van Tassel was orig
inally good-by nature he was true,
simple, childlike; but his mind WAS
unevenly balanced, his nervous system
was wreck, and he was morally 80
unstrung that he held himself ire
sponsible for the circumstances Of his
life; and, especially under the inlu-
ence OF dose of opium, complacently
regarded him as the innocent victim
of cruel destiny. From the instant
when he met her first glance
glance so kind, encouraging, almost
maternal in its gentle protectiveness,
Van Tassel felt that he had been born
into a new world. There was be-
tween them some subtle bond of SYM
pathy which neither could have cx-
planned, but Van Tassel knew in mo-
ment that he had already seen the face
of Dolores-yes, it was the same in.
spired and beautiful face that had re-
l.. ~ 4l,o ,>,rnh ho,