Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1900-06-09

L DHIneIOrS'
ers, and which, TO my nostrils AT leas.
is comfortable and delicious fra'
GRANGE; and the fire on tho heartl,-mv
fire was 'leaping and cracking nc.
eording to my fondest wishes. TN,
little meal, spread temptingly upon the
table, added the final touch to n very
attractive picture, OF still-life.
Darracott conducted me to a positiou
where the rays from an exuufsiteh-s
shaded bronze readipg-lamp would fall
upon my hand, and. adding Et,Ia
water to the soda he had brourht
mixed paste with which he coated
the scalded spot Then l offered hin,
my handkerchief to wrap round il
but he refused to avail himself of IA.
| 1T IS too bad to press all your ward
roDe INTO dispensary use" ne said
wait a moment"
i He went to a cabinet. and after
brief search returned with square OF
such linen as had hitherto but dreamt
or. This was bordered with lace thar
| fairies might have woven from COLI
webs. The hue of both lace and linen
was OF that mellow richness that only
Is obtainable from the palette of time
1 "What is that?' 1 exclaimed with
bated breath, for have n reverence
for all exquisite things.
"a chalice veil"
| What are you going to do with it?'
Bind ii upon wound gained in my
service"
! Withdrew my hand before he could
fulfil his intention.
] You shall not 1t is 4 dissertation
a follyr'
| Not nearly so great one as tho
staunching OF those other wounds witb
your handkerchief. Yourhand. please"
/ NONSENSE l cried. IL will not per-
nit it. L will not allow you 10 soil so
precious thing by such a service."
He had by this time possessed him.
self again of my band. and was hold
ing it very gently in his own. gazing
thoughtfully down upon it.
Our minds frame similar Thoughts
concerning different objects" he said,
and shook out the beautiful web.
Il will not have it; really, l will notv'
exclaimed vehemently, and would
have drawn away my hand second
time, but he made it tenderly prisoner
with his other fingers.
But 1 willard therefore you
| SHALL! he returned. miss Lothrop
you are acting foolishly. Don't you
see / want to give you a memento as
n slight acknowledgement of my graft
tude to you? Let me wrap your hand
/ In the rarest possession / have, and
even then l shall only have limited at
the recognition of the debt I owe you
for your devotion to me and NINE"
] l struggled no longer. / saw that he
really wished to give me this priceless
article, and it seemed tactless to make
further protest. But / insisted upon
first throwing my own handkerchief
over the plaster into which the soda
had now formed, thereby protecting
the chalice veil from injury. His eff
forts for my relief were quite con-
Guided. and 1 babe him goodnight.
He laughed rs 1 did so.
| Now, what a meaningless phrase
has that which you have just uttered
come to ber he said. Much use has
killed all its significance for us. You
speak II as casually as IL it were a
matter of course that the wish IL em-
bodies were to be fulfilled; and vet
Miss Lothrop, you can scarcely for q
moment believe that n man who has
Just received beneath his roof the
shattered remains of wife who has
| disgraced and deserted him could by
any chance pass ood-night'-now,
could you?''
1t seemed to me that his question
was only means OF prolonging the in
terview, and this I had no mind for,
so 1 moved towards the door and
made my answer standing on the
| threshold.
No 1 replied with keen sympathy.
No. | could not 1 will change my
valediction. Auf wiedersehen.'
II would rather have IL 'bientot,"
he said. Then, as l smiled and nodl-
ed, he remarked quickly: By the way,
Miss Lothrop, how much do you know
of the true meaning OF this occurrence
which has taken place this evening?
Has my mother seen fit to enlighten
you concerning our family historyI'
4 mo"
And you are thinking me- doubt
less, monster, to have alienated the
affections of both mother and wifeI
Are you not?"
1 made no reply. felt the subject
dangerous territory.
You are n0n-committai. Come back
a moment. / have something to say
to you. Perhaps, If L say it. i may.
notwithstanding other things. have a
good night. You will not Gomez as
shook my head. "Good Godi What
is the matter with me, Miss Lothrop :?
All women seem to shrink from mel
Why are you afraid or me?'
Il am not afraid" / said, advancing
again into the room. Mr.. Chester.
know almost nothing of the past
Ievents of your life, and my acquaint.
ance with you is of recent date; but
think no woman would need to be
endowed with extraordinary perspicac-
ity to feel assured that she might
trust you at any time and under all
circumstances. Now / am tired. and
so are you; it is awfully late. and 1
must go to bed"
4 He was leaning against tho rnantaI
piece, looking earnestly at me. He
held out his hand.
Yes" he said, you look tired. Go.
But shake hands on the truth of your
statement, won't you?"
L drew near and laid my hand in
his. His fingers closed tightly upon 1t.
You do look tired, Dorothy" he re-
peated, the name appearing to slip
out without his being aware of it. II
can with perfect assurance wish you a
good night Women OF your calibra
have no uneasy memories to disturb
their slumbers. Goodnight, and good
bye"