Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Benton County, Or.) 1900-1909, 1901-04-05
A Sentimental Journey.


ST was about o'clock one after
noon in February, and Hippesley
was sitting on the veranda of the
Cafe de Paris at Monte Carlo. He sat,
deep in thought, his ears mechanically
listening to the strains of the little
Hungarian band a few yards away
from him. He was thinking of the rea-
son that had brought him to the place.
He had been abroad for twelve years,
yet, within a month Of his return, he
had left again and hurried to spend
few days on the Riviera before taking
steamer at Marseilles
1t was absurd, he knew 1t, but the
longing to see her face again was ire
sistible. He would not seek an oppor-
tunity Of speaking with her-the
scheme on which their lives had been
worked out made this impossible. He
simply had an overwhelming desire to
see her. Then he could go back to his
lonely life, not happy-he could never
be that, but with fresh picture of the
one woman he had ever loved.
He noticed smart carriage draw up
before the broad steps of the Casino,
and, almost simultaneously, man and
a woman came out of the building. The
man was mfddle-aged, trifle heavy in
build and faultlessly dressed. He
handed the lady into her carriage. Hip
pesley, as he caught sight Of her face,
gave a start, and clutched hold of the
table. She was a young Englishwo-
man, magnifcently beautiful.
The color left his face, and he riveted
his eyes on her. He watched her smil-
ingly say '.good-by" to the man on the
steps, then the carriage turned and
drove rapidly away. AS it vanished
his mouth twitching. His throat SEEM
ed dry and parched; he stretched for
ward and drank some tea at a gulp.
Then the voices of two men talking
just behind him reached his ears.
"That was the Princess Zandra-she
is living at the villa Erondel, at Beau
.lieu.''
Enormously rich?'
''She was till day or so ago." The
man lowered his voice. Hippesley
found himself straining for the next
words. 81 happen to know" came in
almost a whisper, "that the late prince
was sufficiently ill-advised to invest
nearly all his money in an enterprise
that has recently come to the ground
with crash, and the princess, who
never had the slightest suspicion of her
affairs not being in satisfactory state,
has suddenly been told that another
year at her present rate of expenditure
will leave her penniless."
"What will she doY
go on living as she has done-and
marry again! Women with such beau
ty can pick and choose-there are no
hard places for them. Rumor says it
will be the man who has just left her
He is not good man, but he is pas
sionately in love with her, and a mil
lionaire twice over"
Hippesely rose from his seat, and,
making his way round to the terrace
sank into a seat. He felt he could
hear no more. 1t was all So curious,
so startlingly strange. To think that
the girl he had left living with her
father on the outskirts of a quiet
English country town should have de-
veloped into this wonderful Princess
Zandra, whose beauty was known
throughout Europe. And they had
loved one another! He had gone abroad
with the hope of making a name for
himself, of being able to claim her. But
ill-luck had dogged him, and the time
had never come when he could write
to her. He had left her free, and as the
years went by, bringing nothing but
persistent failure, he knew that it was
not for him to possess the only thing
he counted worth having. Occasionally
scraps Of intelligence as to the course
her life had taken drifted to him. Her
father had died, and she had gone to
live with wealthy aunt in London.
From stray papers that reached him he
learned that her beauty had caused
quite sensation in society. Then at
last came the news that she had mar
ried foreigner of great position.
Prince Zandra.
He wondered if she ever thought of
him-remembered the night he had
confessed his love to her. Not a day
had passed in those long years of fail
ure but her image had been before him.
Now, at length, when he had achieved
some slight success, it was too late. All
that was left for him was to take the
absurd little journey of sentiment.
Early next morning he Travelled to
Beaulieu. He got out at the railway
station and, following the path that led
round to st. Jean, passed the fishing
village, and gained the point. There he
sank down on the ground, and gave
himself up to his reflections. 1t was q
perfect morning, cloudless sky, the
air soft and pregnant with the perfume
of the roses that grew right to the edge
of the tiny cliff. Some thirty feet be-
low him was the sea, not a ripple cn its
smooth surface. the clear blue tints
cleaning in the sunshine.
Presently he was aware of a woman
gazing curiously at him. The next mo-
ment they had recognized one another.
She went suddenly pale and her lips
parted in wonder.
"Ralphp. she gasped.
He IonIxpd at hnr rnf1faIv Ha xvoS fooa