Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1902-01-09
HH0W | MARRIED
Ill MY GRANDMOTHER

: and entalled estate would go, OF course.
/ TO his eldest son, my uncle, but the
! greater part of his vast wealth would
come to me. In fact, he had so de-
| clared | had lost both parents when
! but a child. and l had grown to man
! hood under his immediate care, for he
! had long been n widoweF. My father
! had been his favorite son. What more
natural than that l should be the pre-
| ferred one? There WIS this under
standing, however, between my grand
! father and myself: l must never marry
without his approval. Marry! L had
no thought of it. My rollicking bach
elor life pleased me too well to ex-
! change it for any other.
And that sort of existence lasted I'M
! til | was twenty-seven, and then 1t
was brought to an abrupt close by
what do you suppose? Well, girls
| face, nothing more-a gi''Ps face seen
| for a brief moment only at window
as | was changing carriages at Bolton
station You smile. l don't wonder,
| but l declare to you that from thence
forth | knew no peace of mind. That
| lace WAS ever DtIOlG lOOhlhS OuN
| from under a dainty gypsy hat, pale,
| pure. perfect in outline with a luXuri-
ant mass of soft brown hair full of
shiny ripples, dark eyes, little red
mouth and shining white teeth.
"Some dreamy little chit" l said to
myself again and again, with pref
| ty face and head full of romance. /
wish | had never seen her. At all
events, it is highly probable that we
| have met for the first and last time; so
| I'll forget her"
Brave words | could not forget her,
and just then, to add to my perplexity,
my regiment was ordered off to India.
A few days before embarking | re-
ceived a letter from my grandfather,
| Sir John Halbrooke, urging me to run
down to The Towers in order that l
might meet the lady who was destined
| to be my future wife. My answer was
| short and to the point:
Dear Grandfather-I have no desire to marry.
| Besides, start for India in two weeks, so have
| no time for courtship But | shall down to
| The Towers to you. Your affectionate, etc
The old gentleman's answer was
| equally concise ana eXpllclI.
Ny Dear Crandson-If you come to The Tow
| ers with the intention of putting yourself en-
tirely in my hands, | shall be oyerioyed to see
you If you attempt to enter my house with any
| other intention, I'll have YOU kicked out, and il
you go to India / hope to heaven that you'll be
| shot. Your affectionate, etc.
| What could be done in the face of
such an epistle as this? Evidently
nothing. so l cheerfully made my
preparations for departure, and before
we sailed-I am glad to remember this
before we sailed l wrote again to Sir
| John, but this time it was letter full
| of gratitude and affection and earnest
regrets that | could not do as he de-
sired.
To this | received no answer, but
month after my arrival in India 1 read
| the announcement of the baronet's
death, and the same paper contained
his marriage notice A letter from his
solicitors explained the mystery.
My grandfather had been severely
| injured while overlooking some reno
vations which were being made at The
Towers, and, feeling that death was
fast approaching, he had almost at the
last moment married the only child
and heiress Of Hubert Monckton, Esq.
Moreover" wrote the lawyer, "by
your grandfather's VIII you inherit
something above 100000, provided you
consent to marry the lady with whom
he went through the ceremony of mar
riage on his deathbed. Otherwise you
receive not penny Of his fortune"
Had the man gone mad? Marry my
grandmother? For, word it as they
might, the ugly fact was still there
the woman was my grandmother.
Bristling with Indignation, l wrote to
Sir Johns lawyer-not very civilly, 1
fear, but very energetically, l am sure.
In the first place, | said | would not
accept penny Of Sir John Halbrooke's
fortune as a free gift. In the next, L
would not accept the whole of it bur-
dened with single restricting clause,
and, in conclusion, l not only refused
to marry the widow, but absolutely de-
clined holding any communication
whatever with her
"And say to my grandmother" add
ed, that the world is wide enough and
there are men enough in 1t for her to
seek whom she may devour elsewhere
and not among those whom the law of
the land now declares to be her own
kith and kin. Let her cast her eyes
among the strangers at her gates and
not upon her grandsonw
That ended the matter, and | was
troubled with no more letters about it.
Two years afterward | returned to
England on leave, and then fate, in
the person of General Ashland, led me
down to Surrey for a fortnight's shoot
Ing.
All, my dear fellow, it is only the old
story over again. l went down to Sur
rey and met there-whom do you sup
pose? Well, the girl whose face-seen
once and for a moment only - had
haunted me for years.
She was Il distant relative of my
host. Yes, and loved her desperately
not for her beauty alone, but for the
pure goodness, kindliness and unself-
ishness of her heart, which were con-
stantly and unthinkingly revealing
themselves in thousand artless little
ways.
So, as you may guess, my two weeks
at Ashland Park wore on to four, and
l still fingered, even until the dying
leaves were rustling feebly in the mel
low air of a belated autumn.
And one clear starlt evening, when
Helen and l were sauntering among
the trim flower beds that were cut In
the soft green turf of the terrace, /
told her the secret of my heart-its
hope, its fear, its sweet unrest.
When | ceased, my companion looked
up at me wonderingly, and, upon my
honor, tears were glistening in her
pretty eyes.
"Whatp' she said. "Are you sure?
Do you love meme? Oh, Colonel
Halbrooke, how could you? Indeed, it
cannot-cannot bep'
Because your heart is given else
where, l suppose? But, Helen, can
not let you go from me. L love you!
Oh, my darling, how shall live all the
long weary years of my life without
you?"
Hush" she cried sharply. 'Sir, do
you know-do you know who l am?"
Indeed, yesl The sweetest little girl
In the wide world!'
"No, sir, l am not Colonel Hal
brooke, l am your grandmother
NJ, Tall nf c,,1Jan