Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1904-01-21
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BERTHA N. CLAY

drove up to the hall door; one groul
after another entered; everything
seemed promising and fair
1 Most scrupulously had Beatrice
! Leigh refrained from uttering one
single word OF advice or assistance
Her one great hope was that Lady
| Violante would make some terrible
bunder that should expose her ignor
ance to the world and cause annoy
nnce to her husband It was disap
pointment to her TO see that every
thing was In trim.
Lady Violante on this suspicious
evening had taken great pains with
her toilet. She wore dress OF rich
white lace, Topped up with lilies Of the
valley; few Of the same fragrant
flowers were wreathed in the coils OF
golden hair, and in her hands she car.
fied q bouquet OF lilies and soft, shin
ing green leaves.
She went creditably through the
reception OF her guests; even the ter.
rible duchess did not awe her She
found few appropriate words for all /;
yet her nervousness was evident; her
sweet face flushed and paled-the
hands that held the lilies trembled.
Beatrice Leigh sneered, the duchess
whispered some malicious witticisms
about country manners and mauvaise
honte," Bul many hearts warmed
there to the fair, sweet face, and
gentle. timid manners; many admired
the gentle, retiring manner more than
they did the imperial grace and dignity
81 Beatrice Leigh.
But as the evening wore on, she
grew physically fatIgued and exhaust
cd, The difficulty of inventing civil
epeeches to SO many people overtaxed
her strength, Lord Vivian had wish
ed too, that she should dance with
his most honored guest, Lord Ions,
dale.
She did wonders. She found part.
ners for those who had none, she
made up capital quartets for the whist
table, she talked timldly, 1t Is true
to the ladies; and, but for malicious
remark she overheard from the Ouch
oss, the chances are that she would
have gone through the evening sue
ccsRfully.
Her grace Of RoXminster was talk
ing buslly to Lady Seftone-an the
two together could get through more
gossip and scandal than any other
two women IN England. Lady Vio-
lanto saw Thorn sitting apart, talking
in u low voice. and the idea unluckiIy
occurred to her that she ought to go
up TO them and see If they required
amusement In any lvolier shape.
She went to the back of Lady SET
tCne's chair. and was just in time to
bear the duchess say:
"Ah, poor Lord Vivian! he must
have had great taste for what Lord
Byron would call bread and butter,
when he married an uniformed girl like
that"
She was mere nobody" rejoined
Lady Seftone; tho daughter of some
country attorney, No one can imagine
what he married her for She has
hut washod.out kind of beauty, after
all"
Poor Violnntci She did NOT know
that was the common language OF the
world, she did not know
that envy has no pity; no liking; that
elderly beauties who have lost all
their own charms, have no occupation
better than decrying the charms of
others. A woman of the world over
hearing such a conversation would
have smiled to herself, and felt that
she was beautiful enough to excite
envy. To Lady Niulante the words
brought sharp, keen pain, They
haunted her: SHE could not forget
them Lord Vivian was ridiculod for
having married her! They preyed
upon her, distressed her. ANNOYED her
until when the time came that she
stood up with Lord l0nsdale. radv
sclwyn celebrated her FIRST london
Eall by falling IN dead FAINT on tho
floor lOdy and miud alike exhausted
An event which created dirG con
fusion, causing the guests to dlsperao
sooner than they would have done
and leaving Lord Vivian Sclwyn with
n tingling sensation OF discontinue
and failure,