Martinsburg statesman. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1869-1906, 1905-11-17
A DENSE FOG.

London had broken its own record.
For three whole days dense fog had
lain on the town like yellow charity
blanket. Traffic in the streets and on
the railroads had been in state of
impotent chaos. Business men got to
their places Of business little before
1t was time to close for the day. So
ciety, venting its spleen upon the eli
mate of England in picturesque lar
guage, remained at home, or ventured
as TAR as the nearest club and de-
voted it's days and nights to bridge.
Theatres closed because even dead
heads scoffed at the offer OF seats, and
the only people who regarded the fog
as an i'll wind, to speak Hibernially,
were pickpockets and martyrs OF astn-
ma.
/ 1t may be said that on the third day
| there was one man, at least, in Lon
don, who cared not a jot whether 1t
! was wet or fine. clear or foggy, and that
! was Everard Heswell, the man who
! had stroked the Oxford boat in the
last race. The reason of this sublime
/ Indifference was not far to seek. Has
we'll was in love. And when man
is In love he does the most foolish as
| well as the most irremediable things
in his life-among them. proposing
) and being accepted. For the fifth
time during those three regrettable
days Haswell had found his way to the
steps of Maggie Weybourne's house.
1t was in Berkeley Square. 1t might,
/ for all he could tell for the little that
| could be seen of tiff be any other
|, square-or, for the matter of that, it
/ might not have been a square at all,
but circle or an oDlong. He had
discovered 81B five times, but he had
not managed to pump up sufficient
pluck to ring the bell and march in to
bully Miss Weybourne into being his
wife. From little things that she had
sail loudly with her eyes during visit
to Oxford he had felt certain that she
loved him. But from little things that
she had left unsaid since he felt
equally certain that she didn't
He had CROPPED his way about for
sohC "hCu ouuuChiy ne Sluhs"
bled into slight figure muffied to her
eyes.
IL beg" he began.
The muffied figure raised her hands
bsseechingly. Take my purse. take
my bangles. take my rings; but oh.
don't. don't take mel"
With queer feeling that he had
heard the voice before, Heswell peered
into her face. Il don't 60 In for maxi
ing collections either of jewelry or
young women. l haven't the least IN
tention of making myself obnoxious. l
bumped you, am afraid. but. l hope.
not severely Good morning, or good
afternoon, or whatever it is"
He could hear the girl crying softly.
He imagined that she was girl; he
could see nothing of her face, It's
hopeless; utterly hopeless!" she sobb-
ed. Il shall never, never get home
n-n-never!"
Heswel had determined to go to his
club and there write a passionate ap-
peal to Miss Weybourne. His ances-
tors had, however. entered the lists
against Brian de Bois-G uilbert, and
the little knighthood that modern life
had left in him broke into flower at
the sound of woman's tears.
Il will do my best to guide you
home, if you will let me-" he said.
ITS very kind of you" she said:
but"
Don't worry about your bangles
and rings" said Heswell. Honestly.
| don't care tuppence about EN-"
The girl was still uncertain. Thank
you SO much" she replied. AT any
rate, it's a great relief to know that.
Perhaps you can tell me where we are
now?"
Sahara, most likely; or Trafalgar
Square, perhaps"
But want to find Berkeley Square,"
she went on, still examining him as
closely as she dared. DO you know
Berkeley Square?"
Heswell uttered a kind of laugh.
Just a little!" he said. in what is
generally described at a bitter tone.
When I'm not actually hanging on to
the bell of 81B--'
"S1B!" cried Miss Weybourne. She
had recognized the man she had been
In love with for almost three months
and who was her ideal of all that an
Englishman should be. She was about
to tell him who she was. when sud-
den thought seized her. At Oxford she
had been quite certain that he had low
ed her Since then she had seen him
in London and had not been quite so
certain. 1t was obvious that ne was in
a more dismal mood than usual. Be-
ing young woman who had enjoyed
her first season for all that it was
worth, and who had not gone about
with closed eyes, she well knew that
when men are in dismal moods they
are bound to confdc in the first young
: woman they meet She therefore de-
termined to let him see her home I'M
der the impression that she was