Canyon City news. (Canyon City, Tex.) 1903-1908, 1905-03-03
of interest, and he wondered who

lie very soon found out, Tor on
board ship one speedily becomes
aware of the identity, whether true
or false, of ones fellow passengers.
She was Mrs. Grenville, a widow,
and had been staying at Hongkong
with friends and was now returning
to England. She was chaperoned
by an aunt, Lady Grahame.
II wish Violet would make up her
mind to marry again." she said one
day when the Parramatta had left
Singapore far behind and they were
steaming through the heat of the
Indian ocean, "but | fear she never
will. She had a very unhappy mar
ried life, short as it was, and | am
afraid she will never care to repeat
the experiment"
Walton murmured something in
audible. The idea somehow of Mrs.
Grenville marrying any one became
very distasteful to him unless
His heart suddenly beat faster and
his cheek flushed as he all at once
realized that Violet Grenville had
become very dear to him.
They had spent a great deal of
their time together during those
long, hot days and had paced the
deck after dinner in the cool dark
ness of those tropical nights, and
she had attracted him more than
any other woman he had ever met,
for his wife had never attracted him
or appealed to the intellectual side
of his nature as Mrs. Grenville did,
and, alas, he knew now that the
feeling he had had for his wife was
but purely physical passion born
of her beauty. She could never have
held his mind. She was too shallow,
too vain.
After that conversation with Lady
Grahame Walton's eyes were opened
to the true state of his feelings for
Mrs. Grenville, but as yet he gave
her 10 hint. First he must tell her
his story, yet he shrank from the
idea of laying bare the shameful
past before that pure soul.
1t was couple Of evenings later.
Walton and his companion leaned
side by side over the rail and talked
/ in fragmentary manner, but there
was an intonation in his voice, a
tenderness in his gray eyes, that
made her heart beat and stirred her
pulses strangely. One little hand
lay near his, and suddenly his closed
on it, and he raised it to his lips and
kissed it passionately.
"My darling" he whispered,
"Violet, / love you. VIII you be my
wife? Speak to me, darling. Tell
me l have not hoped in vain"
For moment, as he put his arm
round her and drew her to him, she
yielded to his embrace; then she
hurriedly drew herself away.
"Wait until tomorrow" she muir
murcd. 'I-I will tell you then if
you still care to hear"
"Care to hearw he cried passion
ately. "Child, don't you guess how
much l love you?"
But with a sad little smile she fit
ted from his side and was lost in the
shadows of the deck.
Punctually at 5 o'clock the next
day Mrs. Grenville appeared on deck,
looking very lovely in her white
dress, though her face was pale and
heavy shadows rested under the
gray blue eyes. Walton, to whom
her coming was as glimpse Of para
disc, hurried forward to meet her,
and he carried her deck chair to a
secluded corner, shaded from the
glare of the afternoon sun, which
was now creeping to its rest.
"Well, Violet, which is it to be? ?"
he whispered. "You don't know
what tortures of impatience. and un-
certainty l have suffered since last
night. Is it to bc-yes?" And he
tried to read his answer in her avert
ed eyes.
"Wait," she murmured family.
T-I have something to tell you be-
fore l give you my answes-some-
thing that YOU ought to know. If
after-you still care, I-will--say
yes"
"My darling," he cried, violet,