Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1906-09-07

"You are right he said, "shc Is very
beautiful"
lie bad suddenly awokc to the
knowledge of the fact. He said to
himself tina he must have been blind
Had this woman been any other than
his wife, he would have thought her
perfection. AS he looked at her he
wondered that he had ever I"ast"d Of
his preference for blondes. What
could compare with the Splcndor Of
those dark eyes, the exquisite color
ing of that noble southern face? He
crossed the ON to where the Young
countess stood talking to Lady Ham
ilton.
%'Ilildrcd." he sai,,, SIMPLY, will
you save one dance for meE'
She looked at the pretty tablets and
then smiled ut him.
II am not engaged for the next
waltz" she said.
Then give it to me" requested tho
earl, II the dark eyes wcr" raised
to his.
"If | had been engaged, should have
felt inclined to break my engagement"
she said.
Lady Hamilton was not quite
pleased. Two suns could not shine in
one hemisphere; and, If Lady Fnravcn
had any idea of outshining her. the
sooner that idea was abandoned the
better.
1T is rather odd" she said. with
one of her brightest smiles, ito see
husband and wife waltz toSethcr-one
would imagine you were still Low
ers.'
Hildred was on the point of rctort-
ing that they had never yet been that,
but prudence restrained her.
She took up the pretty tablets again.
They held many James Against the
| waltz she wrote My husband"
He was watching her intcntly, and
when she had finished writing he took
the tablets from her hand. How
strange the words looked! There were
noble names above them. noble names
below them. MY husband" He won
dered why she had not written Lord
Caraven" instead, or his initials. AS
he returned the tablets to her their
eyes met in a long, lingering glance.
Suddenly she turned from him with
her face on fire; and Lord Caravcn.
with q strange sensation at his heart,
began talking to Lady Hamilton.
This is my waltz" said Lord Cara
ven, shortly afterward, as he came up
to his wife. She did not raise her eyes
to his she was afraid to do SO. What
t.. they should tell him her secret?
What if he should read lcve for him
self shining in their depths?
The earl half smiled, nalf sighed at
the strangeness of the situation. This
noble woman, to the knowledge of
whose beauty he had suddenly
awoke, was his own wife. They had
spent much time together, both sang
and worked together; now his arm was
round the supple, graceful figure-the
lovely face was close to his own. He
saw before him the whole time, stand
ing out clear and distinct from the 9th
ers, the two words, MY husband"
Lord Damers had told him that he
was a subject of envy. The past had
all been a sorry mistake. How beauti-
fully this neglected, unloved wife Of his
danced! 1t was the very poetry of mo-
ton. But-how strange it was! she
never looked at him she did not talk
or laugh she seemed rather to avoid
him, as it were.
.'She does o like me-" thought the
earl land she has little reason to-" He
was frank enough to own that.
The dance ended, he led his wife to a
seat, and then left her with & bow. She
was never quite the same again. AS
it needs but a small match to fire n
train of gunpowder, so it needed but
little to awaken her love into keen,
quick, passionate life. That II dance
with him had lone it. She loved him
with her whole heart, and the sudden
ness with which that conviction flashed
over her bewildered her. Shyly, timid-
ly, she looked at him. He was talking
to a group Of ladies, his handsome face
all animation, his tall, well-built' figure
all grace. He was a man to be proud
ola man to love. But he must never
know about this love OF hers-this
spised her for her want Of noble birth;
she must keep her love as secret as the
grave.
It was hard to go about her daily
tasks-to smile, to talk, to look as
though no sorrow engrossed her-but
Hildred did it. Her husband found
out, too, quite by accident, that she
rose early every morning in order that
she might go on with the work that
she had begun. Her letters, the plans,
the wants of the tenants, were all at
tended to before the real household day
began. He was pleased when he found
it out it was part of her noble charac-
ter to be true to her purposes; but he
never dreamed that love for him drove
sleep from her eyes,, as it had already
driven peace from her heart-he would
never have believed it.
She smiled sadly to herself Il day.
saying:
Now | know h meaning Of tie
words:
81 have gone mad-I love him-let
ne die"
CHAPTER XXIv.
WIN " i,folar, GIo capsa nf shawn