The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1907-10-23

this. No, love haSQ [ come lHlO LEI
heart yet, and you are too much a
| high-minded gentleman to try and
| rouse it; but she could love well;
| and look here, I have saved up and
invested nearly five thousand pounds
I'll make it five full-that would
be a nice lift to whatever business
you are in. You see how I trust you.
I don't care if you have a struggle;
| Elsie is no foolish, eXtravagant doll"
Pray hear me-" interrupted Glynn
| with difficulty; 80 charming a crea-
| ture as your daughter wants no make
| weight to recommend her; she would
be a treasure in herself to any mai
Of taste and feeling. But I do not
| wish or intend to marry for a consid-
cradle time to come" he continued,
| with increasing frmness, quite deter
| mined not to yield to the suggestion
| Of another what he denied to the pas
| sionate craving of his own heart. "As
you say, we are men Of the world,
and can discuss such a question cool
ly and fairly without, on my part,
the smallest infringement of the
warm respect and regard I feel for
| Miss Lambert. There are circum-
| stances-reasons on which it is I'M
necessary to dilate-which forbid my
entertaining your f~lattering and at
tractive proposition"
Suppose I guess what they are"
said Lambert, eagerly rolling up a
cigarette, and scattering his shreds of
tobacco as he did so. You're a bit
of a swell, I calculate; you are
among a desperate set of respectable
city bosses. Hear me now; I'm not
thin skinned. / know I'm not the
sort that would go down with them,
and you know I was a queer lot once.
Well, If you take my Elsie, I'll go
right away; I'll never ask to trouble
you or her. What matter what be-
comes of me if she is safe?-oh, God!
safe with an honorable, kind man,
who would give her a peaceful home.
Ay, Elsie, I love you we'll enough
never to see your sweet face If I
could earn peace and security for
you'll"
And do you think she would love
a husband who could part her from
such a father as you are?" asked
Glynn, deeply touched.
But she should never know"
eagerly; I'D just go away on bust
ness, and stay away, and she'd for
get; she would always have a kind
thought for me, but the new love
would fill her heart; and if you tried
to win her she'd love you, I am sure
she would! Now, can't it be, Glynn?
cant it,"
mo. 1t is with deepest reluctance
I say it. If I can in any way serve
you or her, command me; but unfor-
tunately for myself this cannot be-"
There was a short expressive ST.
lence; then Lambert said, in an al
tered tone: Anyhow, there is no
harm done; I am sure you've some
good reason, and we'll not be the
worse friends because we can be
nothing nearer"
Certainly not; and for my part I
have a higher esteem for you than
ever had before; I trust, however,
that you have no serious cause for
uneasiness about your daughter. If
her little fortune is secured, these
are too prosaic times for daring and
,,,11a;pD,c 1ounrc r,,r1nrNt1c nNncnSr-
ators, Or other dramatic %dangersI"
cay, civilization is just deep
enough to hide the devils that work
underneath it. 1 had n OF two
things to tell a s%on-in-law that, may
be, I had better keep to myself now"
Il sincerely hope that you will not
look on me as the less warm a friend
because l cannot unfortunately fall
in with your views; you do not wish
me to absent myself"
Far from it," interrupted LAM
bert. "Be true to me-be true to
her; maybe by and by you'll have a
good wife that might befriend my
girl; she has no n in the world be-
longing to her but myself, and I be-
gin to fear I am a broken reed"
MY marriage is a remote contin-
gency," said Glynn. "Were you in
London, l could introduce Miss Lam
bert to a somewhat peculiar but kind
hearted woman, a connection of mine,
who would most probably be inter-
ested in her-I was going to say
charmed with her, only it is hard to
answer for the impression n wom-
an may make upon another"
"E%verything is hard" remarked
Lambert moodily, as if to himself.
We'll let us forget this fruitless
palaver, and be as w We're. I am
| quite sure you are ready to DO me a
good turn if you can-if-Ah! I
hear Elsie singing. Come along, let
us forget our troubles for a bit over
a game of baccarat."
But Glynn did not attend to his
cards, his head was in a whirl. He
vas infinitely touched by the neon
seriousness of tie songstress, who re-
ceived them with the soft composure
peculiar to her, which had in it so
much womanly dignity. How little
she dreamed that the man who
thrilled at her touch. who drank in
the tones of her voice greedily, had
Itfussd to share his life with her
had rejected the chance of winning
her, for Glynn acknowledged there
was a ICON" as we'll as a pro in
the Ease. He had survived the age at
which men think they have but to
ask and they must receive.
"Oh, Mr.. Glynn," said Elsie, sud-