The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1907-05-15

| confidence-and, it was only too like
ly all affection, too-would be With
| drawn from her; and besides the
canon and his sister there were few
who loved her. Yet hard as all this
was, there were worse features in the
| case. If Mr.. Herbert Perry had been
an eligible sutton, forgiveness, after
a time, at ali events, might have been
looked for; but he vas no favorite of
Aunt Maria's, and in the canon's eyes
he was, as we know, utterly worth
less as we'll as Objectionable. Worse
than all, she had by this time, not
W~ithstanding her lack Of opportuni-
ties, found this out for herself. She
knew him to be coarse, selfish and
wrapped up in his own pleasure; and
if his coltish nature broke through
such a gilded pale as at present sur
rounded him-a husband of a few
months, bound by every tie Of honor
and ever of self-interest to behave
himself with decency and circumspec-
tion-what was to be looked for
when these restraints should be re-
moved from him, and she became his
indeed? A bitter task to plead for
pardon, when ever if granted it must
needs be followed by lifelong pun
ishment!
Before the blow fell on her, which
she knew would shatter so much, it
behooved her to do her best to on
ciliate the canon and turn his heart
toward her. Perhaps if she were to
please him very much an opportunity
might offer itself to confess all and
implore his forgiveness before neces-
sity compelled her to do so. When,
therefore, on reaching home, Miss
Aldred informed her that her brother
had asked a friend that evening, and
hoped she would feel herself we'll
enough to come down to dinner, she
answered cheerfully in the afirma-
tive.
And when Aunt Maria, noticing
how unlike herself she looked, OBJ
served, "but not if it would distress
you, darling" she replied, 1T can
never distress me to please the can
on"
The canon was really pleased; for
under the circumstances, he had felt
that so far as Sophy's company was
concerned he had invited Adair to
the Laurels in vain. His mind being
set at rest on this point, this willy
man bethought him of asking Mr..
MAYORS likewise. Not that he feared,
a. some men would have done, a
t~ete-a-tete with the young scholar
after dinner. His mind was of that
sort which accommodates itself to all
ages or conditions of men, even if
the talk should languish upon other
topics, there was a common subject,
Milton, for them to fall back upon.
He asked the tutor purely for Sophy's
sake, since his presence would leave
the young people more to themselves.
1t did not enter his head that the stu
dent and exponent Of Plato could
find any attraction in his ward, and
took his ready acceptance of his in
vitation at such short notice as a per-
sonal compliment.
1t was, as we have said, Sophy's
fixed resolve to please the canon, and
without much thought beyond it she
welcomed Mr.. John Adair with a gra-
ciousness beyond his hopes. 1t did
not strike her that, in case she
showed signs of encouraging his at
tentions, the displeasure of her guar
dian would be all the greater when
he came to know the real state Of af-
fairs. 1t was not her nature-when
the consideration was not forced
upon her-to think of the morrow;
and, moreover, it is possible that her
husbands evil behavior caused her to
regard with less disfavor than hereto
fore the man he has described as a
dried herring" He was certainly
thin, thinner in his suit Of evening
clothes than usual, and still thinner
by comparison with Mr.. MAYORS, who
not only lowered above him, as he
stood behind him, but appeared on
either side of him, giving the young
scholar, for the moment, the remark
able appearance of having four arms.
But when one looked at the latter's
keen face and speaking eyes one for
got that he vas thin, as men forgot it
in Paganini's playing. Mr.. MAYORS
certainly did net remark that he was
Sc thin, but with regret and envy
that he was so young. From the
canon's note he had gathered that he
was to be the only guest that even
ing, and he was by no means pleased
to find that the same young gentle
man who had monopolized so much
Of Miss Sophy's conversation the
previous evening had also been in
vited. In other matters he was by
no means difident; it was not likely
to be the case with a gentleman who
had been reported to say of himself,
I'm not a conceited man, but l be-
lieve l know everything but botany"
but in affairs of the heart he felt
that he was a freshman, though lun-
happily not in his first year.
After his s%alutation he confined
his attention to Miss Aldred, not be-
cause she was his hostess and it was
his duty, but from sheer bashfulness
and ignorance of what a young lady
like Miss Sophy would expect him to
say. Adair, on the other hand, was
by no means bashful, and entered at
once into conversation with her.
Then Barclay, the butler, came to
the rescue with his battle-cry, Din
ner is served" and Adair offered his
arm and took her in. Mr.. MAYORS sat