Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1907-08-10
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we passed through the gloomy
salon. A damp, musty odor struck my
n of smell. l was positive that the
castle was u~ninhabited, save for this
night. Three candles burned on the
mantel. giving to the gloom q mystic
rious, palpitating effeA The room
beyond was the Bonn, richly
paneled in w~ine-con mahogany.
This was better; it was cheerful. A
log cracked In the fireplace. There
were plenty of candles. There WAS a
piano, too. This belonged to the cas-
tie; a heavy %tarpaulin covering lay
heaped at n side. There was a ma
hogany ~siGeboard that would have
sent q collector of antiques into rap
lures, and a table upon which lay the
remains of a fine supper. My mouth
watered. / counted over the good
things: roast pheasant. pink ham, a
sea-food salad, asparagus, white bread
n unsalted butter, an alcohol-burner
over which hung a teapot. and besides
all this there was a pint of La Rose
which was but half-emptied. Have
you " been in the saddle half a
day? If you have, you will readily
appreciate the appetite that was war
ring with my curiosity.
Eat" bade she who was called
G%retchen, shortly.
And my horse?"
Where is it?"
Tiled to a tree by the gate"
She struck a Chinese gong. From
the kitchen appeared an elderly servi-
tor who looked to me more fitted to
handle a saber than a carving knife;
pressed me with this idea. Q found
out later that he was an old soldier,
who lived alone in the castle as care
taker.
Take this gentleman's horse to the
stables n feed him." said Gretchen.
You will find the animal by the gate"
With a questioning glance at me the
old fellow bowed and made off.
sat down, and the two women
brought the various plates and placed
them within reach. Their beautiful
hands flashed before my eyes and now
and then a sleeve Brushed my shout
der.
Thank you" I murmured. 81 will
eat first, and then make my apologies"
This remark caught the fancy of
Gretchen. She laughed. 1t was the
same laughter l had heard while stand
ing In the great hall.
will you drink tea, OF would yo1
prefer to finish this Bordeaux" she
asked pleasantly.
"The wine, if you please; otherwise
the effect of the meal and the long
iness. And it would be frightfully dis.
courteous on my part to fall asleep in
my chair. ! am very hard to awake"
The English girl poured out the
wine and passed the goblet to me. /
touched my lips to the glass, and bent
my head politely. Then | resolutely
proceeded to attack the pheasant and
ham. l must prove to these women
that at least / "a honest in regard to
my hunger. ! succeeded in causing a
formidable portion of the food to dis
appear.
And then / noticed that neither of
the young women seated herself while
] ate. l understood. There was no
hostility in this action; nothing but
formality. They declined to sit in the
presence of an unweIcome stranger,
thus denying his equality from a So
cial point Of view. / readily accepted
this decision on their part. They
didn't know who / was. They stood
together by the fireplace and carried
on a conversation in low tones.
How shall / describe them? The
elder of the two. the one who seemed
to possess all the authority, could not
have been more than 20. Her figure
was rather matured. yet 1t was deli
cate. Her hair was tawny, her skin
olive in shade and richly tinted at the
cheekbones. Her eyes, half framed
by thick, black-arching brows, remind
ed me of woodland pools In the dusk
of the evening,-depths unknown, cool,
refreshing in repose. The chin was
rresolute, the mouth was large but
shapely and brilliant, the nose pos
sessed the delicate nostrfIs character
istic of all sensitive beings-that is to
say, thoroughbreds; altogether a con-
fusing, b~ewildering beauty. At one
moment believed her to be Latin, at
the next / was positive that she was
Teutonic. ! could not discover a sim
gle weak point, unless impulsiveness
shall be called weakness; this sign of
impulsiveness was visible in the lips.
The other-well. / couldn't help 1t.
II was Kismet, fate, the turn In the
road, what you will. I fell heels over
head in love with her at nee She
was charming, exquisite, one of those
delicate creatures who always appear
In enchantments; a Bouguereau child
grown into ~womanhood, made to At
the protecting frame of a mans arms.
Love steals into the heart when we
least expect him; and before we are
aware, the sly little god has unpacked
his trunk and taken possessioni
Eyes she had as blue as the Egean