The Lee County journal. (Leesburg, Ga.) 1904-19??, 1907-01-25

forgotten, and the one fOmdnIlc cpl
sode of Lady Featherstone's life lay
buried deep down in the dim recesses
of a woman's memory.
Her reverie was suddenly inter
rupted by ring at the front door bell
Lady Featherstone started, for she
was not expecting yisitors-nor, as a
rule, did visitors arrive SO late-and,
rising abruptly, looked with woman's
instinct into the large mirror above
the mantelpiece The reflection Of
her image showed nothing en- mal-not
a tress of hair disarranged not q rib
hen awry, no trace Of disorder in
feature or dress-the image, indeed, Of
a very beautiful woman, clothed with
the perfection of simplicity that made
her seem scarce more than young
girl still Half-smiling with a salts
fed consciousness of this fact, she sat
down again as the servant entered the
room and handed her a card on the
salver.
Lady Featherstone glanced at the
card, and suddenly her face turned
pale. She looked at the servant in
terrogatively.
"A gentleman, you say-to see me-"
Yes, your Ladyship."
1t was not customary for Lady
Featherstone to question her servants
on the subject of a visitors appearance
but she could not at this instant for
bear from asking, What kind of
gentleman"
"A tall gentleman, your Ladyship,"
the servant answered; elderly, with
gray hair-a foreign gentleman, l
think, your Ladyship."
Lady Featherstone glanced again at
the card in her hand-"Paul Gresson-
Ter"
Unconsciously her pulses quickened,
the color returned to her cheeks, her
breath came oddly fast. What did
it mean? What could it mean? Paul
Gressonier! The man who had loved
her fifteen years ago and left her; the
man whose name but FIVE minutes
since had crossed her thoughts whose
face had risen so strangely vivid out of
the mists of long departed years, whose
voice had rung but now upon her
fancy with half-forgotten echoes of her
girlhoods ys-Gressonier! 1t must
be some mistake, some singular IL
fusion, or else some curious coinci-
dence-no more.
The servant coughed alphabetically
Il told the gentleman, your Lady
ship he went on, that your Lady
ship was not receiving and could not
see visitors at this hour, but he
wouldn't take no refusal Take up
my card, said he, to Lady Feather
stone, and say | wish to see her par
ticular. Does your Ladyship de-
sire me to say that you are indis-
posed?" he inquired, gravely
moi" said Lady Featherstone,
speaking with sudden effort. SHOW
the gentleman up"
There was little time in which to
adjust her mental attitude to an ade-
quate conception Of the emotional pos
sibilities that this quite unexpected in
cident seemed likely to create. 1t had
happened with so complete a sudden
ness that the effect of it upon Lady
Featherstone's mind was considerably
lessened by the difficulty of reducing
the utterly improbable 10 the prac-
ically existent, the abstract to the
actual, in the brief space Of two min
utes.
There was, in short, a strong sense
Of unhealthy still upon her when the
door again opened and the visitor was
ushered into her presence.
A gentleman, tall, with grizzled
mustache, strong, aquiline features,
keen earnest eyes and gray hair
Brushed back from a high, wide fore
head, entered, took a step forward,
paused, then silently bowed.
A sharp surprise, a certain dis
appointment troubled gladncss, a
singular embarrassmeat-all these
sentiments were fused into the con-
seriousness that before her stood, at
last, after long years, the lover of her
youth; ana Lady FeatherStone eyes
dropped before the gaze Of NJ. Gresson-
Ter.
Fifteen years had changed him from
q young to middleaged mana man
handsome still but in whose appear
ance seemed manifest the Bullets of
adverse fortune His clothes were
shabby-so shabby that. when he had
Invested himself in the hall below Of
his rich fur coat, the footman had
looked at him askance. half doubling
the propriety of conducting such an
addressed person into the presence Of
his mistress, and marvelling not a
little at the strange discrepancy be-
tween the strangers costly, sable lined
overcoat and the threadbare garments