The star and Newark advertiser., 1908-04-27


To him, spoiled as he was. all were
alike; that is, all like the worst.
In short. it has long been his dream
to marry some young lady who was not
in society," although fit and longing to
be SO: one who but for him would
bloom unseen," and wither as the
spouse of some other Mr.. Tramberley,
unappreciating and but half appreci-
ated.
And so it needed that fate should
weave even such web as Elton meet
ing Tom at the trough of learning taxi
ing a friendship for the boy. their run
ming up against each other in the park
years later and Tom pressing the
smart man" to come to the maternal
bear-fight under domestic pressure-it
required all this unlikely and elaborate
machinery of Felix Elton to meet with
Angey Tramberley under conditions in
which he might legitimately accost her.
Angey being the show offspring of
the family, 1t is needless to say that
Elton had not been three minutes at
the party when the poor girl was
brought up to him and introduced by
papa and mamma simultaneously, both
parents naively exhibiting the keenest
curiosity as to the effect Angey should
produce. Elton was always more un-
demonstrative than lamp-post in day
time and yet even he could not control
the admiration of his glance as it fell
for the first time on this fair victim.
Bushing in her beauty as she stood
before him. with supporters more ter
rible than any pair of grinning monsters
in the whole menagerie of the peerage,
her deprecating mien seemed sweetly
| to plead:
90 fair young knight, take me as
am, and perhaps you may endure me
| in spite of these Snowman puffs and
| the mob which surround u.s."
| And he took her at her unspoken
word. How he managed it, in that
crowded room no one ever knew
Angey least of all: but without SEEM
ing to do anything, and hardly TO move,
he contrived in minute or two to be
sitting with his little new friend in a
corner behind barricade of dowagers.
and talking away as if they had known
each other for years. Angey was really
a delightful little thing not only to talk
to but to contemplate. Have you never
noticed a disagreeable look that gener-
ally runs through very large families,
of their having been supplied whole
sale and in hurry, before time had
, been taken to finish each Individual?
Plenty of raw material, but of some
what coarse grain. Well, 1t was pres
ent in the rest of the brood, but con-
t spicuously absent in Angey. Her flesh
) was firm and smooth like ivory, with
. just the faintest soupcon of that
f creamy yellow, lacking which no
} beauty is ever brilliant by night. Her
t hair, of a light, rather cold brown, was
abundant and silky. She had plenty
of the flush of health, but this was sell
/ dom of the same depth for two con-
secutive minutes, revealing at once her
singularly endowed and sensitive
nature. The full honest eyes were just
as blue as blue could be-a common
color to hear of. but the rarest of all
to see-and bordered all round by long
lashes darker than her locks, and, like
them, full of curl. But to many Angey's
distinctive charm was the extraordi-
nary fineness of her skin and the
purity of her complexion.
Suppose we sit down here" Elton
had said to her after the first few words
had been exchanged. From their first
contact her new friend seemed to con-
troll her will, yet without purposely
exercising his own to influence her.
"I am afraid she said presently,
you will have a stupid evening, but
dare say you are going on to other
places l see by the Morning Post there
are three balls tonight"
"Do you read the Morning Post?"
always and wonder if I shall get
a peep at the fetes 1t talks Of
"You do not go out much, then?"
"Nowhere-nowhere of that sort. We
know none of the right people; how
should we? And fortunate, too, for
how could we afford the life?"
Eyes, society is funny thing" said
Elton. ut is a game, and great .un
for those who are in condition TO
play it,"
"I always think'-and she laughed
low laugh and broke off-"but it is SO
foolish
Let me judge of that"
"In my favorite Morning Post the
scroll on which Fashionable World is
written by way of heading IS twined
and almost buried among thorns and
brambles, with, oh! only such few
roses, and those you could not pluck
without tearing your hands. Well,
often wonder-but of course it isn't
L often WO0ueT WnclllSI bAAC AANiS N%5
nette, which l know well enough pro-
fesses to represent the rose, shamrock.
and thistle of the three kingdoms, does
not really cover some cynical jest"
1t was Felix Elton's turn to lauSn
4 now. and the thought seemed so simple
he wondered it had never struck him
before.
"You have an imaginative little
mind" he said, "by which don't mean
that it is little at all. if you see the
paradox. But to pursue the subject OF
gayeties. two of the ball givers have
been good enough to ask me tonight.
"And shall you go? OF course you
will"
"I think not"
"But why?" Z
"For a reason must not tell you"
edo"
81 said must not. Not / would not"
"I am dumb, but lost in wonder"
81 will think / will tell you some
day"
ron, I thought should never see you
again
Why?"
"It is so unlikely"
MAY I not call?"
ooh. forgot that" and Angey
thought of the domiciie in it's undress,
| ,l,,,roJ fI,a cuhfaCf LET me see,