Los Angeles herald., 1908-03-15
is such a hare-brained, careless young fellow

is such hare-brained, careless young fellow
usually"
ooh, l know. He would surely never dare'-
began Mrs. Moore meditatively, but inter
rupted by the large splashing drops initiative of
a sharp shower.
Both ladies were fain to betake themselves at
once to the shelter afforded by an adjacent stack
of fagots, to the lee side whereof they hurried
with much rustic and fluster And then Mrs.
Darrell began to fdget, after her manner about
the two young people Where could they be?
She had thought they were close behind. She
hoped dear Nina would not get wet. To all which
anxiety Mrs. Moore responded indiferently and
half absently, her thoughts being still bent in
another direction.
'It's only shower. They will be here pres
entity" she said, once or twice, and irrelevantly
went on to the inquiry "And your guest left you
this morning, then? sudden departure was it
not?"
Eyes; he had letter by the early post calling
him to town. He said nothing about coming
back pursued Mrs. Darrell; "and to tell the
truth, neither did we. For old acquaintance sake,
Thomas invited him down, and when he seemed
charmed with the neighborhood, of course we
asked him to stay. But, hospitality apart, we
are not sorry he is gone. He doesn't altogether
suit us quiet folks"
Mrs Moore made no answer. Her maternal
heart beating high with something that was
not all indignation, because 1t was partly scorn.
She forgot she not alone; involuntarily she
stamped her foot on the ground, and said, almost
audiby
"He is we'll discovered in time! No fortune
hunter shall ever have my Nina"
What did you say?" gently inquired her COM
panion, thereby restoring her to the full conscious
of where she and with whom.
And now the childs passion of the spring
shower was over, and rain of sunbeams instead
was falling from the lucent sky; and all the bud
ding greenery of the wood cleaned and sparkled
with lovelier joy than ever-a celestial jewel
for every tear The tenderest breeze came low
ingly over the young leaves, feeling and sounding
like the touch and voice of a mother that caress-
es and croons about her babe before she takes it
into her arms. And the birds began to sing
and happy for them also? and is it not the privi-
lege of birds straightway to give out as praise
what they take in joy?
And when presently Edward and Nina appeared,
coming toward them under the arching boughs
that every here and there shone rainbowlike about
them, there something in their aspect so
pathetically in keeping with the feeling Of the
time, that Mrs. Moore, while rapidly realizing
this final and unlooked-for advertisement which
was to crown the surprises of the day, was utterly
unable to summon one atom of prudent worldly
common-sense to her aid, but behaved like any
ordinary weakminded romantic mother who had
entertained ambitious projects for her
daughters establishment" in her life
Nina fled to her and hid her face, all tears
and sunshine at the time, like Natures
own. And. Edward stood beside her, and bent
his steadfast beseeching eyes on the mother. Nina
whispered:
"Oh, mamma am so happy!" and then could
not even whisper any more While he made his
appeal in few words
"She says only you can give her to me- Will
you?"