Camas Prairie chronicle. [volume] (Cottonwood, Idaho) 1901-1917, 1908-08-07

|
though he said nothing about 1t to me,
that his uncle was thinking of Laure's
| future, and wished to provide for her per-
petual association with Gertrude, and he
knew the hold he had on old Flexmore
| through this pretended attachment to her,
cunning rascal!
| l let him go on, conscious that he
would not go too far. 1t was not likely
that, feeling now assured OF that large
inheritance, he would pledge himself to
marry a penniless girl. With his uncle's
fortune and the effect he was now pro-
ducing, he would be able to take the pick
of the county when he wished to marry !;
and there were, within twenty miles,
many girls more snowy than quiet, un-
pretentious, little Miss Dalrymple, girls
with money, and much more to the taste
OF such a man as he. But though he
would not be rash enough to actually en-
gage himself, it was pretty certain that
he would insidiously lead my unsuspecting
little friend to believe that he intended
to marry her, and feared that he might
obtain such hold upon her affection that
when he threw up the game, as he inevit-
ably would when he discovered that there
was nothing to win by 1t, the effect upon
her would be serious. She was not a
firt; she had never cut up her heart into
morsels and scattered it about amongst a
crowd OF admirers; her heart was whole
to be given to one man, and one only. She
was serious and earnest in all things, and
1t seemed to be possible that she might
never care to give to a second man the
affection that had been despised by the
first. For this reason resolved, If 1 got
the opportunity, to shake her faith In Mr..
Lynn Yeames.
One day l met her alone in the road
that cuts through the Hazledown woods
Here Is a beautiful morning, Miss Dial.
rymple," said /, holding her hand.
"Oh, 1t is beautiful !" she exclaimed
looking around her. "See how the rime
still stands on the brake, and look how
the drops glisten on the gossamer. And
what lovely tints there are on the beeches
and the brambles down there"
Yet you would prefer at this moment
to be in your London hospital You feel
that you are wasting your time here
that's the fact, isn't itP'
Il should be sorry to think that" she
replied, with quiet gravity.
"But you are. Here you are saving the
! life of one child; there you might be say
ing Dozen"
'They will be saved without me-"
"And little Laure would be lost-that
Is true"
Let US talk about the country" she
said, as we walked on.
"There is a man worth talking about"
said 1, pointing down to the crossroads,
where l spied DIR. Audrey jogging along
in his gig on his beggarly round.
"Oh, don't think there Is a better
man than he In all the world |" she cried,
with enthusiasm.
IF he were only little more practi-
CAL" said l.
She nodded sadly, and presently said,
Il sometimes think he would have died
martyr had he lived long while ago."
II don't see what there is in store for
him now. There he goes, to look after a
lot of thankless vagabonds, who'll never
pay him for saving their lives"
She looked thoughtfully before her for
minute, then she said:
"Do you think he could ever be happy
lin the ordinary sense of the word?"
eyes, II he married."
II do not think he will ever marry. /"
she said, shaking her head gravely, after
pause.
"Why not?" l asked; "he is a man
and fine man, too. The only difficulty
is in getting any one to have him. A
man without superficial attractions and
without money, what chance has heP"
do you think all girls are either silly
or mercenary?" she asked.
There's a third section but they don't
care for good men"
have mentioned the girls trick of
blushlng; and looking sidelong in the ex-
pectation Of seeing this home-thrust bring
the color up to her temples, l was sur
prised to see that 1t produced rather q
contrary effect.
II don't mean an absolutely bad man,
but one who thinks he is reformed" said
l, 'and attributes, or leads 1t to be i'm
agined, that he owes his reformation to
the girls influence"
was morally certain that Lynn
Yeames had not ascribed his change to
the effects Of country life in his con-
versatlon with Gertrude, however he had
chosen to represent 1t to me.
at hatters the girls vanity to think
she has redeemed the man." added.
rs it vanity and nothing else that
makes one delight in doing good7"
II can't say, my dear-not having had
much experience in that way myself: but
this l know, that every good girl must
be doing good, ought to be doing good,
or think she Is doing good. l speak of
good girls, and no good girl would be
content to be an idle plaything for a
mans leisure moments. And the wish to
save some man from evil courses too often
leads the girl herself into the evil course
Of putting faith In appearances, and lend
ing a credulous ear to empty protesta-
tons. That course may lead to IRENE
dial misfortune and lifelong unhappiness."
This was plain enough In all conscience,
yet she did not allow herself to show that
she saw the personal allusion to her own
case. She was a wonderfully self-pos-
sesSed young woman, and moreover had
too much principle to suffer the opinion
Of others to bias her own estimate of a
trusted friend indeed, believe that her
loyal heart became only the more staunch
by the defense of those she loved against
an accusation In which she herself found
no reason to participate. OF this she
gave convincing proof later on, as l shall
show.
Soon after this a concert was given, in
aid Of some philanthropic cause. Lynn
Yeames was a steward and figured promi-
nently in the advertisements. Well,
whether 1t was to please herself, or to
please Lynn Yeames, or Just to show
that she did not value my warning at two
straws, / don't know; but this Is certain,
Miss Dalrymple went to that concert un-
der the protection of Mrs. Yeamea, who,
ever since the discovery at the nower
show, had shown herself mighty civil to
the young lady. | went also. 1t charm