The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1908-05-13

Isn't there some other reason than lust
because Pm n proper Protestant prin-
cess"
or course" insisted the grand Ouch
ess, family encouraged. 'Dal men
lions several most excellent reasons in
his letter, if you would only take them
sensibly."
Il should like to hcar them, at all
events" answered Virginia.
well, you see, the empress Of Rhae.
tia must be a Protestant, and there
aren't many eligible Protestant girls
who would be acceptable to the Rhae-
tans-glrls who would be popular with
the people. oh, l have finished about
that! You need not look so desperate.
Besides, Dial explains that Leopold is
q young man who dominates all around
him. lie wishes to take for his bride
q girl who could not by any possibility
herself be heiress to a throne. Dial
tancies that his desire IS to mold his
wife and therefore to take q girl with
out 100 many important and imDortu-
nate relatives, for he is not one who
would dream of adding to his great
ness by using the wealth or position
of a oman He has all he needs or
wants of that sort. And then, Dial re-
minds me, Leopold is very partial to
England, which helped Rhaetia passive
ly IN the time Of her trouble eight
years ago. The fact thai YOU have
lived IN England and had an English
education would be favorably regard
ed both by Leopold and his chancellor.
And, though I've never allowed you to
have a photograph taken since YOU
were n child q hate seeing young girls
faces in the newspapers and magazines;
even though they are royal their fea-
lures need not be public property and
you have lived here In such seclusion
that you've becn little seen, still the
rumor has reached Rhaetia that you
are-good to look at. Leopold has been
heard to say that, whatever else the
future empress of Rhaetia may be, he
wont give his people an ugly woman
to reign over them. And so alto
gether'-
"And so altogether, my references
being satisfactory, at Il pinch | might
do for the place." cut in Virginia, with
the hot, impatient rebellion of her
youth. "Oh, mother, you think me
mad or a fool, | know, and perhaps /
am mad, yet not mad enough not to see
that it would he II great thing, Il won
dcrful thing, TO he asked in marriage
by the one man in my world if-ah,
that great 'it'-hc had only seen and
fallen in love with me. 1t might have
happened. YOU know. AS you say, I'm
not ugly, and i can be rather pleasant
If l choose-so | believe. If he had
only come to this land to see what |
was like. as royal men did in the dear
old fairy stories, and then had asked
me to be his wife, why. | should have
been conccitcd enough to think it was
because he loved me even more than
because of other things. Then l should
have been happy-ycS, dear, I'll con
fcss it to you nOw-almoSt happy
enough to die of the great JOY and tri-
umph of it. But now I'm not happy.
l will marry Leopold or I'll marry no
man, but l swear to you ! won't be
married to Leopold in Count Won Brett
stems hateful old, cold, cut and dried
way"
ITS the empcror's way as well as
Won BrCitstein's."
"Then for once in his big, grand, OBJ
stinate life he'll have to learn that
there's II insignificant girl who won't
play GriSelda even for the sake of be-
ing his empress"
The girl proclaimed this resolve, ris-
ing TO her feet, with her head high
and n look in her gray eyes which
told the grand duchess that il would be
hopeless for her to argue down the
resolution. At first it was Il proud look
and n sad look, but suddenly q beam
Of light flashed into it and began to
sparkle and twinkle. Virginia smiled
and showed her dimplcs. Her color
came ana went. In a moment she was
a different girl, and her mother, be-
wildered, fearful still, dared to hope
something from the change.
How odd you lookw she exclaimed.
you've thought of something. You
are happy. You have the air of-of
having found some plan"
SIT found me. | think" the girl an
swercd, laughing, "alI suddenly, just
in a flash. That's the way it must be
with inspirations. This is onc-I know
1t. It's all In the air, floating round
me. But | shall grasp it SOON"
She came close TO her mother. still
smiling, and knclt down in the grass at
her feet, looking up with radiance in
her eyes.
Luckily there was no one save the
Dresden china lady and the birds and
flowers to sec how a young princess
threw her mantle of dignity away, for
the two did no keep royal state and n
1870