The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-08-15

have met him once before," replied Char lotte, ''and I confess I thought him a most noble and agreeable man-but this letter" Why, you little prude. cried La Rue, "are you to be in leading strings all your life? You are getting to be a young lady now. and ought to have some mind of your own. Besides. what pos- sible harm can there be in your reading what the gentleman has written to you? My dear child, do not be so silly; open the letter and then you can judge for yourself whether 1t is proper for you to read it through or not"
 Thus, as of old, did the serpent tempt with the knowledge of good and of evil. Still Charlotte hesitated Your adrnirer seems to be a genteel sort of fellow, |" carelessly remarked the temptress, but I think he Is marked with smallpox" "Oh, no! cried Charlotte. The has a beautiful complexion" Well, his eyes. if I remember. are without expression" Why, he has the most expressive eyes ever saw" protested the innocent vic- tim. And thus did La Rue get Char lotte engaged in a warm defense of Montraville, until the discussion ended. as La Rue had determined 1t should. in Charlotte opening and reading the letter.
 The letter of Montraville had been skill fully worded, and watching the girl as she read 1t La Rue saw that 1t awakened new and pleasing emotions in the inno- cent heart of Charlotte. Montraville was going at once to America; he would prob- ably never see the object of his sincere love and devotion again, but 1t would be a consolation to him to know in the midst of perils that he had one innocent being to pray for him, and he begged that he might have an interview with her the next night to say farewell forever. Then began a series of farewell interviews, and each one Charlotte declared must be the last. But urged by Montraville and tempted by the wiles Of La Rue the poor girl always consented to meet just once more than man she had grown to love. At these stolen meetings Belcour and La Rue were always present and the for mer easily persuaded the Frenchwoman to agree to accompany him to America, where he declared he would marry her. a promise which he never meant to keep, and which La Rue knew he did not mean to keep.
 Montrayile was the son of man of some property and station, but as the father had large family he thought 1t sufficient to start his sons in some pro- fession, pick out rich husbands for his daughters and let his offspring look to themselves thereafter. He had told Mon- traville emphatlcally at their last meet ing that if he refrained from wedding until he was able to support wife out of his own means in proper style then he might marry whom he would.
 If he married before he had achieved success in life he must marry wealth, or neither the fathers money nor influence would be thereafter at his disposal. Mon- traville had really come to love Charlotte --or at least he thought he had-but his fathers prohibition was always in his mind, and when he found that she was the daughter of parents only moderately well to do he could not bring himself to make the resolution of marrying her. Nevertheless, he urged the girl to fly with him to America, swearing that upon their arrival in New York he would make her his wife. All the while La Rue was pour ing an insdous poison into Chariotte's ear,
 Finally, overcome by love, persuasion