The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-04-02

 clined "The fellow is not a coxcomb,"
 thought Alfred, land yet he is good-look-
 ing. If he loves Lucille let him win her."
 He found note from the Countess await ing him. It said that she was going to a ball that night and could not receive him
 until the next day Then Lord Alfred or
 dered his dnner-and dined well in spite
 of his perturbation of spirit. For
 We may live without poetry. music and art:
 We may live without conscience, and live without heart;
 We may live without friends, we may live without books
 But a civilized man cannot live without cooks.
 The waiter asked Alfred If aMilord'
 would go to the ball that evening.
 Milford" did not know-save a ticket for
 him, anyway. It was midnight when
 Alfred finally decided that he would go 10 the ball. As he entered the door of the
 ball room the chimes were Just ringing in new day-the last waltz was over. A
 man was leaving the ball room with q lady clinging to his arm. Mai fol- said
 Frenchman standing beside him, that lucky Iuvos. he has obtained all; rank
 and wealth-the gifts of the gods! the
 charming Lucile' Lord Alfred returned to his inn and declared that the ball was
 bore.
 The next day Lord Alfred waited upon the Countess de Meyers. He found her alone, expecting him. But what change the years had wrought in Lucilel It was 10 years since he had seen her. She had
 been 20 when they parted. as they both believed forever. She had been pale, clinging girl them she was a mature, self-possessed and beautiful woman now the years had been so kind to her that they had stolen nothing of her charms away but. on the contrary, had brought to her new ones.
 Lucille greeted her old lover with half pensive smile. She was cool and collected lie, to his surprise, found himself em- barrassed and i'll at case Madam he began you see your last command Is obeyed. I have brought you the letters.
 presume that from this day may con- slider myself free" q had thought" re- turned Lucille, that your letters were
 broken long ago as far as I am concerned Is it in my chains that you have rested
 until now? I give you back your freedom then. 7 Our story is an old one, often. told I only wished to have back those poor, foolish records of an emotion which once n, fal+ xul I ot "A time I wrote-but which-well, who can feel at 90 as she felt at 20? My Lord I thank you for your promptness in re- storing to me the foolish letters. Well,
 not altogether foolish. It was the youth of our youth. my Lord-was 1t not so?" Lord Alfred was silent for a space. He
 had remembered Lucille and thought of
 Lucille as child Here was mature
 woman who cast spell over him by her
 presence such as the old Lucille had never
 done. He loved this Lucile.
 servant entered and announced the
 Duke de Luvois. Even at the mention
 of the name of the Duke anger famed
 in the heart of Alfred. Say that I do
 rot receive until this evening"" said Lu- Gle lO tne SeINdHt. DO IiOl let me Inter- fere with the claims upon your time," said Alfred. "Allow me to wait upon you
 later" Lucille looked at the angry man
 and said Tell the Duke that he may enter" Lord Alfred passed through a
 glass door and entered the garden. While
 walking there he heard the Duke and Lu- cile approaching. They were in earnest
 conversation. He hid himself in small
 summer house aDd, as they passed down
 the graveled walk he heard Lucille say: 1T
 cannot tell Your offer is, of course, flat
 tering to me But you must give me time for a decsion.''
 The next-day Lord Alfred Vargrave set out to return to Bgorre. Somehow the thought that he was pledged to Matilda now became a burden to him and, wish ing to take the longest way back to the
 place where the woman whom he had