Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1912-01-26

seated herself by an open window
Now, resting her elbows on the ledge
and with her chin between her palms
she gazed off into the still night.
mile distant, on what was calico
"Shanty Hill," were the quarters Of
the slaves. The only lights she saw
were there, the only sounds she heard
reached her across the intervening
fields. This was her world. A half
savage world with its uncouth army
Of black dependents.
Toms words still ranked. Betty's
temper flared up belligerently as she
recalled them. He had evidently meant
to insinuate that Charley had. lied
outright when he told her the motive
for the attack, and he had followed Il
I'D by that covert slur on his charac-
ter. Charley's devotion was the thing
that redeemed the dull monotony OF
existence. She became suddenly hum
BILE and tenderly penitent in her mood
toward him; he Loved her much bet
ter IIlan she uSSSlNSu, ohu S'N SS
pected that her own attitude had beer
habitually ungenerous and selfish. She
had accepted all and yielded nothing
She wondered gravely why 1t was she
did not love him; she was fond OF
him-very fond of him; she wonder
ed II, after all, as he said, this were
not the beginning of love, the begin
ming of that deeper feeling which she
was not sure she understood, not sure
she should ever experience.
The thought of Charley's unwaver-
ing affection gave her great sense
of peace; it was something to have
inspired such devotion, she could nev-
er be quite desperate while she had
him. She must try to make him un-
derstand how possible an ideal friend
ship was between them, how utterly
impossible anything else. She would
like to have seen Charley happily
married to some nice girl
II wonder whom!" thought Betty
gazing deep into the night through
her dropping lashes. She considered
possible candidates for the happiness
she herself seemed so willing to fore
go, but for one reason or another dis
missed them all. II am not sure
should care to see him marry" she
confessed under her breath. 1T would
spoil everything Men are much nicer
than girls!" And Charley possessed
distinguished merits as a man; he
was not to be too hastily disposed OF,
even for his own good. She viewed him
in his various aspects, his character
and disposition came under her crit
ical survey. Nature had given the
young planter a handsome presence;
wealth and position had come to him
as fortuitously. The first Of these was
no great matter, perhaps; Betty her.
self was sometimes burdened with q
sense of possession, but family was in
dispensable.
In theory, at least, she was a thor
ough going little aristocrat. A gentle
man was always a gentleman. There
were exceptions, like Tom, to be sure.
but even Tom could have reached up
and seized the title had he coveted IT.
She rarely forgot that she was the
mistress of Belle Plain and Malroy.
Just wherein a Malroy differed from
the rest of the sons Of men she had
never paused to consider, 1t sufficed
that there was a hazy Malroy geneal-
ogy that went back to tidewater Vir-
ginia, and then If one were not mean
ly curious, and would skip a genera
ton or two that could not be account
ed for in ways any Malroy would ac-
cept, one might triumphantly follow
the family to a red-roofed Sussex
manor house. Altogether, 1t was q
highly satisfactory genealogy and II
had Retty's entire faith. The Nortons
were every bit as good as the NAL
roys, which was saying a great deal
Their history was quite as pretentious,
quite as vague, and as .hopelessly in
volved in the mists of tradition.
Inexplicably enough. Betty found
that her thoughts had wandered to
Darlington: which was very singular
as she had long since formed a reso-
luton not to think of him at all. Yet
she remembered with satisfaction his
manner that afternoon. it left nothing
to be desired. He was probably under
standing the impossible gulf that sep
arated characterization, experience
feeling, everything that made up the
substance of life but deepened and
widened this gulf. He belonged to that
shifting, adventurous population which
was far beneath the ave-holding
aristocracy, at least he more nearly
belonged 10 this lower order than tc
any other. She fixed his status re-
entlessly as something to be remem-
bered when they should meet again
At last, with a little puckering of the
brows and a firm contraction of the
lips. she dismissed the Kentuckiar
from her thoughts.
Betty complied with Toms express
ed wish, for she did not again visi,
Thicket Point. but then she had no
intended doing 50. However. the
planter was greatly shocked by the
discovery he presently made that she
was engaged in a vigorous correspon-
dence with Charley.
II wish to blazes Murrell had tolc
those fellows to kick the life clear
out of him while they were about it,
he commented savagely. and fell tC
cursing impotently. Brute force wa:
factor to he introduced with eau
caution into the affairs Of life. but Il
you were going TO use it, his belie'
was that you should use it to the linn
it You couldn't scare Norton, he was
in love with that pink faced little
fool Keep away?-he'd never thinl
of it, he'd stuff his pockets full Of
pistols and the next man who stopped
him on the road would better look out
1t made him sick-the utter lack o.
sense manifested by Murrell, and hi!
talk whenever they met was still O