The Wagner post. (Wagner, Charles Mix County, S.D.) 1912-current, 1912-05-10

Oxford: the other one. James-you
remember James de M~ountford? was
the celebrated cricketer; but he, the
eldest, always seemed to remain out
side that magic circle of sport, the
great ring of many links which unites
Englishmen one to another in a way
that no other conformity of tastes,
breeding, or of religion can ever do.
Because of this d~iffidence. too, no
doubt, he had never married. / was
told once by an intimate friend of his,
that old Rad-as he was universally
called-had never mustered up suf-
ficient courage to propose to any
woman. And as he saw one by n
the coveted matrimonial prizes-the
pretty girls whom at different times he
had admired sufficiently to desire for
w~ife-snapped up by more enterprising
wooers. his dour moroseness grew into
positive chronic i'll humor.
He liked no one and no one liked
him-and during so years of life he
had succeeded in eliminating from his
entire being every feeling of sentiment
save one. He had to all appearances
an absolutely callous heart: he cared
neither for dog nor horse-he ordered
a splendid mare to be shot without the
slightest compunction after she had
carried him in the hunting field and in
the park faithfully and beautifully for
over eight years, just because she had
SHE'D at a motor car and nearly thrown
him. He was not cruel, you know, just
callous in all respects save one; void
of all sentiment-he called it senti-
mentality-save. in his affection for
Luke.
Luke had been--ever since he was
a growing lad-the buffer in the estab-
Ilshment between the irascible master
and the many subordinates. From Mr..
Warren--the highly paid and greatly
pcrniaYy-6nw tn the maids
below stirs. one n all brought
troubles, complaints, worries to Mr..
Luke. No one dared approach his
lordshfr. A word out of season
brought instant dismissal, and no n
thought of leaving a place, where. be-
sides excellent wages there was the
pleasure of waiting on Mr.. Luke.
Never Mr.. de Mountford, you notice,
always Mr.. Luke. He had grown up
amongst the household; Winston. the
old coachman, had taught him to ride;
Mary, now housekeeper, then a nurse.
had bathed him in a wash-hand basin
when he was less than Is inches long.
Therefore the atmosphere of the
gloomy old house pleased Louisa
Harris. With the perfect and uncon-
scious s~elfishness of a woman in love,
she gagged everything in life just as
1t affected Luke. She even contrived
to like Lord Radcliffe. He trod on
every one of her moral and spiritual
corns. it is true; he had that lofty
contempt for the entire feminine sex
which pertains to the oriental, more
than to the more civilized western
races; he combated her opinions. both
religious and political, without any
p%retense at Difference, he smoked
very strong cigars in every room
in the house without the slight
est regard for the feelings of
his lady visitors; he did or left UNI
done a great many other things which
would tend to irritate and even to Of
fend a woman accustomed to the con-
ventional courtesies of daily social
life; but when Luke entered a room,
where. but a moment ago. Lord Rad
clyffe had been venting his chronic
i'll humor on an offending or innocent
subordinate, the old IN dour face
would becom TRANSPORTED, irradiated
with a look of pride and of joy at
sight of the man on whom he had
lavished all the affection of which his
strong nature was capable.
Luke could do no wrong. Luke was
always right. He could argue with his
lordship, contradict him, obtain any,
thing he liked from him. Eternal con-
tradictions of human nature; the
childless mar in perfect alteration be-
fore a brothers son; the c~allous, hard
hearted misanthrope soft as wax In
the hands of one man.