The weekly times-record. (Valley City, N.D.) 1912-1922, 1921-05-19

her ragingly; courted her becomingly.
He never seemed to undervalue HIM
self in vaiuing her: secret priceless
to the courtship of women who have
heads"
During visit to the home Of Sir
Willoughby, Clara's father, a scholar
of note. became more and more deslr-
Gus Of living at Patterne Hall; the ex-
cellent library, capital wine-cellar, to-
pether with the society Of Vernon
Whitford, also scholar, made the
marriage of his daughter with the lord
of the Hall an event which ne hoped
would be speedily solemnized. Clara
Middleton was instructed from day to
day by Sir Willoughby in the knowl;
edge Of himself; as she grew less tlmld
Of him, she became more reflective.
Her thoughts tortured her. Now page
after page is devoted to these refiec-
tions. Willoughby carried Clara on
wind-like journeys and she caught her
glimpse of his interior from sheer IA
tigue in hearing him discourse OF it.
What he revealed was not the cause
of her sickness, women can bear reve-
lations-they are exciting. But the
monotonousness! He slew magma
tion. Here it is recorded, "There IS
no direr disaster in love than the death
of imagination" Surely wise advice
to any love-lorn youth DESTROYS OF
keeping his lady's heart. q.
Sir Willoughby schemed and fenced.
He could not stand the thought OF the
humiliation of losing her. Finally self
preservation whispered to Willough-
by that the world might be taught to
believe. The age-old masculine meth.
cd of self-preservation: he would
make the world think that ne rejected
her and burned to be free, instead OF
letting it think that she no longer lov,
ed him. Otherwise he never could
have surrendered her. Self-preserva-
ton whispered this idea: "And so ne
handed her to his cousin and secre-.
tary, Vernon Whitford, who opened
his mouth and shut his eyes," he
would give her back her word on one
condition-that she marry ! Vernon
Whitford. He would make the world
believe he had tired of ,Clara's beauty.
and wanted a wife of intellect. Then
he would go back to the faithful
Laetitia Dale, and claim her out
stretched hand. But before releasing
Clara, he must make sure of Laetitia.
That night he proposed to Laetitla;
reminded her of her old love for him
and vowed that he had always loved
her, saying chat the hand ne offered
her was now disengaged. HIS otner
love was a folly of youth, and now
he realized that he must be united
with lady of intellect. She tells him
that she no longer knows what love IS
and that she cannot marry him: He
implores, but she resolutely refuses
Something of fineness in Laetltla
Dale's character is shown in the close
of this scene when he says in a voice
between suppIication and menace, Il
am in vour power" and she answers,
"You will not be betrayed"
The "Ordeal of Richard Feverel !!
would class with David Coppertield
by Dickens, the "Mill on the Floss"
nv Eliot. or the "Bride of Hammer
moor" by Scott, not in similarity. OF
story or characters, but because when
YOU have finished reading these books
you feel that you are parting from
friends; you feel that you have wit
messed and lived with them their joys
and sorrows. I defy anyone to read
the "Ordea1 Of Richard Feverel' with
out experiencing profound emotion. 1t
is not a book that inspires nlaudlln
sentiment. It renews your belief that
love is sacred thing: -
The remainder of. Miss Stevning..s
paper is a condensed story OF this
book which time and space do not per-
nit quoting in full or in part.