Year: 1869

was away, the feeble and tickle Jones
plucked up heart of grace to intimate to
his absent tyrant that he could not again
receive him as an inmate in his house.
Surprised at his own audacity, and fear.
ing lest Blake might reply to his letter in
person, Mr.. Jones hurried off to Hastings,
where he amused himself, when the tide
was out, by looking for sea-anemones in
the hollows of the low, shelving rocks.


One day, while engaged in this harm.
less amusement, he observed that the rising
tide had almost surrounded point some
what higher than the others, on which a
young lady was half sitting, half treclining,
apparently absorbed in one of Nudes
novels, and totally unconscious of the ap-
proach OF the waves. In vain did the
timid swain endeavor to catch themaiden's
eye, as he pointed to the advancing foam.
The nymph remained abstracted in the for
tunes of an imaginary hero, or heroine,
and paid no heed to the increasing We.
hemence of his warnings. At length,
when the rock was completely cut off from
the mainland, she slowly raised her eyes,
and seemed in an instant to take in the
whole danger of her situation. For one
moment she gazed upon the deepening
waters with well-simulated terror, then
suddenly threw herself on her knees in the
attitude of supplication-frst contriVing,
however, by dexterous feminine move.
ment, to knock off her hat, thereby causing
her hair to fall loose in aperfect deluge of
gold over her shoulders and down TO her
waist. For the first time in his life Mr..
Jones was moved by generous impulse,
and, without once thinking of his patent
leather boots, he splashed through the
water up to his knees, snatched up in his
arms the trembling little Venus, and car
ried her far above higb-Water mark before
he would suffer her to put her foot to the
ground. Even then, he insisted on seeing
her safe to her own door, in spite of her
mild remonstranCes. She was sure he
must be fatigued with carrying her all
that distance; he would catch such a
dreadful cold; she should never forgive
herself if he did. Mr. Jones not only saw
her into her own house, but extorted,
without much difficulty, permission to call
and inquire after her health on the NOR
row. After that, they met every day,
and were together the whole day, either
ssuntering along the esplanade, roaming
about Fairlight, or looking out over the
sea from the heights of the Castle By
degrees Mr.. Jones extracted from the art
less damsel as much of her history as he
cared to know. Her name was Clara
KnyVett she was the daughter of an In
dian officer, an only child, and an orphan.
She had been brought up by her aunt as
a governess and was seeking situation,
when ill.health compelled her to proceed
to the seaside. With men of ordinary
nerve and self-COmplacency the affair
would soon have been brought to a mat
rimonial issue, for the little lady took no
pains to disguise her feelings but Mr..
Jones difidence refused to see in her de-
monstrative frankness anything more than
childlike reverence for strength and
courage-the qualities in which he hap
pened to be singularly deficient


Still, time, that oVercomes all dil1cul.
ties, would, probably, in the long run,
have overcome even the imbecile reserve
of Mr.. Jones, had not circumstances have
occurred of quite a different character.
His charmer met him one morning in a
state of painful depression. Now and
again stifed sob would burst forth or
the handkerchief would be furtively
raised to the eyes, If good man, strug.
Cling with adTersity, is spectacle agree
able to the gods, tears and sighs are by no
means pleasant, or even safe, for men to
| witness In u pIUtty wUuIau. HUUr Chen
vile was deeply touched and, at length,
after much entreaty, he discovered that
she had received letter announcing the
serious illness of her kind aunt, and sum.
moning her to what would probably prove
death-bed scene; but, alas her quar-.
ter's pension, as the child of an Indian
officer, would not be due for some days
and she was already indebted to her land.
lady for a weeks rent and board. In an
instant, the pOrtem0pndie of Mr.. Jones
was pressed into her hands, He would
hear no denial. She could return the
money at her own convenience, and, per
haps, during her sorrowful attendance
upon her sick relative, she would spare q
kind thought for the lonely bachelor upon
whose solitary state she had cast a ray ol
Joy and hope. The gentleman was clearly
becoming affected, and the now sobbing
Clara cannot be accused of tearing her
self away from him with timorous preCipi
fancy. She gave him abundant time fol
saying anything more that he NIGH
like to say, or even for venturing upOL
some demonstrativeness by arm or lip
But Mr.. Jones courage failed him at thii
crisis; and they parted Weeks passed
but the money came not and, at last, Mr.
Jones began to fear that his sweet little
Clara had caught the complaint from which
her aunt was suffering.


On this eventual day, however, he wal
startled by the unprecedented announce
ment that there was alady in the drawing
| room who wished to see him. He rightly
OWNED that his visitor could be no othel
than the fair syren of Hastings. She haC
come to repay him the money he had 81
generously advanced in her hour Of neeC
and tribulation. She had been for tint
80 engrossed with constant attendance
upon her dear aunt, that she had not ha(
q moment to do or think of anything else
And, when all was over, she knew it wa
too late to remit to Hastings, and, alas


she had mislaid his town address. Sh,
had hunted for it everywhere, when i
suddenly occurred to her that she nigh
have put his card into his p0rten1or'pGte
How delighted she was to find 1t there
All this, and much more, she said, in tor
rents of words, emphasized with the mos
bewitching smiles, and purified by an al
most infantile simplicity. The hour ant
the woman had arrived. Mr.. Grenvill


Tremaine Jones was at her feet-literally
He dropped on one knee, seized her hand
and covered 1t with kisses-then sprunl
to his feet, passed his arm around he


waist, and drew her to himself, gabbling
stammering, spluttering no matter what
In less than ten minutes he had pledges
himself to marry woman of whom b


knew nothing more than she had chosel
to tell him. Taking the bit between hi
teeth, he fairly bolted from the path 0
reason and common sense. Not conten
with engaging himself he had wrung fron
the lady-after feeble show of maidenl,
coyness ss--her consent to their uniol
taking place on Friday fortnight
and It was then Tuesday He only rt
eretted that his housekeeper had gone ou
70 do some shopping, for he wished he
to say whether she would retain or dil
miss that worthy individual. Clara ha


tact enough to be enraptured with every
thing. His housekeeper, she was quit
sure, must be a treasure. She wouldn


hear Of the dear old thing being ser
away. She would rather stay away hel
| .oif thas ,-yan aaid with an arch au1ile an