Year: 1874

In dingy street in the purlieus of
Covent Garden there stood, about five
years ago, small house only accessible
by dark passage, into which the light
of day scarcely ever penetrated, and
which at night received small portion
only of the meager rays thrown by a
struggling gas-lamp placed at it's en-
trance. This house, at the time men
tion, was occupied by an old lady who
let lodgings at low rates to needy lodg-
ers. One of her rooms had lately been
tenanted by a man of about six-and-
twenty, the regularity of whose features
showed, in spite of the havoc played by
poverty and distress, that he was of a
class higher than his present circum-
stances seemed to warrant. George
Lovelace, with his wife, occupied this
room. His father was the owner OF a
considerable property in Athertonshire,
whose temper had been ruined by the
Incorporate habits Of a profigate
youth, and whose Judgment not unfre-
quently showed signs of talnt of in
sanity. s....


His one son, George, was born after
he had been married three years but
though never inclined to be fond of his
son, he had, during his youth, shown
no signs of any great aversion to him,
and had treated him not unkindly,
especially after his mothers death.


One of his hobbies was the English
aristocracy, and hewas anxious that his
son should marry the daughter of a
neighboring earl, for whose family he
had the greatest respect, and whose
political opinions were as conservative
as his own.


Affairs might have gone on as Sir
George wished, and this story never
been written, had not the younger
Lovelace, in fishing ramble in Bre-
conshire, met with the pretty daughter
of Welsh doctor. George had trusted
to Ethel's extreme beauty to win from
his father his approval of marriage of
which he had said nothing till it was
over.


Sir George flew into such a passion
that the servants had come to his sons
assistance, and with difficulty prevented
him from laying hands on George and
inhicting personal violence.


"Out of my sight p he said, and he
called him hard name. "I never
thought you were my son, and now I'll
own you so no more. Take the Jade,
who has made fool of you, away and
let her know that not one penny shall
you or she touch while live or when I
am dead. No, not if you lie rotting in
o poor-house p


And from that day Sir George had
refused to see or hear from his son.


Then in many ways had George
sought for employment-as tutor, as
a clerk, as writer in the lower class of
daily publications, as shop-man even,
and as messenger. Everything had
failed to secure him permanent work.
He was too old for one place; he was
refused another as having no testi-
monials; his fathers malice got HIM
turned out of third the ruin of his
employer had lost him fourth. And
week by week, month by month, as
each day found him ignorant how he
should find food for the next, he plod-
ded on, getting more and more despair
ing, seeing Ethel's face getting wanner
and more wan, and knowing that she
was becoming less and less able to bear
the trial which was coming upon her.
Yet she had borne it, and her babe was
an additional link which bound her
heart to her husbands, and gave them
courage to face the troubles which
came so thickly across their path. And
now they were struggling on, she too
weak to do much besides nurse her in
FAINT, and he hardly able to make the
wretched pittance which he earned buy
food enough to keep him from hunger
after he had given to his wife and child.
Yet they loved each other, and though
to each not unfrequently came the
thought that the others happiness in
this world had been ruined by their
marriage, the perfect trust which each
had in the others affection made them
together more willing to share unfinch-
ingly the difficulties which lay before
them.


Every effort made to visit his father
met only with rebuff, and affairs, how
ever, looked dark for George and his
wife, and for week he was inclined to
despair of ever rescuing her from the
distress in which they we're plunged.


Gee day, six weeks after his inter-
view with Sir George which had termi-
mated violently, George received for
NAL letter in business-lik envelope,