Year: 1871

So, remembering Aunt James trouble,
Syl tried to be patient with her continual
complaints and her interference with all
her affairs. But she did think she might
be allowed to marry without her consent
Aunt Jane had horror of poverty, and so
had Syl's mother, and poverty was knock


ing loudly at their door. Syl's father had
| died when she was baby, leaving his wife
and child little beside the farm they lived
ON and, wanting shrewd brains to take
care of it, that little had dwindled rapidly
away. OF late, the harvest had proved
failure every year, the farm was mortgaged
at first, then passed entirely out of their
hands, and Aunt Jane declared they should
all go the poor house unless Syl married
Derrick Hurst. Her mother said less,


but Syl knew that her heart was
as firmly set upon her marrying Derrick
Hurst as Aunt Jane was. Before Stephen
Lawrence came, she had thought that she
might some day do as they wished, if there
were really no other way to keep them from
starving, but now, not for worlds not If
they all had to beg their bread, she said to
herself, every time she heard his name
mentioned. She had never liked Derrick
Hurst. She remembered him as surly,


ill-natured boy when they went to school
together; she had always preferred any
one of the other boys for cavalier, and
been annoyed and indignant when the
| girls teased her about him, for he always
insisted upon drawing her sled and brought
her apples and candy, and made himself
her devoted slave. He had never been
favorite in the village until of late his evil


dent prosperity and wealth had made him
popular. When his father died, seven or
eight years before, they had been poor, ev-
erybody said the farm on which they lived
three miles out of the village, was all 'run-
ming down." and the house going to decay;
and for two or three years afterward Der
rick had seemed to have no ambition to
make things better. But all at once there


was q change. Derrick went away to the
city, and stayed nearly a year, and made


money in fortunate speculations, people


said. At any rate, the farm soon began to


hold its own with the best farms in the


country and it was no wonder, the old


farmers said, considering the money that


was spent on it. The house was repaired,


too, but now that was not fine enough for


Derrick. His new house in the village was


almost done-a stately mansion, with a


French roof, and bay windows, and all mod


ern appurtenances, finer than any body in


Densboro had ever dreamed of having.


And of this fair mansion Syl was invited


to be mistress. A lucky girl, everybody


said. There wasn't another girl in Dens-


boro who wouldn't jump at the chance,


even if there were some who would consid-


er Derrick an incumbrance. One couldn't


expect to have such position in life with


out some drawbacks And Derrick was a


fine fellow, with the dress and manners of


gentleman, and, if the Hursts had been


a rather worthless drinking set, the Der
ricks, his ancestors on his mothers side,
were the first people in the country. Of
course Syl had only been flirting with that
artist from the city to tease Derrick; she
was always bit of coquette. She would
never be such fool as to refuse Derrick.
Syl had refused Mr.. Derrick Hurst, but


he did not seem able to realize, any more
, than the rest of the village people, that
she could be in earnest in declining such a


position in life as he offe red her, or else, as


his face indicated, he was not the one to
! take no for an answer, not the one to ac-
cept defeat while there was shadow Of a


chance of victory. And he said to himself
, now, that he had more than the shadow Of


chance of victory, with Aunt Jane and
Syls mother, on his side, and their farm in
q his hands


= Syl walked her chamber floor, that after.
0 noon, and considered what she should do
1 "Get her married to Derrick Hurst before
n Christmas, indeed r' Aunt Jane would
, see And they would not go to the poor
g house, either. For had not Stephen Law
e renee declared that she had wonderful tai
a ent, and with the instruction he had Civ
S en- her, might paint pictures that would
t sell, might become in time, famous ar
: tist? Already Syl fancied herself present
9 ing the deed of the farm to her mother oi
d her own wedding day-the day when sh'
o should be married to Stephen Lawrence
y with scarcely a remonstrance even from
s Aunt Jane. For when she should be {
y millionaire, by her own labors, who woulc
It presume to dictate to her? And so Sy
n reared her stately castle, and its founda
/ tions. I'm the talent that she felt and kney