CHAPTER XLIV.

Waikato Times, Volume XXV, Issue 2075, 24 October 1885, Page 5 (Supplement)

CHAPTER XLIV.

k YOUNG LADV'H HINT. Lady Ethel Pierpont v,"n ct'iious ; f>he oould not understand Lord Cared ale. Tiiat any man should resist her charms —should not learn to love her, when she almost sought hia love, was incredible to her. She hart j ofc married for his sake, and because she 10--rd him bo well; Bhe had refused tome of the most brilliant matches in England bPCfiuae she oared for him, and him only. She fc.id always believed that when he came home again, when he met her again, he would n-k her to be his wife; Bhe had not doubted- r,; but although she was here, and he pee.ned to like her better than ever, to admire her more than ever, h(? lmde no nciiiun of love or marriage. Apait fiom her intense love of him, it pu/zled her —?he could not understand it. She had been so habi'uated to love, to offers of nmniapje, she on uM hardly understand one who refrained fiviu both. She tried to find some valid r«ip»r>H, but she oould not. It could not Be dinV<vee of rank, there was so little. Ho would b. a wealthy earl —it could not be a matt-' 1 of fortune; and, if she was a juHpo of hnn-an nature, it could not be a nip Her of 10-"\ U >• most certainly, if there was any truth in words or looks, he loved her. Of another thing beautiful Lady Ethel made no doubtthat was, he loved no other. She had watched him oarefully, and the conolusion at which aha had arrived was, that he cared for no other woman on earth except heraelf. The next thing was to look round the world and try, if possible, to find out what was the reason he said nothing to her—v/ny he talked of every other subject on earth except love. There must he an impediment; either in his early youth he had had som-- tmfortunate love affair, or he had in some way engaged himself. Then, when the beautiful woman had come to this conclusion, she said to herself that she would wait —there was no difficulty in this world so great but that love and patience oould overcome it. One lovely morning —the sun was warm and bright, and the air was heavy with the breath of a thousand flowers—the counttss expressed a wish that some comfortable oushions and shawls should be placed for her under the great oedar trees, and that her son and Lady Ethel should join her there; and Ailie, hearing the plan, felt sick at heart with a great fear. She oould see how*the countess was doing her best alwaya to bring them tegether. It must not be. She looked up, with a quiet, anxious faoe. " May I take some books for yon, Lady Waldrove 1" It was more indolence than anything else that prompted the countess to say: " Yea; bring them, if you will." They want altogether; and, looking at her rival, Ailie owned to herself that the Lady Ethel was beautiful beyond women. On tnia bright morning she wore a plain inush'n dreas, white as snow, and fastened with crimson ribbons; a garden hat shaded her eyes, and threw soft shadows on her face. The oountess made herself comfortable; her son lounging at her feet, Lady Ethel sitting by her side. They seemed to forget Ailie, who, with her books, sat at some little distance from them. They talked of people whose names were strange to her; but she noted with keen pain, even while he spoke to his mother, that his eyes were centred on Lady Ethel's face. "He must love her," thought the unhappy girl, "or he would not look at her so. He has not even glanced at me." That was perfectly true. He had never looked at her after the first impatient glance. It was too irritating that he should be thus continually reminded of his folly —that unfortunate marriage which had once seemed to him the very height of honor. True, seated under the great cedar, with the soft light falling on her golden hair and fair face, she was beautiful as a vision. Yet her beauty did not touoh him; his heart beat no faster for it, his eyes took no deeper light as they fell on her. She was not his " dream by the sea; " and onoe finding her sweet, sad eyes hxed on him, he gave an impatient toss of his handsome head. "What a retinae you always like übout you, mother." ' And the countess took the words as a compliment ; but Lady Ethel understood them perfeotly, and felt very angry with gentle Ailie. Just as might be imagined, the oountess, after a time, fell asleep; the warm, drowsy air, the odor of the flowers, the song of the birds, and the murmur of the treei, proved too much for her. (2b be eontintied.')