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! The Bow of Orange Ribbon |
| A ROMANCE OF NEW YORK |
1 -— . ' X
J * Bv AMELIA E, BARR. ♦
4 Author of "Friend Olivier," "I, Thou end the Other One," Eto. +
i. Copyright, 146. by Dodd, Meed and Company. X
T e «. l. e e » t d..t. t. t J. t. t_»«»-»«« a J. e. e e e e t t .t. # e a « e « a T
CHAPTER XI.—(Continued.)
And it was during this hour of trial
to Miriam, that .Joris was talking to
Lysbet of her. It did him good to put
* ! his fears into words, for Lysbet’s
assurances were com tori able: and as
It had been a day full of feeling, he
was weary and went earlier to his
room than usual. On the contrary,
Lysbet was very wakeful. She car
ried her sewing to the candle aud sat
down to think.
In the midst of her reflections.
Bram returned. She had not expect
ed him so early, but the sound of his
feet was pleasant. He came in slowly,
and, after some pottering, irritating
delays, he pushed his lather’s chair
back from the light and witli a heavy
sigh sat down in it.
"Why sigh you so ncavy, Bram?
Every sigh still lower sinks the
heart."
"A light heart I shall never have
again, mother. For me there is no
hope. So quiet and shy was my
love.”
“Oh, indeed! Of all the coquettes,
the quiet, shy ones are the worst.”
"No coquette is Miriam Cohen. My
love life Is at an end, mother.”
"When began it, Bram?”
"It was at the time of the duel. I
lcved her from the first moment. O
mother, mother!”
"Does she not love you?”
"I think so; many sweet hours we
have had together. My heart was full
of hone.”
"Well, then, my son, be not easy to
lose thy heart. Try once more.”
“Useless it would be. Miriam Is
not one of those who say ‘no’ and
then ‘yes.’ ”
"Nearly two years you have known
her. That was long to keep you In
hope and doubt. I think she Is a
coquette.”
"You know her not, mother. Very
few words of love have I dared to say.
We have been friends. I feared to
lose all by asking too much.”
"Then, why did you ask her to
night? It would have been better had
your father spoken first to Mr. Co
hen.”
“I did not ask Miriam to-night. She
spared me all she could. This is what
she said to me, ‘Bram, dear Bram, I
fear that you begin to love me, be
cause I think of you very often. And
my grandfather has just told me that
I am promised to Judah Belasco of
London. In the summer he will come
here and I shall marry him.’ ”
"What said you then?”
"Oh, I scarce know’! But I told her
how dearly 1 loved her and I asked
her to be my wife.”
"And she said what to thee?”
“‘My father I must obey. Though he
told me to slay myself, I must obey
him. By the God of Israel, 1 have
promised it often.’ ”
"She is a good girl. I wish that you
had won her, Bram.” And Lysbet put
down her work and went to her son’s
side; and with a great sob Bram laid
his head against her breast.
"As one w'hom his mother eomfort
eth!” Oh. tender and wonderful con
solation! It is the mother that turns
tie hitter waters of life into wine.
Bram talked his sorrow over to his
mother’s love and pity and sympathy;
and when she parted with him, long
after the midnight, she said cheer
fully. “Thou hast a brave soul, mijn
zoon, mijn Bram; and this trouble is
not all for thy loss and grief. A sweet
memory wUl this beautiful Miriam be
as long as thou livest; and to have
loved well a good woman, will make
thee always a better man for it.”
CHAPTER XII.
London Life.
The trusting, generous letter which
Joris had written to his son-in-law
ai rived a few days before Hyde's de
parture for London.
Hyde knew well the importance of
Katherine’s fortune. It enabled him
to face his relatives and friends on
a nery much better footing than he
bad anticipated. So he was no longer
averse to meeting his former compan
ions; even to them, a rich wife would
excuse matrinmor.y.
His first social visit was paid to his
maternal grandmother, the dowager
Lady Capel. He found her in the
most careless dishabille, wigless and
iirpalnted, and rolled up comfortably
in an old wadded morning gown that
had seen years of snuffy service. Gut
she had outlived her vanity. Hyde had
chosen the very hour in which she had
nothing whatever to amuse her. and
he was a very welcome interruption.
And. upon the whole, she liked her
So she heard the rattle of Hyde’s
sword and the clatter of liis feet on
the polished stairs, with a good deal
ol satisfaction. have him here and
I shall do my best to keep him here,”
she thought. "'Why should a proper
young fellow like Dick bury himself
alive in the fens for a Dutch woman?
In short, the has had enough, and too
much, of him. His grandmother has
a prior claim, I hope, and then Ara
bella Suffolk will help me. I foresee
mischief and amusement. Weil Dick,
you rascal, so you have had to leave
America! I expected it. Oh, sir, I
have heard all about you from Ade
laide! You are not to be trusted,
either among men or women. And
pray where is the wife you made such
a fracas about? Is she in London
„ with you?”
"No, madam; she preferred to re
main at Hyde, and I have no happi
ress beyond her desire.”
"Here's flame! Here’s constancy!
And you have been married a whole
year! I am struck with admiration.”
"A whole year—a year of divine
happiness. 1 assue you.”
"Lord, sir! You will be the laugh
ing stock of the town if you talk in
such fashion. They will have you in
the playhouses. Pray let us forget
our domestic joys a little. You can
make a good figure in the world;
and as your cousin, Arabella Suffolk
Is staying with me, you will be the
properest gallant for her when Sir
Thomas is at the House. Here comes
Arabella, and I am anxious you should
make a figure in her eyes.”
Arabella came in very quietly, but
she seemed to take possession of the
room as she entered it. She had a
bright, piquant face, a tall, graceful
form, and that air of high fashion
which is perqaps quite as captivating.
Arabella made Hyde a pretty, mock
ing courtesy, and he could not help
looking with some Interest at the wo
man who might have been his wife.
Katherine was ignored in the con
versation that followed, and Hyde did
not feel any desire to bring even her
name into such a mocking, jeering,
perfectly heartless conversation. He
was content to laugh and let the hour
go past in flim-flams of criticism and
persiflage.
A couple of hoilrs passed; and then
it became evident, from the pawing
and snorting outside, that Ills horse's
patience was quite exhausted. Hyde
went away in an excitement of hope
and gay anticipations. A momentary
glance upward showed him Lady
Capel and Lady Suffolk at the window',
watching him; the withered old wo
man in her soiled wrappings, the
youthful beauty in all the bravery of
her white and gold poudesoy. He
made them a salute, and then, in a
clamor of clattering hoofs, he dashed
through the square.
During the next six months society
made an idol of Capt. Hyde, and, if
he was not at Lady Arabella's feet,
he was certainly very constantly at
her side.
Hyde loved his wife, loved her ten
derly and constantly; he felt himself
to be a better man whenever he
thought of her and his little son, and
he thought of them very frequently;
and yet his eyes, his actions, the tones
of his voice daily led his cousin. Lady
Suffolk, to imagine herself the em
press of his heart and life. Unfortun
ately, his military duties were only
on very rare occasions any restraint
to him. His days were mainly spent
in dangling after Lady Suffolk and
other fair dames. And it must be
remembered that the English women
of that day were such as England
may well hope never to see again. In
the higher classes they married for
money or position, and gave them
selves up to intrigue. They drank
deeply; they played high; they very
seldom went to church, for Sunday
was the fashionable day for all kinds
of frivolity and amusement. And as
trie men of any generation are just
what the women make them, Eng
land never had sens so profligate, so
profane aid drunken. The clubs,
especially Brooke’s, were the nightly
scenes of indescribable orgies. Gam
bling w*as tneir serious occupation;
duels were of constant occurrence.
Such a life could not he lived ex
ec pt at frightful and generally ruinous
expense. Hyde was soon embarrass
ed. Towards Christmas bills began
to pour in. creditors became impor
tui ate. and, for (he first time in his
life, creditors really troubled him. The
income from Hyde Manor had never
been more than was required for the
expenses of the place; and the inter
est on Katherine's money had gone,
♦hough be could not tell how. He
was destitute of ready cash, and he
foresaw that he would have to borrow
some from Lady Capel or some other
accommodating friend.
He returned to barracks one Sun
day afternoon, and was moodily think
ing over these things, when his order
ly brought him a letter which had ar
rived during his absence. It was from
Katherine. His face flushed with
delight as he read it, so sweet and
tender and pure was the neat epistle.
"She wants to see me. Oh, the dear
one! Not more than I want to see
her. Fool, villain, that 1 am; I will
go to her. Katherine! Kate! My
dear little Kate!” So he ejaculated
as he paced his narrow quarters, and
tried to arrange his plans for a Christ
mas visit ot his wife and child..
He had determined to ask Lady
Capel for a hundred pounds; and he
thought it would be the best plan to
make his request when she was sur
rounded by company, and under the
plcasureable excitement of a winning
rubber. And if the circumstances
pioved adverse, then he could try his
fortune in the hours of her morning
retirement.
The mansion in Berkeley Square
was brilliantly lighted when he ap
proached it. Sunday night was Lady
C'apel's great card night, and the
rooms were full of tables surounded
by powdered and painted beauties
Intent upon the game and the gold.
The odor of musk w’as everywhere,
and the sound of the tapping of gold
<tuis, and the sharp, technical calls
of the gamesiers, and the hollow
laughter of ho'low hearts.
Not very lit pefully he approached
Lady Capel. t he had been unfortun
ate all the eve xing and was not ami
able.
•'Dick, I am angry at you. I have a
mind to banish you for a mouth.”
“I am going to Norfolk for twc
weeks, madam.”
“That will do. It is a worse punish
ment than I should have given you.
Norfolk! There is only one word
between it and the plantations. Give
me your arm, Dick; I shall play nc
more until my luck turns. Losing
cards ore dull company.”
“I am yery sorry that you have been
losing. 1 came to ask for the loan ol
a hundred pounds, grandmother.”
“No, sir, I will not lend you a hun
dred pounds; nor am 1 in the humoi
to do anything else you desire.”
“I make my apology for the request
I ought to have asked Katherine.”
“No, sir, you ought not to have ask
ed Katherine. You ought to take what
you want. Jack Capel took every
shilling of my fortune and neither
said, ‘by your leave,’ nor ‘thank you.’
Did the Dutchman tie the bag toe
close?"
“Councillor Van Heemskirk left it
open, in my honor. When I am
scoundrel enough to touch it, 1 shall
not come and see you at all, grand
mother.”
“Upon my word, a very pretty com
pliment! Well, sir. I'll pay you a hun
dred pounds for it. When do you
start?’’
"To-morrow morning.”
"Make it afternoon, and take care ol
me as far as your aunt Julia's. And 1
daresay you want money to-night
Here are the keys of my desk. In the
right hand drawer are some rouleaus
of fifty pounds each. Take two.”
The weather, as Lady Capel said
was "so very Decemberlsh" that the
roads were passably good, being fra
zen dry and hard, and on the evening
of the third day Hyde came in sight
of his homo. His heart warmed tc
the lonely place; and the few lights in
its windows beckoned him far. more
pleasantly than the brilliant Minimi
nations of Vauxhall or Alinacks. oi
even the cold splendors of royal re
ceptions. He had given Katherine nc
vaming of his visit. He wanted tc
see with his own eyes, and hear with
his own ears, the glad tokens of hei
happy wonder.
The kitchen fire threw great lustrer
across the brick-paved yard; and the
blinds in Katherine's parlor were un
drawn, and Its fire and candle light
shone on the freshly laid tea table,
and the dark walls gleaming with
bunches of holly and mistletoe. But
she was not there. He only glanced
inside the room and then, with a
smile on his face, went swiftly up
stairs. He had noticed the light in
the upper wdndows, and he knew
where he would find his wife. Before
he reached the nursery he heard
Katherine's voice. The door was a
little open, and he could see every
part of the charming domestic scene
within the room. A middle-aged
woman was quietly putting to rights
the sweet disorder incident to the
undressing of the baby. Katherine
had played with if until they were
both a little flushed and weary and
she was softly singing to the drowsy
child at her breast.
Over and over, softer and slower
went the melody. It was evident tha
the boy was asleep and that leatherin'
was going to lay him in his cradle
He watched her do it; watched hei
gently tuck in the cover and stand
for a moment to look down at the
child. Then with a face full of love
she turned away, smiling, and quite
unconsciously came toward him or
tiptoes. With his face beaming, with
his arms opened, he entered; bni
with such a sympathetic understand
ing of the sweet need of silence and
restraint, that there was no alarm
no outcry, no fuss or amazement
Only a whispered "Katherine," and
the swift rapture of meeting hearti
and lips.
(To be continued.)
BROUGHT THEM TO TIME.
Why Criticism of New York’s Fines!
Hotels Suddenly Stopped.
“Some years ago 1 was dining with
a party of wealthy Westerners In New
York City,” said Mr. Benjamin T.
Leslie, of Montana, to a Washington
Post reporter. “Among them were
Marcus Daly, Charlie Broadwater, ex
Gov. Hauser, Hon. Tom Carter, Sena
tor W. A. Clark, John W. Mackay,
“Lucky” Baldwin and E. E. Bonner.
“It seems that no two of them were
stopping at the same hotel, and each
had a grievance against the hostelry
where he put up. One said he meant
to quit the Fifth Avenue; another in
veighed against the Waldorf; a third
thought that Dclmonico’s was terribly
overrated, and so on. Not one had a
good word to say of any of the taverns
or eating houses of Gotham, and
there was special criticism of the
food.
“Finally, after there was a little lull
in the choruses of adverse criticism
old man Bonner burst into a loud
laugh. When asked the cause of his
merriment, Bonner said; ‘I’ve beer
listening to you fellows talk, and 1
tell you frankly, you give me a pain
To hear such as you run down these
swell establishments in New York Is
enough to make the angels weep. Why
it hasn't been so many years sine*
I’vg seen every one of you squatted or
the grass of the prairie, eating beans
out of a frying pan with your fingers.’
“It was the everlasting truth, and
the knocking of the hotels cease*
right there.”
It may as well be admitted that
there are some automobilisls who dc
pot try to run over people.
N.
Has a Prosperous Look.
Farmer Peavine—By jings. four dif
ferent fellers stopped me on the street
to-day and axed me if i didn't want to
put a thousand in an investment that
paid 500 per cent a month. Gosh, l
guess I must look like Jay Gqnld or
Jay Cooke, or some of them feenan
cors.
City Nephew—Oh. they undoubted
ly took you for one of the jays, uncle.
He Was It.
Aseum—So you didn’t make out well
In that western town?
Pr. Kallow—No. All the time I was
there there was only one case of sick
ness in the town.
Aseum—And you didn't even have
thet?
Dr. Kallow—Oh. yes, I had that good
ami hard. It was a case of homesick
ness.
It Annoyed Her.
“Yes, the widow is perplexed."
“How is that?”
“She doesn’t know whether it means
that her husband was a good man or
she is a vixen.”
“I don’t understard.”
“When he died the papers said that
he had gone to a happier home."
Domestic Bliss.
Husband—I think I’ll run up to St.
Paul for a couple of days for a change.
Wife—Will you take me with you?
Husband—Of course not. I said I
was going for a change.
A POKER GAME.
Miss Slowgirl—(lame is pretty c heap ut this time of year.
Colonel de Sport—Oh, I don’t know! I found a game last night that was
pretty expensive.
SHE HAD CAUGHT ’EM.
The Maid (who has been discharged)—I demand to know why you dis
charge me. What is there you don’t like about me?
Mrs. Cutting Hintz—My husband’s arm.
Inherited.
“And now,” said Prof. I.onghunger,
as he greeted Mr. Henry Peck, “what
shall we make of your little boy—a
lecturer? He lias a sincere taste for *
it.”
“I know he has," replied the male
parent; “he inherits it from his
mother.”
Why He Disagreed.
Foreman of the locked-in jury (Im
putiently)—The rest of us are agreed,
and you would see the case as we do
if you had an ounce of brains.
Obstinate juror (reflectively)—But
that's Just the trouble. I’ve got mors
than an ounce.
Real Thing.
City Sportsman—“Any good hunt
ing In this part of the country?”
Native—“Lots of it.”
City Sportsman—“What kind ot
game?”
Native—“No game at all. Just hunt
ing.”
His Argument.
. He thought the mothers of the day
were inclined to shirk their proper
responsibility, and he was arguing
against the employment of a maid for
the children.
“Eve," he said, “had no nurse girl.”
“And Cain went wrong,” she replied
promptly.
Those Women.
Miss Van Der Whoop—Yes, Miss
Rinns, I am the youngest member of
one of the oldest families in New
York.
Miss Blnns (enviously)—I don't
doubt that it’s the oldest family—if
you’re the youngest member.
Strategy.
Daughter—Papa did not take the
paper to the office with him this
morning.
Mother—He didn’t? I’ll bet it's got
a lot of stuff showing how women
can trim their own bonnets.—New
York Weekly.
As Explained.
Pat—Oi congratulate yez, Moik; it’s
a father Oi hear yez do be.
Moik—Sure, an’ it’s two fathers
Ol’m afther bein'. It’s twins, b'gorry.
CHANCE TO DO BU8INE8S.
Doctor—I’ll examine you carefully for ten dollars.
Weary Dreary—All right, an’ if you find it, give me half.
RIGHT IN LINE FOR THAT JOB.
His Mamma—I don’t know what we are going to make of little Bobby. He
raid to day that when he grew up he was going to be a robber, and despoil
honest people of their gold,
His I’apa—Let him alone; lie’s destined to become the head of a huge
corporation.
A Possible Insinuation.
Naggsby—It's funny how women
will change their minds. When 1 first
met the girl who eventually became
Mrs. N., she was one of those who
declared that she wouldn't marry the
best man in the world. Within a
year she married me.
Waggsby—But what makes you
think she has changed ner mind?
His Looks Belie Him.
“There's a vast difference between
a man's looks and his real worth.”
“Yes?”
“Yes; there's Blobbinson. He’s
worth $300,000, but no board of ap
praisers, judging by his looks, would
value him at more than 20 cents!"
Husband and Wife.
Swob—My dear, do you know that
you have one of the best voices in the
world?
Mrs. Swob (delighted)—Do you real
ly think so, William?
Swob—Certainly I do; otherwise it
wrould have been worn out long ago.
Why the Preacher Failed.
“So the Rev. Mr. Goodley was a
failure at that church, eh?"
“Yes, he tried to bring the congre
gation into harmony with his ideas
instead of bringing his ideas Into har
mony with the congregation.”
Real Trouble.
Caller—Why didn't you print my
' contribution on the Venezuelan squab
ble? Was It too long?
Editor—No; the length was satis
factory, but it wasn’t broad enough.
Already Learned a Trick or Two.
Mother—Yos, Rupert, the baby was
a Christmas present from the angels.
Rupert (aged 4)—Well, mama, if
we lay him away carefully and don’t
use him, we can give him to some
body else next Christmas.
The Voice of the Stricken.
Mrs. Henpeck—‘‘Ah, those sad, sad
words, ‘It might have been.’ ’’
Mr. Henpeck (feebly)—“That's all
right, my dear, but they're not in it
with those sad, sad words, ‘it was.’ ”
Discouraging.
“Time is money, you know,” re
marked the industrious man.
“Yes,’ rejoined the shiftless individ
ual, “but the fact that it takes three
months to amount to a quarter is
enough to discourage a saint."
Manager Realizes It.
“There is something elevating in
music,” said the artist.
“Yes,” answered the manager.
“Music certainly has the effect of
stimulating lofty ideas as to salary.”