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The Exeter Advocate, 1894-4-26, Page 3THE WIFE OF• A PEER. "Never mind, my dear, I hear her father has millions, and in these demo - teratic days teat is all that is necessary," nand then she added (Lady Warrington •e.ad a convenient manner of lorgetting • dier own plebeian origin), "I don't know :what society is coming to. Almost any one with money manages to get in • nowadays." They had finished their tea, and, owing , to the shortening of the autumn days, it was now quite dark. A servant en- tered to light the lamps, and Lady. Olivia, •aeked her mother if she intended to re- ceive their cousin and his wife. "Decidedly not," was the reply. The house is theirs. We are only visitors now, and: I think it would be much better for us not to appeer until dinner." "How strange it -seems," remarked .her daughter, with a sigh, "to be ,merely visitors in the house which has .always been our own 1 By the way, yvhat did Hugh say in his letter? You •etever showed it to me." _ "Ke said they were stopping in Lon- • don for a couple of weeks, but would( be down this evening. Theywanted no preparations, as they desired to come down quietly and get well settled before they saw any one. And he added that he hoped we would stop with them at least until the holidays. He imagined we would not feel like undergoing the fatigue of a 'journey just at present." "Very considerate, I'm sure," replied Lady Olivia, somewhat sarcastically. "But it sounds like a delicate reminder that we are merely here masufferanee." "Well," said her mother, " we may as well accustom ourselves to the fact that we have been dethroned, so to speak; and after all, what can we ex- ,pect from a second cousin'to whom your father was scarcely civil?" Lady Olivia did not reply. In spite of her affected languidness and indiffer- ence she felt there were some things she pould never grow lured to, nor forget. .She hated the world and thought she had been too harshly used by it. Sha'n't we go up stairs?" she asked after a, mo - Went. "They'll be arriving 'shortly." Her mother, acting upon this remark, gathered up her embroidery and depos- ited it in a little workbasket on the table. Then, followed by her daugh- ter, she went to her own apartments, leaving the servants to remove the tea tray and await the arrival of their new. Mistress. Meanwhile an exprese train was epeeding past Surrey Well and Sussex downs. Huddling in the corner of a, first-class carriage, her head resting against the padded cushion and her eyes •directed toward the mist-covened win- dow, sat Laura. Her husband wrapped In the folds of his travelling Ulster, was 'trying to read a copy of the Globe by ftthe uncertain, fading light, and owe- • ain:Illy he, too, would glance out of the window, and, prompted by early reminis- cences, pass some remark upon a familiar place. But to Laura everything wee strange and vague. In her mind there was a confused picture of rows upon rows of dingy brick houses (surmounted by endless clusters of smoky chimney pots) -converging down lines of sloppy streets to a point where house and pavement were obscured bythe dismal mist, hang- ing like a covering of gloom over the Mighty city. Scarcely had she familiarized herself with this panorama of housetops before .she was rushing through the open coun- try, past neat little stations, flashing like kaleidoscopes of confused, multi -col- ored signboards; dashing by miles of hazel white roadway and warm, greee,fields ; seeing successions of dainty villas and closely trimmed hedgerows and stretches ,of copse and woodland, all more care-, fully tended than the wee -est and choic- est of garden spots at home. The train slowly drew out from the little country station, and standing for go moment under the protecting shelter 'ef a large umbrella, she looked at the TOW of vanishing heads in the brightly lighted carriages, growing more con- • fused as the speed increased, until the iast compartment seemed a mere :whiz- zing mass of lights. After the dark form of the guard's Tan had rushed past she was left with Hugh and a couple of servants on the down platform of Warrington Station, Vireo miles from her new home. A6 - Rioted by a tall and sombre footman she walked over a stretch of flagstones glis- tening in the elm light of the station lamps to a point where a brougham and an omnibus were in waiting and two pairs of restless horses were nervously champing their bits. Hugh put her into the carriage, the door was closed, the servant mounted the box and the bronaham drove away. The fibrses' hoofs splashed rhythmically in the mud and the drizzling ram best cheerlessly against the window panes, She rested her head upon her -husbander shoulder, and drawing his arm reassur- ingly about her, he began to tell her .much about life at Warrington Court. Laura, listened attentively, feeling a 'helpless yearning for his protection and wondering at the fatality which had 'brought her into this strange, new world. Before • it seemed possible that three miles of road could have been „passed the pace slackened. She heard the clattering of hoofs and felt the Jolting movement 6f the carriage on the ,stone pavement of the courtyard. The brougham stopped under the cover of a ..earriage porch and they alighted before the great doorway of Warrington Court. Lady Warrington considered it becom- ing to her dignity to keep new acquaint- ances at a respectful distance, and, be- sides, she had her doubts as to Laura 'being a proper person for the great • honor which had accidently fallen upon her; while her daughter., always affected a languor of manner which ren- dered geniality impossible. • The announcement di dinner wair made ehortly, and Hugh, followed by Lady, 'Olivia and Laura, led the way to the dining room with the dowager Countess. During the early peat of the repast the. 'conversation was chiefly about person; e_e of whom Laura had never heard, and she was somewhat constgained and felt in decidedly oppressed by the ceremonioue solemnity with which the dinner Was .served. The noitielese movements of the 'footmen, the measured exactness with Which the service was performed im- •pressed her with a muse of awe and •respect, and •She Smiled ,whert she thought of the contrast formed by her Mother' old maid hobbling about the *obis) and piling the plates one upon another With a clattering sound. Hugh •'tried to Overcome the diffidence aesumed by his cousins; and Laura, after she tad become more accustomed to her Bur- ,roundinge, endeavored to ehe best of ner 'ability to draw her now relatives into totiversation, so that, as the dinner pro - growled, the two Englishwomen: unbent to little, and actually appeared aintised at Hugh'sdeseraetione of Western lite and Lanni'sencatInt a her firet inn aireeeions of Leann. Lady Oliniet. liked Laura, rather, but .eOlisidered her " tremendoesly bad form," while her mother wen thankful Oat she was so much more presentable elute she had expected. The elder wo- Man had piceered to herself • a MOW tamer Cretin°, beieterourt and ill-bred, Winne bearing Wee utterly vulgar, and here was & beautiful girl who needed only a little culture of voice and more repose of manner to make her quite like (me of themselves. She did use wine outlandish expressions, it Was true. and her natural, hearty laugh was tee load; but, after all, ihe was not nearly so bad as she expected, and he meant to tell her exactly what ele mot avoid In order to create a favorable impres- don M society. So dinner wore on and they all seemed to become, iri a way, better friends, though the congeniality was perhaps a trifle forced. Lady Olivia asked Hugh if he did not intend to have some of his old friends down for the hunting next month, "Yes," he answered, "I have already asked one man wet) ought to please, you, unless you have changed since 1,went to the States." "Who is that ?" Lady Olivia, asked. "Your old friend, Langdon. I ran amens him in Piccadilly yesterday after- noon." Therewas a, constrained silence for a moment. Lady Olivia flushed a little; then, recovering leer calmness, said witk insinuating directness: "1 shall be delighted. We are not quite as close friends as formerly, but still we get on; and, by the way, there is an old flame of yours living half way between us and Goodwood Park. Yon will be glad to renew your acquaintance, I am sure." "Who ?" asked Hugh, half 'suspecting whom she meant "When you knew leer she was Madge Barclay. She is Snarried now, you know." Laura started at the sound of this name. She glanced toward her husband to see what impression the announcement would make upon him. He merely re- plied quite naturally that he would be glad to see her again, but imagined that she had almost forgotten him by this time. Her mind was relieved. Lady Olivia, not to be outdone by Hugh's indifference, turned the conversa- tion back to Captain Langdon by ask- ing how her cousin had induced that in- veterate sportsman to come down to Stumm when he had always been wedded to the shires. "He said he was tired of grass," Hugh replied, "and wanted to try the small fields and heavy banks of our country just for a change." "Well, I can't conceive a man who has hunted in the shires coming down here from choice." "Von forget yourself, cousin," he smiled. " Probably the hunting was only a Wind. Yon ought to know men better than to believe all they say." "Did he meet your wife ?" she asked in a manner which, if not insinuating, was sufficient to make him send an angry glance across the table, and mutter " Yee " so brusquely that Lady Olivia thought it wiser not to continue the conversation. Late that night after Laura, and her husband had retired to their own apart- ments the young wife stood before the low casement gazing out at the park. The clouds had cleared away and the moon shone brightly upon the broad lawns and hedgerows. Beyond them she saw the shadowy forma of giant trees outlined against the sky and rolling hil- locks' stretching away in the distance, with here and there a black copse, :stud- ding the turf like a tuft of plush upon the velvety/surface of the downs. She was thinking of her home, and he re- membered how often she had stood in the moonlight there looking out upon tele lawns and trees of Highland Glen. Be- tween her and these oaks and yews of England there was a bond of eympathy after all. She missed the familiar awash of the waves upon the sandy' beach, but she felt thankful that her home was to be in the country and not in pent up, smoky London. As she looked at the scene before her it seemed like a phan- tasm or dream, or perhaps that a sor- cerer had wrought the change. In imagination she was a princess, impris- oned alone in a vaulted dungeon away from friends and retainers. One Clay her lover, a valiant knight, would scale these grim walls and free her from the enchantment which bound her to the epot She smiled at the fancy, but the reality was no less strange. Laura Morse, mietrese of these halls, the wife of a peer of England! She felt the pres- sure of an arm about her waist, and turning round she saw her husband, who had entered quietly. She rested her head upon his shoulder and placed her arms tenderly about his neck. " What were you thinking about so intently 7" he asked. "1 was trying to comprehend all that has happened in the past few weeks. It seems as though it must have been some one else, and that I am 'calking on from a distance. It in all so vague and un- real that I can't believe that I am the mistress of this great house." "It seems as strange to nee, too, and almost as incredible. When I used to come down here as a distant cousin, and be treated with very little consider- ation, I never fancied theta I should one day be master of the old place. I did not get on with the Earl. He was a crusty old beggar, and usually quarrelled with every one he did not bow down to. But that is all over, and here we are. This world has given me some hard knocks, but it has made ample satisfac- tion at last. I hope you are as happy as I am, dear ?" "Yes, I an happy," she replied slow- ly, but with a ditaant, thoughtful sound to her voice. "Come, dear, don't be enema like that. There is nothing to be frighten- ed at. "You'll get used to everything in a week or two, and then you'll appre- ciate all that fortune has given no." " If you love me'Hugh," she answer- ed, looking up in his fees," I shall be happy anywhere. But don't be (seamed of me. If you did it would kill me." He smiled and patted her cheek ream- euringly. "Don't worry over imprint- bilitieten lie said. And then they turned away from the window and left the silent, Moonlit park behind them. • CHARTER V. In nmexecane the instinct which en- ables them quickly to adopt new man- ners and modes of life is abnormally de- veloped. Whether this arises from the fact that the nation is still in a forma- tive state, with no long settled tradi- tions, or reselts from physical traits peculiar to the race, is perhaps a mat- ter for :some future anthropologist to decide, but it is apparent to an ob- server that wherever an American of intelligence is placed he rapidly arrives at an understanding ofthe manners and sympathies ol those abottt him, and adapts himself to their mode of life. Laura even, strange and Unnatural as her new home ea first seemed, began gradually to become accuetomed to life at Warrington Cottrt. must not be imagined, however, that her new asso- ciations produced an actual metamor- phosis df character, or that she rapidly fell into the well worn grooves which conventionality had formed for a wee Man in her poeititire On the ettettreay, Months passed before she thoroughly Mastered the intricacies of English social life, but 1110 others of her countrywo- Men' she beerenie a clOse observer and acted upon the restate of her °Nerve,. then 810 was sensitleo tO a degree and the feat, that 'she Might coment seta Ogre* ilaious 'blunder haeuited her coutinuelly. quick to realise the stream which the members of her husbander farnilt iaid upon the minutest &tell of etiquette, she followed their wordand actioas with an attention which war &meet Her husband was surprised at the eraddeness with which eer manner • became subdued. At times he heel en the voyage amen the Atlantic endea- vored to imagine her romping .and sing- ing through the corridors of Warring- ton Court. He had pictured her hang- ing her hat on a stand of armor, and rushing up the great stairway two step ert a time With a group of astoniehed and horrified servants as witnessee of the scene, and he had endeavored to realize the mortification he Would feel at the thought that this girl was the Countess of Warrington, and his wile. Had he possessed a more thorough knowledge of women, and American women in particular, he might have been spared his mental anguish. . Laura was a girl who poseeesed the keenest susceptibilities united with a nature at once sympathetic and sensi- tive. At home she had given vent to her youthful feelings because there was no one to gainsay her. She knew that the people of Highland Glen applauded her unaffected freedom of manner and she experienced a certain amount of harmless delight in shocking her parents, but there was, after all, a etrong un- dercurrent of refinement in her nature. The moment the doors ,of Warrington Court were opened to receive their new mistress that mistress realized the dig- nity of her position. A vulgar, under- bred person suddenly elevated to Laura's rank might not have recognized the obligations which nobility impotent, but Laura, though possessing none of the false dignity of a snob or the manner- ifinni of a prig, had been born with the instinete of a gentlewoman. It was the fear, too, of mortifying Hugh which prompted her to study the actione of those about her, and she needed no spec- ial instruction to teach her that the traditions of Weerrin,gton Gourt de- manded from its mildew's the dignified repose of womanhood. The management of the honsehohd was a mystery to her. At first she consid- ered it her duty an a young wife to superintend the servants. Her mind filled with forebodings as to her com- petency to undertake such a task, she mentioned her intention to Hugh, and he laughingly advised her to leave everything to the housekeeper. Laura felt relieved, for to confess the truth, she felt so muck in awe of the magnifi- cent butler and his corps of tall foot- men that the thought of directing such splendid personages was fairly appalling. She delighted in watching the stealthy and impreeeive movements of the liveried servants. There was a curious mingling of magnificence and humility in their actions which interested her immensely, and she wondered how thous grand creatures in powder and Owe could be so respectful to her. Once she opened nearriage door before the attending servant had time to per- form the service. His solemn eyes dilated a trifle with surprise, but his rigid features did not relax from their expression of respectful immobility. She felt as mortified as if she had offended a prince of the blood. No American can blame her; for what person is more mighty hi his .conceit, more terrible in his judgment of us than the padded and powdered English lackey? • Those of us who, rolling up to the portal of some magnificent home in Mayfair, modestly esconeed in a humble cab, have noticed the air of supercilious disdain with which the footman on duty opens the door, can eympathize with Laura for feeling ashamed of having committed even so trifling an error in the presence of her servant. Hugh meanwhile ammed himself in riding over the estate, investigating ac- counts with his land steward, looking over the horses in the stable, trying the late Lord's hunters or getting ac- quainted with the Warrington fox- hounds. This .pack had always been maintained on the estate, and he looked forward to the pleasure he should even- tually have in heating them hirriselL He had been too bong away from the hunting field to attempt this for a sea- son or two, at least, but in his younger days he had been a keen sportsman, and now that he was back again in dear old England hie enthusiasm returned with eiedoubled force. No one but a horseman can understand the delights of looking over a "10*," especially if they are one's own. Hours may be spent in nothing wore exciting than feeling the legs of a few favorites or casting a criticaleyeover their withers and loine, while the stud groom stands by and says reasemingly of that one that "No 'one ever 'ad sueh man- ners in a eintin' field," or tide one is "bit as a fiddle and neat as a, pink, and would jump the stable if you put 'er at it." Laura was consequently left to her own resources during the greater part of the day. There was ff0 much to be done that the hours slipped by; and Hugh, without intending to neglect his wife, was usuany abeent until dinner. Those were delightful days for the new Lord War- rington. He was so happy in the pleas- ure of euddenly returning to his native land, after years of exile, and finding himself in poseeseion of all his soul's desires, that he thought his wife must share his joy. When inure saw him re- turn from a ride over the estate with his steward, his face beaming with smilers and his cheeks glowing with health,ehe felt that she had no right to complain of loneliness. • Hugh would gladly have taken her with him, but she did not know how to ride, and there was little pleaeure in driving in an open trap through mist or ram. He supposed also that Laura would find companionship with his cou- sins; but there was something so patron- izing in Lady Warrington's Manner and Leody Olivia, WW1 so supercilious and in- different, that rale preferred to be alone. Added to the natural ehyneint of their race, the two Englishwomen felt a sort of resentment toward Laura. They con- sidered her a, usurper, who had accident- ally supereeded them, and there were, be - elides, no matters of .common interest, eo it was not surprising that the relations between the English women and their At hi 1 le Uel .° " Cousin were far from ramps - One afternoon about a fortnight after het arrival at iVarrington Court, Laura was taking tea with the Dowager Confi- ners' and her daughter in the drawing - room, At this hour the three women alevaye became more sociable, and few a few minutes, at lead, they chatted af- fably. Lady Olivia condescended to ad - deem Laura as "my dear," and her mother proffered a few suggeetionii about getting on with tee country people, so, as the sun was shining for the first time shift her arrival—a. dim, misty apology for mulehine, it is true, but none the lees welcome—Laura felt in an unusually Cheerful frame of mind. She had just finielied her cup of tea, and had, elle thought, actually beguia "*0 like the stufl "—afternOtin tea being unknown in her !nether's house—when ft itereent en - toted and announced imprerisively " Lady Twirlington and Mrs. Fenton." Laurie' heart gave a little start Both mimes Were Manlier to her, the former al that of a well-knoveu Amerldan woman Who gave very smart parties and was looked gpOre as a fender of faste1:03j, and the later es the married none of Ma,dge Sereiriee so 'he instinctively acted in the defen- sive manner of excessive civility which & Woman Mueller, assumes towards a rival. She was anxious to eee if the mental picture she had formed of Hughes not /rite was at all like the original, and - her curiosity was soon motioned, for closely following the eervant came the women in question. While they were greeting Lady Olivia, and her mother, and introductions were being made, Lama had time toexamine them hurriedly. Her first thought was of Mrs. Fenton, and see saw a well-dressed woman of middle height, who entered' the room with the air of experienced essura,nce which distinguishes the woman of fash- ion from her provincial cousin. Her figure was alight and lithe, and Laura mow that she knew how to dress and carry herself to the best advantage. She shook hands with the supercilious touch affected by her set, and Laura was tare she detected tbe slightest tinge of arti- ficial color beneath her spotted veil. She thought, too, that her face was hard and selfish, but feared that it might be dan- gerously attractive to men. Her little, gray eyes were set close together, and twinkled mischievously when • she smiled; and beneath the thin lips—cold and hard in repose—were two rows of perfect teeth, which added greatly to the effect of her captivating laugh. Laura then turned to Lady Twirling - ton and there 'was something about the letter's appearance which pleased her. Lady Twirlingtozes personality was ex- pressed by a tailor made gown, perfectly fitting a figure laced many degrees be- • yond the point of comfort, bleached hair elaborately dressed according to the latest mode and 8 eomplexion which showed the strain of countless late func- • tions. She was at least fifty, and she had little piercing eyes, keenly wise in Mete expression, whose vigilance nothing escaped, and there was a pleasing viva- ei0118 snap to her tongue, which with e. cordial manner, made Lama think that her heart, at least, might not be artie Lady, Twirlington took a seat near Laura, and, after accepting a enp of tea, began to convene in an affable sympathetic way which at once put the girl at her ease. "To see you, Lady Warrington," she said, "makes me think of the time I came to England a blushing brid.e. Yon may not believe it, but I had just such rosy eb,eeks then, and wag beautiful, too. 0 dear, how time change' one 1 People of my age have to be thankful that the world does not see with the saes of a lady's Inaider "Von are an 'Ameileane too, aren't you?" Towle:Med Laura. "I used to be","- was the laughing re- ply, "but in I won't confess how many seasons of London moulting this bird of freedom has loot all her native fea- thers. I haven't been over, to America since I was married." "Have you no family there ?" asked Laura inquiditivelyo- " I am an orphan. I have a host of cousins there, but somehow I enjoy the security from them which the separat- ing waters 0! the Atlantic afford,'!. Lady Twirlington said gayly, giving vent to a little aigh of relief. "So you are from Chicago, my dear," she con- tinued. "'You will let me call yon my dear, you are so prettn and sweet that I can't help it." Laura blushed and nodded in answer to this simple request, and replied that her home was about twenty miles from Chi- eago. "Well, be English" eyes, that is Che- cago, and Chicago means nothing but pigs and millionaires. Yon must get used to ridiculous ideas about America. I, for instance came from a little pla,ce in New York 'State called Skaneateles. Fancy trying to make the people here understand where that is, or trying to pronounce the name I So I say I was born in New York, and most of them have heard of that. Thongle I remember one inoeent old dowager asking me if it wasn't eomewhere in the colonies." Laura smiled at this description of English indifference to things American which, judging by her own limited ex- perience, was not very exaggerated. "18 the weather here always so dila mal? she &eked, by :wan of acquining information. Dismal," said reedy Twirlington, with a little exclamation of disgust. "I throve a kiee to the' sun in October, and never expect to see him again until April, when he peeps out in a half -heart. ed way as though he were ashamed of being mien in companye with such die. reputable weathers But you will get used to it be tune. That is to every- thing except the east wind. All our woes, from rheumatic gout to the repe*. diatimi of the Peruvian debt are merib. ed to that horrible east wind." Laura replied that she had already ex, perieneed it, and could eympathize with those who suffered from its ill effects. "Now, my dear," said Lady Twirl. ington, abruptly changing the subject, "11 you will pardon me, I am going to give you a, little motherly advice. I have been through the same mill you are be. ing ground in. • Sir Thomas married me when he was as poor as a church moue, I hatl no friends. I didn't understand English eugtoms, nInd I nearly died oath* blues. Now, the English, as a nation, are extremely shy ; they don't Mean to be so, but they don't u,nderstand foreigfl. ere at all. At home we are much the same, I featcy, but it in our nativeemath, and it doesn't bother tui." "How am I to overcome this shy. noes ?" milted Laura. "Von can't overcome it except by bee coming like them. Yon mut forget that you are an American You Milli talk like them, deem like their/ and set like them. Yon must learn to look at things from their point of view, and when you do yon will be happy, but nal before." "But isn't that disloyal ?" &eked 'Laura. "Nonsense, my dear i A ,woman has no nationality after she is married. She loses that with her name. She belong to her husband and meet affiliate with his people. You can't bring the whole population of the United Kingdom to think as you do, so unless you want to remain a curiosity you must beeome just as English as you can. Then you will have no end of fun', for we are eat amusing people once you know me" Laurie confessed that she rem:deed the wiedom of this advice, and said *est she had alivaye been trying her beat to learn the ways of her household. If there's anything you walit. to know, ask me," anewered Lady Twirl• ington', remeuringly. "Yon can adopt me as a foster mother and come ta MI with all your little Tema" Liana was about to thank her for, bee kindnale when she was interrupted by, Mrs. Fenton, Who addreeeed her, be somewhat patronizing manners Your husband and I are 014 frieridi, Lady Wartiegton," Eihe mad, ".0 I don't feel that you arid I shenin lie strangere to each other," r les, I have often heard of yon,' Laura replied, and there elm bluehed an- grily for thus admitting. that Hugh had often had her in hie 'thoughts. Manus - head will lie mitre riot to have 1100/i yea, Mee, rentOrt," Oho continued with eold eternity, for Ethe had net lettaxati tee ta diseemble SUCCeasfelle. "01*o Tanen 1 Obeli meet hini keel ennagb. YOU know We $01"te neighbeni, and Over/ one meets 004001 Or latex eAl the country." Laura, rend something about the good fortune which gave her Mrs. Fenton for a neighbor, rind inwardly wondered whit attraction Hugh could have found in ouch a conceited water& Tlie two visitors ehen roue to leaere lend were exchanging the civilities that the occasion demanded when Hugh entered the room. He hod just returned from, a ride *0 the kennels, and had not expected to find visitors. Stopping a moment NM the threshold, then recognizing Madge Barclay, whom he had not seen since the trying interview when she had told him of her engagement with John Fenton, he gave sal involuntery :neat, which Laurens keen eye did not fail to notice. But he came forward and offered his hand. "What f Hugh Vincent? 1 beg ear. don, Lord Warrington," she said g the looking at him inquieitively, she eon. tinued "You're better looking than you used to be. The wild west agreed with you." "Have you forgotten me, Lord War- rington, ?" interrupted Lady Twirling - ton. "Lady Twirlington, to be sure," re- plied Hugh. "By jove, I'm glad to ses you. I haven't forgotten how kind Zoo Were to me when, I was a youngster. I owe every good time1 bad in town: ,to you. You're not going? I always thought I wee an unlucky beggar, now I am sure of it." . Lady Twirlington and Mrs. Fenton took their final leave of the( ladies, and Hugh accompanied them to the door.° "By the way," he said, addreseing his remarks to the three women in general, "Langdon is coming down by the ex- press to -night. I've just had a, wire from him." "Is no one else coining 7 asked Lady Olivia in an indifferent tone. "No, Olivia; you have the field to yourself." Lady Olivia pretended not to notice this rather impertinent allusion. "1 should imagine it would he pleas- anter for Captain Langdon if there were some people here. He is sure to be bored." "1 didn't think it would do to have a house party just at preeent Langdon understands; said he didn't mind at all i rather glad to have it quiet for aawhile. By the way, Laura," he continued, ad- dressing his wife, *" try to be uncommont- ly eivil to Langdon. lie's my oldest pal. We were at Sandhurst together, and belonged to the sale regiment. Laura felt pleased that there was to be a stranger in the house. She had /met Captain Langdon in London for a moment only, and tried to recall the impression he had made upon her mind at the time. A ruddy complexion, a blonde mustache eurled upwards at the ends, a straight, thin nose lof somewhat distinguished turn; two brown eyes darkly !under, - lined, in the expression 61 which com- passion and sternness seemed curiously blended, a. glass in one of them adding an air of fierceness to a face in which determination was strongly marked. A tall, stalwart figure clad in a long skirt- ed frock coat, two big hands crowded into gray gloves several sizes too small, and two long lege whose languid stride eeemed not to correspoed with the sturdy bearing cd an Otherwise manly person- ality. These were the impressions , of Captain Langdon which Laura's memory called forth. She wondered how, correct they had been. (To bet tiontlimedte TME nitainienVED wOrniallet. -- Violet Wane Trae,u the Development of Jealousy lu 0000. Its first development is easily disposed of ; a mere brutish instinct of intoler- ance of anybody or anything that could interfere with the gratification of an appetite; the fear lest what was scarce- ly more than a prey should escape and pass into the possession; of a king ; the jealousy, in a word, of the tom -cat and the cock -sparrow, who fight for their re- spective females as though they were bones or brea,derumbe. Ithen,alowly ad- vancing with the ages, his brute nature dying gradually within him—but dying hard, be it remembered, and harder in some individuals than m others—man arrived presently at some sort of higher consciousness; at a smattering of poetic feeling ; an inkling of sentiment; a yearning after sympathy and congenial companionship in his relatioas with the weaker sex. Appetite grew into affec- tion, the pursuit of pleasure into a quest for happiness; but even now he could perceive in woman no good thing which he might not lock up behind bolts and bars, and so make surely his own—no evil thing which he could not fell to the earth and slay, and so annihilate. We may observe to -day the effects of "the green-eyed monster ' upon communities and individuals that have got thus far and no farther upon their upward way; upon the Oriental, who secludes "his women folk behind latticed casements; upon our own " horny -handed sons of ton," who are wont upon occasions to kick their selected females to death with hobnailed boots. BANANA COOKERY. The banana, seems a tame and taste- less fruit to many palates, but it COM be treated in such a way as to become a rare delicacy. Banana fritters, for in- stance, are not to be despised, and ba- nana shortcake is a dish before which the glories of ambrosia pale. To make this delicious shortcake, mix a pint of flour, a large teaspoonful of baking powder and a third of a cup of shortening. Moisten with milk. While this is baking, slice bananas in propor- tion of three to one orange, grate a lit- tle lemon peel and mix with a cap of sugar. When the cake is baked, split it and 0.11 with the fruit. Beat enough cream Stiff' to pile over the top of the cake. Fried bananas also have a flavor which the raw fruit entirely lacks. They should be pared and split in two. A pan of melted butter should be on the stove, and into this the bananas are plunged. When they are brown on both sides thea should be spread for a fe* minutes on absorbent paper to rid them of the grease, epriela led with powdered sugar and served. Bananas may also be baked. A table spoon of sugar and a, teaspoon of hot water should be allowed for each ba- nana. The fruit ehould be pared and slit in two. Theyshould he placed in a shallow dish. A tablespoon of butter molted in hot water shoald be poured over the fruit and the sugar mixed with a little spice and sprinkled over the top. About twenty minutes is required for baking, Banana; eako Di made by placing sliced bananas between lairs ofcake pinpared 'by the ordinary rule for lolly cake. Banana fritters are made by dropping little slices ei banana half an inch thick into ordinary fritter batter, frying in boiling lard, draining and eerviug hot with powdered sugar. He (nervalisly)—Do y,cni think it tight for Us to be here alone without a disp- ort:al She—Ole vs, Mothet mays she Wouldn't be afraid to trust me anywhere with yoU, He—But I don't knew Whether X dare treat Myself With noil. 1 LAND OF BUGS. Guatemala a Kind of Ento- mologist's Paradise, Insert Peen be efee gerrienerre Bally litattee—linge irpitters—a lather Nrenotineolne Diet—e. Laud et Revenge' tieses. A Xtleocei, Guatemala, correepoudent writeTine town le in Guatemala, near the Mexican border, and combats of loan straw -thatched nouns, inhabited by 24 human beings and 9p9,o02 tarantula:ea centipedes and other active insects, carefully omitted from the latest Glister' malan mans. Anarchists are mild bee Ingo compared to creatures that practise on you by means of hypodermie ineerie tions, which tends to keep dowa thet human population, and so, in Guatemalea no one fears that the pressure of the population on the land will reach a point which forbids a hope of the survivor* gaining an honest living by, the sweat of their entire corporosity. It is, I mut admit, quite as it wait represented to me. "Nobody/' said met tropical Mephistopheles, "dieshere 014 fever,"—there is no chance of a whine man's living long enough for a fever tea get under way, as insect Anarchiste van always putting in their work, and one spends a third of the time chewing an almond bean to overcome the effects off, entomological poisoning. It would haent to be a lively fever to catch a man here disengaged from the effects of the Mingle of innuxnerable creeping things. Quid* consumption would be a stage mice te ea express train as compared to the in- sidious, lightning -like and manyelegged bugs. There is no sna,laria, for the bites serve as an antidote. I made out for Poncho a list of hist daily duties, which he understands, asi lie reads broken Spanish all the easier* he says, because it is in pieces. He spa proved this kind of inefsterschaft hee cause old men need to have thing. mummederond crummed. It is as f ollowse and I give it because it contains value able hints to those who come to thee tropics to live in solitude and grow the things that people eat and drink while they read their morning paper up. in eine- ilised regions 1. Get up at 5.80 and milk the early cocoanuts in time for breakfast. 2. Set the milk for cream and come Mae master's apartments and pick out OM coralitos muskeg from his boots'. 8. Shake the date palms,ee if theyaas. too tall, shoot down a, few bunches. 4. Then give another look at meisteese elothee. Burn centipedes and tarantrilmie waste nothing. 5. Bang the big ,gourd for breakfast* Stand behind the master and fan him tce keep flies and mammoth butterflies mit of his coffee. 6. Punch the straw roof 'with long pole to scare off the snakes; eIso repeat thi* every evening. 7. Place bitter almond bean in mac. ter's coat pocket; feel first in all the coat pockets for anything alive there. With these several cardinal rules, I manage to keep agoing. The sun begin to bite, as does evernthing else here, eft 9 a. m. " Pies " is the word, I believee but it is not small pica. One morning I went outside the hensei during a let-up in the deluge, wearing my long -top rubber boots, when, on take ing hold of a. fence -top to vaultover ite I put my hand on a something that was pulpy and covered with hairs, and squashed gently like the soft subsidence' 04fa eymeilsony concert. It was a hog* spider, six or eight inches across, wilik whitish gray atripes like a zebra. T cleared the fence with two feet to spare, and kept on nmning 'ern I met my man Friday, who, on my explaining in my jarred Spanish the cause af my Marian said to me: "Arena ehorme, but he no bite. Hie" inside all poison"if you break hie skin* Never put your h'and on the fence till you look it well over, especially in retiree season, when spiderv breed fast." Pancho is mn daily wonder, wet or dry, bugs or snakes, he is always 1.;tutry in Ida languid Guatemalan way. He tells me that he always takes part in revolve time, as they distract his mind and sort of freshen him up. From what I NM gather, Pa,nchoappears to take in le revolution just as a New England bey does the ciretur. ine: has been in XI ot them, and has acquired much military experience and an assortment of mk- efillaII001,18 plunder, such as 'old pietoler, muskets and clocks and watches appro- priated from dwelling houses, twat pounds of brass buttons and a long lbet of fine, warlike oaths, which are =elan in drilling our Indianagang of Iaborenre At present Nacho is a Barrios mantic politics, always siding with the most successful man, and staying by him tilt his power begins to totter. Our diet is monotonous, mostly 'Tea bananas, which are rich and filling, but ant a good substitute for sirloin steaks we also conteive to get fish of varioue eccentric forms, some of them joraba- dos, with much bone, end some very white, well -flavored fish that resemble rats as nearly as a fish may. Then: we eternally have chicken, and, as they are plenty, I kill them for their Livers, often destroying two dozen for as many liven, which I put on wooden skewers and toast in the fire. SCOTCH OATCAKE. Here is a real Scotch reeipe for mak- ing pateake Mix one pound of' coarse or medium oatmeal with four teaspoon- fuls of clarified butter or dripping, one teaspoonful of salt with sufficient warm water to make a stiffish dough. Kneed this till smooth, then' lay this dough on the board sprinkled with dry oatmersle and roll it out thin (a fluted roller, made for the purpose, is generally used, cut it out in round sakes, and bake en the griddle till they are 1 irm. Thene toast before the fire till they curl ape Of course, this is rather a dainty fonta for the real oatmeal is made of oatmeal and water only. Thbi is very nice nit breakfaet or supper, but time must ha - allowed for thorough baking, tea mine utes ',probabry to eh,ch eat of cakes. That can be browned in the oven, enter thet first cooking on the griddle. An ova* X how, toughens and hardens it. STEAD'S IDEA W. T. Stead, in his new book anent things as they' now stand in Chiengoe has this remark to make about the P. N. movement in that city, which is; father of the P. P. A, of Canada : "Nee Popery faaaticiem died 50 years ago fie England. We imagined it was dead and buried. Here in 'America We find tha Same old demon, With its feminist hoofse and helms Mid tail, seating the oel WOMOn of both sexes with the bogey ofj intending massacre and the dominatloU eef sitty millions by six, " * .jlidieuht ought to bd the best means of exoreiSing this belated survival on untique,ted bigq 11:Ire"clitl'ahresme nV,yi. bWet3 ionfte thgreat e ingre ?Al ttt, Some, Catadinno.—Yolootrirot Worldw