For Woman's Love Part- 2 by Mrs. E. D. E. N. Southworth (i love reading books txt) 📕
- Author: Mrs. E. D. E. N. Southworth
Book online «For Woman's Love Part- 2 by Mrs. E. D. E. N. Southworth (i love reading books txt) 📕». Author Mrs. E. D. E. N. Southworth
Voyage. Talbot Is At Sydney, And The Climate, And The Scenery, And The
Fruits And Vegetables Said To Be The Finest In The World. It Will Be A
New Experience, And If I Can't Forget Her Among Soldiers And Convicts,
Miners And Bushmen--Well, Then, I Will Come Back And Make A Third
Attempt. Well, Dubois, What Is It?" This Question To His Valet, Who Just
Then Re-Entered The Room.
"The Carriage Will Be At The Door On Time, Your Grace."
Part 2 Chapter 30 (Unrequited Love) Pg 138"Right. Now Attend To My Directions. I Am Going Immediately To North
End, And Shall Leave Thereby The Six O'clock Express, En Route For San
Francisco. After I Shall Have Left Rockhold You Are To Pack Up My
Effects. I Shall Send A Hack From The Hotel To Fetch Them. Be Very Sure
To Be Ready."
The Duke Went Out And Entered The Dog Cart, Received His Valise From His
Valet, Gave The Order To The Groom And Was Driven Off, Without Having
Again Seen Cora.
But From Behind The Screen Of Her Lace-Curtained Window She Watched His
Departure.
"I Hope He Will Soon Forget Me," She Murmured, As She Turned Away And
Went Down Stairs To The Library To Look Over The Morning' Papers, Which
She Had Not Yet Seen. But Before She Touched A Paper Her Eyes Were
Attracted By A Letter Stuck In The Letter Rack, Directed To Herself In
Her Brother's Well Known Handwriting.
"To Think That My Grandfather Should Have Neglected To Give Me My
Letter," She Complained, As She Seized And Opened It.
It Was Dated Fort Farthermost, And Announced The Fact Of The Regiment's
Arrival At The New Quarters Near The Boundary Line Of Texas, "In The
Midst Of A Wilderness Infested With Hostile Indians, Half-Breeds, Wild
Beasts, Rattlesnakes And Tarantulas. Only Two Companies Are To Remain
Here; My Company--B--For One. Two First Lieutenants Are Married Men, But
They Have Not Brought Their Wives. One Of The Captains Is A Widower, And
The Other An Old Bachelor. In Point Of Fact, There Are Only Two Ladies
With Us--The Colonel's Wife And The Major's. And When They Heard From Me
That My Sister Was Coming To Join Me, They Were Delighted With The Idea
Of Having Another Lady For Company. All The Same, Cora, I Do Not Advise
You To Come Here. Will Write More In A Few Days; Must Stop Now To Secure
The Mail That Goes By This Train--Wagon And Mule Train To Arkansaw City,
My Dear."
This Was The Substance Of The Young Lieutenant's Letter To His Sister.
"But 'All The Same,' I Shall Go," Said Corona. And She Sat Down To
Answer Her Brother's Letter.
Part 2 Chapter 31 (A Domestic Storm) Pg 139
It Is A Truth Almost Too Trite For Reference, That In The Experience Of
Every One Of Us There Are Some Days In In Which Everything Seems To Go
Wrong. Such A Day Was This 13th Of November To The Iron King.
When He Reached North End That Morning, The First Thing That Met Him In
His Private Office Was The News That Certain Stocks Had Fallen. The News
Came By Telegraph, And Put Him In A Terrible Temper.
This Was About Ten O'clock. Two Hours Later It Was Discovered That One
Of The Minor Bookkeepers, A New Employe Who Had Come Well Recommended
About A Month Before, Had Just Absconded With All He Could Lay His Hands
On--Only A Few Thousand Dollars--The Merest Trifle Of A Loss To
Rockharrt & Sons, But Extremely Exasperating Under The Circumstances. So
Taking One Provocation With Another, At Noon On That 13th Of November
Old Aaron Rockharrt Was About The Maddest Man On The Face Of The Earth.
It Was His Custom To Lunch With His Sons In The Private Parlor Of Mr.
Clarence's Suit Of Rooms At The North End Hotel, Every Day At Two
O'clock.
To-Day, However, He Showed No Disposition To Eat Or Drink. And Although
The Two Younger Men Were Famishing For Food They Dared Not Go To Lunch
Without Him, Or Even Urge Him To Make An Effort To Go With Them. It Was
Then Three O'clock, An Hour Later Than Their Usual Hour, That Mr.
Rockharrt Made A Movement In The Desired Way By Rising, Stretching His
Limbs, And Saying:
"We Will Go Over To The Hotel And Get Something To Eat."
The Three Men Crossed The Street And Went Directly To Mr. Clarence's
Room, Where The Table For Luncheon Was Set Out. But There Was Nothing On
It But Cut Bread, Casters, And Condiments, For These Men Always
Preferred Hot Luncheon In Cold Weather, And It Was Yet To Be Dished Up.
The Iron King Was Not In A Humor To Wait. He Hurried The Servants. And
At Length When The Dishes, Which Had Been Punctually Prepared For Two
O'clock, Were Placed On The Table At Twenty Minutes Past Three,
Everything Was Overdone, Dried Up, And Indigestible.
It Was The Iron King's Own Fault For Not Coming To The Table When The
Meal Was First Prepared To Order. But He Would Not Admit That Into
Consideration. He Ordered The Waiter To Take Everything Away And Throw
It Out Of Doors, Declared That He Would Have A Restaurant Started On The
Opposite Side Of The Street Where A Man Could Get A Decent Meal, And
Rose From The Table In A Rage.
It Was While The Iron King Was In This Amiable And Promising State Of
Mind That A Waiter Brought In A Card And Laid It Before Him. He Took It
Up And Read Aloud:
"The Duke Of Cumbervale."
"Show Him In," Said Mr. Rockharrt.
A Few Minutes Later The Visitor Entered The Parlor, Bowed To His Host,
Part 2 Chapter 31 (A Domestic Storm) Pg 140And Then Shook Hands With The Two Younger Men, Whom He Had Not Seen
Since The Evening Before.
"So You Braved The Storm After All, Duke? You Found The Old House Too
Dreary For A Long, Rainy Day. Take A Seat," Said Mr. Rockharrt, Waving
His Hands Majestically Around The Chairs.
"No; It Was Not The Weather That Made Rockhold Insupportable To Me. But,
Sir, I Have Come A Long Way For A Great Disappointment," Said The
Rejected Lover.
"What! What! What! Explain Yourself, If You Please, Sir!" Exclaimed The
Iron King, Bending His Heavy Gray Brows Over Flashing Eyes.
"Mrs. Rothsay Has Rejected Me."
"What! What! Rejected You! Why, Your Engagement Was Declared In The
Family Conclave Only Last Night."
"Mrs. Rothsay States That The Declaration Was Erroneous, And That No
Such Engagement Ever Has Been Or Ever Could Be Made Between Us."
"How Dare She Say That? How Dare She Try To Break Off With You In This
Scandalous Manner? But She Shall Not! She Shall Keep Faith With You Or
She Is No Granddaughter Of Mine! I Will Have Nothing To Do With False
Women! How Did This Breach Occur? Tell Me All About It!
Fabian--Clarence! Go About Your Business. I Want To Have Some Private
Conversation With The Duke."
The Two Younger Men, Thus Summarily Dismissed, Nodded To The Visitor And
Left The Room, Glad Enough To Go Down Below To The Saloon And Get
Something To Eat And Drink.
"Now, Then, Sir, What's The Row With My Granddaughter?" Demanded The
Iron King, Wheeling His Chair Around To Face His Visitor.
"There Is No 'Row,'" Said The Young Man, With The Faintest Possible Hint
Of Disgust In His Tone And Manner. "Mrs. Rothsay Rejects Me, Positively,
Absolutely. She Repudiates The Announcement Of Our Betrothal As
Unauthorized And Erroneous."
"But You Know, As We All Know, That She Was Engaged To You! Yes; And She
Shall Keep Her Engagement. I'll See To That!"
"Pardon Me, Mr. Rockharrt, I Am Grieved To Say That You Have Made A
Mistake. The Lady Was Right. There Was No Engagement, Between Mrs.
Rothsay And Myself At The Time You Made That Announcement, Nor Has
There Been One Since, Nor, I Fear, Can There Ever Be."
"Sir!" Exclaimed The Iron King, Rising In His Wrath. "Did You Not Come
To This Country For The Express Purpose Of Asking My Granddaughter's
Hand In Marriage? Did I Not Promise Her Hand To You In Marriage?"
"You Did, Provi--"
"Then If That Did Not Constitute An Engagement, I Do Not Know What
Does--That Is All. But Some People Have Very Loose Ideas About Honor.
You Ask The Hand Of My Granddaughter; I Bestow It On You, And Announce
The Fact To My Family."
"Pardon Me, Mr. Rockharrt, You Promised Me The Hand Of Your
Granddaughter, Provided She Should Be Willing To Give It To Me."
"'Provided' Nothing Of The Sort, Sir. I Gave Her Hand Unconditionally,
Absolutely, And Announced The Betrothal To The Family."
"But, My Dear Mr. Rockharrt, The Lady's Consent Is A Most Necessary
Factor In Such A Case As This," Urged The Young Man, Who Began To Think
That The Despotic Egotism Of The Iron King Had In These Later Years
Grown Into A Monomania, Deceiving Him Into The Delusion That His Power
Over Family And Dependants Was That Of An Absolute Monarch Over His
Subjects. This Opinion Was Confirmed By The Next Words Of The Autocrat.
"Of Course Her Consent Would Follow My Act. That Was Taken For Granted."
"But, Sir, Her Consent Did Not Follow Your Act. Quite The Contrary; For
My Rejection Followed It. It Is Of No Use To Multiply Words. The Affair
Is At An End. I Have Bidden Good-By To Mrs. Rothsay. I Am Here To Say
Good-By To You."
"You Cannot Mean It!"
"I Have Left Rockhold Finally. I Shall Leave North End By This Six P.M.
Train, En Route For The South," Continued The Rejected Lover.
"Then, By ----! If She Has Driven You Out Of My House, She Shall Go
Herself! I Have Done The Best I Could For The Woman, And She Has Repaid
Me By Ingratitude And Rebellion. And She Shall Leave My House At Once!"
Exclaimed The Despot In A Tone Of Savage Resolution.
"Mr. Rockharrt, I Must Beg That You Will Not Visit My Disappointment On
The Head Of Your Unoffending Granddaughter."
"Duke Of Cumbervale, You Must Not Venture To Interfere With Me In The
Discipline Of My Own Family. I Don't Very Much Like Dukes. I Think I
Said That Once Before. I Rejected You For My Granddaughter Two Years Ago
When She Was Bound To Rule Rothsay. Now That She Is A Widow And Is Free,
I Accepted Your Suit And Bestowed Her On You, Not That I Like Dukes Any
Better
Comments (0)