A Daughter of Maryland — page 202: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

A DAUGHTER OF MARYLAND. 177 man in blue suit and a colonel’s epaulets on his shoulders. The left sleeve hung empty at his side, and his features were bronzed and scarred, and he looked inach older than the youth of twenty-two who had gone away from there nearly five years before under such a cloud, but the over- joyed man who met him forgot all this, as he folded him to his breast, saying between his sobs: ‘“My son! my son! I feared I should never see you again.’’ ‘Then I am forgiven, father ?’’ ‘‘No, it is you who are to forgive! I was in the wrong. But you mustn’t be hard with us in our humiliation. ”’ It happened that they were alone, even S’posen having gone to break his ‘‘surprise’’ to some one else; and when they had talked out their first glad demonstration, Robert asked with a trembling tone: ‘Where is Aurian? I hope nothing has happened to her. ’’ es: ‘*She is in the other room, my son. She will hail your return with joy greater than mine. Go to her at once.’’ With a strange and undefinable fear tugging at his heart, Robert Lancier left the room, and crossing the hall stood for a moment at the door to that apartment where he had last met her. Gaining courage directly he softly opened the door and entered. As he did so Aurian sprang up from a seat at thé farther end of the room and came swiftly toward him. The curtains were drawn, which made it too dark for her to recognize at once, and while she hesitated he said: ‘*Aurian, it is I, come at last!’ *‘ Robert !’’ and with that name trembling on her lips she allowed his one arm to encircle her waist, while her head rested on his shoulder for what seemed -a long time. Finally he said: ‘‘You are glad I have come back, Aurian? Father has given me a cordial greeting, and now with your response I shall indeed be the happiest of men, ’’ GOmIG 900 a , al tg » fe i 4 * (a ‘ + get rh] v8 . : S. com