A Heart's Bitterness — page 97: what you’re looking at

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

A HEART’S BITTERNESS. 89 indeed increased in beauty, arriving at a wonderful perfec- tion of loveliness, which a little later made her famous in all England. She stood there ‘under the greenwood tree,” quite un- conscious of the nearness of her former lover—calm, sweet, serenely happy, angelically good, and as he looked at her a mighty whirlwind of passion swept over him and carried him away.. How it came to pass he did not know. He had always preferred her to others, and her image dwelt apart in his soul, as an inestimable, resigned good. He had preferred her to others, but not to himself. Now his whole ‘sheart was at her feet with a reckless adoration that would give himself and all that he had for her, and she was a good no longer resigned, but furiously longed for. He had lounged down along that woodland walk, idle, careless, bored by his safe, tranquil environment; and in — one wild instant, by one look, volcano fires had been kin- dled, heart, soul, brain, burned in maddening flame. In five short minutes, the heavens and the earth had changed for him; he turned deadly white, his frame trembled, an ardor of love seized and enthralled him; that celestial face, half turned away, dazzled his eyes like the glory of the sun. As many another man since the world began, looking on a woman’s face, he went wild, mad for it, and swayed by fierce passions, and dominated by bitter pain, both the pain and passion to be his until the terrible end, he gazed, pant- ing, fascinated on that peerless face. Absolutely, for the instant, he could neither move nor speak to break the mighty spell that held him. The bird’s song ceased; Edna, with a sigh of deep con- — tent, stooped to pluck a lily blooming at her feet. And then her name was uttered in a longing, ardent cry, and he sprang toward her. «‘Kdna, Edna!—look at me, speak to me!’ | She turned, tranquil as a moon shedding glory from June night skies, She held out one white hand. ‘Ts it you, Norman—Lord Leigh? Welcome home, and many wishes for happiness in your new life.” exe: ‘Ts that all you can say to me, Edna?” he gasped, in a stifled voice. | | ‘© All? What more could I say, since I have not seen your wife? But then I have heard of her—that she is all 5 ‘ (ee) Eomicbooks