The Price He Paid — page 110: what you’re looking at

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

Al THE BALL. 101 cruel and unfair that he should try to spoil her pleasure. The smile vanished from her lips, giving way to a most ungracious expression of counte- nance, and she was about to utter a sharp retort when Lieutenant Wilten appeared in the door-way. “Hraulein von Harder,” he said, hastening to her. “You are missed in the ball-room. His excellency and the baroness have both been inquiring for you. I volunteered to look for you. Will you accept my escort back to your anxious friends?” Under other circumstances Gabrielle would have let this intruder feel how unwelcome he was; but now she was angry, justly offended, as she - thought, and not at all disposed to take offense patiently —so she bowed her head coldly to George, and accepted the young baron’s arm with great affability of manner. The lieutenant led her from the room, casting, as he went, a triumphant glance back ait the discomfited rival left behind. George looked after the pair with flushed face and — knitted brows. This childish revenge wounded him more than he cared to confess to himself, and as the old tormenting doubt arose within him—the doubt as to whether it were right for him to withdraw this charming but most superficial young creature from the glittering sphere for which she seemed created, and to link her existence to that of an earnest patient worker. True, Gabrielle’s love gave him a right to possess her, but—did she love him? Was she really capable of a deep and abiding senti- ment? or was her fancy for him a mere caprice, playful and transient as became her gay, butterfly nature? ; | The young man passed his hand quickly across his brow. He would not listen to the whispered monitions of reason, so utterly at variance with the passionate throbbings of his heart. With a great effort he shook himself free from these torturing thoughts, and was about to leave the room when Councilor Moser came in, accompanied by the superintendent of police. The former, in honor of the day, worea brand-new neck-cloth of snowy whiteness, but of such prodigious dimensions that Gomicbooks (E(0)