Richard Forrest, Bachelor — page 86: what you’re looking at

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

“TT BELIEVE ’'M IN LOVE.” 17 ‘Better late than never, though, eh? And we will try to make up for lost time. Dine with us to-morrow night, if you’ve no engagement. Hight o’clock.’’ Engagement! What engagement would he not have broken to accept this one? ‘You are very kind,’’ he replied. ‘‘I shall come with pleasure.’ ‘*Dick was right,’’ he decided, mentally, ‘‘if ever there was @ man who made an out-and-out ass of himself, that man is Arthur Eldridge, and I only hope it isn’t too late to make up for ‘lost time,’ as the old gentleman suggested.’’ The ormolu clock on the mantel was just striking eight in its subdued, silvery tones as Arthur was ushered into Mr. Clayton’s spacious drawing-room the next evening. His host greeted him cordially. ‘Glad to see you, my boy,’’ he said. ‘‘Helen, I want to introduce the son of an old friend of mine—Mr. Eldridge, my sister, Mrs. Montgomery Dyking.’’ | Arthur bowed low before a stately, white-haired lady, in black satin and diamonds, and then turned to speak to Miss Clayton, who stood beside her aunt. He had never seen her in strict evening dress before, and he concluded then and there that she was as beautiful a woman as he had ever met. The pose of her head, the soft languor of her eyes, the dewy lips smiling at him, all com- bined to entrance him in a most peculiar manner. More or less handsome women cross every man’s path during life, and Arthur had been no exception to the rule, but, al- though lovely faces had charmed him occasionally and had even held him captive for a time, none had ever afiected him as Miss Clayton’s did. Her every movement was grace to him, and her silvery laughter, so soft and subdued that COMMICOOOKS.EO©