The Widowed Bride — page 192: what you’re looking at

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

THE WIDOWED BRIDE 183 abetting” the growth of love between Captain seth n and Alice Percival did not come. All he said was: “Tt is high time he left Tregarvan Rectory.” ‘The rector would have thought so in good earnest, could he have made an invisible third in the jolting little vehicle which was at that moment rolling cozily along a steep moun- tain road which led in a series of circuitous windings toward the grand cliff called ‘‘Cherwvlilyn Point,” and heard the words Captain Ernest Evelyn was even then speaking to his beautiful companion. ‘‘Alice, you must surely have seen it long ago,” he ex- claimed, vehemently. ‘‘I am not a man of snow or marble, to conceal my feelings.” _ JT suspected it—once in a long time,” she answered, shvly, with her eyes fixed intently on the green summer landscape gliding slowly past them. | ‘And you have not answered me yet. My precious one, don’t keep me in suspense. ‘Tell me frankly, for it is not in your nature to be anything but frank, do you return my love?” Oh, Captain Evelyn! Captain Evelyn! is this the boasted constancy of a man’s heart? Scarcely a month has elapsed since you poured out your vows on the shrine of the relent- less Rena. It is well for the girls of the nineteenth century that they cannot read all the revelations of their lovers’ past! Yet, after all, a heart caught in the rebound is oftentimes a heart well worth having. _ And Alice, unused to the coquettish wiles common to her sex upon similar occasions, looked into his face with limpid, violet eves, and-answered: ‘‘How can I help it, Ernest, when you are so good, so noble, so worthy of all a woman’s love?” He pressed her hand tenderly in his; it was surprising how easy a thing it was to drive with one hand, particularly when the gray pony knew the way by heart, and trotted along in a sage, sober sort of way, as if he were quite willing to take the entire responsibility of the whole route upon his” own shoulders, and leave the young people behind him to enjoy themselves after their own fashion. “Well,” said Mrs. Eskett. when Miss Percival came in that evening, ‘ ‘have you had a pleasant ride, my love?” «Very pleasant,” Alice answered. And ae Eskett, in the kindness of her heart, could have (a(oy paylicel eXoyoy .<S (E(0)