The Argosy — page 243: what you’re looking at

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

Parkwater. 231 Captain Devereux been a fixture in the house, keeping his locality quiet, yawning through the dull, dark days and bemoaning his hard fate at being condemned to vegetate in Ireland, where no diversion of any kind was to be had, save that arising from his snatched conversations with the governess. And of those conversations he had grown tired now, sick to death. Once in a way, he would ride over to Mrs. Barry's, the aunt of Lady Harriet Ord. Her place was some ten miles distant. There he would spend a few hours in her company and Lady Harriet’s, suppressing his weariness as he best could. But when the winter had giveh place to the early days of spring; when the hedges were beginning to shoot forth their green, and the glad birds to sing, Captain Devereux resolved On a desperate step; for indeed it did seem to him that without aid from some source, he should be condemned to this fnghtful state of existence all his days. “I have done it at last,” he gloomily said one morning at breakfast, soon after his sister appeared amongst them again. ‘“<'What have you done?” inquired Lord Tennygal. “Gone and sold myself. Bones, body, and flesh. To Harnet Ord.” ‘*'You don’t mean that you are going to marry here” exclaimed the Countess. “Tt’s nothing less,” said Captain Devereux. ‘I could not go on in this mummying way any longer: and one might as well be an embalmed mummy as have one’s legs and wings tied as mine have been lately. I should have hung myself, or something equivalent, had it lasted another month. So yesterday, when I was over there, I told her she might take me if she liked ; and she snapped at it.” ‘Tt is the very best thing you ever did,” said Lord Tennygal, warmly. ‘If you choose, you may now become a decent member of society ; Harriet will make you one.” ‘She ought to make me something—sacrificing myself for her !” ‘Where 1s the sacrifice ?” ‘Sacrifice! She's forty.” ‘¢ Nonsense! You are six-and-thirty, Tody.” “Tf you look to the peerage, you will see that Harriet is eight-and- thirty,” interposed Lady Tennygal. ‘ Two years are not so great a difference, my fastidious brother.” ‘Yes, they are, when they're on the wrong side. Besides, look at her Chinese eyes, and African mouth !” ‘For shame, Theodore !” interposed his sister warmly. ‘She ‘has neither the one nor the other.” ‘“‘ Can you call hera beauty ?” “You are no Adonis, Tod,” laughed the Earl. ‘What has that to do with it?” was the ex-Captain’s growling answer. ‘‘The uglier a man is, the more the women like him.” EOMRniilElooe SS (CO)