The Argosy — page 71: what you’re looking at

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

58 Mrs. Carr’s Compamon. the gulf which separates John Thorold, the unknown architect, from Lady Mary Egerton’s daughter !” There was a moment’s pause while Olive still stood motionless. She had been touched by his allusion to their old friendship. She was willing to be entreated. ‘Though she had promised herself that she would not yield too easily, a tender appeal might have moved ‘her evennow. But not his proud, cold words, which seemed to say that he could live without her—that she counted for little in his scheme of happiness—was less dear to him than his pride. Well, for her part she would not descend one step from the dais upon which he had enthroned her. She would not deign to speak one word, one little word, though that word would bring him to her feet. With a sigh, which seemed laden with the feelings he dared not speak, he said good-bye, and left her. Olive remained standing in the same spot, as if turned to stone, as his steps retreated along the length of oaken floor, till faintly from the end of the long gallery came the sound of a closing door. ‘Then she sank back upon the couch and, covering her face with her hands, broke into a wild fit of weeping. The faded beauties from the walls smiled on unheeding, sickly, languid smiles of long ago. Grave soldiers whose battles were all over—courtiers of courts that had passed away, seemed to turn sad, stern eyes upon her, as if wondering what could be worth such grief in this world of passing shadows. But Olive’s tears had their way for once. Meantime Colonel Kane in the library below was disinterring some of his old family jewels, and asking rather absently his future mother-in-law’s advice as to altering and resetting, while he glanced out of window every now and then towards the quaint Dutch garden, between the formal yew hedges of which his betrothed and Wilfred Kane had just disappeared. The two figures, once hidden from sight behind a screen of yew and cypress, paused simultaneously, and Cap- tain Kane, turning, faced his companion. ‘Rose, when will this dreadful day come to an end? How can you have the heart to torment me so!” “Wilfred, you forget yourself! What do you mean?” ‘‘Because I am beside myself, you have driven me wild with jealousy. To think that you should be so cruel as to give my uncle that camellia! Ay, and fasten it into his button-hole before my very eyes !” ‘ Hush, Wilfred! Has he not a right? Besides, he asked me. What could I doe” ‘‘And you expect me to bear with patience this hourly torture ! I wish I had not come here !” “And why did you, pray ?” The vehement answer brought a blush to her cheek. ‘Because the temptation of spending a few hours in your com- ECOPMIEDOOKS.E© im