For Woman's Love Part- 2 by Mrs. E. D. E. N. Southworth (top android ebook reader .TXT) 📖
![](/uploads/posts/books/2/3/7/4/0/mrs-e-d-e-n-southworth-for-woman-039-s-love-part-2.jpg)
- Author: Mrs. E. D. E. N. Southworth
Book online «For Woman's Love Part- 2 by Mrs. E. D. E. N. Southworth (top android ebook reader .TXT) 📖». Author Mrs. E. D. E. N. Southworth
Disclaim Forever That Relationship, And All Relationship With The False,
Flirting, Coquettish, Unprincipled Creature That You Are! Your Late
Suitor May Forgive Your Treachery To Him, Beguiling Him By Your Once
Pretended Preference To Pass By All Eligible Matches And Cross The Ocean
For Your Sake! Yes; He May Forgive You, Because He Is A Fool (Being A
Duke)! But As For Me--I Will Never Pardon The Outrageous Affront You
Have Put Upon Me, In Rejecting The Man Of My Choice! Never, As Long As I
Live, So Help Me--"
"Oh!--Oh, Grandfather!" Cried Corona, Arresting His Half-Sworn Oath,
"Don't Say That! I Am Sorry To Have Crossed Your Will In This Matter, Or
In Any Way; But, Oh, My Dear Grandfather--"
"Stop There!" Vociferated The Iron King, With A Stamp. "I Am No
Grandfather Of Yours! How Dare You Insult Me With The Name When I Have
Forbidden You To Do So?"
"I Beg Your Pardon, Sir. It Was A Mere Slip Of The Tongue. I Spoke
Impulsively. I Had Forgotten Your Prohibition. I Shall Not Certainly
Offend In That Way Again," Said Corona, Quietly.
"You Had Better Not!"
"I Was About To Say, When You Interrupted Me," Resumed Cora, Earnestly,
"That I Am Grieved To Have Been Compelled To Disappoint You By
Rejecting The Duke Of Cumbervale; But, Sir, I Could Not Do Otherwise. I
Could Not Accept A Man Whom I Could Not Love. To Have Done So Would Have
Been A Great Sin. Surely, Sir, You Must Know It Would Have Been A Sin,"
Pleaded Corona.
"Stuff And Nonsense!" Roared The Iron King. "Don't Dare To Talk Such
Sentimental Rubbish To Me! You Can't Love Him, Can't You? Tell That To
An Idiot, Not To Me! When We Were In London, Two Or Three Years Ago, You
Loved Him So Well That You Were Ready To Break Your Engagement With Your
Betrothed Husband, Regulas Rothsay, In Order To Marry This Duke. Yes;
And You Would Certainly Have Done So If I Had Not Put A Stop To The
Affair By Having An Explanation With The Suitor, Telling Him Of Your
Prior Engagement, And Also Of Your Want Of Fortune, And Bringing You
Back Home To Your Forgotten Duties."
"Oh, Sir, I Deserve All Your Reproaches For That Forgetfulness. I Was
Very Wrong Then," Said Cora, With A Sigh.
"Bosh! You Are Always Wrong!" Sneered Old Aaron Rockharrt. "And You
Always Will Be Wrong! You Were Wrong When You Wished To Break Your
Engagement With Regulas Rothsay To Marry The Duke Of Cumbervale, And You
Are Wrong, Now That You Are Free, To Reject The Man. Why, Look At It:
Now That You Have Been A Widow For More Than Two Years, And Cumbervale
Has Proved His Constancy By Remaining A Bachelor Two Years For Your
Sake, And Crossing The Ocean And Coming Down Here To Propose For You
Again, And Even After I--I Myself--Have Positively Promised Him Your
Hand, And Have Given A Family Dinner In Honor Of The Occasion, And Have
Announced The Engagement, And After Speeches Have Been Made And Toasts
Have Been Drank To The Happiness And Prosperity Of Your Married Life,
And All Due Formalities Of Betrothal Had Been Observed, Then, Mistress,
What Do You Do?" Severely Demanded Old Aaron Rockharrt.
"Only My Duty Under The Circumstances. I Was Not In The Least Bound Or
Compromised By Or Responsible For Anything That Was Said Or Done At That
Dinner Table," Replied Corona.
"This Is What You Do: You Dare To Set Me At Defiance! You Dare To
Part 2 Chapter 32 (Corona's Opportunity) Pg 145Your Will Against Mine! You Dare To Reject The Man Whom I Chose For Your
Husband, Whom I Announced As Your Betrothed Husband! You Dare To Drive
Him Away From My House, Grieved, Disappointed, Humiliated, To Become A
Wanderer Over The Face Of The Earth For Your Sake, Even As You Drove
Regulas Rothsay From The Goal Of His Ambition Into Exile, And--"
A Sharp Cry From Corona Suddenly Stopped Him In Full Career.
"Do Not, Oh! Do Not Speak Of That! I--I Would Have Given My Life To Have
Prevented Rule's Loss, If I Could! As For This Man--This Duke--He Is
Nothing Whatever To Me, And Never Can Be!"
"And Yet You Were Ready To Fall Down And Worship Him Three Years Ago!"
"It Was A Brief Insanity--A Self-Delusion. That Is Past. Cumbervale
Never Was And Never Can Be Anything To Me. No Man Can Ever Be Anything
To Me! I Could Not Live Rule's Wife, But I Will Die Rule's Widow; And I
Do Not Care How Soon--The Sooner The Better, If It Were The Lord's
Will!" Moaned Corona.
"Drivel!" Angrily Exclaimed Old Aaron Rockharrt. "I Am Tired Of Your
Idiotic, Imbecile Hypocrisies! Here Are Two Men Driven Away By Your
Unprincipled Vacillation--To Call Your Conduct By The Lightest Name. One
Driven To His Death; One Driven, It May Be, To His Ruin. It Is Quite
Time You Were Sent To Follow Your Victims. Look You! I Am Just About To
Start For North End. I Shall Return Home At My Usual Time This Evening.
Do Not Let Me Find You Here When I Arrive, For I Never Wish To See Your
False Face Again!" Said The Iron King, Rising From His Arm Chair And
Striding From The Room.
Corona Started Up And Ran After Him, Pleading, Imploring--
"Grandfather! Dear Grandfather! Oh, I Beg Pardon! I Forgot! Sir! Sir!
Oh, Do Not Part From Me In This Way!"
He Turned Sharply, Stared At Her Mockingly, And Then Demanded:
"Come! Shall I Call Cumbervale Back? Tell Him That You Have Changed Your
Whirligig Mind, And Are Ready To Marry Him, If He Will Only Take Time By
The Forelock And Return Before You Shift Around Again? I Can Easily Do
That. I Can Send A Telegram That Will Over-Take Him And Turn Him Back So
Promptly That He May Be Here In Twenty-Four Hours! Come! Shall I Do
That?"
Corona, Who Had Been Gazing At The Mocking Speaker Scarcely Knowing
Whether He Spoke In Earnest Or In Irony, Now Answered Despairingly:
"Oh, No, No! Not For The World! I Have Not Changed My Mind. I Could Not
Do So For Any Cause."
"Then Don't Stop Me. I'm In Haste. I Am Going To North End. Don't Let Me
Find You Here When I Come Back. Don't Let Me Ever See Or Hear From You
Part 2 Chapter 32 (Corona's Opportunity) Pg 146Again, Without Your Consent To Marry The Man I Have Chosen For You.
John!"
"Oh, Sir, Consider--" Began Corona, Pleadingly.
"John!" Vociferated The Iron King, Pushing Rudely Past Her.
The Old Servant Came Hurrying Up, Helped His Master On With His Overcoat
And With His Rubber Coat, Then Gave Him His Hat And Gloves, And Finally
Hoisted A Large Umbrella To Hold Over His Master's Head As He Passed
From The House To The Carriage In Front.
Corona Stood Watching Until The Carriage Rolled Away And Old John Came
Back Into The Hall And Closed The Door. Then She Returned To The Library
And Sank Sobbing Into The Big Leathern Chair. She Now Realized For The
First Time What The Parting With Her Grandfather Would Be--The Parting
With The Gray Old Man Who Had Been The Ogre Of Her Childhood, The Terror
Of Her Youth, And The Autocrat Of Her Maturity, And Yet Whom, By All The
Laws Of Nature, She Tenderly Loved, And Whom By The Commandment Of God
She Was Bound To Honor.
She Glanced Mechanically Toward The Card Rack, And Saw There Another
Letter In The Handwriting Of Her Brother--A Letter That Had Come In The
Morning's Mail And Had Been Stuck Up There, And In The Excitement Of The
Hour Had Been Neglected Or Forgotten.
She Seized It Eagerly And Tore It Open, Wondering What Could Have Urged
Sylvan To Write So Soon After His Last Letter.
It Was Dated Three Weeks Later Than The One She Had Received Only The
Day Previous, The First One Having, No Doubt, Been Delayed Somewhere
Along The Uncertain Route.
In This Letter Sylvan Complained That He Had Not Received A Word From
His Dear Sister Since Leaving Governor's Island, And Mentioned That He
Himself Had Written All Along The Line Of March And Three Times Since
The Arrival Of His Regiment At Fort Farthermost.
But He Admitted, Also, That The Mails Beyond The Regular United States
Mail Roads Were Very Uncertain And Irregular. Then He Came To The Object
Of This Particular Epistle.
"It Is, My Dear Cora, To Tell You," He Wrote, "That If You Should Still
Be Resolved To Come Out And Join Me Here, An Opportunity For Your Safe
Conduct Will Be Offered You This Autumn Which May Never Occur Again. Our
Senior Captain--Captain Neville, Company A--Has Been Absent On Leave For
Several Months. So He Did Not Come Out Here With The Regiment. His Leave
Expires On The 30th Of November. He Will Be Obliged To Start In The
Latter Part Of October In Order To Have Time Enough To Accomplish The
Tedious Journey By Wagon From Leavenworth To Fort Farthermost, Which Is,
As I Believe I Told You, In The Southern Part Of The Indian Reserve,
Bordering On Texas. He Is To Bring His Wife With Him.
"But Our Colonel Thinks It Is I Who Want You, And, Moreover, I Who Need
You; For He Says That, Next To A Wife, A Sister Is The Best Safeguard A
Young Officer Can Have Out In These Frontier Forts, And He Gave Me The
Address Of Captain Neville And Advised Me To Write To Him And Ask Him
And His Wife To Take Charge Of My Sister On The Route.
"And Then, Dear, He Went Further Than That. He Took My Letter After I
Had Written It, And Inclosed It In One From Himself. So Now, My Dear,
All You Have To Do Is To Go To Washington, Call On Mrs. Neville, At
Brown's Hotel, Pennsylvania Avenue, And Send Up Your Card. She Will
Expect You. Then You Must Hold Yourself In Readiness To Start When The
Captain And His Wife Do."
Cora Had No Time To Indulge In Reverie. She Must Be Up And Doing.
Her Luggage Had Long Been Stored In The Freight House Of The North End
Railway Station, And Her Traveling Bags Had Been Packed The Day Before.
The Servants Knew She Was Going Out To Join Her Brother, Though They Did
Not Know That Her Grandfather Had Discarded Her. She Had Very Little To
Do For Herself On That Day, But She Resolved To Do All That She Could
For The Comfort Of Her Grandfather Before She Should Leave The House
Forever.
So She Went And Ordered The Dinner--Just Such A Dinner As She Knew He
Would Like. Then She Called Old John To Her Presence And Directed Him To
Have The Parlor Prepared For His Master Just As Carefully As If She
Herself Were On The Spot To See It Done; To Have The Fire Bright; The
Hearth Clean; The Lamps Trimmed And Lighted; The Shutters Closed And The
Curtains Drawn; The Easy Chair, With Dressing Gown And Slippers, Before
The Fire, And, Lastly, A Jug Of Hot Punch On The Hearth.
Old John Promised Faithfully To Perform All These Duties. Then Cora Went
And Wrote Two
Comments (0)