A Struggle for a Ring — page 212: what you’re looking at

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

. al 208 AILIE’S WELCOME. and there comes to her a vision of the languid, helpless, fine-lady mother, who has made such a hopeless mess of her life. . Lady Waldrove said no more, but she thought often why it was that her young companion’s eyes had grown dim with tears. Lord Waldrove was not long in learning to appreciate Ailie’s good qualities, ‘cA beautiful face is the least of her charms,” he said one day to the countess, ‘‘We have patrician daughters —high-bred, elegant women—but we have no such affec- tionate child as this.” | He liked her very much. . ‘*Will you read the leading article to me?” he would ask. ‘* My eyes are not what they have been.” And he would yield himself to the delight of. listening to one of the sweetest and most musical voices ever heard; indeed, it was a strain of finest music to him. He would say to himself that no bird singing in the happy freedom of its woodland home—no queen of song, trained by the great masters of the art—could eclipse, or even compare, with this girl, who was quite inknown to fame. The sweet, soft music would gradually overcome him, and_his eyes would close. ‘Then Ailie would lay down the paper and look eagerly into his face, watching to see if there was any resemblance between it and the handsome face of the husband who did not love her, yet had married her to save her from blame. ~ xh : See / ‘ he A poh m comicbooks ‘i (elo)