A Struggle for a Ring — page 332: what you’re looking at

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

328 A WIFE'S HOPE. ‘©T make the same answer to you that you made to me, Lord Carsdale—I cannot.” Then, looking at her, he understood it all better than if she had spoken. He read the secret of her love, of her waiting, of her silence; he knew that he was the chosen love of her life; and, strong man, brave soldier as he was, his lips turned white with pain. He undeéfstood, and he felt himself now face to face with the great difficulty of his life. Yet, strange to say, it was the first time that he thought of Ailie without impatience. Something, that was neither irritation nor anger, stirred in his heart when he thought of her—when he remembered the fair face and the golden head bowed in such sweet humility. ‘‘T have made a strange, sad mistake in my life,” he said to himself; ‘‘the time has come when I must settle some- thing or other.” It was almost a relief to him when Captain Moore claimed Lady Ethel and led her away; he longed to be alone, but there was no such luxury as solitude for the heir of Roseneath. No sooner did Lady Waldrove see that her son was disengaged than she led him to young ladies who had begun to consider themselves aggrieved because he had not danced with them. It was not until the greater part of the guests had disappeared that he found ten min- utes for himself; then he went away to the little quad- rangle, where orange-trees grew in great green vases. He sat down there with his favorite friend and confidante—a cigar. ‘ What was he todo? He had bound himself for life, he had put love out of his power, and now he saw with the clearest certainty that Lady Ethel loved him—that she had wasted all these years in the hope, or rather expectation, that he would make her his wife. CS comicboo . at es