II
Four weeks later Mr. Sidney Algernon Burley was entertaining a gay luncheon company, in a sumptuous drawing-room on Telegraph Hill, with some capital imitations of the voices and gestures of certain popular actors and San Franciscan literary people and Bonanza grandees. He was elegantly upholstered, and was a handsome fellow, barring a trifling cast in his eye. He seemed very jovial, but nevertheless he kept his eye on the door with an expectant and uneasy watchfulness. By and by a nobby lackey appeared, and delivered a message to the mistress, who nodded her head understandingly. That seemed to settle the thing for Mr. Burley; his vivacity decreased little by little, and a dejected look began to creep into one of his eyes and a sinister one into the other.
The rest of the company departed in due time, leaving him with the mistress, to whom he said:
'There is no longer any question about it. She avoids me. She continually excuses herself. If I could see her, if I could speak to her only a moment—but this suspense—'
'Perhaps her seeming avoidance is mere accident, Mr. Burley. Go to the small drawing-room up-stairs and amuse yourself a moment. I will despatch a household order that is on my mind, and then I will go to her room. Without doubt she will be persuaded to see you.'
Mr. Burley went up-stairs, intending to go to the small drawing-room, but as he was passing 'Aunt Susan's' private parlor, the door of which stood slightly ajar, he heard a joyous laugh which he recognized; so without knock or announcement he stepped confidently in. But before he could make his presence known he heard words that harrowed up his soul and chilled his young blood, he heard a voice say:
'Darling, it has come!'
Then he heard Rosannah Ethelton, whose back was toward him, say:
'So has yours, dearest!'
He saw her bowed form bend lower; he heard her kiss something—not merely once, but again and again! His soul raged within him. The heartbreaking conversation went on:
'Rosannah, I knew you must be beautiful, but this is dazzling, this is blinding, this is intoxicating!'
'Alonzo, it is such happiness to hear you say it. I know it is not true, but I am so grateful to have you think it is, nevertheless! I knew you must have a noble face, but the grace and majesty of the reality beggar the poor creation of my fancy.'
Burley heard that rattling shower of kisses again.
'Thank you, my Rosannah! The photograph flatters me, but you must not allow yourself to think of that. Sweetheart?'
'Yes, Alonzo.'
'I am so happy, Rosannah.'
'Oh, Alonzo, none that have gone before me knew what love was, none that come after me will ever know what happiness is. I float in a gorgeous cloud land, a boundless firmament of enchanted and bewildering ecstasy!'
'Oh, my Rosannah!—for you are mine, are you not?'
'Wholly, oh, wholly yours, Alonzo, now and forever! All the day long, and all through my nightly dreams, one song sings itself, and its sweet burden is, 'Alonzo Fitz Clarence, Alonzo Fitz Clarence, Eastport, state of Maine!''
'Curse him, I've got his address, anyway!' roared Burley, inwardly, and rushed from the place.
Just behind the unconscious Alonzo stood his mother, a picture of astonishment. She was so muffled from head to heel in furs that nothing of herself was visible but her eyes and nose. She was a good allegory of winter, for she was powdered all over with snow.
Behind the unconscious Rosannah stood 'Aunt Susan,' another picture of astonishment. She was a good allegory of summer, for she was lightly clad, and was vigorously cooling the perspiration on her face with a fan.
Both of these women had tears of joy in their eyes.
'Soho!' exclaimed Mrs. Fitz Clarence, 'this explains why nobody has been able to drag you out of your room for six weeks, Alonzo!'
'So ho!' exclaimed Aunt Susan, 'this explains why you have been a hermit for the past six weeks, Rosannah!'
The young couple were on their feet in an instant, abashed, and standing like detected dealers in stolen goods awaiting judge Lynch's doom.
'Bless you, my son! I am happy in your happiness. Come to your mother's arms, Alonzo!'
'Bless you, Rosannah, for my dear nephew's sake! Come to my arms!'
Then was there a mingling of hearts and of tears of rejoicing on Telegraph Hill and in Eastport Square.
Servants were called by the elders, in both places. Unto one was given the order, 'Pile this fire high, with hickory wood, and bring me a roasting-hot lemonade.'
Unto the other was given the order, 'Put out this fire, and bring me two palm-leaf fans and a pitcher of ice-water.'
Then the young people were dismissed, and the elders sat down to talk the sweet surprise over and make the wedding plans.
Some minutes before this Mr. Burley rushed from the mansion on Telegraph Hill without meeting or taking formal leave of anybody. He hissed through his teeth, in unconscious imitation of a popular favorite in melodrama, 'Him shall she never wed! I have sworn it! Ere great Nature shall have doffed her winter's ermine to don the emerald gauds of spring, she shall be mine!'
III
Two weeks later. Every few hours, during same three or four days, a very prim and devout-looking Episcopal clergyman, with a cast in his eye, had visited Alonzo. According to his card, he was the Rev. Melton Hargrave, of Cincinnati. He said he had retired from the ministry on account of his health. If he had said on account of ill-health, he would probably have erred, to judge by his wholesome looks and firm build. He was the inventor of an improvement in telephones, and hoped to make his bread by selling the privilege of using it. 'At present,' he continued, 'a man may go and tap a telegraph wire which is conveying a song or a concert from one state to another, and he can attach his private telephone and steal a hearing of that music as it passes along. My invention will stop all that.'
'Well,' answered Alonzo, 'if the owner of the music could not miss what was stolen, why should he care?'
'He shouldn't care,' said the Reverend.
'Well?' said Alonzo, inquiringly.
'Suppose,' replied the Reverend, 'suppose that, instead of music that was passing along and being stolen, the burden of the wire was loving endearments of the most private and sacred nature?'
Alonzo shuddered from head to heel. 'Sir, it is a priceless invention,' said he; 'I must have it at any cost.'
But the invention was delayed somewhere on the road from Cincinnati, most unaccountably. The impatient Alonzo could hardly wait. The thought of Rosannah's sweet words being shared with him by some ribald thief was galling to him. The Reverend came frequently and lamented the delay, and told of measures he had taken to hurry things up. This was some little comfort to Alonzo.
One forenoon the Reverend ascended the stairs and knocked at Alonzo's door. There was no response. He entered, glanced eagerly around, closed the door softly, then ran to the telephone. The exquisitely soft and remote strains of the 'Sweet By-and-by' came floating through the instrument. The singer was flatting, as usual, the five notes that follow the first two in the chorus, when the Reverend interrupted her with this word, in a voice which was an exact imitation of Alonzo's, with just the faintest flavor of impatience added:
