Miss Dividends: A NovelGunter, Archibald Clavering
General
Miss Dividends: A Novel
Gunter, Archibald Clavering
Latter Day Saints -- Fiction
A moment after, Harry Lawrence, who has lived his life in camps or on
the frontier, puts his arm around this beauty of Manhattan society, and
for the first time feels her heart beat against his. Then perhaps
something more potent than the strains of the "Thousand and One Nights
of Strauss" getting into his head, he dances with all his soul. Not
perhaps in so deft a way as Ferdie, who is past master of the art, and
glides the graceful Louise through the room in poetic motion, nor in the
dashing manner of Lamar, fresh from cadet german and Mess Hall hops,
with the California widow, but still with so powerful an arm that his
partner feels confidence in him, and perhaps some emotion coming into
her heart other than the mere pleasure of the dance; a very bright blush
is on her cheek as they stop.
"Your step suits mine very well. You dance very nicely," she murmurs.
"Yes, for a man who has not tripped the light fantastic for years,"
replies the captain. Then he goes on, "But who couldn't dance with you?"
"Oh, many men, I imagine," laughs the girl. "That gentleman there, for
instance," and following her eyes, Lawrence sees Lot Kruger with a very
red face, damp from over-exertion, circling the room with a Mormon lady,
the speed of a locomotive in his limbs and the vigor of a buffalo of the
plains in his feet, bringing dismay and confusion to surrounding
flounces and feminine trains wherever he goes.
Then his face grows dark.
"Don't speak of him!" he replies gloomily. "Let me throw off business
for one night and be happy."
Which he does, dancing with Erma so often that Ollie becomes very
sulky, and Mrs. Livingston feels it necessary to play the chaperon,
which she does very deftly, mentioning to her charge that people are
talking about her dancing continually with one gentleman.
"Oh," answers the young lady. "What does it matter in this town, where
we shall remain but a day or two? Were it New York it might be
different." Then she continues rather maliciously, "Besides, I rather
like it. It makes Oliver so sulky."
Just here, however, a practical joke of Mr. Chauncey's drives all else
out of the widow's head. That gentleman approaches, bearing on either
arm two quite young and rather pretty women, one apparently American,
the other with the light hair and blond eyes of a Scandinavian, and
presents them with considerable impressment and form as the two _Misses_
Tranyon; very shortly after taking off one of the young ladies he has
introduced to tread a measure.
"Ah," remarks Mrs. Livingston to the one left behind, "I hope that you
and your sister are enjoying yourselves this evening."
"My _sister_?" giggles the lady, astonished.
"Of course! Mr. Chauncey introduced you and your sister as the two
Misses Tranyon."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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