ty but hers. Her slightly imperious temper
did not interfere with the growth of his affection. She had a sister's
place in his glowing heart. He was in some sense her teacher, and she
caught something of his romantic nature. Of the little circle of her
associates, he was the idol.

At the age of fourteen he left home to pursue his studies for two
years at a public institution. At the end of that period he became a
clerk in a large commercial establishment in the city. At the close of
the first year he accompanied one of the principals abroad, and
remained there in charge of the business for nearly four years. He was
now on the high road to wealth.

Soon after George Mason had gone abroad, Emily Earl went to the city
to complete her education. She was in due time initiated into the
mysteries of fashionable life. Introduced to _society_ by a relative
of unquestionable rank, her face and form presented attractions
sufficient to make her the object of attention and flattery. Four
successive winters were passed in the city. She was the foremost
object of all "who flattered, sought, and sued." Is it strange that
her judgment was perverted, and her heart eaten out? Is it strange
that her cousin found her a changed being?

She had engaged to marry one whose claim to her regard was the
thousands he possessed, and the eagerness with which he was sought by
those whose chief end was an establishment in life. She had taught
herself to believe that the yearnings of the heart were to be classed
with the follies of childhood.

Henry Ralston was the son of a small farmer, or rather of a man who
was the possessor of a small farm, and of a large soul. Henry was
modest, yet aspiring; gentle, yet intense in his affections. The
patient toil and rigid self-denial of his father gave him the
advantage of an excellent education. In childhood he was the frequent
companion of George and Emily. Even then an attachment sprung up in
his heart for his fair playmate. This was quietly cherished; and when
he entered upon the practice of the law in his native village, he
offered Emily his hand. It was, without hesitation or apparent pain,
rejected. Thus she cast away the only true heart which was ever laid
upon the altar of her beauty. He bore the disappointment with outward
calmness, though the iron entered his soul. He gave all his energies
to the labors of his profession. Such was the impression of his
ability and worth, that he was about to be su