eetheart, may a bright band of faithful guardian
spirits, ever watchful, ever near, guide and guard you, the crowning
treasure of my life, is the earnest prayer of

"Your devoted, loving and loyal,

"FILLMORE FLAGG."

CHAPTER XXV.

THE REPLY.

"MY DARLING FILLMORE: Words fail to express the happy effect of the
pleasing emotions that arise as I muse and dream, build castles in the
air and indulge myself, again and again, in the luxury of reading line
by line, the glowing tributes of love in your marvelous letter. I am
electrified by its wonderful logic, rythm and melody. Ah, my chosen one!
So manly; so noble; so true! The witchery of your eloquence is a
conquering force, that Cupid with his bow might well be proud of! My
heart rejoices under the influence of its magical spell! I am so happy
and so proud of you! The great deeps of my emotional nature have
responded to the poetical sublimity of your charmingly expressed
sentiments. They thrill my soul like the dawn of some glorious summer
day; like the exquisite perfume of a sweet flower; like that sublimely
sweet surprise which steals over the senses, while a fleecy veil of
silvery mist, responding to the power of the advancing king of day,
slowly rises and discloses the shoreless grandeur of that tidal mystery,
the majestic, restless, billowy bosom of Old Ocean; like some grand
symphony of masterful music, penetrating and resonant, with that
mysterious potency which awakens every echo of the soul's musical
possibilities! Yet, sweetheart, every word is charged with your personal
magnetism; is stamped with your individuality; freighted with the wealth
of your spiritual and intellectual development. In every line, sentence
and paragraph, I recognize you as my ideal of a lover, the dearest and
most noble of men!

"In my retrospective moods, the cloud of memories, born of the incidents
which have marked our past acquaintance, form a telescopic vista.
Through this vista, examined in the crucible of much correspondence, the
intimate association and the mutual friendship of many months duration,
I perceive that I have discovered and have learned to appreciate the
sterling worth of your character. Through this avenue I become conscious
that you represent to me the superior nobility of true American genius;
the highest and grandest type of manhood! Idealized as my hero, I place
you in the front rank of America's dominant thinkers;