Harold had not come with
the others, nor had he either accepted or rejected the invitation.
On first raising her eyes upon the conclusion of the ceremony, had Elsie
really seen, far back in the shadow of the doorway, a face white, rigid,
hopeless with misery as his when last they met and parted? She could not
tell; for if really there, it vanished instantly.
"Did Harold come?" she asked of Richard when he came to salute the bride
and groom.
"I think not; I haven't seen him, I can't think what's come over the lad
to be so neglectful of his privileges."
Harry Duncan was there, too, hanging upon the smiles of merry, saucy,
blue-eyed May Allison; while her brother Richard seemed equally enamored
with the brunette beauty and sprightliness of Lottie King.
Stiffness and constraint found no place among the guests, after the event
of the evening was over.
In the great dining-room a sumptuous banquet was laid; and thither, after
a time, guests and entertainers repaired.
The table sparkled with cut-glass, rare and costly china, and solid silver
and gold plate. Every delicacy from far and near was to be found upon it;
nothing wanting that the most fastidious could desire, or the most lavish
expenditure furnish. Lovely, fragrant flowers were there also in the
utmost profusion, decorating the board, festooning the windows and
doorways, in bouquets upon the mantels and antique stands, scattered here
and there through the apartment, filling the air with their perfume; while
a distant and unseen band discoursed sweetest music in soft, delicious
strains.
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