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MRS. E. D. E. N. SOUTHWORTH

"To His Fate," "The Lost Heir," "A Noble Lord," "Sweet Love's Atonement," "Zenobia's Suitors," Etc.

A. L. BURT COMPANY

PUBLISHERS NEW YORK

POPULAR BOOKS

In Handsome Cloth Binding

Price per volume, 60 Cents

Beautiful Fiend, A Brandon Coyle's Wife Sequel to A Skeleton in the Closet Bride's Fate, The Sequel to The Changed Brides Bride's Ordeal, The Capitola's Peril Sequel to The Hidden Hand Changed Brides, The Cruel as the Grave David Lindsay Sequel to Gloria Deed Without a Name, A Dorothy Harcourt's Secret Sequel to A Deed Without a Name "Em" Em's Husband Sequel to "Em" Fair Play For Whose Sake Sequel to Why Did He Wed Her? For Woman's Love Fulfilling Her Destiny Sequel to When Love Commands Gloria Her Love or Her Life Sequel to The Bride's Ordeal Her Mother's Secret Hidden Hand, The How He Won Her Sequel to Fair Play Ishmael Leap in the Dark, A Lilith Sequel to The Unloved Wife Little Nea's Engagement Sequel to Nearest and Dearest Lost Heir, The Lost Lady of Lone, The Love's Bitterest Cup Sequel to Her Mother's Secret Mysterious Marriage, The Sequel to A Leap in the Dark Nearest and Dearest Noble Lord, A Sequel to The Lost Heir Self-Raised Sequel to Ishmael Skeleton in the Closet, A Struggle of a Soul, The Sequel to The Lost Lady of Lone Sweet Love's Atonement Test of Love, The Sequel to A Tortured Heart To His Fate Sequel to Dorothy Harcourt's Secret Tortured Heart, A Sequel to The Trail of the Serpent Trail of the Serpent, The Tried for Her Life Sequel to Cruel as the Grave Unloved Wife, The Unrequited Love, An Sequel to For Woman's Love Victor's Triumph Sequel to A Beautiful Fiend When Love Commands When Shadows Die Sequel to Love's Bitterest Cup Why Did He Wed Her? Zenobia's Suitors Sequel to Sweet Love's Atonement

For Sale by all Booksellers or will be sent postpaid on receipt of price. A. L. BURT COMPANY, PUBLISHERS

Copyright 1885, 1886. BY ROBERT BONNER.

Renewal granted Mrs. Charlotte Southworth Lawrence for 28 years from Dec. 16, 1913.

DOROTHY HARCOURT'S SECRET.

Dorothy Harcourt's Secret

It was one o'clock on Christmas morning when the Christmas sleigh returned to the Wesleyan Flats, bringing Santa Claus and his two aides.

As soon as the three alighted, a man from the livery stable, who had been engaged to meet them at that hour, mounted the box to take the conveyance home; but not before he had received a liberal gift.

The house was all ablaze with light.

There had been Christmas Eve festivals in almost every suit of apartments in it.

Mr. Merritt lifted little Owlet--so tired and so sleepy, yet so divinely happy--and bore her into the house.

'Pollyon Syphax was on duty in the hall, and stared at the three figures in the black waterproofs that covered their disguises from head to foot.

They went upon the elevator, reached Roma's parlor and found her reclining in her armchair by the center table, reading the "Golden Legend" by the light of a shaded lamp.

Madame Nouvellini lay fast asleep in her invalid chair, nor did she wake up on the entrance of the party.

"What sort of a time did you have?" inquired Roma, as the weary Santa Claus sat down on the sofa with the sleeping child across his knees.

"A very fine time. The ground, or rather the snow, was so hard and smooth, and the horses so fresh, that I am sure they got over the ground with more than steam-engine express speed! Guided by our policeman, I think we visited every poor neighborhood, and even every criminal locality in the ten miles' square."

"That was right; for there are innocent children everywhere, even in the guiltiest haunts. Ah, poor children! If I have lost Will Harcourt, I must devote my life and all it holds to them! What am I saying? Whether I have lost him or not, I will devote all that I may of my life to the rescue of the lost children?"

"What!" inquired the lawyer. "Is your stout heart failing that you talk of the possibility of losing Will Harcourt?"

"Oh, no! I do hope--but 'hope deferred maketh the heart sick.' No news comes," sighed Roma.

"The young man may have been smuggled on board some outbound ship--may be across the ocean by this time!"

"What makes you think so?"

"I do not exactly think so. I only throw out the idea on speculation, as a possible explanation of the failure of all our plans to discover him! Well, my dear, I must be going now! It is twenty minutes past one. I suppose the people in this house mean to keep it up all night. To-morrow I shall come and give you a report of to-night's work--'To-morrow?' It is to-morrow now!--Christmas is more than an hour old!" said the lawyer, as he arose and carefully laid the sleeping child on the sofa.

"We made a great many people happy to-night, but the happiest of all was little Owlet! There are children's parties in the mansions of the rich everywhere, but I doubt if any among them enjoyed themselves as little Owlet did to-night. She has gone to sleep, tired out with a surfeit of happiness. Good-evening, my dear," he said, warmly pressing Roma's hand. "Come, boy!" he added, shaking up the dozing Tom, who, Virginia negro fashion, had dropped himself down on the floor and gone to sleep.

When the two had left the room, Roma knelt down by the sofa, and began to undress the child softly and deftly, so as not to awaken her if it were possible to avoid doing so.

Mr. Merritt had already taken off her mask, and the removal of her other disguises was comparatively easy.

But as Roma rolled her gently over, stealing, as it were, her clothing off her, the child partly awoke, and murmured in her sleep:

Roma put the child in her own bed. Then she looked at Marguerite, and saw that she was sleeping well, with ice water, milk and all else within reach that she might want during the remainder of the night.

Then at length Roma herself went to bed and to sleep, and slept soundly, notwithstanding the loud revelry that was going on over her head and under her feet, and on the opposite side of the hall.

Late as was the hour when she retired, she awoke quite refreshed at her usual time--seven o'clock in the morning. Her little bedfellow was still sound asleep, living over in dreams the happiest ride and night she had ever had in her little life.

Roma covered the sleeping face with a thin handkerchief, and then opened the windows to air the room and passed into the parlor.

Her prot?g?e, Marguerite Nouvellini, was not only awake, but sitting up in her adjustable chair, with a breakfast tray before her.

"I was so hungry when I woke up that I wheeled myself in reach of the bell, and rang and ordered breakfast. Did you care?" she inquired, seeing Roma's surprised look.

"Oh, no, my dear," Roma hastened to say; "though if you had touched the timbre on your stand, you would have waked me, and I could have done it all for you and saved you the fatigue of pushing yourself about the room."

"Oh, it did not tire me--not at all. Oh, this chair! I don't believe that even you, who bought it for me, know half its merits. I said it was bed and chair and carriage to me. It is more than that. It is legs! I can go where I please about the room with just the lightest little push on this little knob. See!"

And the invalid wheeled herself around the room and back again to her stand.

"I see," said Roma; "it works easily, and you are so much stronger."

"Oh, ever so much stronger and better. I shall soon get well now. Thanks to you, dear friend. But I should never have got better if you had not brought me out of that miserable room, where the only choice I had was between sitting in the bitter cold or having a smoking fire in the wretched little iron stove, and I think the smoke was worse than the cold. And then that straight-backed little chair! And the diet of bread and tea, that was always cold before it reached me! Ah, I was dying of discomfort more than of a cough when you found and rescued me. And now, in this lovely room, in this lovely chair, and with the clean, soft steam heat, and all the good things you give me to eat day and night, and, above all, you yourself! You are always breathing the breath of life over me--if it is not a sin to say it. And I shall soon be well and strong. And, oh! may the Lord open some way for me to show my love and gratitude to you! I have not talked so much as this since the day I was taken down sick," she concluded, with a smile.

"No, dear, you have not, nor do I think it wise in you to tax your strength in doing so now," said Roma.

But the invalid was in a talking mood.

"When I woke up this morning, the first thing I saw was Owlet's mask and dress, and I knew she had got home safe," she said.

"Oh, yes! and she was in bed long before several other children of the house who were dancing; and Mr. Merritt thinks she was happier than them all," said Roma.

While they talked together, little Owlet suddenly appeared before them, ready dressed for breakfast. She had risen in her quiet way and made her simple toilet silently.

Then Roma produced her Christmas presents, a lovely wadded silk dressing gown for Madame Marguerite, and a workbox, completely fitted, for Owlet. Both were delighted, and declared--what all people declare to the giver of Christmas gifts--that the present was just exactly what the receiver most wanted.

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