Quest of the Golden Girl a Romance

CHAPTER I. AN OLD HOUSE AND ITS BACHELOR. When the knell of my thirtieth birthday sounded I suddenly realised with a desolate feeling at the heart that I was alone in the world. It was true I had many and good friends and I was blessed with interests and occupations which I had often declared sufficient to satisfy any not too exacting human being. Moreover a small but sufficient competency was mine allowing me reasonable comforts and the luxuries of a small but choice library and a small but choice garden. These heavenly blessings had seemed mere than enough for nearly five years during which the good sister and I had kept house together leading a life of tranquil happy days. Friends and books and flowers! It was we said a good world and I simpleton—pretty and dainty as Margaret was—deemed it would go on forever. But alas! one day came a Faust into our garden—a good Faust with no friend Mephistopheles—and took Margaret from me. It is but a month since they were married and the rice still lingers in the crevices of the pathway down to the quaint old iron-work gate. Yes! they have gone off to spend their honeymoon and Margaret has written to me twice to say how happy they are together in the Hesperides. Dear happiness! Selfish indeed were he who would envy you one petal of that wonderful rose—Rosa Mundi—God has given you to gather.