Doctor Xavier (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1904. Excerpt: ... CHAPTER XII The marriage of the reigning Prince of Cadi to one whom Paris had already learned to call "La Belle Inconnue," was the brief sensation of a winter month. People discussed little else for many days, A beautiful woman had come to the city; she had been seen, she had conquered. The pretty romance made gossip for the cafes while it entertained the salons with eloquent mendacities. From the chroniques scandaleuses you got a hundred versions, every one of them a lie. Some said that the bride was an American of fabulous wealth; others declared that her English was acquired, and that she came from Spain. There were twenty apologies for the hasty marriage, and each of them more false than the other. In the end, Paris came to the conclusion that it really was a young man's story. It remained for the Prince's friends to declare that he had sold himself for good bank-notes, and that his repentance would be speedy. Esther knew nothing of this, nor did any unkind word reach her ears. She had promised to marry Prince Arthur, because she believed that by marriage he would save his kingdom. So little, until this moment of decision, had she dared to consider the question, that even until the end she could not wholly understand how greatly she loved and was beloved in her turn. She lived, indeed, amidst surprises and excitements which denied her leisure. Though she had been willing to reflect, opportunity forbade her. Sometimes in the silence of the night she would ask herself whither she was going, to what unknown land or people. But the days were all too short for scruples; and if any hidden logic guided her, it was this: that she had found a friend and that he would be faithful to her. In her lover's presence, she never doubted her own wisdom. He approached h...