LOVER DISILLUSIONED.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XL, Issue 12278, 23 May 1903, Page 2 (Supplement)

LOVER DISILLUSIONED.

PARIS TRADESMAN'S ROMANCE AND THE ENDING.

A full-flavottred Paris romance is told by the correspondent of the Daily Telegraph in that city, who says: —To beauty, of which there certainly was sufficient ocular evidence, she added, as she averred, a noble name and wealth, and all these advantages combined speedily took by storm the heart of the fortunate individual whom chance had made her travelling companion in, a train coming from a provincial town to Paris. Yes, said the fair creature, after they had been some time in conversation, she had been wedded to a marquis, who had died, bequeathing: to her the whole of a large fortune, and she was on, her way to the capital to settle the business. Her" fel-low-passenger, who bad at first been simply attracted by her handsome looks and fascinating manners, pondered over this enticing disclosure, and when the lady added that she was a complete stranger to Paris, as she had spent all her life far away in the country, ho thought that this opportunity was too good to be lightly thrown away. He was joyed when his respectful offer to escort her to her hotel was accepted. He is a tradesman, settled in a quiet street in Paris, and great was his delight when, after he had done the marquise some little service, he was graciously permitted to pay his court to her. A regular engagement followed in due course, and only the wed-ding-day remained to be fixed. One evening the lover repaired to a fashionable restaurant, where the lady had promised to dine with him. He waited there for more than on hour; but she did not appear on the scene. Fearing that she must have been sudlenly taken ill he flew oil' to the hotel, to find, to his utter bewilderment, that she had gone out. The poor man hurried to his abode, thinking that a message might have been left for him there. His feelings may well be imagined when, on entering the house, he was informed that his lovely friend had called for him and had proceeded upstairs. Up he rushed, to discover that the place had been ransacked while he was at the restaurant, and that money and jewellery to the value of £3000 had been abstracted. Then, rather late in the day, the tradesman made inquiries, to learn that no such person as the marquise existed, and that he had been the dupe of a bold and designing female. So his hope of. making a grand match had been shattered in one fell swoop, while he was also out of pocket to the amount of several thousand pounds. The police are in search of the bewitching " marquise," but so far she has contrived to elude their pursuit. That railway journey has proved to be a sad business after ail for the shopkeeper, who had seen in it a prelude to wealth and position, and perhaps to fame as well.