Show STO ry THE LOVS of the fhe LAY I 1 ARABELLA by MOLLY ELLIOT SEAWELL merriu ut SYNOPSIS at 14 years of site age admiral sir peter nephew It ichard glyn MI fell deeply in love nt at first sight with lady Ar arabella alella stormont who spurned afa attention tel eions the alie lad an all orp orphan lian wits given a delberth berth berth as nan on the ajax 1 by y N hs his uncle giles varnon anon nephew w ot of 1131 sir r thomas vernon became bf cudne th the boain bayh pal they attended a theater where awk shaws nephew saw lady arabella Ar vernon met lip overton next in una line for sir thomas thoma Ver vernois vernons estate the they st started t 1 I a duel walh was interrupted vernon 0 verton overton and I 1 shaws nephew to dundr u na t themselves hem selves attracted attract ea by pretty lady A aiu rabella the max in wills defeated french warships in the tha mediterranean It ichard girn glyn got prize money ile ha WB was 0 called led homo home by lady as aa he w was a about cabout to now mow in his earnings with vernon at a party alyn ats covered that lady wi was a pour poor but persistent rambler r ile ho talked much with tir her ti r cousin daphne ladet lady arabella again showed allowed lovo love for gaming auter ater she held glyn and overton prisoners thus delaying tho th duel in the overton ver non duel neither was hurt lady arabella humiliated richard by her pranab richard and giles shipped on a frigate CHAPTER VI continued wo we had a pleasant journey to ply mouth and were troubled with few regrets at leaving london we ex in the ho foolishness of youth to capture many more such prizes as the indomitable and Xan xanthippe xantippe tippe the belvidera ws nearly ready and in a few weeks w wy willed olour ou our second cruise I 1 shall nol give the tha particulars of that cruls crutsi it was waa such a one as all tui officers vit of his maj bestys service were engaged in during those eventful years wo we were bere constantly at sea aea wo we kept a tireless lookout for on buu I 1 ee enemies fee and hunted and pursued th thi I 1 into their own harbors buted we c fl v slept tor for more than four hours at apine a line in all our cruising we lived an n beef and biscuit months at a t time me sometimes we had scurvy in th tha ship and sometimes we did not we struggled with mighty pales gales that blew t is hundreds and oven even thousands thou hands of miles out of our course and we sweltered sheltered ered in calms that tried mens souls in all that time we ve watched night and day for the enemy and when found chased him and never failed to get alongside when it was possible and we fought him with the greatest good will we had good and ill fortune with the ship but her colors were never lowered and it was five years before wo we set foot in III london town again only a year of that time was giles vernon with me ile he got promotion which took him out of the ship I 1 had the extreme good fortune to be with nelson at the nile on that great day as sailing master of 0 the belvidere Belv Bel 1 I took the frigate around the tha head of admiral es line sho she was the leading ship and placed her where she wast was enabled to fire the first raking broadside of 0 the battle I 1 got IL a wound in the forehead which left a scar that remains to this day but I 1 also received the personal thanks of my lord nelson which I 1 shall ever esteem as the greatest honor of my life I 1 had heard beard nothing of giles for nearly a year when among admiral es officers I 1 found one a young lieutenant like myself who told me that giles had been captured while on a boat expedition and was then in prison alson at dunkerque Dunker que I 1 wrote him a dozen letters at least by officers who were paroled and when the ship was paid off PU the follow ing spring I 1 lost no time in retting getting to london and using what little power I 1 had in trying to have bavo him exchanged sir peter was in great favor at tho the admiralty As soon as I 1 reached london I 1 went immediately to call in iten der ley square my lady hawkshaw was at home and received me in great state black feathers and all and with her sat daphne carmichael I 1 believe lady was really glad to seo see mo me but daphne after speaking to me remained with her eyes fixed on her embroidery I 1 noted however that she was a very er charming girl and her eyes under her long dark lashes were full of hie fire and sweetness put she had not anti and never could have tile the glorious beauty of lady arabella arabelia stormont ormont Si lady demanded of me a particular account of my whole cruise and everything that nad had happened nt at the battle battla of the nile this I 1 gave to the best of my ability she hen ben invited or rather commanded naj to tf take up tip my quarters in berkeley square and told me that thai I 1 had three thre thou thousand sanI ana ten pounds nineteen and seven pence to my credit in bank I 1 after this she was called upon to ive cave 2 tho the room for 0 moment and I 1 hilly inquired ot of daphne how lady rabella ra hela was waa she Is 1 well responded daphne ather tartly I 1 thought and as ff voted to capt overton as ever you know arabella over ever likel him rather more than ho be liked her ungenerous speech I 1 said one word no and daphne coloring to the roots of her hair yet attempted to don dei de i bend herself 1 I only tell you what all the w world orl 4 says and so say my iny uncle and aurim arabella could have married a dozen times she la Is all of 21 you on know r and married very splendidly but she will III not sir peter rages raea and swears that he will marry her off ob in spite bof it herself self but arabella la Is her own nils inis now new and laughs at sir peter and does she still play cards daphne raised her yes eyes it seemed to 0 o give that otherwise sweet girl post tivo pleasure plea auro to call over lady ara bellas faults yes yea she ehe said loo et anything by whick money can be lost or won three times fi a week sho sha goes to the file duchess ot of Auch where rilay play Is high wo we go there tonight but I 1 do not play I 1 had not thought there wits was so m uett malice in daphne until that conversa tion I 1 left my adieux for lady hawkshaw and repaired to the admiralty admira tV where sir peter happened happe nril to b be tha that lay day I 1 explained that I 1 should ha hat como come to him ae nt once but for my ingy binate wish to bee lady wid and that I 1 found her looking at least 20 years younger since wo we met last at which sir peter beamed on me with deli delight glit and I 1 believe determined to give me 1000 additional in hla his will I 1 then stated my real business which was to tn get giles vernon ci exchanged and sir peter without a moments hesitation agreed to doull do all he could for or me and then as italia usual directed mo me to have nn mv portmanteau sent to Ier berkeley keley square ns as lady halt had done before I 1 left the admiralty machinery had been put in motion to secure giles cities Ver vernons exchange I 1 returned to berk 10 square and again took up my abode there CHAPTER VII one month from tho the time 1 arrived y in london I 1 w was is on my way to portsmouth to meet giles vernon who had been brought over oer with b u batch of exchanged offIc officers bre from france 11 in that month during which I 1 had lived continuously in berkeley dei holey square things were so eo little changed except in one respect which I 1 shall mention presently that I 1 could scarcely persuade myself five years had passed peter and polly as giles disrespectfully called the them tit had not grown a day older and quarreled as vigorously q Z 44 we were constantly at sea as ever lady arabella was waa then her own mistress although still living under sir peters root roof but as far as aa I 1 could see this spoiled child of nature and fortune had always been her own mistress I 1 found that overton had been away fur for some years biars on foreign service and after distinguishing r himself greatly had laic lately ly returned sut suf f fering e ring from severo severe wounds and injuries to his constitution ile he was however in london and able to ride and walk out and visit his hig friends but it was doubted by many whether on the expiration of his leive lie would ever be ba fit for duty again I 1 heard and saw enough to convinced con vincel roe me that lady arabella had bad been wild with grief and despair when she heard of 0 his wounds and although since his return to london ho he avoided company generally she managed to see him occasionally and spent much of her time driving in the parks upon the mere chance of seeing hini him taking ills his dally daily ride or walls walk lady arabella stormont had everything in lifo life that lit hi t could wish except one she had be d chosen to give her willful and wayward heart to philip overton and it must bo be acknowledged that ho was n man mail well fitted to enchain a wo imagination overton had bad disdained disdain ed the spontaneous gift of Arri bellas love loe but I 1 believe her haughty and arrogant mind could never be brought to believe that any man could bo be really insensible to her beauty lur her rank and her fort fortune line overton could not tn in any way be e considered a great watch match for her ills hla fortune was vrna modest aal lily ills chance of bucce succeeding eding to the iho vernon estates estate remote lint but with the desperate perversity of her na fure him she would have and no other it always seem d f t tn inia a IF r 0 ewt a wit the hr thin a 11 1 1 h I 1 tuft one ne hail had t u L with rate late until she conquered i hir hi r souls desire for anys ayol air ohe we rue exacts a khe to liml had bilaus relve rw before billed called rae me may tn in list her good it WAO A and a a variety vartere var teru tit x in III bar liard bad humors and little an aa it may be believed 1 I Il Ill chard lebard glyn clyn lieutenant in hla his maje sen sea service with to my name would havo have gone to the gibbet rather than marry lady arabella with tier her Iler perhaps haps daphne carmichael had something to do with it sho she was tho the same gantle winning creature at 19 as is at 12 she was still sir peters pet and lady comfort but I 1 had not been in the house it a week before tho the change I 1 alluded to came about and the change was waa in me concerning daphne I 1 began to find it very hard to keep away from her she treated me with ettli great kindness before others but when we were alone alono together g e ther she brio was capricious I 1 began to despair of over ever finding a woman who could bo be kind to a roan man three times running and I 1 was very much surprised at he end of a fortnight to find myself experiencing the identical symptoms I 1 had felt gilve years before with w ith arabella arabelia only much aggravated there was this difference too I 1 had bad a admired dritt red arabella as aa a star afar oft off and I 1 think I 1 should havo been very much frightened it if at the tha time she had chosen formally to accept my devotion not so with daphno daphne I 1 felt I 1 should never be really at case until I 1 had the prospect of having her by my sado the rett rest of my life I 1 reached this phase at tho tha end of the third week at the end ot of the fourth I 1 was in a desperate case but it was waa then time to go to portsmouth to meet giles according to my promise and I 1 felt when I 1 parted from Day daphne line as if I 1 was starting on a three years cruise and I 1 was only to be ba gone a day and a half she dear clear girl showed somo feeling too 00 oo and 1 I left bearing with me the kiisk which every lover carries pains and hopes I 1 left london at night and next morning on reaching portsmouth As aa I 1 juniper from the coach i 1 ran into giles arms lie he had reached portsmouth some hours in adiv advance abed of the time I 1 ile he showed marks of hla his imprisonment in his appearance but hla his soul had bad ever been tree free and ito ho was the same brave and joyous spirit I 1 ha had I 1 ever known not being minded to waste out our time in fit portsmouth we t took 0 ok coach for london town at noon As wo we were wera mounting a countryman standing by hold held up a wooden cage full of larks and asked us to b buy y ex P patia at lating ting on their beautiful son song 9 1 I will take them all my lad cried giles throwing him a guinea tile the fellow gaped tor for a moment and then lien made olt off as fast as his legs could carry him I 1 wondered what olles ollea meant to do with tho the birds lie ile held tile the cage in ills his hand until we had bad started and were well into tho the country then opening the little slide he took out one poor fluttering bird and poising on oil his finger for a moment the lark hew flew upward with a rush of 0 joyous each ach bird ho he liberated tn in the same way all ot of us on the coach top watching him in silence As tho the last captive disappeared in the blue heavens he avena giles crushing the cage in his strong hands throw threw it away 1 I have boon been a prisoner for 14 months he be said and I 1 shall never soe see tiny any harmless living thing again imprisoned without trying to set it t tree free we reached london that night and giles went to his old lodgings where his bis landlady was delighted to see him as all women were who knew giles vernon she gave us supper and then we sat eat up all night talking I 1 had thought from the guinea he be had ahr thrown own the vender of larks that he had money I 1 found he had none or next to boac TO BE CONTINUED y |