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Show dilapidation, but all laid away with the greatest care. Taking one for my pillow and two more for my coverlet, I lay down on the transom and, blowing blow-ing out the candle, was soon In a sound sleep. I was awakened at five o'clock in the morning by the chiming of a neighboring neighbor-ing church bell, and at the same mo-! mo-! ment I saw the door to the room noiselessly noise-lessly open and Lady Arabella Stor mont enter, carrying a candle which she shaded with her hand. 1 Involuntarily Involun-tarily covered my head op, thinking she had probably come in search of something, and would be alarmed if a man suddenly jumped from the pile of boat-cloaks. Hut she went to a glass door which led out upon a balcony, bal-cony, with stairs Into the garden, and unlocked the door. I had completely forgotten about these stairs, not being be-ing familiar with the room, when I climbed up and got in through the window. Presently 1 heard a step upon the stairs, and before the person who was coming had time to knock Lady Arabella Ara-bella opened the door. The rosy dawn of a clear June morning made it light outside, but inside the room it was quite dark, except for the candle carried by Lady Arabella. A man entered, and as soon as he was in the room, she noiselessly locked the door, and, unseen by him, put the key in her pocket. As he turned and the candlelight fell upon his face I saw it, was Philip Overton. Amazement was pictured in his face, and his voice, too, when he spoke. "I was sent for In haste, by Sir Peter, just now," he said, with some confusion. At which Lady Arabella laughed, as if it were a very good joke that he should find her instead of Sir Peter. Meanwhile, my own chaos of mind prevented pre-vented me from understanding fully what they were saying; but I gathered that Lady Arabella had devised some trick, in which she had freely used Sir Peter Hawkshaw's name, to get Overton there in that manner' and in that room. Sir Peter was such a very odd fish that no one was surprised' at what he did. It was no use striving not to listen they were not five feet love. I confess the experience was i new to me. "You will bear me witness, Mr. Olyn," said Overton, "that I am detained de-tained here against my will; but I think it a piece of good fortune that you are detained with me." "I will bear witness to nothing, sir," I replied, "until you have given me satisfaction for calling me a hound just now." "Depr s i. ; rrv forget that hasty expression. In my rage and amazement amaze-ment just now I would have called the commander-in-chief of the forces a hound. Pray accept every apology that a gentleman can make. I was quite beside myself, as you must have seen.". I saw that he was very anxious to conciliate me; for upon my testimony alone would rest the question of whether he voluntarily or involuntarily involuntari-ly failed to appear at the meeting arranged ar-ranged for eight o'clock. I also perceived the strength of my position, and a dazzling idea presented pre-sented itself to my mind. "I will agree," said 1, "to testify to everything in your favor, if you will but promise me not to not to " I hesitated, ashanr-.l to express my womanish fears lor Giles Vernon's life; but he seemed to read my thoughts. "Do you mean not to do Mr. Vernon Ver-non any harm in the meeting which will, of course, take place the instant it. can be arranged? That I promise you; for 1 never had any personal animosity toward Mr. Vernon. His blow, like my words just now, was the outburst of passion, and not a deliberate delib-erate insult." I was overjoyed at this; and as I sat, grinning in my delight, I must have been in strong contrast to Overton, Over-ton, in the very blackness of rage. The minutes dragged slowly on, and we heard the clock strike six and seven. The dim light of a foggy morning morn-ing stole in at the windows. Not a soul was stirring in the house; but on the stiike of eight a light step fluttered flut-tered near the outer door. It was softly unlocked, and Lady Arabella entered, carefully locking the door on the inside, after her, this time. In the ghostly half-light Overton rose and saluted her with much ceremony. "Lady Arabella Stormont," he said, "you have delayed the meeting between be-tween Mr. Vernon and myself just 24 hours. To do it you have put my honor in jeopardy, and that I shall not soon forget. I beg you to open the glass door and allow me to bid you farewell." She stopped, as if paralyzed for a moment, when I. knowing the key to be in her pocket, deftly fished it out, and opened the door, and Overton, walked out. She could not stop me ' I was too quick for her but she ran after me, and fetched me a box on the ear, which did more than sting my cheek and my pride. It killed, in one single instant of time, the boyish love I had had for her ever since the first hour I had seen her. I own I was afraid to retaliate as a gentleman should, by kissing her violently; but dashing on, I sped down the steps outside, after Overton, not caring to remain alone with the Lady Arabella. I saw her no more that day, nor until the afternoon of the next day. (TO BE CONTINUED.) j THE LOVES of the LADY ARABELLA By MOLLY ELLIOT SEAWELL (Copyright, 1906, Bobbs-MorrUl Co.) SYNOPSIS. At 14 years of liife Admiral Sir Peter H. vkshaw'H nephew, Richard Glyn, tell deeply In love at (lrst Bight with Lady Arabella Stormont, who npurned his attentions. at-tentions. The lad, an orphan, was given a berth as midshipman on the Ajax by his unelc. Giles Vernon, nephew of Sir Thomas Vernon, became the boy's pal. They attended a theater where Hawk-Hhaw's Hawk-Hhaw's nephew saw l.ady Arabella. Vernon Ver-non met Philip Overton, next In line for Sir Thomas Vernon's estate. They started start-ed a duel which was Interrupted. Vernon, Overton and Hawkshaw's nephew found themselves attracted by pretty I.ady Arabella. Ara-bella. The Ajax In battle defl ated h'reneh warships In ttie Medi terranea n. Uiehard Glyn Rot 2,01)0 prize money. He was called home by Lady Huwkshaw as he was about to "blow In" his earnings with Vernon. At a Hawkshaw party Glyn discovered dis-covered that Lady Arabella was a poor but persistent Rambler, lie talked much with her cousin Daphne. Lady Arabella again showed love for gaming. CHAPTER V. Continued. The noise of the controversy was s heard all over town, and it was dis cussed in Berkeley Square as elsewhere. else-where. Lady Hawkshaw was no longer lon-ger a subscriber to Almack's. Not being be-ing able to rule it, she had retired, the assembly rooms not being large enough to hold herself and a certain other lady. Giles had told me that on the evening even-ing of the ball he and other gentlemen interested in the victory for Mrs. Trenchard would escort her to the L ball. So at eight o'clock I proceeded to the lady's house in Jermyn street, and saw her set forth in state in her chair. She was blazing with diamonds. V jiad looked like a stage duchess. A J iong company of gentlemen with their swords attended her, and Giles and my Lord Winstanley led the proces-i proces-i ision. Mrs. Trenchard was the best Lp4 imitation of a lady I ever saw, as she W - sat in her chair, smiling and fanning ' herself, with the linkboys gaping and L grinning at her; and the gentlemen. Wi especially such as had had a little more wine than usual, shouting: "Way for Mrs. Trenchard! Make way l "-. there!" I Yet it seemed to me as if she were p" "' only an imitation, after all, and that i -Aiuy Hawkshaw, with her turban and her outlandish French, had much more the genuine air of a great lady. Mrs. I Trenchard would go to Almack's on " any terms, but Lady Hawkshaw would wot go, except she ruled the roost, and . fought gallantly with the duchesses l and countesses, only retiring from the k field because she was one against f many. N 1 followed the merry procession, un- til we got to King street, St. James', A where the coaches were four deep, and footmen, in regiments, blockaded the street. Giles and Lord Winstanley were to take Mrs. Trenchard in, and W e:y grand the party looked as they F entered. By that time, though, I was ' very miserable. I remembered that at the same time the next night I I might not have my friend. I hung around among the footmen and idlers, watching the lights and listening to the crash of the music, quite uncon-scions uncon-scions of the flight of time, and was astonished when the ball was over and ithe people began pouring out. Then, afraid to be caught by Giles, I ran home as fast as my legs could car-, car-, ry me. v rVwheu 1 reached Berkeley Square it J altogether dark, and I realized x" i I was lacked out. 1 looked ail over the front of the .ouse, and my aeart sank. There was i blind alley at one side, and I re-membered re-membered that in it opened the window win-dow of Sir Peter's study, as he called it, although, as I have said, it was more like the cubby-hoi?, of the Ajax than any other place I can call to mind. The window was at least 20 feet from the ground, but a waterspout ran up the wall beside it, and to a midshipman, used to going out on the topsail-yard, it vas a trifle to get up to the window. 1 climbed up, sttly tried the window, and to my jy found it , open. In another minute ' )?.ij&ni-ing )?.ij&ni-ing inside the roc.n. 1 br:d nrf4 'lint and steel in iny pocket, ..uil rajon about u -.til I found a canrPo, wl .-"-h I lighted. , , I' I had often been in n'fftll)Buj 1 ' .11, but ts grotesque acpoarahce . ". nrt me afrcs.wv(l I co iM . r.ot ioroe'ir, f laughing, although I as in no Iru J " lng mood. There wag a regnlT ship transom running around the wall. The i whole room was full of the t. " odds and ends that accumulate on board a ship, all arratrr J. with ,the greatest neatness and econonu '- S space, and there was not- one single object in the room which could pos-i pos-i sibly be of the slightest use on shore. y I looked around to see how I could make myself comfortable for the ' tight, . and. opening i-. locker in the wall. I found a-collectlon of old boat k cloaks of Sir Peter'sin every stage of Opening a Locker I Found a Collection of Old Boat Cloaks of Sir Peter's. from me and I lay there in terror, realizing that I was in a very dangerous danger-ous position. I soon discovered that Overton's reputation for lately-ac- quired Methodistical piety had not done away with a very hot temper. He was enraged, as only a man can be who is entrapped, and demanded at once of Lady Arabella to be let out of the glass door, when he found it locked. She refused to tell him where the key was, and he threatened to break the glass and escape that way. "Do it then, if you wish," she cried, "and rouse the house and the neighborhood, neigh-borhood, and ruin me if you will. But before you do it, read this, and then know what Arabella Stormont can do for the man she loves!" She thrust a letter into his hand, and, slipping out of the door to the corridor, as swiftly and silently as a swallow In its flight, she locked it after her; Overton was a prisoner in Sir Peter's room. He tore the letter open, read the few lines it contained, and then threw it down with an oath. The next minute he caught sight of me; in my surprise I had forgotten all my precautions, and. had half risen. "You hound!" he said. "Are you in this infernal plot?" And he kicked the boat-cloaks off me. "I am not," said I, coolly, recalled to myself by the term he had used toward to-ward me; "and neither am I a hound. You will kindly remember to account to me for that expression, Capt. Overton." Over-ton." "Read that," he cried, throwing Lady Arabella's letter toward me. 1 think he meant not to do a dishonorable thing in giving me the letter to read, but it was an act of involuntary rage. It read this; I know that you were to fight Mr. Vernon Ver-non at eight o'clock this morning, therefore there-fore I beguiled you here: (or your life is dearer to me than anything in heaven heav-en and earth: and I will not let you out uitll that very hour, when it will be too late for you to get to Twickenham. You "-oi not dare to raise a commotion in the .,, at this hour, which would nun us both. . But by the jeopardy in which I niyself this night, you will know !.' true is the love of ARABELLA STORMOXT. I confess that the reading of this letter made me a partisan of Overton; , for surely no more unhandsome trick was ever played upon a gentleman. . There was nothing for it but to sit down "and wait for eight o'clock. Sir Peter's family were late risers, and there was little danger of detection at that hifnr. So we sat and gazed at each, other, mute before the mystery of the good and evil in a woman's |