| Show J HI m 1 Lq j f Io4YmoU 1OfE it k 11 Ulkl is Told a frilligg Story 1 of Baffled Qrime t Curiously enough when I arrived at my destination an odd thing happened I sot out at the green door of 23 Snb urban residences and when the mai opened it walked straight past her into the drawing room Well Jane I cried A pale middle aged woman rose as I came in and stood aghast It was not my sister It was soon explained She was a little pettish about it poor woman It seemed jay sister had quite recently changed her house and the present occupant oc-cupant had been put to some slight inconvenience t in-convenience before by people calling and leaving parcels after her departure She gavejno Janes new address which was only in the next street and I apologized apolo-gized and made my bow at once My going to the wrong house was such a k Blight occurrence that I almost forgot it at the time until I was reminded of it by Terysad event which happened afterward after-ward Jane was delighted to see me It teemed she had written to inform me of her change of address but the letter did not reach me before I started for England Eng-land with the Danvers jewels about i which I have been asked TO write this account Considering this is an acopunt of the jewels it is wonderful wonder-ful how seldom I have had occasion occa-sion to mention them so far but you I may rest assured that all this time they were safe in their bag under my waistcoat waist-coat and knowing I had them there all right I did not trouble my head much about them I never was a person to worry about things Still I had no wish to be inconven h ienced by a hard packet of little knobs against my chest any longer than was necessary and I wrote the same evening to Sir George Danvers stating the bare facts of the case and asking what steps he or his second son wished me to take to put the legacy in the possession of its owner I had no notion of trusting a packet of such immense value to the newly organized Parcels Post With jewels I consider you cannot be too cautious cau-tious Indeed I told Jane so at the time and ehe quite agreed with me t CHAPTER ill II I I t I I f Y k m J il i g I 4 I r1ir I J I 11 1 EJ J J h 1 I lit l-it 1 l S I rfJ 1 t2f lft I itf1 Ii 1 f I 1Wt t filVr f ll L iJJ l 1 > u fl j i ff f 11IN i t t y J < < I 15e e > 7 C C It d k One seized the horse I didu6t much like tho arrangement of Janes new house when I came to stay in it The way the two bedrooms hers and mine were shut off from the rest of the house by a door barred and locked at night for fear of burglars was I thought unpleasant especially as once in my room for tho night there was no possibility of getting out of it the key of the door of the passage not being even allowed to remain in the lock but retiring retir-ing with Jane the canary cage and other valuables into her own apartment I remonstrated but I soon found that fane had not remained unmarried for I nothing She was decide3 on the point The outer door would be locked as usual and the l key would be deposited under the pincushion in her room as usual and it was so The nest 1 morning as Jane and I went out for a strollbefore luncheon we had to pass the house to which I had driven Vj mistake the day before To our astonishment as-tonishment there was a crowd before the door and a policeman with his back to it was guarding the entrance The blinds were all drawn down The imago of tho pale lonely woman sitting by her little fire whom I had disturbed the lay before came suddenly back to me with n strange qualm What is it I hurriedly asked a bakers boy who was standing at an area railing rubbing his chin against the loaf he was waiting to deliver The boy grinned = Its murderl he said with relish Burgilars in the night Ive supplied her reglar these two mouths One qaar tern best white onehalf quartern brown every morning French rolls occasional 1 but its all up now And he went off L whistling tune which all bakers boys whistled about that time called My Grandfathers Timepiece or something similar A second policeman came up the street at this moment and from him I learned t ill tha little there was to know The poor Indy had not been murdered it itemed but being subject to heart complaint com-plaint had died in the night of an acute attack evidently brought on by fright t The maid the only other person in the house sleeping as maids of all work only can iad heard nothing and awoke in tho morning to find her mistress dead in her bed with tho window and door open Strangely enough the policeman added although nothing in the house had been touched the lock of an unused bedroom had been forced and the room evidently searched Poor Jane was quite overcome She seemed convinced that it was only by a special intervention of Providence that she had changed her house and that lidr successor had been sacrificed instead of herself i It might have been me she said over and over again that afternoon Wishing to give a turn to her thoughts I began to talk about Sir Johns legacy t n 2 in which she had evinced the greatest interest t e night before and greatly to her delight showed her the jewels had o not looked at them since Sir John had given them to me andI was myself astonished as-tonished at their magnificence as I spread them out on the table under tho gas lamp Jane exhausted herself in admiration but as I was putting them away again saying it was time for me to be dressing and going to meet Carr who was to join me at the Criterion she begged mo on no account to take them with me affirming affirm-ing that it would be much safer to leave them at home 1 was firm but she was firmer and in tho end I allowed her to lock them up in the tea caddy where her small stock of ready money reposed I met Carr as we had arranged and i we had a very pleasant evening Poor i Carr who had seen the papers had hardly expected that I should turn up knowing tho catastrophe of the previous night had taken place at the house I was 1 going to and was mudh relieved to hear that my sister had moved and had thus been spared all the horror pf tho event I The dinner was good thq play better I should have come home feeling that I I had enjoyed myself thoroughly if it had not been for a little adventure with our cab driver that very nearly proved serious I seri-ous We got a hansom directly we came I out of the theatre but instead of taking j us to tho direction we gave him after we had driven for some distance I began to make out that the cabman was going wrong and Carr shouted to him to stop I but thereupon he lashed up his horse I and away he went like the winds up one street and down another till I had lost j i all idea where we were Carr who was young and active did all he could but the cabman who I am afraid must have been intoxicated took not tho slightest notice and continued driving madly heaven knows herAt her-At last after getting into a very dingy I neighborhood we turned up a crooked 1 dark street unlit by any lamp a street so narrow that I thought every moment the cab would be overturned In another an-other moment I saw two men rush out of a doorway One seized the horse which was much blown by this time 1 and brought violently to a standstill while the other flew at the cab and catching Carr by the collar proceeded to drag him out by main force I suppose Carr did his best but being only an American he certainly made a very poor fight of it and while I was laying into the man who had got hold of him I was suddenly caught by the legs myself from the other bide of the cab I turned on my assailant saw a heavy stick leveled at me caught at it missed it beheld a series of fireworks andremembered nothing noth-ing more The first thing I i heard on beginning to come to myself was a series of subdued sub-dued but Evidently heartfelt oaths and I became sensible of an airy feeling unpleasant un-pleasant in the extreme proceeding from an open condition of coat and waistcoat quite unsuited to the time of year A low chorus of muffled whispering whisper-ing was going on round me As I gleaned involuntarily it stopped Hes coming to I heard Carr say Go and fetch some brandy And I felt myself turned right side uppermost and my hands were rubbed while Carr in a voice of the greatest anxiety asked me how felt I was soon able to sit up and to become aware that I had a splitting headache and wab staring at a tallow candle stuck in a bottle Having got so far I got a little farther and on i looking round found myself reclining on i a sack in a corner of a disreputable look I ing room dingy with dirt and faithful i j to the memory of bad tobacco I I Then I suddenly remembered what I had occurred Carr saw tbat I did so I i and instantly poured forth an account of how we had been rescued from a condition I I I con-dition of great peril by the man to whom I the house we wero in belonged to whom he hardly know how to express his gratitude grati-tude and who was now gone for some biandy for me He told mo a great deal i about it but I was so dizzy that I forgot most of what he said and it was not un I I til our deliverer returned with the brandy that I became thoroughly aware of what was going forward I t I I could not help thinking as I thanked i I the honest fellow who had com to our assistance how easily one may be deceived I de-ceived by appearances for s more forbidding for-bidding looking face under its fur cap I never saw That of his son who presently I pres-ently returned with a four wheeler which Carr had sent for was not more prepossessing prepos-sessing In fact they wero two as il lainous looking men as I had ever seen I I After recompensing both with all our j spare cash we got ourselveahoisted stiffly j into the cab and Carr good naturedly i insisted on seeing me home though hoI ho-I owned to feeling as ho put it rather i knocked up by his knocking down We i were both far ioo exhausted to speak much until Carr gave a startand a gasp and said By Jovol I What I inquired They are gone I he said tremulously mysapphires Theyaregone Stolen I had them in a bag around my neck as you told me They must have been taken from mo when I was knocked I down I say he added quickly how about yours Have you got them all I right Involuntarily raised my hand to my i throat A horrid onalm passed over me I Thank heaven I replied with a sigh of relief they are safe at home with t j Jane What a mercy I might have lost them I i I Might said Carr cry on would have I lost them to a dead certainty and mine are gone And he stamped and clenched his fists and looked positively furious I Poor Carr I felt for him He took I j the loss of his stones so to heart and I am sure it was only natural I parted I from him at my owndoor and was glad on going in to find Jane had stayed up for me I soon figured in her eyes as the hero of a thrilling adventure while her clever hands applied sticking plaster ad libitum We wero both so full of the I events of the evening and the letter 1 which I was to write to Tho Tunes about i it the next day that it never entered the I heads of either of us on retiring to bed ito i-to remove Sir Johns jewels from the teen tee-n g 4 caddy into which they had been temporarily tempo-rarily popped in the afternoon 4 0 CHAPTER IV A I t I r 1 cI I am the black sheep of the family I really think adventures like misfortunes I misfor-tunes never come singly Would you believe it Our house was broken into that very night Nothing serious came of it wonderful to relate owing to Janes extraordinary presence of mind She had been unable to sleep after my thrilling account of the cab accident and had consoled herself by reading Baxters Saints Rest by her nightlight night-light for the canary became restless and liable to sudden bursts song if candle were lighted While so engaged she became be-came aware of a subdued grating sound which had continued for some time before be-fore she began to speculate upon it While she was speculating it ceased and after a short interval she distinctly heard a stealthy step upon tho stair and the handle of the passage door before mentioned was gently very gently turned Jane has some of that quickness of perception which has been of such use to myself through life I a moment she had grasped the situation Someone Some-one was in the house In another moment f mo-ment she was hanging out of her bedroom bed-room window springing tho policemans rattle which she had had by her for years with a view to an emergency of this kind and at the same timefor she was a capable womanblowing a piercing pierc-ing strain on a cabmans whistle To make a long story short her ertra ordinary presence of mind was the saying say-ing of us With her own eyes slle saw two dark figures fly up our area steps and disappear round the corner ad ajd when a policeman appeared on the scene I half an hour later lie confirmed tLn fact I that the house had been broken into by I showing us how an entrance hal been I effected through the kitchen window I There was of course no more sleep for us that night and the remainder of it I I was passed by Jane in examining the I house from top to bottom every half hour or so owing to a rooted conviction on her part that a burglar might still be lurking on the premises concealed in the cellarette or the jam cupboard or behind the drawing room curtains i By that mornings post I heard as I I expected I should do from Sir George Danvers but the contents of the letter 1 surprised me Ho wrote most cordially j thanking me for my kindness in undertaking j under-taking such a heavy responsibility I am I sure I never felt it to be so for an entire I stranger and ended by sending me a I pressing invitation to come down tb Stoke Moreton that very day that he and his son whose future wife was also staying i stay-ing with them might have the pleasure 1 of making the acquaintance of one to j whom they were so much indebted He added that his eldest son Charles was also I going down from London by a certain j i train that day and that he had told him to be on the lookout for me at the station 1 I sta-tion in case I was able to come at such 1 short notice I made up my mind to go 1 sent Sir George a telegram to that effect I and proceeded to fish up the jewels out of the tea caddy j Jane who had never ceased for one instant to comment on the event of the night positively shrieked when she saw me shaking the bag free from tea leaves Good gracious the burglars l she exclaimed ex-claimed Why they might have taken them if they had only known Of course they had not known as I had been particularly secret about them but I wished all the same that I had not left them there all night as Jane would insist and continue insisting that they had been exposed to great danger I argued the matter with her at first but women I find are impervious as a rule to masculine argument and it is a mistake mis-take to reason with them It is in fact putting the coxes for the moment on an equality to which the weaker one is unaccustomed un-accustomed and consequently unsuited A fow hours later I was rolling swiftly toward Stoke Moreton in a comfortable smoking carriage only occn ied by myself my-self and Mr Charles Danv Ir a handsome hand-some young fellow with a pile face and that peculiar tired mat ner which though as I soon found natural to him is so often affected by the young men of the lay And so Ralph has come in for I legacy in diamonds ho said listlessly when we had exchanged the usual civilities civili-ties and had become to a certain degree acquainted Dear mel how these good steady young men prosper in the world When last I heard from him he had prevailed pre-vailed upon the one perfect woman in the universe to consent to marry him and his aunt by the way you will meet her there too Lady Mary Cunningham Cunning-ham had murmured something vague but gratifying about testamentary intentions in-tentions A week later Providence fills his brimming cup with a legacy of jewels estimated at Charles opened his light sleepy eyes wide and looked inquiringly at ma What are thoy estimated esti-mated at he asked a I did not answer an-swer I really had no idea but I shrugged my shoulders and looked wise Estimated at a fabulous sum he said closing his eyes again A had they been mine with what joyful alacrity should I have ascertained their exact money value And mine they ought to have been i the sacred law of primogeniture which geniture that special providence watches the interests of eldest wathes over sons had been duly observed Sir John had not the pleasure of my acquaintance but I fear he must have heard some reports re-ports no doubt entirely without foundation founda-tion which in tionrenpecting my career 1 duced him to pass me over in this manner man-ner What amoral My father and my I Aunt Mary are always delicately pointing point-ing out the difference between deronce Ralph and myself I wishl were a good young I man like Ralph It seems to pay bet I in the lonzjron but I may a well ia t H r r d < form you Uol t Sadoleton of the painful fact that I anl the black sheep of the family Oh come come I remarked uneasily easily I should not have alluded to the subject sub-ject if you were not likely to become fully aware of it on your arrival so I will be beforehand with my relations I was brought up in the way I should go he continued with the utmost unconcern uncon-cern as if commenting on something Gep that did not affect him in the least but I did not walk in it partly owing to the un ongena companionship that it involved in-volved especially that of my aunt Mary who took up so much room herself in the narrow path that she effectually kept me out of it From my earliest youth also I took extreme interest in the parable of the prodigal and as soon a it became possible I exemplified it myself I may even say that I acted the part in a manner that did credit to a beginner but the wind UP was ruined by the lamentable inability of others who shall be nameless I name-less to throw themselves into the spirit of the piece At various intervals he continued always as i speaking of someone some-one else I have returned homo but I I regret to say that on each occa < 3on my reception was not in any way what I could have wished The flavor of a fatted II calf is absolutely unknown to me and S far from meeting me half way I I have in extreme cases when impelled homeward by urgent pecuniary considerations consid-erations found myself obliged to walkup walk-up from the station Dear me Ihopo it is not far I said I A mere matter of three miles or soup so-up hill ho resumed nothing to a I healthy Christian though trying to the r trembling legs of the ungodly after along I a-long course of husks There now I think you are quite au fait as to our family history I always pity a stranger who comes to a house ignorant of little domestic do-mestic details this kind he is apt to make mistakes Oh pray dont mention itas I murmured some words of thanks no trouble I assure you trouble is a thingI dont take By the way are you aware we are going straight into a nest of priyate theatricals at Stock Moreton Tonight is the last rehearsal perhaps I had better look over my part I took it once years ago but I dont remember a word of it And after much rummaging in a magnificent mag-nificent silver mounted traveling bag tho Prodigal pulleiout D paper book and carelessly turned over the leaves I did interrupt Irs studies save by I a few passing comments on the weather I the state of the country and my own health which I am sorry to say is not I what it was but as I only received monosyllabic answers we had no more conversation worth mentioning till we reached Stoke Moreton CHAPTER V d t I d I I 1 i A J IJil I qA k V 1J i l I 1i J l r i It f I i J 1 l Ji tti = f A i I i 4 r 4 h 1 l 1 1 w I J 1 I X W i i J j J 1 Jf I c J j ly 1 j Do not tear up that piece of rice paper Miss Derrick Stoke Moreton is a fine old Elizabethan house standing on rising ground As we drove up the straight wide approach between be-tween two rows of ancient fantastically fantastical-ly clipped hollies I was impressed lay the stately dignity of the place which was not lessened as we drew up before a great arched doorway and were ushered into a long hall supported by massive pillars of carved white stone A roaring log fire in the immense fireplace threw a ruddy glow over the long array of armor and gleaming + weapons which lined the walls and made the pale winter twilight outside out-side look bleak indeed Charles emerging emerg-ing slim and graceful out of an exquisite ex-quisite ulster sauntered up to the fire J and asked where Sir George Danvers I was As he stood inside tho wide fireplace fire-place leaning against one of the pillars which supported the towering white stone chimney piece covered with heraldic her-aldic designs and coats of arms helopked i a worthier representative of an ancient i I lace that I fear he really was I S thoy havo put the stage at that end in front of the pillars he remarked nodding at l wooden erection Quito I right I could not havo placed it better i myself What Brown Sir George is I i in the drawing room is he and tea as I perceive is going on at this moment Como Co1 Middleton And we followed fol-lowed the butler to the drawing room I a not a person who easily becomes confused but I must own I did get confused con-fused with tho large party into the midst of which we wero now ushered I soon made out Sir George Danvers a I delicate but irascible looking old gentleman gentle-man who received mo with dignified cordiality but returned Charles greeting greet-ing with a certain formality and coldness cold-ness which I was pained to see family affection being in my opinion the chief blessing of a truly happy home Charles I already know and with the second I son Ralph a ruddy smiling young man with any amount of white teeth I I I had no difficulty but after that I became 1 be-came hopelessly involved I I was introduced to an elderly lady I whom I addressed for the rest of the I evening as Lady Danvcrs until Charles casually mentioned that his mother was dead andthat until the deceased wifes I sister bill was passed he did not anticipate I antici-pate that his Aunt Mary would take 1 upon herself the position of stepmother i to her orphaned nephews Tho severe elderly lady then who beamed so sweetly upon Ralph and regarded Charles t with such manifest coldness was their i aunt Lady Mary Cunningham She I had known Sir John slightly in her youth she said as she graciously made room for mo on her sofa and she expressed ex-pressed very proper degree of regret at I his sudden death considering that he had way not been a personal friend in any wayWe We all have our faults Col Middle ton said Lady Mary with a gentle sigh which dislodged a little colony of crumbs JTTom the front of Zzt dress Sir John like tho rest c us was not exempt ex-empt though I have no doubt the oft < ri 1 t 4 r ening influence or age would hava done I much since I knew him to smooth acerbities acer-bities of character which wero unfortu I nately strongly marked in his early life She had evidently not known Sir John in his later years As she continued to talk in this strain I endeavored to make out which of the i young ladies present was the one to whom I Ralph was engaged I was undecided as to which it was of the two to whom I I I had already been introduced Girls always al-ways seem to me so very much alike especially es-pecially pretty girls and these wero both of them pretty I do not mean that they resembled cash other in the least for one was dark and one was fair but which was Miss Aurelia Grant Ralphs fiancee and which was Miss Evelyn Ev-elyn Derrick a cousin of the family I could not make out until later in tho evening when I distinctly saw Ralph kiss the fair one in the picture gallery and I to instantly came the conclusion that she was the one to whom he was engaged I asked Charles if I were not right a we stood in front of the hal fire befor3 the rest of the party had assembled for dinner and ho told me that I had indeed hit the nail on the head in this instance though for his oW part he never laid much stress himself on such an occurrence occur-rence having found it prove misleading in the extreme to draw any conclusion from it Ho further informed mo that Miss Derrick was the young lady with dark hair who had poured out tea and whom he had favored with some of his conversation afterward admired Ralphs taste as did Charles who had never seen his future sisterin law before Aurelia Grant was a charm ing little creature with a curly head and a dimple and a pink and white complexion com-plexion and a suspicion of an Irish accent ac-cent when she became excited Charles said he admired her complexion complex-ion most because it was so thoroughly well done and the coloring was so truo to nature I did not quite catch his meaning but it certainly was a beautiful complexion and then she was so bright and lively and showed such pretty little teeth when she smiled She was quito delightful I did not wonder at Ralphs being so much in love with her and Charles agreed with me I There is nothing like a good complexion com-plexion he remarked gravely One be led to like with may away lke a pale girl a mind for a time but for permanent domestic happiness give me a good complexion com-plexion anda dimple he added as if it were an afterthought I feel I could not bestow my best affections on a woman without a dimple Yes indeed in-deed Ralph has chosen well Now I do not agree with Charles there as I have always considered that a woman wo-man should have a certain amount of mind just enough in fact to enable her II to appreciate a superior one I said as much to Charles but he only laughed and mid it was a subject on which opinion opin-ion had always varied I How did he meet her i inquired On the Rigi last bummer said Charles I am thinking of going there myself next year Lovely orphan sat by Lady Mary at table dhote Read tracts presented by Lady Mary Made acquaintance ac-quaintance Lovely orphans traveling companion or governess discovered to be live sister of defunct traveling companion compan-ion or governess of Lady Mary Result warm friendship Ralph Like a dutiful the Fort nephew appears on scene night of fine weather Interesting ex paditions Romantic attachment cemented ce-mented by diamond and pearl ring from Hunt Roskells There is the whole story for you I Evelyn Derrick joined us as he finished speaking She was a tall graceful girl gentle and dignified in manner with a pale refined face She was pretty in away a-way but not to compare to Aureiia Evelyn had an tinzious look about her Evely too Now I do not approve of a girl looking grave she ought to be bright and happy with a smile for every one I is all very well for us men who have the wOrk of the world to do to look Crave gt times but with women it is different I ferent and awonmu always looks her I best when sho Ginileo at least I think so Then Aurelia came down perfectly I dazzling white satin ten Sir George then Ralph giving an arm to Lady Mjny who Buffered from rheumatism in her foot Then came the gong and i i there was a rustic down of more people I young and old friends of the family who had come to act or to see their so sand s-and daughters act As I never could get even their names right I shall not attempt to give any account of them especially as they are not of importance in any way After dinner on entering the drawing I I found that excitement room tI great prevailed pre-vailed among the ladies respecting Sir Johns jewels About his sad fate and I costly legacy they all seemed fully informed 5 I in-formed I had myself almost forgotten the reason of my visit in my interest in my new surroundings not having oven as jet given up the jewels to Sir George gven Ralph but at the urgent request re-quest of all tho ladies at once Ralph begged me to bring them down to be seen and admired then and there before the rehearsal began They will all be yours you know Ralph said to Aurelia You shall wear them on your wedding day You are always talking about being married said Aurelia with a little pout I wish you would try and think of something else to ear I ya quite looking forward to it myself until I came here and now I am quite quite tired of it beforehand Ralph laughed delightedly and Sir George reminding mo that everyone was dying of anxiety himself included I ran upstairs to take the brown bag from around my neck and in D few minutes returned with i fc in my hand They were all waiting for mo Lady Mary drawn up in an arm chair beside an ebony table on which a small space near her had been cleaved Charles alone holding rather aloof sipping his coffee with his back to the fire Dont jostle he said as they all crowded round me Evelyn let me beg of you not to elbow forward in that unbecoming manner Observe how Aunt Mary restrains herself Tae time Mid dloton your coffee is getting cold Wont you drink it first As ho finished speaking I turned the contents of the bag upon the table The jewels in the bright lamplight seemed to blaze and burn into the ebony of the table There was a general gasp a silence and then a chorus of admiration Charles came up behind mo and looked over my shoulder Good gracious said Lady Mary solemnly Ralph you are a rich man i Why mino are nothing to them and I she touched a diamond and emerald t necklace on her ow neck I never knew Sir John had much lew poor ol so good in him1 Oh1 Ralph Ralph cried Aurelia clasping her little hands with a deep sigh And will they really be my very ownRalph assured her that they would and that she should act iu them the following fol-lowing night she liked I think there was not a woman present pres-ent who did not envy Aurelia as Ralph took up a flashing diamond crescent and held it against her fair hair I saw Evt lyu turn away and begin to tear upa small piece of paper in her hand Women Wo-men are very jealous of each other especially es-pecially the nice by which I mean the I I to Iso I pretty ones was sorry see jealousy so plainly marked in such a charming I looking girl as Evelyn but women art all the same about jewels Aurelia blushed and sparkled and pouted when the clasp caught in her hair and shook her little head impatiently and was altogether alto-gether enchanting After the first burst of admiration had subsided Gen Marston un old Indian o2cer who had boon somewhat in the I rear como up and looked long at the glittering mass upon the table t Are you aware he said at last to Ralph pointing to tho crescent that thoso diamonds ara of enormous value I have not seen such stones in any shop in London I car not say what that one crescent alone is worth or that emerald I bracelet Jewels of such value a this are a grave responsibility He stood shaking his head a little and turning The crescentin his hand Wonderful he said wonderful Do not tear up that piece of rice paper Miss Derrick he added add-ed taking it from her The crescent was wrapped in it and I will put it round it again All thcs stones want polishing polish-ing and many of them resetting They ought not to bo tumbled together this way i a bag with nothing to prevent them scratching each other Sea Ralph here is a clasp broken and here are some loose stones and this star has no clasp at all You must take them up to some trustworthy jeweler and have them thoroughly looked over I suppose the second son was spa cially mentioned Middloton said Chares as I drew back to let the rest handle and admire Of course said Lady Mary sharply and a very fortunate thing too Very for Ralph he replied It is really providential that I am what I am Why I might have ruined the dear boys prospects if I had paid my tailors bill and lived in tho country among the buttercups and daisies Ah my dear aunt a I see you are about to remark how all things here below work together for good a thg tOrether I was not going to remark anything of the kind retorted Lady Mary drawing draw-ing herself up but she added spitefully spite-fully I do not feel the less rejoiced at Ralphs good fortune and prosperity when I see as I often do the ungodly flourishing like a green bay tree Of course said Charles shaking his head if that is your own experience I bow before it But for my own part I must confess I have not found it GO Flourish like a green bay tree No Aunt Mary it is a fallacy They dont I am sure I only wish they did But I see the rehearsal is beginning May I give you an arm to the hall The offer was entirely disregarded and it was with the help of mine that Lady Mary retired from an unequal cojabat which she never seemed able to resist provoking anew and in which she was invariably worsted causing her as I could se to regard Charles with the concentrated bitterness or which a severely se-verely good woman alone i capable I soon perceived that Charles was on the same amicable terms with his father fa-ther that they rarely spoke and that it I was evidently only with a view to keep lug up armeorances that he was ever in vited to the paternal roof at al1 Between Be-tween the brothets however in spite of much to them certain so i muh esfcjmge a cerin kindliness of feeling seemed to exist which was hardly to have been expected under the circumstances crcuaces The rehearsal now began and Sir George Danvers who had remained behind be-hind to put by the jewels and lock them up in his strong box among his papers came and sat down by me again thanking thank-ing me for taking charge of them though I assured him it had been very little trouble Not much trouble perhaps but a great responsibility he said courteously courte-ously Hi soldier Sir George I repliedwith 1 slight smile becomes early inured to the gravest responsibility It is the air we breathe it is taken as D matter of coarse He looked keenly at me and was silent si-lent a if considering something perhaps per-haps what I had said I was delighted to find the play was one of those which I had seen acted during dur-ing our passage homr There is nothing I like so much as knowing r play beforehand I before-hand because then one can always whisper to ones companion what is coming next Tho stage with a its adjustments had been carefully arranged ar-ranged tho footlights wero lighted the piece began All went well till nearly the cud of the first act when there was behind the of Mr Denial a cry beind scones r Mr Denis should have rushed on but Mr Denis did not rush on The play stopped Mr Danin was not in the library br r the improvised greenroom Hr Denis did not aPr when his name was called in stentorlii tones by Ralph or in pathetic falsetto by Charles In short Mr Denis was not forthcoming A rush upstairs on the part of most of tae young men brought light the awful aw-ful fact that Mr Des had retired to his chamber a prey to sadden and acute indisposition Dear me caid Charles to Lady Mary with a dismal shake of his head l how precarious is life Hero today and in bed tomorrow Support your Aunt Mary my dear Evelyn Oho wishes to retire to rest Indeed we may a well r G ° to bell for there will be no more acting tonight without poor Denis I oniy trust ho may be spared to us till tomorrow to-morrow and that ho 1 lY be well enough to die by my hand tomorrow evening Wo all disperse for the night in some anxiety The play could not proceed without Mr Denis who took an important impor-tant part and Sir George ruefully informed in-formed mo that a tho neighboring houses had been filled for these theatricals theatri-cals and that great numbers of people were expected There won to be dancing danc-ing afterward but the principal feature of the entertainment was the play We a retired to rest fervently hoping that the health of M Denis might be restored re-stored by the following morning jj I t TO BE CONTINUED y t a < |
