| Show v BY LOUIS TRACY y wT O Author of The Wings of the Morn Morning Tone e Hirm K Ia log ii g of Diamonds L I a idi c ii ci s Copyright ing by Edward etc e J Clode i i CHAPTER THE INMATES OF THE GRANGE GRAGE HOUSE Philip walked on roses during those glorious days da s He had found his mate His life was wag complete How bright the world and how fair the future The only disagreeable incident marrim mar rim g the utter Joy of existence and that only for an aft Instant was as his encounter with Langdon at Mrs Irs pretty flat in Mount lount street streeL Grenier endowed by b nature with an occasion retrospective glimpse of a no noi nobler nobler bler i ler character read him correctly when he said gald that Anson would never neer con condescend condescend condescend descend to name the intruder iri hi n the presence of the th woman he loved loed But he did ask a servant senant who it was as with whom he had just been conversing In the entrance hall and the girl pirl said the gentleman was a Mr Langdon No NoIrs Mrs Irs Atherley did not know him well He was brought to her At t Home on ona ona ona a previous Wednesday by a friend Obviously b Evelyn could not have more than a passing acquaintance with the man or she would have recognized 1 hIm dim herself Her agitation that night In the park the terror of a difficult sit situation situation situation was enough to account for her failure in this respect nor was Philip then aware that at her previous meet meetIng meeting meetIng Ing with Lady Lad son she en entertained entertained entertained a curious suspicion instantly I dispelled by b his glib manner that I Langdon was the man who sought to I thrust his unwelcome attentions upon her he Mount street how came Mrs Irs Ath Atherley erley erle and her daughter to return to the precincts of Mayfair Ia That was has a little secret between bet n Philip and Lord I Vanstone When Then Evelyn slyly slI endeavored to tomake tomake tomake make her Mew Ie admirer understand that there could C uld be no intimacy between a millionaire and a young oung lady l d who was embarking on a professional career she thought so be It recorded this is no canton canon of art arthe he seemingly disregarded disregarded disregarded the hint but Interviewed Lord Vanstone next morning The conversation was stormy on one sIde aide and emphatic on the other other Philip Phllip had heard sufficient of Mrs airs Irs history his tOr by b judicious inquiry to enable him to place some ome unpleasant facts facLo be before before before fore his lordship When the facts had been thrust down the aristocratic gorge Anson turned to pleasanter topics He Informed Lord Vanstone who bore the title as the third son on of a marquis that his nieces niece future was as more important than his lordships l dignity He must eat eit e t mud for her sake and willingly withal Various firms of solicitors set to work and marvelous to relate Lord Vanstone was able to write and inform his that certain speculations In which he had invested her fortune were turning out well A cash pay payment pa payment ment of two thousand pounds would be made to her at once and she possessed an assured Income of at least east one thou thousand thousand thousand sand five ne hundred pounds per p r annum annum during the remainder of her life The poor lady had heard these fairy fairytales fairytales fairytales tales before indeed some such story stor of more gorgeous proportions had con converted converted converted her into waste paper But a lawyer not Lord sent her a check for the larger amount and at a subsequent interview af affirmed affirmed affirmed firmed the statements made by her un unreliable unreliable unreliable reliable relative I So she went back to her caste and her caste welcomed her with open arms and the dear woman thanked Provi Providence Providence dence for the decree that her daugh daughter ter might now accept the attentions attention of any manno man 1 matter maiter hod 1100 rich he might be for she sho saw zaw the drift of Philips wishes and if it Evelyn were vere married to tal him surely all their previous trials might be deemed fortunate She little dreamed that imperious Philip had ordered matters his own way wa waIt It was not to his liking that his bride should come to him from the gen genteel genteel genteel teel obscurity of Maida Crescent He would give ghe her a great position worthy worth of the highest in n the land and it was better for her that he should woo and win her from the ranks of her order It should not be Imagined that he was hasty hast in his decision To his mind Evelyn Een and he were known to each other since e they the were children It was not by the th wayward caprice of or chance that he met her on the night of the meteors fall nor again that he came cameto cameto cameto to her assistance a second time after the lapse of years It was his mothers work He was faithful to her memory she to her trust Never did his confidence waver On the day da that Evelyn consented to marry marr him hirr he showed her his mothers photograph and told her his belief The girls happy happ tears bedewed the picture UA A good son makes a good husband she Mamma amma says sas I have been a good daughter and I will try to be a good wife Philip Apparently these young oung people had attained the very ver pinnacle of earthly happiness There Was was no cloud no ob oh obstacle stacle stacIe All that was best b st in the world I was at their th lr feet l 1 I Some such thought flitted through Philips active brain once when Evelyn Evel n nand and he were discussing dis the future Of course we will be busy he said laughing You are such an industrious indus industrious us little woman what Well such Tin n industrious tall woman that the thedas days das wont be long enough for all you ou oum will m find to do As for me I suppose sUl rose rosei i I must try tr and earn a peerage just to give you your proper place in society and then we will grow old gracefully Oh Philip she cried placing her hands on his shoulders We Ve met once as children for a few minutes Fate ordained that we should meet again un under under under der strange circumstances We Ye were separated for years ears Can fate play us usan any an uncanny trick that will separate us again Well Yell sweetheart fate in the shape of Wale Tale is coming coining for me at six Unless you wish me to send for my myman myman myman man and dress here Sometimes I cannot quite credit my ml good fortune she said softly Tell Te 1 me dearest how did you ou manage to live until you ou were tw twenty five with without without gout out falling in love with some girl rI J That Is ridiculously easy Tell me how how you managed to escape matrimony until you were and you ou are ansu answered ered Philip I II I liked you ou that night I saw you vou In the square You were a woebegone little boy bo but you were so brave brae and gave gae me your our hand to help me from the carriage with whit the air ofa of ofa f fa a young oung lord And I have cherished your Jour face faca fa in my m waking dreams ever since You looked like a fairy And how hew you ou stuck up for me against your our uncle Tell me what did you ou think of me when you ou saw me standing stand In disconsolate in the park Tell tell tell it was nothing but sweet questions and sweet assurances es that this pair of turtle doves does had been seeking each other through all an eter Their wedding was fixed for the middle mid middle dle dIe of or July Jul Sharp work it may ma be said but what need was there to wait walt waltr Mr r Abingdon was greatly pleased with Philips choice and urged him to set settle settle settle tle down at the earliest possible date Mrs Irs Atherley too raised sed no protest The sooner her belo daughter d was married the more rapidly would life resume Its normal aspect aspet they would not be long parted from each other The young oung people had no housekeep housekeeping ing cares Philips mansions were re replete replete replete with all aU that could be desired by bythe b bythe the most fastidious taste His yacht was brought to the Solent so that they the could run over oer to Portsmouth on a motor car to inspect her and Evelyn instantly determined that their honeymoon in should be cur curtailed curtailed tailed to permit them to go for a three weeks cruise around the British coast This suggestion of course appealed to Philip Nothing could be more de delightful delightful delightful He whispered in Evelyns ear that he would hug her for tor the idea at atthe atthe atthe the first available opportunity One morning a day of June rain raina a letter reached Philip It bore the printed superscription supers The Hall Devon Deon but this was struck out and another address substituted It was written in a aa scrawling ling waver wavering wavering wavering ing hand the of a man old and very ill III It read My M Dear Philip I am lying bing at the point of death so 50 I use no laborel labore words to explain why wh I address you in such manner I want to tell you how bitterly I regret the injustice I showed to your dear mother and my m sister lister Ister If of your our charity charit you will come to my m bedside and assure a feeble old man manof manof of f your forgiveness ss I can meet the coming ordeal strong in the certainty that Mary Anson will not refuse what you ou have given ghen in her behalf Your sor sorrowing sorrowing sorrowing rowing uncle PHILIP MORLAND With this piteous epistle was In closed another Dear Mr Ir Anson Alison I join my m earnest supplication to my m husbands that you ou will hill ilI console his last hours with a visit He H blames himself for what has hap happened happened happened In the past Yet the fault was more nl re mine than his far more For his sake I willingly admit it iL And I have been punished for my m sin Ruined in fortune with my husband at deaths door I 1 am indeed a sorrowing woman Yours faithfully LOUISA MORLAND D The angular Italian handwriting of the Second letter recalled a faded script in n Us Ns safe at that moment The ad address address address dress in each case ca e was a village on the Yorkshire coast a remote and inac inaccessible inaccessible inaccessible place according to Philips Philip s un unaided unaided unaided aided recollection of the map m p Grange Granse Gran e eHo House Ho se might be a farm fann or a broken down manor manor and Lady Lad ad admission admission admission mission of reduced circumstances indi indicated IndIcated indicated that they had chosen the locality for economys sake The These c appeals brought a frown flown of or in indecision indecision indecision decision to Ansons brow His uncle and his uncles wife had pad unquestionably ably been the means of shortening and embittering life The man might have acted a ed In Ignorance the woman did rot not Yet what could he do Refuse a dying relatives last request They orona or orona oron his mothers pit piti pitY ona on ot of them refused Y ful demand for a little pecuniary help at a time when they were rich richAnd richAnd And what dire mischance could have sunk them into poverty Little more than two months had passed since Sir Philip Borland Morland was Inquiring for his his Philips whereabouts through Sharpe Smith with a view toward I making him his heir Was Vas the Inquiry Lady last ruse to save an encumbered estate Why Vh was all pretense of doubt as to his relationship swept aside so com completely completely completely He glanced again main at the address on the letter and amI asked a servant senant to bring him a railway guide Then he as ascertained ascertained ascertained that if he would reach Scars Sears Scarsdale Scarsdale dale that day he must leave London not later than noon There was a jour journey Journe journey ney ne of sev seven pu zi hours by b raid no chance of returning the th same night He went to the library and rang up Sharpe Smith on the telephone A clerk assured him that Mr Ir Sharpe who attended to Sir Philip affairs had been summoned to Devon Devonshire Devonshire Devonshire shire the previous day dayTo da daTo dayTo To Devonshire cried Philip I have just ju t received letters from Sir Philip and Lady Lad Morland forland from York Yorkshire Yorkshire Yorkshire shire Mr Ir Sharps Sharpe himself is puzzled about the matter sir Lady Morland wrote from Yorkshire but told him to pro proceed proceed proceed to Devonshire without delay dela Has there been some unexpected de do development development affecting the estate state I am sorry som sir but you ou will wUl see I Ican Ican Ican can hardly hard answer any an further ques questions questions question tion Of course the clerk was right Philip had hardly quitted the telephone when whets a note noto reached him by hand from Eve Ee Evelyn Evelyn lyn Please come at once Must see you He was at Mount lount street in three minutes Evelyn looked serious and began by b holding out a letter to him He recognized recognized recognized Lady Lad writing Philip those people who behaved so badly bad to your mother Have they dared to trouble y you iu u Oh It is so sad Your uncle i Is dying They T e are wretchedly poor an unforeseen collapse See And she read Of your ur pity pit Miss Atherley ask your our affianced husband to us usand usand usand and to help us I want nothing for form myself m self but the mere sight of a few checks to pay doctor and the rest will soothe Sir Philips last Jast hours He Is a proud man and I now non Continued on Page 6 j I I 0 i 1 The King of Diamonds s 1 Continued From Page 1 3 d he Is heartbroken to think he is dying a H pauper among strangers r So it ended as might be expected M Philip wired to Grange House Scars Sears Scarsdale Scarsdale 4 dale to announce his coming 1 panted by his valet he left Kings Cross CrOS at 12 but his parting words to Evelyn Eveln were See Mr fr Abingdon after luncheon V dear and tell him him what I am doing I will return tomorrow il I will keep you jou ou Informed by telegraph of ot my movements i After leaving the th main line at York O r there thero was a tiresome crawl to the tho coast broken by changes at Junctions s f wearying intervals spent In pacing mo monotonous 1 platforms At last the train reached rea bed Scarsdale at twenty minutes to Z 7 A few passengers p passengers sen gers alighted The place was w s evident evidently ly a small village not given over to the i incursions of ot summer visitors f r i A tall man with doctor writ large on his silk hat and frock coat ap approached approached approached Philip V Mr ai r Anson y i t 68 I am nm Dr Williams I have brought broughty you y u a letter Jetter from Lady Morland forland Per Perhaps Pero o haps you will trill read it now I expect it ito o explains my m errand Sir Philip Is IB still living Yes but sinking fast tast Anson tore tOr open the note It was wa waI I brief brier Thank you ou for your our prompt kind kindness kindness ness Hess Dr Williams will drive you to the thet t house If It you have brought a servant lie might take tako your luggage to the Fox V i and Hounds Inn where Dr Williams 1 I has lies secured se rooms for tor you I regret fa I exceedingly we have no accommodations accommodations I here but In any event you will willbe willbe j be more comfortable at the inn ae He looked at the doctor In a vague i i way his voice re d accents he lie 1 seemed to recognize re 1 Is there a telegraph office here t Yes We pass it It closes at atI S 8 I I 1 I will wilt not be back from the Grange House before then i j Hardly It is a drive i s Thank Thank you You will stop a ma tent fit t at the telegraph office 1 The doctor hesitated There is so little time Is It of great Importance Of course i Oh I know what to do Green Greeni i take my traps to the tho Fox and Hounds I Inn Theo Then go to the tho telegraph office i and send a message in my nary na to Miss 1189 Atherley saying Arrived Sir Philip worse That is all k tI Ansons Arsons valet saluted and left them 3 Dr |
