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Show n story gyj 'o"' m j M GATE I By i j MEREDITH NICHOLSON Illustrations by RAY WALTERS H.JL... ' "a Coprrltckt, tijr lloblM-Merrlll Company CHAPTER I. A Telegram from Paul Stoddard. Stoddard's telegram was brought to mo on tho Glenarm pier at four o'clock Tuesday afternoon, tho 5th of June. I am thus explicit, for all tho matters- hereinafter described turn upon tho receipt of Stoddard's mes sage, which was, to uo suro, narmiess enough In Itself, but, llko many other scraps of paper that blow about tho world, tho forerunner of confusion and trouble). My friend, Mr. John Qlonarm, had gono abroad for tho summer with his family nnd had turned over to mo his houso at Annandnle that 'I might enjoy Its seclusion and comfort whllo writing my book on "Russinn Itlvers." If John Glonarm had not taken his family abroad with him when ho went to Turkey to glvo the sultan's engineers engi-neers lessons in bridge building; if I had not accepted his kind offer of tho houso at Annnndalo for tho summer; sum-mer; and If Paul Stoddnrd had not sont me that telegram, I should nover havo written this narrative. Hut such was tho predestined way of it. I roso from tho boat I was caulking, and, with the waves from tho receding steamer slapping tho pier, read tills message: Stamford. Conn., Junn G. Meet Miss Patricia Ilolbrook Annandalo Annan-dalo station, flvo twenty Chicago express and conduct her to St. Agatha's school, whore sho Is expected. Sho will explain dinicultles. I havo assured her of your sympathy and aid. Will Join you later If neceysary. Impcrativo engagements '"all mo elsewhere. STODDARD. To say that I was angry when I read this message Is to bollttlo tho truth. I read and re-road It with growing heat. 1 hnd nccopted Glen-arm's Glen-arm's offer of tho houso at Annandalo because It promised pence, and now I was ordered by telegraph to moot a strnngo person of whom I had never heard, listen to her story, and tender my sympathy and aid. I glanced at my watch. It was already after four. "Delayed In transmission" was stamped across tho telegraph form I learned later thnt it had lain half tho day in Annandalo, Now York so that I was now face to faco with the situation, and without opportunity to fling his orders back to Stoddard If I wanted to. Nor did I even know Stamford from Stamboul, and 1 am pot yet clear In my mind being an Irishman with rather vaguo notions of Amorlcan geography whothor Connecticut Con-necticut is north or south of Massa chusetts. "IJImal" I called my Japanoso boy from tho boathouso, and ho appeared, paint brush in hand. "Order tho double trnp, and toll thorn to hurry." I roflected, as I picked up my coat and walked toward tho houso, that if any one but Paul Stoddard had sent rno such a messago I Bhould most certainly cer-tainly havo Ignored It; but I know him aa a man who did not mnko demands or Impose obligations lightly. As tho founder and suporlor of tho Protestant religious Ordor of tho Brothers of Rothlohem ho was, I know, an exceedingly ex-ceedingly busy man. His religious houso was In tho Virginia mountnins; but ho spont much timo in qulot, hum-bio hum-bio sorvico in city Blums, In lumbor camps, in tho mines of Pennsylvania; and occasionally ho appeared llko a prophet from tho wilderness In somo great church of Now York, and preached with a marvolous oloquonco to wondorlng throngs. Tho trnp swung into tho arched driveway and I bado tho coachman mako hasto to tho Annandalo station. The hnndsomo bays woro soon trotting trot-ting swiftly toward tho village, whllo I drow on my gloves and considered the sltuntion. A certain Miss Hoi-brook, Hoi-brook, of whoso oxlstonco I had been utterly Ignorant an hour hoforo, was iboilt to nrrivo at Annandalo. A ilergyman, whom I had not soon for two years, had telegraphed mo from a town in Connecticut to meet this person, conduct her to St. Agatha's school just closed for tho summer, as t know nnd to volunteer my sorvicos in dinicultles that woro darkly Indicated Indi-cated In a telegram of 45 words. The sender of the messago I know to be n serious character, nnd n gentloman of distinguished soclnl connections. Tho namo of tho lady slgnlllcd nothing noth-ing except that sho was unmarried; and as Stoddard's acquaintance was among nil sorts and conditions of men I could nssumo nothing moro than that the unknown hnd annealed to him as a priest and that ho had sent her to Lnko Annandalo to shako off tho burdens of the world in tho conventual nlr of St. Agatha's. Tho Chicago express whistled for Annnndnlo Just as wo gained tho edgo of tho village. It paused a grudging moinont nnd was gono boforo wo reached tho station, I Jumped out and ran through tho waiting room to the platform, where M agent was gathering up tho mail bags, whllo an assistant loaded a truck with trunks. I glanced about, and tho moment was an Important ono in my life. Standing Stand-ing quite nlono boslde several pieces of hand baggage was a lady unmistakably unmis-takably a lady leaning lightly upon an umbrella, and holding under her arm a magazine. Sho was clad In brown, from bonnet to Bhoosj tho umbrella um-brella nnd magazine covor woro of llko tint, nnd even tho sultcnso nearest near-est her struck tho same noto of color. Thoro was no doubt whatover as to her Identity; I did not hc3ltato a moment; mo-ment; tho lady In brown was Miss Ilolbrook, and sho was nu old lady, a dear, bowltchlng old Indy, and as I stepped toward her, hor oyos brightened bright-ened thoy, too, woro brown! and sho put out her brown-gloved hand with a gesturo so frank nnd cordial that I was won at onco. "Mr. Donovan Mr. Lauranco Donovan Dono-van I am suro of it!" "Miss Ilolbrook I am equally confident!" con-fident!" 1 said. "I am sorry to bo late, but Father Stoddard's messago was delayed." "You aro kind to respond at all," she said, hor wonderful eyes upon fia "Well, He Can Hardly Find Her Here." mo; "but Father Stoddard said you would not fall mo." "Ho is a man of great faith! Dut I havo a trap waiting. Wo can talk moro comfortably at St. Agatha's." "Yes; we aro to go to tho school. Father Stoddard kindly arranged It. It Is quite secluded, ho assured me." "You will not bo disappointed, Miss Holbrook, If seclusion Is what you seek." I picked up tho brown bng and turned away, but sho waited and glnncod about Hor "wo" had puzzled me; perhaps sho had brought a maid, and 1 followed her glnnco toward tho window of tho tolegrnph office. "Oh, Helen; my niece, Helen Holbrook, Hol-brook, Is with mo. I wished to wlro somo instructions to my housokcopor' at homo. Father Stoddnrd may not havo explained that It is partly on Helen's account thnt I am coming horo." "No; ho explained nothing morely gavo mo my instructions," I laughed. "Ho gives ordors in a most militant fashion." In a moment I had beon presented to tho niece, and had noted that sho was considerably above hor aunfs holght; that sho was dark, with oyos that seemed quito black In cortaln lights, nnd that sho bowed, as hor aunt presented, mo, without offoring hor hand, and murmured my namo In a volco musical, deep and full, and agreeable to hear. Sho took their checks from hor purso, and I called tho portor and arranged for tho trnnsfor of their bag-gago bag-gago to St. Agatha'B. Wo wero soon in tho trap with tho' bays carrying us nt a lively clip along tho lake road. "Thoro's a summer rosort somo-whero somo-whero on tho lake; how far la that from tho school?" naked tho girl. "That's Port Annnndalo. It's two or threo miles from St. Agatha'r," I replied. "On this side and all tho way to tho school thoro aro farms. Port Annandalo Hos yonder," "Of course wo shall eoo nothing of it," said tho younger Miss Ilolbrook with finality. I sought In vain for any resemblance resem-blance between tho two women; thoy wore utterly unllko. Tho littlo brown lndy was Interested and rosponslvo cuough; sho turned toward her uloco with undisguised affection as wo talked, but I caught several times n look of unhnpplncss in her face, nnd tho brow that Timo hnd not touched gathorod in linos of anxiety nnd care. Tho girl's manner toward hor nunt was wholly kind nnd sympathetic. "I'm suro it will bo delightful horo, Aunt Pat. Wild rosos and bluo water! I'm quite In lovo with tho prettj la'M already." This was my first Introduction to tho diminutive of Patricia, and It seemed very lilting, nnd ns dollghtful ns tho dear littlo woman horsolf. Sho must havo caught my smllo as tho uloco so addressed her for tho first timo nnd sho smiled back at mo in her charming taslilon. "You aro nn Irishmnn, Mr. Donovan, nnd Pat must sound natural." "Oh, all who lovo Aunt Patricia call her Aunt Pat!" exclaimed tho girl. "Then Miss Holbrook undoubtedly boars It often," snld I, and was nt onco sorry for my bit of blarney, for tho tears shono suddenly In tho -dear brown eyes, nnd the nicco recurred to tho summer landscape ns a topic, nnd talked of tho Glonarm plnco, whoso stono wall wo woro now passing, until un-til wo drovo Into tho grounds of St. Agatha's and up to tho main cntrnnco of tho school, whero a sister in tho brown garb of hor ordor stood waiting. wait-ing. I first Introduced myself to Slstor MnTgnrot, who was In chnrge, nnd then presented tho two ladles who wero to bo her guests. Slstor Margn-ret Margn-ret said just tho right thing to every one, and I was glad to find hor so cnpablo a person, fully nblo. to enro for those exiles without aid from my side of tho wall. "Helen, If you will soo our things disposed of I will detain Mr. Donovan a few minutes," snld Miss Holbrook. "Or I can come again In nn hour I mn your near neighbor," I remarked, thinking sho might wish to rest from her Journey. "I am quito ready," she replied, and I bowed lo Holon Ilolbrook and to Sinter Sin-ter Mnrgnrot, who wont out, followed by tho mnld. Miss Pat you will pardon par-don mo If I begin nt onco to call hor by this namo, hut It fits hor so cnpl-tally, cnpl-tally, It is so much a part of hor, that I cannot resist Miss Pnt put off her bonnet without fuss, placed it on tho' tablo and snt down in n window seat whence tho nearer shore of tho lnko was visible across tho strip of smootli lawn. "Will you plenso closo tho door?" sho said, and when I enmo back to tho window sho began at onco. "It is not pleasant, ns you must understand, to explain to n Btrangor nu intimate nnd painful family trouble. Hut Father Stoddard advised mo to bo quito frnnk with you." "That Is the best way, if thoro is a possibility that I may bo of sorvico," I said in tho gentlost tono I could command. "Dut toll mo no moro than you wish. I am wholly at your sorvico sorv-ico without explanations." "It is In roferenco to my brothor; ho 1ms caused mo a great deal of trouble Whon my father died nearly ten years ago ho lived to a great age ho loft a considerable estato, a largo fortune. A part of It was divided di-vided at onco nmong my two brothers and myself. Tho remainder, nmount-Ing nmount-Ing to $1,000,000, was loft to mo, with tho stipulation that I was to mako u further division between my brothers nt tho ond of ton years, or at my discretion. dis-cretion. I was oldor than my brothers, broth-ers, much oldor, and my father loft mo with this responsibility, not knowing know-ing what it would lead to. Henry nnd Arthur succeeded to my father's business, tho banking firm of Holbrook Hol-brook Brothers, In Now York. Tho bank continued to prosper for n time; then It collapsed suddenly. Tho dobts woro all paid, but Arthur disappeared thoro woro unpleasant rumors " Sho paused n moment, and looked out of tho window toward tho lake, and I saw hor clasped hands tlghton;, but Bho went on bravoly. "Thnt was sovon years ago. Since then Henry hns Insisted on tho final division of tho property. My fnthor had a high senso of honor and ho stipulated stip-ulated that If either of his sons should bo guilty of any dlshonornblo net he should forfeit his half of tho $1,000,-000. $1,000,-000. Honry Insists that Arthur has forfeited his rights nnd that tho amount withhold should bo paid to him now; but his conduct has boon such thnt I feel I should sorvo him ill to pay him so largo a sum of monoy. Moreover, I owo somothing to his daughtor to Holon. Owing to her father's fa-ther's reckless llfo I havo had her mako hor homo with mo for sovornl years. Sho is a noble girl, and very beautiful you must havo seen, Mr. Donovan, that sho Is nn unusually beautiful girl." "Yes," I assonted. "And bettor than that," sho said, with fooling; "sho is a lovoly char-actor." char-actor." I nodded, touched to soo how completely com-pletely Holon Holbrook filled and satisfied sat-isfied hor aunt's llfo. Miss Pnt continued con-tinued hor story. "My brother first sought to frighten mo into a settlement by menacing my own penco; and now ho Includes Helen Hel-en In his animosity. My houso at Stamford wns set on fire a month aso: then thieves cntored It nnd 1 wnt . H obliged to leave. We arranged to'gt H abroad, but when wo got to tho ntcnm H or wo found Henry waiting with t H threat lo follow us If I did not accede j to his demands. It was Falhor Stbll B dard who suggested this placo, and H wo enmo by n circuitous route, pnus H lug horo nnd there to see whether w , wero followod. You can Imagine how . . distressing how wretched all till l , , has H "Yes; It is a stub story, Miss Hoi ' brook. Dut you aro not likely to be H ono sldo, a high wnll shuts oft th H rond, and I beg you to accept me ai J your near neighbor and protector. Th H servant1 nt Mr. Glonnrm's houso hav H been wlt him for several years ant! H nre undoun'pdly trustworthy. It It H not llkoly thnt your brothor will flni H you hero, hut If ho should wo wll H deal with that situation when tho tlm H "You aro vory reassuring no doubt H wo shall not need to call on on. Anc ' H I hopo you understand," sho continued ' H "thnt it is not to keep tho monoy H I wish to avoid my brothor; thai if li H wero w'so to mnkn this further dl' " H vision nt this timo nnd it wore foi, his good, I should bo glnd to glv , ,f him all every penny of it." H "Pardon mo, but tho othor brothoi- H ho hns not mndo similar domnudi H you do not fear him?" I Inquired. H with somo hesitation. , "No no!" And a tremulous smlU" plnycd about her Hps. "Poor Arthur! H llo must bo doad. Ho ran away aftoi H tho bank fnlluro and I havo nevoi heard from htm since. Ho nnd Honrj woro vory unlike, and I always foil H moro closely attached to Arthur. H H was not brilliant, llko Honry; ho wni H gentle nnd quiet In his ways, and fa. H tlior was often Impatient with him H Henry has been very blttor toward H Arthur and hns appealed to mo on thfl BH scoro of Arthur's Ill-doing. It took all H Ills own fortune, ho snys, to savo Ar- H thur nnd tho family naiuo from dls H Sho wns remarkably composed H throughout this recital, and I man H vcled nt her moro and moro. Now, H after n moment's sllonco, sho turned- H to mo with a smile. "Wo havo been annoyed in another H wny. It Is so ridiculous that I hcsl H tato to toll you of It--" "Pray do not you need tell ma nothing moro, Miss Holbrook." H "It is best for you to know. My H niece has been annoyed tho past ycai H by tho attentions of a young man whom she greatly dislikes nnd whose t pcrslstenco distresses hor vory much "Well, ho can hardly find hor hero; ' it ml If ho should'" Miss Ilolbrook folded her arms upon her knees and smiled, bonding "Oh!" she exclaimed; "ho isn't a violent person, Mr. Donovan. He's silly, absurd, Idiotic! You need fear no vlolenco from him." "And of courso your nlcco is not in- J tcrcsted bo's not n follow to appeal to her Imagination." "That is quito truo; nnd thon In . present unhappy circumstances, with her fnthor Imaging over hor llko a menace, marrlago is far from hor thoughts. Sho fcols that oven if sho vure attached to n man and wished to marry, sho could not, I wish sho did not feel so; I should bo glad to seo her married and settled In hor own homo. It's n very dreadful thing, as you can understand, for brothor and slstor and father and child to bo ar-rayed ar-rayed against ono nnothor." " fl I wished to guldo tho talk into choorfullor channels beforo leaving. Miss Pat seemed nmuscd by tho HBl thought of tho unwelcome suitor, nnd HBi 1 determined to loavo hor with somo word in roferonco to him. (TO BE CONTINUED.) |