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Show I if VALIANT5sf VIRGINIA I US " HALLE ERMINE RIVES F3 ILLUSTRATIONS - IENMOUTj John Vnllnnt. a rich noddy fnvnrtlc, BB tturiilnnly illsi overs that llio Vnllnnt cor- BBBl pnratlon. which 111' fnthor founded nml Bl which wns, the principal source of hln BBB health, lian Mllnl Ilo voluntarily tur BB over liln prlvntn fortuno to thn receiver BB for the corporation, lilt rnllrn rcmnlnlnir PJiJiJiJijB pniuwiMilniia consist of an old motor mr, n IJIIIIH white bull doc nml Dnmory court, n ncir- BBB lecte.l eatbtp In Virginia On llio wiiy to JiJiJiJH Dntnory court ti meet Shirley IJund- BBB rltlire. nn nuliurn-lmlreil niiiy, nnd ile- BBB rlilr thnt he In KoltiK to like Irslhln Im- BBB nienmly Hhlrlc'i niothrr, Mrs Dnrnl- I rlilge. nnd Major lirlntnw pxdmngc rem- HiJPJ Inlarcneea ilnrltiic willed It In rcvenlod BBS thnt the mnjor. Vnllnnl'a father, and n iJHIIIH mnn nnmeil Hnanoon wore rival for the BBB tmiiil of .Mm DumlrloYr In her yotith PJIflflPJi Knxsoori and Vnllnnt foiiRlit n duel on her J .mount In will' li the former a killed BBS Valiant finds iJnimirv court owrRrowii JiJiJijH with ui-dli nml rcpera ami , di ride to BIB rehnlillllnto the plate iillntit vi" J Hhlrley from the lilt- of n unnke. which BIB Mies him Knowlru the dendllncs of the 1 bite. Hhlrley Mick the poison from the BB vound mid nen his life Vnllnnt lenrrn BIB for the llmt time Unit Ids father left Mr- BHB Klnln on nceonnl of n duel In which Doc - BHB tor Routhall nnd Major llrlstow nrted in BIB his father's seconds Vnllnnt nnd Hlilrjpy t heroine Kood friend' Mrs IMndrldpe f faints nlien "he m -eta Vnllnnt for the J flrat lime. Vnllnnt illcnern that lie linn J n fortune In old walnut Ireea The enrlv 1 tournnmrnt n nurvlvil of the JotiMIni; of BB1 feudal times, la held nt Dnmory court. At i the last inoiTient Vnllnnt takes the plnco JBBpM of one of the knlsh's. who Is lck, nnd enters the lists, lie wins nnd chooses BBi Hhlrley DnndrlKfl us queen of beauty to the illsmnv of Knl'isflnn 1'arKO, n former i nweelhenrt. who la vlsltlnn In VlrRtnln, The tournament hall at Dnmory court IJIIIH druwa the elite of the countritde. B CHAPTER XXIV. Continued. H To thn twanging or llio deft blnck H flngcra, limy panned In gorgeous nrrny K between (lira of low-cut .gowns ntul B flower-llko fucos ntul innacullno Bwal- B low-talla, to Hit! yellow parlor. Onco BBBJ thoro tho music council with n nplotitllil BBBJ cranh, tho cloven knlghtB rnch dropped BBBBJ upon one knuo, tho cluvun latllonln- H wnltltiR curlalt'd low, ntul Shirley, Rent- iH nl upon tho (lain, lranoil her burnished H head to recclvo tho crown. What B Ijiniich tho tiuublo wnn but brlslol- BB hoard, ltd Jnwidcd chusltiK hut tinsel BH nnd panto? On Iter hnml It glowed nnd BB tromhled, n trim dlndom. As Vnllnnt BB ut tho RllttetliiR tliltiR on tliouii rich B.. ttnd wondorful coIIh, tho miialc of her B proHiinco wan hIiikIiik n bwIR melody BB In IiIh BK 1 1 In rnronnllon nddresa held no mich BB, flowery perlodH na would hnvo rolled BB from tho major's, houI. Ilo had choHen BB' , a bIiirIo paraRrnph ho had lighted on In BB nu old book In tho llbrnry a hlstory-of BB thn lait Crutiado In lonch black-let- BBa tor Ilo had trnnalntcd nnd memorized BBa, tho nrchnlo phraalnK, keeping tho BBV rjunlnt feeling of tho orlclunl: HB "Thcio nobli) knlghtfl bow In your BB prrnonce, fair lady, na their lnlgc, BBS whom thoy know na oven In Judgment, B an dainty In fullllllnR thean our ncti BIZ of nrnia. nnd do rerommrud their all BB unto your (lood (Irnro In on lowly wlm BB na thoy can. O qucun, In whom tho BSJ. wholo rtory of vlrtuo l written with BS thn lanRunr," of beauty, jour eyca, BB which havo been only wont to dlieern BH Ihn bowed kneen of UneolliiK honrta BH i and, Inwnrdly turned, found nlwuyn BB llio heavenly aohtcu of n aweet mind, Jsrf" "rn "l'n"' rou,'y '" heart nnd able, with Bf hands not only to nsanllliiK but to pro R ' rnllliiR" B,J I A hushed ruatlo of applause -not B" loud: tho merest whisper of silken BB ' feet and feathered fans tapped aaftly B teHtllU'd to widespread approbiitlon. B It was tho II rat night many thorn had BB hud of John Vnllnnt and In both looks BB and manner ho fitted their best Ideals. Bfl,!' The queen's curtsey wns the signal B for tho music, which throbbed auddon- BB ly Into a march, and alio stepped down! BCj bealdo him. Coupln nflor couple, I BSj r knlr.hts and ladles, ranged behind PE4''' them, till tho twenty-four stood ready EV for tho roynl quadrllln. It wns tho old- BB t fashioned lancers, but tho dellberatn B strain lent the familiar measures some- BBa thing of tho stutely effect of tho mlti- BBb Quadrilles were not Invented as aids BB to couverHatlou, mid John Vallnnt's BBB,- nnd Shirley's whs necesnurlly limited. BB "Tho decorations nro simply dell- BB clous!" alio said as thoy faced each BBS other briefly. "I low did you munago BE "Homo talent with a vengennco. Un- BJ do Jefferson and 1 did It with our lit BBJ tie hntchets. Hut tho rosea " BB They were swooped apart nnd Hlilr- BBJ ley found herself curtsying to Chilly BBJ I.usk. "More than queen!" ho said BBJ,, under his breath, "I had my heart BBJ", sot on naming ou today I reckon BBJ' I'vo lost my rubbU-foai!" BBJ Opposite, In turn, Hetty I'iirh had BBJ,, slipped her dainty hand in John Vul- BB ' Iain's "Ah haven't seen such a lovely BBV ; dance for yeolm!" she sighed. Isn't Hhlrley too sweet? If Ah had hair like ' liors, Ah wouldn't speak to a soul ou , earth!" Tho exigencies of tho tlguro gave no BB ' space for answer, and presently, after BB't, certain lubyrluthlnu evolution, Shir BB ley's eyes were gaslug Into his agHlu. BB "Mow adorable you look'" he wills- B,'. pered, as he bowed or hr hand. BB' "How dos it fuel lalw) hmmwh" BB "This little had was ntr wade ta BB. rtMir a foWH.' she laugbd "Qumiw B iboold be refci. Mls Pargo wouW B bavit Bl The ihhIc owept the ret away, but Bp soi the loak of blinding reproach he Bt tm her that made her heart throb B' wlldi) as shu elld4 en a B Th Mut w)tH ftf the quadrille illp- B jtl Utlu a waits dreaMlty slow, aud B " Imnt jut bis arm about Shirley anil H Mr CuatM awur Onso before, In Hut inoonllghtod garden nt Rosewood, sho had lain In his arm for ono brief In-stnnt In-stnnt then sho hnrf neemed like somo trapped wood thing resisting. Now, hur Hlendor body swaying to his ovory motion, she was another crcaturo. Under Un-der tho drooping tawny lmlr her face was almoBt as pnlo ns the whlto satin of her gown; her lips wore parted, and ns they moved, ho could feel her heart rlso and fall to her languorous breath. CHAPTER XXV. Dy the Sun-Dial. Hyca arched with fan-shielded whispers, whis-pers, and fair faces, foreshortened ns thoy turned bnck over powder-whlto shoulders, followed their swallow-llkc movement. From nn ever-widening circle of masculine dovotccs Kntharlno Kurgo watched them with n smllo that clonked nn Increasing aud unwelcomo question. Kntharlno had never looked more hnndsomo; a critical survey of her mirror at Gladden Hall had assured her of that. Never hnd her polso been moro superb, her toilet moro enrapturing. enraptur-ing. 8ho was exquisitely gowned In roso-colored moussellnc-do-solo, em-broldorcd em-broldorcd In tiny brilliants Inld on In Groek patterns. From her neck, In n single splendid loop of Iridescence against the rosy mist, depended thoso fabulous pearls "tho kind you simply sim-ply can't bcllove," ss Hetty Pago confided con-fided to her partner on whoso nows-paper nows-paper reproduction (actual diameter) metropolian shop-girls hnd beon wont to gnzo with glistening eyes; nnd with. In tholr milky circlet, on her rounded breast, trembled threo pale gold-vclnod orchids. Watching thnt qundrlllo through her drooping cmornldtlnted eyes, sho had received n sudden enlightening Impression Impres-sion of Shirley's flawless benuty. At tho tournament her Meeting glimpse hnd adjudged tho other merely Mweolty pretty. Tho Chnlmors' surrey had stopped en routo for Shirley, but In her wrnps nnd veil sho hnd then been nil but Invisible, This had been Katharine's Kath-arine's first adequate view, nnd the sight of her radiant charm had the effect almost of n blow. Tor Katharine, be It snld, had wholly surrendered to tho old, yet now, attraction at-traction that had swept her on tho tourney field. And what had lain nl ways In the bnck of her mind ns n hnlf-formed hnlf-formed Intention, had become a self- admitted purpose during tho motor rldo. In another moment tho alU fainted out, to be succeeded by a duux-lrmps, nnd presently tho host, In his crimson cloak, was doffing his plumed hat before be-fore her. Circling the polished floor In tho male, thero was something gratefully Uko former das In Ihn assured as-sured touch, thn truo nnd ready guidance. guid-ance. Tho Intrusive question faded, Ho was tho John Vnllnnt hn had always al-ways known, of II a ah lug repartee and graceful compliment, yet with a touch of dignity, too as befitted thn lord of a manor which sat well upon htm After a decorous dozen of rounds, sho took his arm and allow nl her perfect WTOS if 1 Katharine Had Never Looked More Handsome, figure to bn conducted through thn various rooms of the ground floor, chatting In quite the old time way, till n new gallant claimed hr Tim mellow string made on their merry tune, and at length the Washington Wash-ington Cost march! all In fluahml unity of minx to the great muilln-walled muilln-walled porrh with it array of tables groaning under U4i rutttHwtMl by Aunt Daphne far to delectation of the iwlate-weary And then cmicm ware the waUs-Mrwin supervened and In the yellow parlor joy was again ubodimh4. Again Valiant cWIimnI Katkariae and they gtWed off m "Tin IImuMInI IkneUe" Her pal bow ka4 tlnne vlor. kwt MrthkM Im tkotiftbt k 404 Yon are tirwl," he said. ' IsiMk oet V Uk. Am ) tM Nrsoasdoel gratWHlly "It u Imm a taJtl) Hnm-um Hnm-um 4ay. Iwuhji I tt" lle gMbi4 m lo a wtrtir iw hraaebee mt riadnleaifiw Mffej aa aleote wf teifgn s4 e4HMlfs tneo Ms IIf nf vuimm mm4 nut t Mtlt Ttutft M M iMHISi( of fringed Ihk dimireriiag i-lenres i-lenres ike tUr4 with eaee sad Vlquacey "I havo beon Intoning to paeanB all tho evening," sho said. "And you de-servo de-servo them. It's a fine big thing you nre nttomptlng tho restoring of this old estate And I know you havo oven bigger plans, too." Ho nodded, suddenly serious and thoughtful. "Thcro's a lot I'd llko to do. It's not only tho, house and grounds. Thoro nro . . . othor things. For InBtanco, back on tho mountain on my own land la a sok tlement thoy call Hell's-Half-Acro. Probably It has well earned tho name. It's a wretched collection of IiovcIh and surly men and drabs of womon and unkompt children, tho poorest of poor-whites. Not ono of them enn rend or wrlto, nnd thoy llvo llko animals. It I'm ever able, I mean to put n manual-training school up thero. And then " Ho ended with n half laugh, sudden-ly sudden-ly conscious that ho was talking In n language sho would scarcely understandIn under-standIn fact, In a tonguo now to himself. him-self. Hut thero was no smllo on her lips and her oxtrnordlnnry eyes cool gray, shot through with omcrald wcro looking Into his with a frankness and sympathy ho would not havo guessed lay beneath nor glacial placidity. pla-cidity. To Kntharlno, Indeed, It made llttlo dlffcrcnco what philanthropic fads tho man the had chosen might affect aa regarded his tenantry. Ambitions llko theso had a manorial flavor that did not dtsplenso her. And the Fargo millions mil-lions wouhl bear much harmless hammering- A chango, subtle and Incommunicable, Incom-municable, passed over hor. "I shall think of you," sho sighed, "as working on In this splendid program. pro-gram. For It Is splondld. Hut New York will miss you, John." "Ah, no. I've no delusions on thnt scoro, I dnro say I'm almoBt forgotten thoro already. Hero I havo a plnco." Her head, leaned hack ngalnst tho cushion, turned toward him, tho palo orchids trembling on hor bosom sho was so near that ho could feel hor breath on Ills check. A now wnltz hnd begun to sigh Its languorous measures. meas-ures. "1'laeo!" sho queried. "Do you think you had no place thoro? Is It posslblo , that you do not understand that your going hns left a void?" Ho looked at her suddenly, and her , eyes fell. Ilcforo ho answered, how- over, tho big form of Major Hristow appeared, looking about nlm. "It hns loft a void," sho said, her eyes still downcast, her volco Just low enough, " for mo." Tho major pounced upon them nt this Juncture, feelingly accusing John of the nefarious design of robbing tho nssomblago of Its bright and particular partic-ular star. When Kntharlno put her hand In her cavalier's arm, her eyes wcro dewy under their long shndlng lashes nnd her lino lips ever so llttlo tremulous. It had been her best available avail-able moment, nnd sho had used It. As sho moved nway, her faint color slightly heightened, she was glad of tho Interruption. It was better as It was, When John Vnllnnt enmo to her ngnln. . . . Hut to him, as ho stood watching her movo lightly from him, there was vouchsafed Illumination. It came to him suddenly thnt that placidity ano hauteur which ho hnd so admired In tho old days wero no mask for fires within. Thn exquisite husk wub tho real Kntharlno. Hers was tho lovoll-ness lovoll-ness of somo tall whlto Illy cut In marble, splendid but chill And with tho thought, between him and her thero Bwept through tho shimmering cnndlo-llghted air a breath of wot rose-fragrance rose-fragrance llko nn linpnlpablo cloud, and set In tho midst of It a misty star! tinted gown sprayed wlUi UUcnoMha-nlley, UUcnoMha-nlley, and abovo It a girts face clear and vivid, her deep shadow-bluo eyes tlxed on his. Tho music of a two-step was languishing lan-guishing when, a llttlo later, Valiant Hnd Shirley strolled down between tho garden box-hedges, cyprossshaped nml lifting spire-Ilk.) toward a sky which bent, a silent canopy of mauve nnd purplish blue Ilehlnd thorn Dntnory court lay a nest of woven mus c and laughter The long white-miiMlned white-miiMlned porch shlmmored goldenly. and bld0 It under tho lantcniB do!-M do!-M n flirtatious rouplo or two, ghost-like ghost-like In tho shadows ' t'onio." he snld "I.ct mo tako you to see the sun dial now." The tangle had hn cut away and a narrow gnu ol path led through tho prunrd creprs. she made an exeln- "Mition of delight. The onyx pillar ood In an onsU of whlto-nioonflow- ert. white dahlias, mignonette and nar- elMUt. Urn of lute lilies ofthe-val- ! yT' ,blM,,, lwr'lred with Arum- w'.l 'e,r,8W,,,li' lrU aml -Tidal. l"tk: khu'lK out Into lender paler hi J. rlBM "" Plww purity like wawnlBK ptMloa. .v1WI,U '" Wmm." he quotJ. !tJ WI 'emenibfrr I id That mm day. rhap.. nM)Id tZt .1 uJrl MU at ,ta sriit J !.! ""Bt wouM,nt' ,r dW Hta -When I was ry little." Hw I Hilek-say fathvr and I VUv .,, whlch w r , R sr.wr.L ,.,hU UneS Wishing Houso, and It was In tho middle mid-dle of tho Never-Novcr Lund a sort of beautiful fairy country In which overythlng happened right. I know now that the Novcr-Novor Land was Virginia, and that Wishing Houso was Damory court. No wonder ray fathor loved It! No wonder hU momory turned turn-ed back to It always! I'vo wantod to make It as It was when he lived hero. And I want tho old dial to count happy hours for mo. Something had cropt Into his tono that struck her with a strange sweet torror and tumult of mind. Tho hand that clutched hor skirts about her knees had begun to tromblo and sho caught tho other hand to her check In a vaguo hesitant gesture. The moon-flowers moon-flowers seemed to bo great round eyes staring up at her. "Shirley" ho said, and now his volco was shaken with longing "will you mako my happiness for mo?" Sho was standing perfectly still ngalnst tho sun dial, both hands, lnccd together, against hor breast, her eyes on his with a strango startled look. Over tho hush of tho garden now, llko tho very soul of tho passionate night, throbbed tho hnuntlng barcarolo of "Talcs of Hoffmann:" "Nlsht of atari and nlcht of love" an Inarticulate echo of his longing. Ho took a step townrd her, and she turned turn-ed llko ono In sudden terror seeking a way of escape. Hut ho caught her close. In his arms. ' 1 love you!" ho said. "Hear It now In my bride's garden that I've mado for you! I love you, I love you!" For ono Instant she struggled. Then, slowly, her eyes turned to his, tho sweet lips trembling, and something dawning deep In tho dewy bluo that turned all his leaping blood to quick-Bllvrr. quick-Bllvrr. "My darling!" ho breathed, nnd their lips met. In that delirious moment both hnd the senses of divine completion that comes only with lovo returned. For him thero was but tho woman In his arms, the ono woman crentcd for him since tho foundation of tho world. It wns Kismet. For tills ho hnd come to Virginia. For this fato hnd turned and twisted a thousand ways. Through tho riot of his senses, llko n, silver blaze, ran the legend of tho calendar: "Ercry man carries his fato upon a riband nbout his neck." For her, somo- ihtnr scorned to pass from her soul with thnt kiss, somo deep Irrevocable thing, shy but fiercely strong, thnt had sprung to him nt that Up-contact as stool to magnot. Tho follago about them flared up In green light and tho ground under hor fer.t rose and fell llko dcop scn-wavus. Sho lifted her faco to him. It was doathly pale, but tho light that burned on It was lit from tho whitest altar-fires altar-fires of southern girlhood. "Six weeks ago," alio whispered, "you had never seen mo!" Ho held her crushed to him. Sho could foci his heart thudding madly "I'vo always known you," ho said. "I'vo seen you a thousand times. I saw you coming to meet mo down a cherry-blossomed cherry-blossomed lane In Kyoto. I'vo seen your ejea peering from behind a veil In India. I'vo heard your volco calling to mo, through tho pudding camel's feet, from tho desert mirages. You nro tho dream I havo gone searching always! Ah, Shlrloy, Shirley, Shir-ley!" Shir-ley!" CHAPTER XXVI. , The Doctor Speaks. Whllo tho vibrant strings hummed nnd snng through tho roses, nnd tho couples drifted on tlroless nnd content, con-tent, or blissfully "sat out" dances on tho stairway, Kothorlno Forgo hold ,hor Btately court no less gaily for tho Btealthy doubt that waB creeping over her spirit. Sho had been so certain of what would happen that evening that when hor fathor (between cigars on tho porch with Judge Chalmers and Doctor Southall) had searched her out under a flngof-truco, sho had sent him to tho right-about, laughingly declining de-clining to depart before royalty. Hut number followed number, and the knight In purple aid gold had not paused again before her. Now tho scarlet cloak no longer flaunted among tho dancers, and 'the whlto sntln gown nnd sparkling coronal had disappeared. The end of the next "rounddanco" found her subsiding Into tho flower-banked alcove suddenly sudden-ly distrait amid hor escort's sallies. It waa at this moment that sho saw, en.' terlng tho corridor from tho garden, tho missing couple. It was not tho faint flusli on Shir ley's check that wns not deep nor wns It his nearness to her, though they stood closely, as lovers might. Hut thero was In both tholr faces a somo-thing somo-thing that resurgent conventionality had not had time to cover a trembling trem-bling reflection of that "light that never was. on sea or land" which was llko a death-stab to what lay far deeper deep-er than Kntharlno'B heart, her prldo. She drew swiftly back, dismayed at tho sudden verification, and for an Instant In-stant her wholo body chilled. A craving for a glass of water has served Its purpose n thousand times; as her cavalier solicitously departed to fetch tho cooling draught, she roso, and carelessly humming tho refrain tho muslo had Just left off, sauntered lightly out by another door to tho open air. A swift glnnco nbout her showed her she was unobserved and sho stopped stop-ped down to tho grass nnd nlong the winding path to a bench at somo dls-tanco dls-tanco In tho shrubbery. Hero tho smiling mask slipped from hor face and with a shiver sho dropped her hot faco In hor hands. Thero wcro no tears. Tho wave that was welling over her was ono of bitter humiliation. Sho had shot hor bo't and missed sho, Katharine Fnr-go! Fnr-go! For threo years sho hnd held John Vnllnnt, romantically neaklng in tho hollow of her shapely hand. Now sho hnd nil but thrown herself at his feet and ho had turned nway lo this llamc-haircd, vivid girl whom ho bad not known as many months) Heavy footfalls nil nt onco nproach-cd nproach-cd her two mon were coming from tho houso. Thero was tho spitting cracklo of a match, and as she peered out, Its red floro lighted thn massive faco and floating hair of Major Hristow. Hris-tow. Ills companion's faco waa In tho shadow. Sho waited, thinking thoy would pass; but to her annoyance, when sho looked again, they hud seated seat-ed themselves un a bench a fow paces away. To be found mooning In the shrubbery shrub-bery llko a schoolgirl did not pleasa her, but It soemed thoro whh no recourse, re-course, nnd sho hnd half arisen, when tho major's gruff-voiced companion spoko a nnmo that caused her to sit down abruptly. ITO I1K CONTINUDD.) |