Show V 7 fia Z M sw s w ai 4 7 V fr IAL STORY T t wf TIM L ua V 1 5 py ra r othe o the A 11 LAD V 7 1 N ARABELLA by MOLLY ELLIOT SEAWELL L J copyright 1900 bobbs bobba morrill co SYNOPSIS is at 14 years of age admiral sir peter I nephew richard claird glyn fell deeply in love at first sight y with lady arabella stormont who spurned ills attentions tho the lad e an orphan orp lian was given a berth as midshipman on the ajax by ills uncle giles vernon nep liew of sir thomas vernon became the hie boys pal they attended a 4 theater where nephew saw lady arabella vernon met philip overton next in ill line for sir thomaa vernons Ver ic estate they started star teda la duel which was vas interrupted si vernon overton and hawk r shaws nephew found themselves attracted b by pretty lady arabella the ajax ajak in battle tle defeated french warships in the mediterranean III richard e hard glyn get 2000 w prize money he was called home by I 1 lady hawkshaw as lie he was about to blow in his earnings with vornon vernon ata hawkshaw party glyn discovered 1 V that lady Ar arabella abdlla was a poor but persistent s I 1 s t ent gambler ile iio talked much with t her sifter daphne T W C CHAPTER V continued my aly infatuation for lady arabella M continued but I 1 can not say she ever showed me the least mark of favor V but that she did to no one except overton and I 1 soon knew what everybody in the town knew that she was v 41 desperately smitten with him and if would have bestowed d herself and her fortune upon him at any moment if he would but ace accept ept it As for giles vernon she showed him what no other woman ever did a coolness at first 1 l that deepened into something like active AC 4 hatred she knew lie he stood between overton and the heirs bip to the T W vernon estates and that was enough 41 to make hor her dislike him she often remarked x upon ills want of good looks and she was the only woman I 1 ever knew to do it yet giles was undeniably hard featured and except a good figure had nothing in his person rt to recommend him I 1 had thought that pride would have kept giles from paying court to a person so inimical to him but pride was the excuse he gave for still pursuing her he declared declare dhe he had never no never been flouted by a woman and that lady arabella should yet come at his call this I 1 believed at the time to be mere bravado ile ho was enchanted by her that was the truth and could no more leave her than the moth cah cab leave the candle I 1 saw much of daphne in those days chiefly lefly because I 1 could bouli see so little of lady arabella ara ella who led a lifo life of 0 f sin gular independence little restrained by the authority of lady hawkshaw Hawks baw aud and none at all by sir peter daphne was fond of books and commonly went about with one under her arm 1 I too was inclined to be bookish and so there was something in common be tween us she was keener of wit than any one in that house and I 1 soon learned to take delight in her conversation in lady marabellas Ara bellas absence my love for the lady arabella was I 1 admit the fond fancy of a boy while giles vernons Ver was the mad infatuation of a man giles wa was enuch with us at that time arid abidi knowledge vc led 9 e I 1 had great benefit ne f from rom tho the spending of ills his prize money or rather I 1 should say much enjoyment ment he laid it tint jut right royally asked the price of nothing auditor and for the time tim e lie he was in london footed Y ft W with I 1 th the best of them his lineage 0 o and ills his to sir thomas vernon gave him entrance anywhere and his wit and courage made ills his place secure shortly after we arrived sir thomas vernon also arrived at his house in grosvenor square we were bound to meet him for giles went much into gay society as I 1 did in the train of lady hawkshaw the first time this occurred was a drum at her grace of Au chesters where all of london was P assembled even overton who was rarely seen in drawing rooms was there giles of course was there her grace had fallen fal lenAn in love with him as women usually did the first time she met him it was a great house for play and when we arrived we found the whole suite of splendid apartments on oil the lower floor prepared for cards there was the usual crush and clamor of a fine london party and 1 I being young and unsophisticated en joyed it as did D daphne names were bawled out at the head of the stairs but could not be distinguished over the roar of voices I 1 happened to be near the door with giles lady arabella arabelia lea 0 0 1 ti V it was lady marabellas Ara bellas seln petticoat being near by when I 1 heard the name thomas vernon shouted out as he entered he was a man of middle size and was between 40 and 50 years of agie age he might once have been handsome but the ravages of an evil nature and a broken constitution were plainly visible in ills his countenance I 1 observed that as lie he stood glancing about him before making ills his dovola devoirs to the duchess of auchester no one spoke to him or 0 r seemed disposed to recognize him this only brought a sardonic grin to his countenance he advanced and was civilly though not cordially received by her grace at that moment giles approached and spoke to her and the change in the great ladys manner showed the favor in which she hold held him sir thomas scowled upon giles but bowed slightly and giles returned the look by a steady glance and this stinging remark good evening sir thomas you look very ill Is your health as desperate as I 1 heard it was two years ago A titter went around tit at this and giles moved off smiling presently sir thomas caught sight of 0 lady arabella and as usual he was instantly struck by her exquisite beauty he succeeded in being presented to her and I 1 noted that she received him with affability about midnight the company company broke up and our party made a move to go but lady arabella announced that slier she had been invited by her grace of auchester to stay the night and she wished to do so neither sir peter nor lady hawkshaw perfectly approved but lady arabella carried her p point with the assistance of the duchess at the last moment hoc her grace a fine woman approached me and said confidentially amr mr wynne glyn I 1 mean will you not remain and share a game with a choice collection of players I 1 was mattered flattered at being asked and besides I 1 wanted wante dOto to see how these great london ladles ladies acted at such play so I 1 accepted but it was another thing to get away from froin lady hawkshaw however I 1 managed to elude her by giving a shilling to a foot footman nian who shoved me into a little closet and then went and told lady hawkshaw I 1 had gone home in a coach with a gentleman who had been taken ill III and had left word tor for them to go without me this pacified her and she and sir peter and daphne went away with the crowd there were left about 20 persons who after a little supper and general expressions of relief at the departure of the other guests sat down to play at one in the morning there was a cabinet minister also a political parson two peers of the realm several officers of the guards giles vernon and your humble servant the ladies were mostly old lady arabella was the youngest of them all but all very great in rank I 1 had wanted to see london ladies play and I 1 saw them jack with ills his greasy cards in the forecastle laying his months wages was a child to them and how bow they watched one another and quarreled and fought no one among them played so eagerly as lady arabella and very badly as usual so that she managed to lose ose all her money sh she e was ever a bad player with all her passion for play her last guinea went and then determined not to be balked she rose and said laughing 1 I have on a new white satin petticoat C with lace that cost three guineas the yard it is very fit for waistcoats no gentleman will be so unga ungallant ilant a as to refuse my petticoat as a stake 4 of course they all applauded and lady arabella retiring rint behind a screen emerged with her satin petticoat how it shone and shimmered in IA her hand and in five minutes she had lost it to giles vernon verdon there wa laughter but giles gravely folding it up tip laid it aside and when we departed in the gray light of dawn he carried it off under his arm As for me I 1 had lost all the money I 1 had with me and had given my 1 I 0 TJ for 2300 next day lady arabella was dropped in berkeley square by her grace of auchester it was in the afternoon and I 1 was sitting in the chinese room with lady hawkshaw and daphne when lady arabella appeared well dicky she sald said a very offensive mode of addressing me how do you stand your losses at play 7 and as I 1 am a sinner she plumped out the whole story of my play to lady hawkshaw and daphne As an officer and a gentleman I 1 scorned to retaliate by telling of the white satin petticoat but vengeance was at band just as she had finished when lady ha hawkshaw wk was swelling with rage like a toad before opening her main batteries on me and daphnes fair eyes were full of contempt for me we heard a commotion outside none of us could keep from going to the window and the sight we saw threw lady arabella into a perfect tempest of angry tears A fife and drum were advancing up the street playing with great vigor the old tune known as petticoats loose behind them marched with the deepest gravity a couple of marines bearing aloft on their muskets a glittering shimmering thing that fluttered whitely in the air it was tady lady marabellas Ara bellas satin petticoat and halting hailing before the door the drum drummer itier with a great nourish flourish pounded the knocker on the porters responding the two marines handed the petticoat in with ceremony to him directing him to convey it to the Lady Arabella stormont with the compliments of giles vernon of his maje service this the man did and was almost torn to pieces by her for doing doine so though in what way lie ho had offended I 1 know not to this day it was a trilling thing and made laughter for us all including lady hawkshaw except arabella she seemed to liate hate giles with a more virulent hatred after that and tried very hard to induce lady Hawl hawkshaw shaw to forbid him the house which however lady hawk shaw refused to do neither giles nor I 1 had by any means forgotten our appointment to tc meet deot capt overton on oil the field of honor and as the time tillie approached for the mooting meeting giles sent a very civil note to overton asking him to name a gentleman who would see me to arrange the preliminaries for I 1 would never have for glyen giles had lio ho chosen any one oil else overton responded spon ded naming our old first lie lieutenant kitei I 1 mr buxton who happened to bo be in london then and was an acquaintance of ills his I 1 believe overtones ortona Ov object in asking mr buxton to act for him was the hope that the affair might be arranged for from what I 1 had heard of the deeply religious turn overton had taken I 1 concluded tho meeting was somewhat against his hia conscience 1 I know how it will be dicky ho ha growled you will sit like a great gaby with your mouth open imagining I 1 n the tavern parlor to be the cockpit of the ajax mr buxton will L talk alk to you in lits his quarter deck voce and you will be so frightened that you will agree to use at 40 paces provided mr buxton proposes it this I 1 indignantly denied and swore I 1 would meet mr buxton as man inan to man nevertheless when we were sitting at the table in mr britons Bux tons I 1 lodgings V I 1 did very much as gi giles lles had predicted I 1 forgot several things that I 1 had wished to say and said seve several things I 1 wished I 1 had forgotten 0 mr buxton lid did no not 1 I let me forget however that he had been my first lieutenant and I 1 was but a midshipman ile ho called my principal a hotheaded hot headed jackanapes before my very face adding angrily bi but it for him I 1 should have ha ve been first on the alie deck to all this I 1 made but a feeble protest and finally it was arranged that the meeting should take place at d a spot very near richmond at eight on the morning of june 29 when the date was set and the arrangements range ments made I 1 began to feel very much frightened not so giles there was to be a great ball at al macks on the night of the and giles announced that lie he was going it was a very special occasion for him bim because the trenchard whom he still called the divine sylvia and professed to admire as much as ever was to ga go that night she was then the rage and had bad a carriage diamonds and a fine establishment yet I 1 believe her conduct to have been irreproachable she had long been consumed with a desire to go to Al macks but up tip to that time no actress had ever yet enjoyed the privilege it seemed grotesque enough that a young midshipman of no more consequence than giles vernon should succeed in carrying this through but such was actually the case and giles accomplished it by that singular power he possessed by which no woman could say eay him nay he worked with much art upon those great ladies her grace of auchester and lady conyngham and got them pledged to it of course the most violent opposition was developed but giles who had a perfect knowledge of the feminine heart managed a to inspire these two ladles ladies with the wish to exercise their sovereignty oyer over macks Al by doing what was never done before having led them into the fight they had no thought ai 0 running away and the result resul was innumerable heart burnings and jealousies and meanwhile a cardi card for mrs trenchard TO BE CONTINUED |