The St. Cloud journal. [volume] (St. Cloud, Minn.) 1866-1876, 1876-03-16
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ADELME I: sMARSDEN'S
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PROLOGUE.

PROLOGUE. "
A HUNDRED YEARS AGO. :.
About hundred years ago the
representative Of Gaveston soiff sSoff Cav
eston Court, vas engaged il i The "a m:mel l.
ancholy occupation familiarly, known
as "going to the dogs.n' - =, With q line
Of ancestors ! Of !: whom i the - gsreate.,t
peer In the Kingdom might have been.
proud, with . coat farms which bore
an augmentation ofihon6r besto~ea
in old days by a sovereign for ueop7,
spicuous 1alor on. the field ofobattle.
with magnificent estate, an: ample
income, 4 fair wife and fairer child,
Hugh Galveston was leading 4 dis;
solute. and degraded life {; and the
only question was when would it end,
and another of. the. line be carried
out to the stately mousolenm which
lowered above the village church. :,
Sir Hugh Gaveston, for the owner
of Gaveston Court was a Baronet,
had everything it would seem which
a man could desire in life, and yet
he was not only killing himself by
the most reckless debauchery, but. he
was making away with the estate
which, though unentailed, had de-
scended from father to son for cen.
turies. Sir Hugh was an inveterate
gambler, and, seeing that he was::also
addicted to drinking beyond even
the license Of the time, it was ,;1 plain,
to his friends and neighbors that in .
very few years the lands Of Gaveston
would pass into other hands, and, be
would leave his iinfain: son :penniless.
Hihs' passion for gaming ;ia AZ possssii+
ble ways was simply maniacal, :aaRRd
there was = story current in the coun-
II that when he had mono Of 6iis: dis.
selute friends staying VIII him; apd
could persuade none Of bis immedi-
aite neighbors to join in playing 90 e'iasga.
or dicing, he gamb. ed with himself,
transferring guineas from one pocket
TO the other with all the punctuality
Of a man paying his debts in hon?
or. H. -
1t was thought that when Hugh
Galveston married he would, as the
phrase runs, settle down but matri-
mony, however much may be hoped
from it, does not always wean = man
from evil courses and, indeed, there
is no greater fallacy than the old say.
ing that reformed rake makes the
best husband. Not that there: wa
any semblance Of reformation about
Sir Hugh. To do him justice, :: he
never pretended that he was going to
mend his ways. He married 3 nice
looking girl Of good family, with: the
laudaole purpose Of securing an heir
to the Gavestoa estates-whieh. was
after al, . work Of supererogation
seeing that he was gambling: away
the said estates as fast as possible
Lady Gaveston was q meek and. gen
tie little woman, who had married
wild Sir Hugh asehe would have MARI
ed any man she VA ordered to aecsp
by her parents; and, once married
and having found out her husbands
habits, she resigned herself to a lif
fofs misery with. the heroic composur'
peculiar to women. The Victoris
Gross hangs on many a breast; "fo'
valor," as its legend tells; but there
are women who deserve it as much q
the brave soldiers who wear IT.
whose life is one long martyrdom
and who are too proud even to seel
the poor consolation which migh
spring from the sympathy Of thei'
own sex. Lady Gaveston bore her
self bravely, and no complaint eve
passed her wan lips. Her intan
child was great comfort to her
though, at times, terrible fear seizet
her that he might inherit his father
mania, and the little hands which
clasped her neck 80 tightly might one
day be Is eager to seize cards and
dice a. were his fathers. Sir Hugh
was not uukind in his manner, but he
simply neglected his wife; his whole
soul was centred in games of chance
and, although he had borne = reputa
ton for gallantry in his youth, j
must be said, in Justice to him, tha
her only rivals were the 1ine:lagoi
and the dice:box. >>-'.s' ''''' ~ =
4 Hugh Gaveston's great friend an
ally was : man he had picked up i
one Of his: frequent visits 70. London
d certain James, or, as he was gene,
ally called, Jim Marsden, a man q
low extrlction butapparentlv wealthy
for he not only gambled with s.
Hugh as much IS that worthy >desi'
ed, and that was great deal, but !
4 very often lent his patron none
when he Or others had empt,ed Il
] Baropet's purse. Sir Hugh VA. !