The Superior times. [volume] (Superior, Wis.) 1870-1912, 1880-09-25
From the Pen.
THE COLD HAND OF MORBECK.
By b. NJ. RANKING.

tell this tale as nearly as possible
III the words of my friend, the Rev. John
Chalmers, sometime rector Of Gil
thwalte, IN the county of Durham
Did | ever tell you the history of Lucy
Gedge? All well, it is sad one, but
strangely interesting for all that; SO stir
the fire, my boy-the nights get colder,
TINS spring, instead of warner-and light
your pipe and You shall hear it.
Poor Lucy! If you had seen her even
as | last saw her you would have said
that she was just the girl to make an
honest man happy, and to live out
placid, honorable life of wife and moth
crhood without amy great trouble or even
excitement to disturb it; she was such
an innocent, pretty lass. 1t was notat all
the sort of face that a man would dream
of as being connected with tragedy, but
doubt if you ever heard of a bittercr
tragedy than that ] have to tell you.
Do Won remember MorDcck Hall, the
great house Won exclaimed at when we
were driving yesterday, though You
could only get a glimpse of it IN the dis
lance through the trees That was
+ Lucy's home, and it has been on my
mind to tell you about hcr ever since
+ She was my niece ON the mothers side,
/ for the last of the Gedges of Morbeck, as
/ old family as any between Tweed and
Trent, married my youngest sister; it
WAS Il lovely fact to be sure, for she had
not a silver though you know, lad the
I Chalmers are as good a line as any i'll
! the countryside; and they were happy
couple, God rest theml But there was
1 never but one child, my niece and grand
/ daughter Lucy, and her dear mother was
! taken when she was but a little bit of a
I thing; 50 she grew up her fathers pet
and plavthing, and his chief companion:
for he would not put any other woman
III my dead sister Marian's place-aud
the older she grew the BONNER she be
came, till what with her beauty, and
what with the tales Of her fathers wealth,
the heads of half the young men in the
country were turned by the heiress Of
/ Morbeck.
Well, so it fell out that, just before
she grew to nineteen, old John Gedgo
died and when his will came to be read,
it was found that Lucy, as was Just,
would inherit everything when she came
Of age. saving n few legacies to old ser
wants and the like: but meanwhile she
was left under the joint guardianship OF
myself and her fathers sister, Mrs Pos
tlethwayte, and could not marry without
our Joint consent OF course the child
could not come to the rectOry here, with
no companion but an old bachelor like
me: besides ii seemed wrong that the
hall should be shut up SO long rs there
was one of the race TO live in it, SO it was
! 81,
| come and live there with her, as chapc
ron and what not She made great talk
| did Aunt PostlcthwaYte, about the sac
ritice she was making for the sake of hel
family, IN burying herself In such IN out
of-the-way corner of the world: but fol
nv part | thought she was the luck q
il. to he living at rack and manager a
Morbeck Hall. with such companion
aS my dear laSslc, instead of eklng on
her widow joIuture amongst a lot Of olC
tabbies IN some stutfv London street
But to 90 her Justice, / think the woman
meant well. and she was kind TO Luc1
after a fashion Of her own. for | do be
lieve she loved the poor child rs mucI
rs she could love any one but herself
After all. she WAS a Gedge OF Morheck
and noblesse obhge you know, my boy
She was Just one OF those women dare
say you have seen plenty of themiu Lon
don-whn can't forget at fifty that the,
were beauties ut half the age, and VIII,
a have managed by hook and by crook t,
: get then own way all their lives. l sup
pose her husband knocked under 70
: peace and quictness' sake, and she nevc
0 had any children to worry, SO she cam
,. to dOmIneer over Lucy with all the dc
: light Of having found new pastimo.
f. remember one time when She was i'll
and, like the obstinate fool she was
: wouldn't obey the doctor; she said sin
8 bad had her own way all Ler life aud va