The Sunday herald. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1866-1887, 1880-09-05
The Cold Hand Of MOrbeCk
Ivy u. ". RASKiHG.

Gedgci All, well, 1t is n sad one, but
strangely interesting for all that; SO stir the
fire, my boy-the nights get colder, think,
this spring, instead Of warmer-and light
your pipe, and you shall hear 1t.
Poor Lucy IT, You had seen her even as
| last saw her you would have sail that sho
was Just the girl to make an honest man
happy, and TO live out a placid, honorcd life
of wife and motherhood without any great
trouble or even excitement TO disturb 1T; she
was such an innocent, pretty lass. II was
not at all the sort of face that man would
dream of as being connected with tragedy,
but | doubt IL you ever heard of u hitterer
tragedy than that havc to tell you. Do you
remember Mcrbcrk Hall, the great house you
exclaimed ut when we were driving ycstcr-
day, though you could only get
glimpse of II in the distance, through
the trees That was Lucy's home, and
il has been on my mind to tell you about
her ever since. She was my niece on
the mothers side, for the last of the Gedgrs
of Morbccl ms old family rs any between
Tweed AMI Trent, married my youngest sis
ter; it was n love-inatch to be sure, for she
had not silver, though you know, lad, the
Chalmers are as good a line rs any in the
country side, and they were a happy couple,
God rest them! But there was never but one
child, my niece and goddaughtcr, Lucy, and
her dear mother was taken when shc was
but q little bit of u things 80 she grew up
her fathers pet and paytliing aud his CHIEF
companions for he would not put any other
woman in my dead sister Marian's place
and the older she grew the BONNER she he
camc till, what with her beauty, and what
with the tales of her fathers wealth, the
heads of half the young men in the county
were turned Ivy the hcircss of Morbcck.
c.l Hat s,,,t l,.,T, a,
grew to nineteen, old John Gedge died, and
when his will came to be read it was found
that Lucy, as was just, would inherit every
thing when she came of age, saving few
legacies to old servants and the like; but
| meanwhile she was left under the joint
guardianship of myself and her fathers sis
ter, Mrs. Postlethwayte, and could not marry
without our joint consent. OF course the
poor child could not come TO the rcctory
here, with no companion but an old bache;
Tor like me; besides it seemed wrong that the
hall should be shut up so long as there was
one of the race to live in it, so it, was ar
| ranged that this aunt of hers should come and
| live there with her, as chaperon and what
| not. She made a great talk, did Aunt Pos
| tlethwaytc, about the sacrifice she was max
ing for the sake of her family, in burying
| herself in such an out-of- tle-way corner of
the world; but for my part thought she
| was in the luck of it. to b"living at rack and
manger at Morbeck Hall, with such com
panion as my dear lasse, instead of eking
out her widows jointure among a lot of old
Tables in some stufy London street But to
do her Justice, think the woman meant
well, and she was kind to Lucy after a fash
ion of her own, for do believe she loved the
poor child as much as she could loveauy one
but herself. After all, she was II Gcdge OF
Morbeck, and noblesse obligc, you know,
my boy. She was just one of those women
| darcsay you have seen plenty of them in
Lundon--who can't forget at fifty that they
were beauties at half the age, and who have
managed by hook and Ivy crook to get their
own way all their lives. suppose her hus-
| band knocked under for peace and quiet
ness sake, and she never had any children
| to worry, so she came to domineer over Lucy
with all the delight of having found new
| pastimc. | remember one time when she
was i'll, and like the obstinate fool she was,
wouldn't obey the doctor; she said that she
had had her own way all her life, and was
not going to he contradiced at her time Of
life! thought should have cholsed When
that slipped out; but it was no laughing
matter, lad, the mischief she made through
that SWAY" of hers
We'll, to make II long story short, the aunt
marry some scapcgrace of a fellow, who's,
name don't remember, and don't want to-
| never saw him; his chief RECOMMENDATION:
were n broken constitution, an empty purse
n distant relationship to the late Tom Pos
tlethwayte, and an old title. So Madam lat
settled that bonnie Lucy Gedgc should b,
my lady, and bolster up my lords falling
fortunes with the broad lands aud full coi
fers of Morbeck Hall. Unfortunately for he
schemes it takes two to make u bargain, an'
my niece was as sensible a girl rs eve
stepped in shoe leather, SO it was open wa
between them, or rather passive resistanc
on Lucy's part, and q course of alternat
nagging and wheeling Oh her aunt's.
knew the main reason of the girl stcadfast
ness well enough-she would tell anythin
to her old uncle John, bless her There wa
true love and faithful tr0th between her am
young Hugh Nelson, of Gilthwaite; and H.
was of my own blood too, though not SO nea
as lucy, and had watched him grow u
from n bright, misunderstanding boy to Tia
handsome, brave young squire, for WHOM
every one had u smile and Il good word
Just the man, thought, to make my dan
ling happy. But, as told you, they could d
nothing Independent till Lucy was of age, s
there was nothing for IL but to wait, an
they did wait patiently, while we three kel
the secret, and how the poor girl put up wit
all that old woinan's vagarics all the tim
will always he a wonder to me.
However, time slipped away, and I'll
twenty-iirst birthday came, and then, by IN
advice, Hugh appeared at Morbeck Hail. I
greet his cousin and make Il formal offer
, his hand and heart, and need not tell yo
that she took him then and there. Yo
should have seen Aunt Postlethwayte's face
| thought she was going 10 have u fit, but sl
thought better of IL and after n torrent
abuse directed at Hugh, some flowers
speech specially devoted to me, and a gel
eral peroration relating to ingratitnde, COZ
spiracy, and the like, she announced her il
Y. tention of washing her hands of the who
affair, and going back to London as soon
her boxes were packed-and precious gli
we all were, can tell you, when they we
brought down into the great hall rea,
corded ! fancy she managed TO feather Ia
nest pretty well during those two years
SO, madam having taken herself oil
dudgeon, there was nothing left to hinde
and arrangements for the wedding were +
on foot at once. II was to he very qui
affair at my own little church at Gilthwaii
and of course was to marry them. So as
"A" would have been too far for Lucy to drive
the morning, and, besides that, she could u
well he married from her own great lone
on the previous evening to sleep at the r,
tory, and the wedding should take place fr,
V thence. And now comes tho sad and stran
=. part of the story.
" 1t was early in February-iust we
after Candlemas, as | remember only I
4 well-when ! arrived, late in the gray aft,
noon, at Morbeok, where was to dine wi
my ward before We started for Gilthwa
rectory. The winter had been an u
= usually severe one, oven for these par
but in the last days OF January I
ds frost had broken up, and it seemed as
~ our old north country saying a. 10 a "
IT, Candlemas We're TO be literally carried OF
~ for ever since the ID, when it had been @
he constant downpour, there had been suco
81 sion of mild, muggy days, with an oyere'
sky, and AN inGessant drzzle AS the q
riage that had been sent to fetch me drove
the avenue in the failing light of the aft
neon, there was something in the air Il