The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1880-09-23
THE COLD HAND OF MORBECK.
BY B. NJ. RANKING.

tell this tale as nearly as possible in the words
of my old friend, the Rev. John Chalmers, some
time rector of Gilthwaite, in the county of Dur
ham.
Did never tell you the history of Lucy Gedge
All WELL it is a sad one, but strangely interesting
for all that; so stir the fire, my boy-the nights
are getting cold, think-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 tolive out
a placid, hOnored life of wife and motherhood
without any great trouble or even excitement to
disturb it; she was such an innocent pretty lass
It was not at all the sort of a face that man
would dream of as being connected with tragedy
but doubt if you ever heard of bitterer tragedy
than that have to tell you
Do you remember Morbeck Hall, the great
house you exclaimed at when we were driving
yesterday, though you could only get glimpse of
il in the distance through the trees? That was
Lucy's home, and it 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 Gedges of
Morbeck, as old family as any between Tweed
and Trent, married my youngest sister; it was a
lOve-match, to be sure, for she had not a silver,
though you know, lad, the Chalmers are as good
line as any in the countryside, and they were
happy couple, God rest them But there was
never but one child, my niece and gOddaughter,
Lucy, and her dear mother was taken when she
was little bit Of a thing; so she grew up her
fathers pet and plaything, and his chief compan-
ion; for he would not put any other woman in my
dead sister Marian's place-and the older she
grew the BONNER she became, 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 by the heiress of Morbeck.
Well so it fell out that, just before she grew to
nineteen, old John Gedge died, and when his will
came TO be read II was found that Lucy, was
just, would inherit everything 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 sister
Mrs. POstlethWayte, and could not marry without
our joint consent. OF course the poor 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 a
there of the 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 great talk did Aunt POstlethwayte, about
the sacrifice she making for the sake of her
family, in buryng herself in such an Out-Of-the-
way corner Of the world but, for my part, ]
thought she was in luck to be living at rack and
manger at MOrbeck Hail. with such "a companion
as my dear lassie instead of eking out her wild
Ow's jointure amongst lot of old t3,bbies in some
stufy London street. But, to do her Justice,
think the woman meant well and she was kind to
Lucy after a fashion of her own for | do believe
she loved the poor child as much as she could love
any one but herself After all, she was a Gedge of
Morbeck, and nObesse Oblige, you know, nv bow
She was Just one of those women daresay YOU
have seen many of them in LOndon-who can't
forget at fifty that they beauties at half the
age, and who have managed by hook and by
crook to get their own way all their lives | sup
pose her poor husband knocked under for peace
and quetness' sake and she never had any chill
dren to worry, so she came to domneer over Lucy
with all the delight Of having found a new pas
time l remember one time when she was ill.,
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 be cOntradicted
at her time Of life! / thought / should have
ehoked when that slipped out; but it was no
laughing matter, lad, the mischief she made
through that 'way' of hers
Wen, TO make a long story short, the aunt had
firmly determined that her niece should marry
some scapegrace of fellow whose name I don't
remember and don't want to- never saw him /:
his chief recommendations were broken consti-
tuition, an empty purse, "a distant relationship TO
the late Tom POstlethwayte and an old title So
madam had settled that bonnie Lucy Gedge should
be my lady, and bolster up my lords falling for
tunes with the broad lands and full Golfers of
Morbeck Hail. Unfortunately for her schemes il
takes two to make a bargain, and my niece was as
sensible girl as ever stepped in shoe leather 50
II was open war between them, or rather passive
resistance on Lucy's part, and course of alter
nate nagging and wheedling on her aunt's
] knew the main reason Of the girls steadfast-
ness well enOugh-she would tell anything to hel
old Uncle John, bless her! There was true Low,
and faithful troth between her and Young Hugh
Nelson, of Gilthwaite; and he of my owl
blood, too, though not so near as Lucy, and haC
watched him grow up from bright, mischief
loving boy to the handsome, brave young squire
for whom every one had a smile and good wore
just the man, ! thought, to make my darling
happy. But, as ! told you, they could do nothing
independent till Lucy was of age, so there wa
nothing for it but to wait, and they did wait pa