Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1880-01-22

long time we could hear nothing at all ther
at last we heard, in a roundabout way, of theil
having gone to some place out West. Your
grandfather started to 60 there, but he got IL
and had to turn back. He was terribly broker
down by what had happened, and looked
nearly twenty years older than before. Their
Farmer Thorndale went, but could not find
them. He only heard that couple answering
their description had been there, but nobody
could tell what had become of them only he
heard"
"Well v' said Edward as she stopped.
81 don't like to say it.
"You must and shall 60 or" exclaimed the
boy, whose young face had grown hard and
stern with the intensity of his feeling, and the
effort it cost him not betray it.
"Well, he heard enough to confirm him in the
fear, which they had felt, all along, that there
had been no marriage at all. A letter came
to Mr.. Dudley too, telling him the same thing
but it was anonymous, and they couldn't
trace the writer. Altogether there seemed to
be good deal of mystery about the affair;
but enough was heard to make it pretty evi-
dent that Eustace was rascal and had de-
ceived your mother throughout" -
"But there was no proof, after all, that she
had gone with him." .ssa.-. '..
"No proof-no; but after what had hap
pened before, who could doubt it?" s,3
Edward sat with folded arms, as still as a
statue, only his white face and compressed
lips affording some hint of the conflict that
was going on in his breast. What that con-
Aict was, poor lad, it is not difficult to i'm.
imagine. But with sternest resolution he re-
Trained from giving expression to it by word
or sign. In the last ten minutes he seemed
to have grown old. If they had been ages in.
stead of minutes, they could hardly have laid
a heavier weight of care and anguish upon
him.
"And that is all ?" he asked presently.
"Nearly all. Your grandfather died, bro
ken.hearted. Her conduct was blow that
crushed him too completely for him ever to
recover from it. Then his sister, Mrs. Thorn
dale, and her husband, came into possession
of the farm and all his other property. Be.
tween two and three years later, as Farmer
Thorndale was coming home from Rockford
one bitter cold, snowy night, he discovered
your mother and yourself, then baby under
q year old, out on the moor, and brought you
both in. Of course you've heard all about
that before" .. ...s
"Was there-had she proof about her
nothing to show that rumor had been false ?"
Charity looked down. Her features worked
for an instant, as if with some inward scruple
or doubt; then she raised her eyes again and
fixed them steadily on his face.
"There was one proof" she answered in a
low deliberate tone, "that rumor had not
played her false. There was no wedding ring
on her hand"
aThat can not be considered proof"
quickly rejoined Edward. "She may have
been forced, through necessity, to pawn or
sell it"
"A woman would pawn or sell all the
clothes she had on her back, before parting
with her wedding ring" rejoined Charity.
"Her culpability seems to have been mere
matter of conjecture, from beginning to end"
said Edward, rising from his chair. 81, for
one, do not accept it as fact. and never shall,
without some stronger evidence of it than you
have brought forward yet
"Oh ! you don't believe it, don't you?"
asked Charity with vindictive .sneer. She
also arose, and stood confronting him, with
look of suppressed hate and rage that he had
never seen on her face, or any other face, be-
fore. 1t absolutely made him shudder.
"No, don't believe syllable of it-not
nesyllable," he replied. "And what is more,
| shall devote myself, in future, to the task of
clearing up all doubt and mystery on the sub
ject, and of tracing out the proofs of my
mothers innocence"
"You don't believe she ran away from home
at all, do your"
"She may have been persuaded into taking
that step by the fear of encountering farther
opposition at home; but that she would will
lingly do evil, / cannot believe"
understand me, Master Edward" contin-
ued Charity, more smoothly, 81 didn't say,
nor wish to insinuate, that thought she had
done evil soillingly. I said she had been de-
ceived, and that's just what everybody else
always supposed. She was very young, and
knew nothing of the world. As likely as not
there was false marriage, though we never
heard of it"
, eff she was deceived" rejoined Edward,
"the villain who called himself her lover
should have been followed to the ends of the
earth, and punished for his crime. l can't
imagine how he could have been allowed to
escape"
"What were folks to do? Your grand
father was old, and nearly driven out of his
wits by trouble. Farmer Thorndale, as !
told you, went to the only place where he
had any tidings from, and there he was baf
fed in his search. They took great pains, l
fancy, TO conceal themselves; though I ad-
NIT it does seem singular they should have
succeeded so we'll"
81 wonder why Mrs. Thorndale never told
me of all this" said Edward, halfinaudibly.
swell, it's easy enough to imagine why.
In the first place, she's fond of you, and
didn't want to cause you pain by the knowl.
edge of what was past remedying. In the
second, she felt, no doubt, that it would be
hard thing for you to feel yourself in sort
of way entitled to all this property, and yet
be cut out of it except through her bounty.
In the third, 1 believe, in my heart, she wants
you to marry Jennie, and knows well enough
that with your sense of honor you never
would compromise the girl by asking her to
marry you, under the circumstances.
This speech stung her hearer like thorns
and nettles but it was with the same forced
outward composure that he remarked
81 cannot doubt that her reasons, whatever
they may be, have been prompted by her af-
fection for me- since that has always been un-
bounded. 1 should like to know your motives
for telling me the secret she has so long care
fully concealed?"
MMu mntiues2 Oh thew ore nlain enough