Weekly commercial herald., 1885-09-18
DARK DAYS
BY HUGH CONWAY.
Author Of "CaUed Back.u
CONTINUED from Sunday. August Of

do part!
SAID no word as to the result of nv I,
qulrles in Liverpool / had no difficulty
Persuadlng Philippa, who in some thine
was as simple and trusting as child thu
IL was necessary, or at least advisable sb
should be married under the name whic
ner nrsT certificate of marriage affected r
DestoW upon her. She signed her mama fc
]the last it may, for aught know have alS
Oeen the first time, as Philippa Ferran1
and | noticed that she shuddered az oh
formed the letters.
Although my bride was by birth half
oPanlard, and although / had by now i
nsany ways conformed to the Spanish mod
vi NE we were still English enough to lool
upon gong away somewhere for honey
moon as indispensable. 1t would be but
sIlor, VIlp; and as my mother in our absence
Woulo DC left at Seville alone, or with thu
servants only, we did not care to 90 very
lar away 1t so happened that, althoupl
30 close TO Cadiz, we had not yet paid tba
town low! visit and thought the present can
ltal opportunity for so doing.
10 Cadiz we went, and staved sevoro1
days at the Hotel de Paris We lilsed tba
willte walled town, rising and shining above
'le uark plue sea, like, as 1 have somewhere
seen ~ uescrlbed,a white pearl ina crown Of
sappnlreS; or, as the Gaditanos call IL.
t@S't0 de plata, silver cup. We liked The
rows rows OF tall terrace topped houses We
HAeu Che movement and hustle on the ounvs
ana IN the port We liked the walks on the
Oroad granite ramparts, and the lovely
view OF the busy bay and country beyond
IL; but all the samsSwe agreed that Gadi7
pore no comparison to our beautiful Seville
!. and the sooner we returned to that cov citg
y the better '''' say 'A'y
Now that had gained nv deqira ,voo
happy' After all that had passed com1J :
navo oeen happy during those early DAYS Of
1ut welded life! AS look back upon them
slt and muse, trying in vain to answer the
queSIioh TO my own satisfaction. Philipna
loved me-she was my wife; come good. come
eVll' she was mine forever In SO much
wa was happy, thrice happy. Could have
tiVea OuT FOR the present my bliss would
nave known no alloy
But there was the pastl I could not alto
gether forget the path which had led to sucb
happiness as now was mine. I could he
thankful that alone knew all the horrors
and dangers with which that path was
studded alone knew the secret of that
one night Although 1 could keep it for.
ever, would it be always a secret9
Yes, and there was the future. Behind
the happiness which was mine at present
lufKed dread as to what the future had in
store for me-for u.s. 1t was a dread which
day by day grew stronger. The greater INV
happiness the more dreadful the thought Of
Its being wrecked The feeling that NV
mouse OF joy was built upon sand was ALWAYS
obtruding on my most blissful hours and
not, knew, without good reasons
4 Fhilippa's very avoidance of speakinp Of
sfr past life lent some justification to NV
4'oony torebod1ngs. Not once did Sir Mer-
Vyn Ferrand's name pass between NV wife
snd me. Not once did she ask me for anv
:urther particulars concerning the events Of
That night upon which, in the height Of her
Snort lived mania, she reached my cottage.
4rue that upon becoming my wife. and be-
ginning new and happier stage of life. it
might be but natural for her to wish to con.
sign to oblivion the wrong, the shame the
suffering wrought by villains craft: vet
vas so mixed up in the catastropha that
'llence on the subject seemed strange. Her
alarmed me. | fancied il must no d
'aused oy some vague uneasiness connected
WIN That nlght-some doubt which she dared
lou seek TO set at rest. 1t is, know, not un-
isual Tor women, after their recovery from
nat mysterious disease which had for awhile
lrlven my poor girl distraught, to be ableto
ecall and accurately describe the delusions
which had afflicted them during those wan.
erlng hours myself had in one or two !
ases noticed this popularity, and the author. :
ties which had studied during Philinnois i
lness mention it as an indisputable fact t
ly great dread was that at some moment /
erhaps when our happiness was as perfect I
!, 1t could be, some simple chance, some 4 =
lIuslon TO certain events, even the bare men +
on OF name, might supply the missing t
'lk, and the fearful truth would be revealed n
ny wife. Il
Dur return Journey to Seville was made n
water Although the Guadalquiver is s.
OF very interesting river, we Thought II
avelling by steamer would be a pleasant " "
lange from the journeys in the hot, stuffy
ow trains, full from end to end with the fl
lor OF garlic and tobacco; so early one ii
orn1ng We left Cadiz and were soon ii
canning up the dull, sluggish, turbid river n
ith the great fiat stretches Of swamp land ST
/ either hand m
There were not many passengers on board 3
70 steamer. The boat itself was wretched h,
fair, and before an hour was over We ~
ished We had chosen the train as mode Of nj
ansit Mile after mile of the level deserted m
nd through which the river flows passed al
:, and presented no objects of interest Iii
eater than herds of cattle or FIGHTS of IN
uatic birds. Save that Philippa was bv -,
y side, it was the dullest journey | ever y, h.
ade. 6, g.
OF course there were English tourists on W
ard; no spot is complete without them of
70 OF them, young men, and apparently ne
ntlemen, had seated themselves near us: 40 40
d after the usual admiring glances at NV 81, ssu
autiful Philippa, commenced desultory O'i
k with each other sI
From the unrestrained way in which thew
ike, and from the strength of soms Of m M
Dir unfavorableS comments on the scenery. y, ~
lack OF scenery, it was clear that thew Ja, S,a,
* us for natives before whom they could wa
ak without being understood. Philippa clio
course looked a thorough Spaniard, and
own face had become 50 tanned by the dal
! that might have been of any nation. sol
ty. 'voi
he young fellows chatted on, quite ob!iv- 1''
S to the fact that two of their nei9hbors
lerstood every word they spoke. For
le time listened with great amusement;