The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1885-01-02
LOVE OR MONEY;
A PERILOUS SECRET.
DY CHARLES READE,
Author Of 'Put Yourself in His Place."
etc., ETC., etc.
CHAPTER XIII.
THE SERPENT LET LOOSE.

lllS OuUDuISU, anu llle prospect OF actual
litigation between his father and his
sweetheart's father, that Julia Clifford
pitied him, and, after thinking little,
said she would stop it for the present.
She then sat down, and in five minutes
the dOcile pen of a female letter-writer
produced an ingratiating composition
impossible to resist. She apologiZed for
her apparent inSincerity, but would be
candid, and confide the whole truth to
Mr.. Bell. Then she told him that Colo
mel Clifford "had only just been saved
from death by miracle, and relapse
was expected in case of any great excite
ment or irritation, such as doubtful
lawsuit with gentleman he disliked
would certainly cause. The proposed
litigation was, for rdliOus reasons, most
Walter Clifford, and would Mr.. Bell be
so very kind as to put the question off
as long as possible by any means he
thought proper"
Walter was grateful, and said, what
a comfort to have a lady on ones side!"
Il would rather have gentleman on
mine," said Julia, laughing.
Mr.. Bell wrote discreet reply. He
would wait till the Assizes-siX weeks
delay-and then wrote to the Colonel,
postponing his visit. This he did, and
promised to look up cases meantime.
But these two allies not only batiled
their irascible chief; they also humored
him to the full. They never mentioned
FitZroy out of sight in spite of his re-
monstrances, and, in word. they made
the Colonel's life so smooth that he
thought he was going to have his own
way in everything, and he improved in
health and spirits; for you know it is
an old saying, always get your own
way, and you'll never die in pet"
And then what was still tottering
situation was kept on its legs by the
sweet character and gentle temper of
Mary BARLEY.
We have already mentioned that she
was superior to most women in the
habit of close attention to whatever she
undertook. This was the real key to
her facility in languages, history, music,
drawing, and calisthenics, as her pro-
lessor called female gymnastics. The
flexible creatures limbs were in secret
steel. She could go thirty feet up
slack rope hand over hand with wonder
full ease and grace, and hang, by one
hand for ten minutes to kiss the other
to her friends. So the very day she was
surprised into conserving to marry Wal
ter secretly she sat down to the Mar
riage Service and learned it all by heart
directly, and understood most of it.
BY this means she realized that now
she had another man to obey as well as
her father. So now, when Walter press
ed her for secret meetings, she said,
submissively, ooh yes, if you insist"
She even remarked that she concluded
clandestine meetings were the natural
consequence of clandestine marriage.
She used to meet her husband in the
day when she could, and often for five
minutes under the moon. And she
even promised to spend two or three
days with him at the lakes if safe OPP
portunity should occur. But for that
she stipulated that Mr.. Hope must be
absent.
Walter asked her why she was more
afraid of Mr.. Hope than of her father.
Her eyes seemed to look inward dim
ly, and at first she said she didn'tknow.
But after bordering the matter little
she said, Because he watches me more
closely than papa, and that is because
You won't tell anybody"
no"
Not soul, upon your honor?"
Not soul, dearest, upon my honor"
swell, then, because he loves me
more"
"Oh, comet" said Walter, incredulous-
ly.
But Mary would neither resign her
opinion nor pursue a subject which
puzzled and grieved her.
We have now indicated the peaceful
tenor of things in Derbyshire for a
period of some months. We shall have
to show by-and-by that elements of dis
cord were accommodating under the sur
face; but at present we must leave Der
byshire, and deal very briefly with an
other tissue of events, beginning years
ago, and runningto adate three months,
at least, ahead of Colonel Clifford's re-
covery. The reader will have no reason
to regret this apparent interruption.
Our tale hitherto has-been rather slug
gish; but it is in narrative as it sin ma
ture, when two streams unite their
forces the current becomes broader and
stronger.
Leonard Monckton was sent to Penton-
vile, and after some years transferred
to Portland. In both places he played
the game of an old hand; always kept
his temper and carnied everybody, es-
pecially the chaplain and the turkeys.
These last he treated as his only mas
tiers; and if they gave him short weight
in bread or meat, catch him making
matters worse by appealing to the gov
ernor Toward the end of this time at
PentOnville he had some thought of
suicide, but his spirits revived at Port
land, where he was cheered by the con-
versation of other villains. Theirname
was legion; but as he never met one of
them again, except Ben Burnley, all
those miscreants are happily irrelevant.
Ind the reader need not fear an intro
duction to them, unless he should find
himself parrOted i'm some dark street or
suburb, or his home rifled some dark
and windy night. AS for Ben Burnley,
he was from the North country, inn
prisOned for conspiracy and manslaugh-
ter in an attack upon non-union miners.
Toward the end of his time he made an
attack upon warder, and got five years
more. Then Monckton showed him he
was fool, and explained to him his
own plan Of conduct, and babe him
observe how popular he was with the
warders, and reaped all the favor they
dared to show him.
"He treated me like dog" said the
man anlIpplV