The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-06-21

amusing himself with any sport that came with
in his reach-fshing, shooting, days hunting
now and again-always trouble and an ex-
pense, a care and grief to the poor mother. But
the worst was to come. Before his nineteenth
birthday she had discovered the hereditary faint
Her son was an incipient drunkard- She moved
heaven and earth to get him into new surround
ings, more active life. She was told by med
lcal wiseacre that new country, an open air
life would cure him; and after infinite trouble
she shipped him off to Queensland with intro
auctions which provided for his being decently
placed at sheep farmers when he got there.
She heard from him once after his arrival, let
ter written in good spirits, full OF sanguine ideas
OF success in mis- new career And then followed
silence which has never been broken; but in
the account of the wreck of the Erl King bound
from Brisbane to London, there was in the list
of passengers lost a young man called Stuart,
travelling alone, whose description obtained by
Glare from the Brisbane agent correspondent
very fairly with that Of her son, so it is more
than probable that the sea has closed over Valen-
tine Stuart"
Let US hope it is So" said the Colonel cheer
lily; "a young man with those proclivlties could
never be anything but scourge to the mother.
For your sake, and for Lady Darners, hope the
youth found watery grave. There is something
very terrible in the idea of death when 1t takes
away some one we love: but there is something
uncommonly comfortable in the idea of death
when it removes some one we want TO get rid
Of" added the Colonel phiosophically
III was at I0rQuay tnaL i met my wire, con-
tinued Sir Allan. II went there after month
with the Exmoor hounds for few days visit to
an old friend of my father. vicar of one of the
outlying parishes, a man who remembered Hur-
rell Froude and the days of the Oxford Tracts
He had known Clare from her childhood, had
prepared her for confirmation, and married her
to the man who blighted her life. heard the
sad story from him before | saw her face.
Perhaps sympathy and compassion prepared my
heart for loving her. In any case, fell in love
with her at first sight, and did not leave Tor.
quay till had won her. L am bold enough to
| believe that her heart was mine almost from the
| beginning bu. she was constrained by unselhsh
| fears for my welfare and it was with difficulty
! l obtained her consent to be my wife with as
| little delay as possible. She feared the
scandal that might arise in my neghborhood
| if once that terrible story OF her first husband
| got wind; she reminded me OF the uncertainty
| surrounding her sons fate, and the possibility
that he was still,living, and might be a burden
| and disgrace to me in the future told her
| that these things were trifes-feathers when
weighed in the scale against the gold of true
| love. In a word overruled all her objections,
| laughed her fears to scorn; and six weeks after
| our first meeting the dear old vicar married us,
| and we started in the dull grey November
weather for our honeymoon tour across the
| Cornish moors. and along the wild sea-coast
| from Tintagel to the Lizard Ah those happy
days in the little inn at the Lands End, beside
| the roaring Atlantic! alone. remote from the
| world and its ways. l shall never forget the
sweetness. the perfect confidence and love Of
that time. 1t has grown ard strengthened since
| then-it will go on increasing till die
''And there has been no cloud on your happi-
ness at Darnell
None, or only the lightest summer Clouds
hardly worth talking about My marriage was
naturally blow to Dora, who had been mistress
of Darnel Manor ever since my stepmothers
death. She talked at first of going away-living
abroad-buying house in Salisbury for the.
sake of the Cathedral service, she said. But she
stayed OH, interfered a good deal with my wife
in the management of the house and servants,
| and was obviously unhappy"
you ought to have got rid Of her, Allan"
said the Colonel, frankly 'These menages a
trois never answer. Itwould have been happier
for you and your halfsister if she had set up an
independent establishment were it even within
a mile of your gates"
II was seriously meditating making her the
offer of handsome addition to her income, in
order to enable her to live independently. with
out any diminution of the comfort she has
enjoyed here"
$50 like you, my dear Allan, to be seriously
meditating step which ought to have been
taken months before you began to mediate"
| said the Colonel. laughing.
well, / don't want to be unbrotherly, you
see; and Dora had kept my house so admirably
However, while was thinking of cutting the
| it her way. which was much more generous.
She came down to breakfast one morning with
her little morocco key -casket in her hand, and
gave it over to Dora in my presence. i am
lOuS6keopor, L
love for government, while you are superb
manager and have rather liking for the reins
| of power so why should we live uncomfortably
when might live happily, each after her own
taste From this day forthrI renounce all ad-
ministrative rights and privileges at Darnel
Manor"
''How did Miss Darnel take thatl"
Hardly so pleasantly as she ought to have
done. She sneered at poor Caras remuneration
of domestic management as If it had been an
assertion of intellectual superiority. i daresay
looking after servants and ordering dinners does
seem very degrading occupation to a person Of
your superior mind, she said, but have always
remembered that my brothers comfort depends
upon these vulgar details She made me very
| angry"
II should have taken her by the scruff Of the
neck and pitched her out of DOORS" interjected
Colonel Stukely
II did not go quite so far as that. but I gave
Dora bit of my mind there and then; and
think her cold ham and chicken that morning
was rather hot breakfast. She is always
sweetest after good licking; so after breakfast
she took the keys as meekly as lamb, and
promised that she would prove worthy of Lady
Darnel's confidence You are much too gener-
GUS and too indulgent to the servants she said
| That has been your only fault as housekeep-
err"
IA change had come DER the spirit of her
Dream" laughed the Colonel. Ten o'clock by
Jove. Hadn't we better go to the ladiesl"
(TO BE CONTINUED NEXT SUNDAY
DvesuD silk