The Arkansaw traveler., 1886-05-08
4 Diplomatic Victory

1t was in the month of September, at time of year when the cities of the northern hemisphere are deserted, when emperors and kings are drinking min eral waters or shooting in Alpine soli- tudcs and when diplomatists have little business to occupy them, that Mir. Nal let secretary of embassy at St Peters burg, received the following letter from home:
 My DEAR HUBERT: am in despair, One of the most dreadful and extraordinary things that could happen is about ;0 happen. Y0sT uHg,c Shepton is going to he marricd He has actually sent me n long, pompous rigmar0lc (yOu know the sort oi way in which he would express him sclD, informing me of the approaching event: and as he wrote from Brighton, where l knew that he had been attending n meeting of the British ASSoCiaton l really did hope nt first that they hnd been making the poor old man tpsy so us to get him to propose the toast of The British Association for the Promotion of Social science" which believe is difficult thing to say distinctly after dinner. But no. have made inquiries, and 1t Is only too true The young woman is n Miss Ogle-a mere girl, they say; and it seems that she and her mother have been frcqucnting scientific gatherings for some time past affecting to take an interest in bones and so forth, and that this k the result. The mother, from what hear, must be most dangerous and interruptions woman; the daughter iS probably noncnity. They are both at Brighton now, and that is why want you to go there ut once, instead of coming to me as you proposed. Ot course | will be drcadfuly bored; but am sure you will see how 
 be stopped and also that you are the only person who can stop it. It would be quite out oi the question for me in my weak state of health, to undertake Il journey to RriChton and even if could stand the fatigue, l am not sure that should not do more harm than good, because am not clever. like you l did write to your uncle, but l suppose I must have spoken too plainly and offended him, for he has not replied There s just one thing to he thankful for in this wretchcd business and that is that the wedding Is not to take place for three or four months surely you will he able to devise some means of preventing t from ever taking place at all! Do just what you think best, you know far better than what plan is likely to be successful, only for goodness gracious sake, don't allow the title and estates o pass away from you after all these years You owe it to yourself. to me- to your brothers and sisters, even lo that dcplorable and mis- guided old man. to avert such Il calamity. lhave complete confidence in you. my dear boy, and am Ever your nticctionate mother,
 CATHERINE WALLET.
 When MT. Mallet had perused this communication he whistled which, un- der the circumstances, was a very nat ural thing for the heir-presumptive to a viscountcy and well-managed estate to do; but being young man of practi- cal mind, he was aware that this world $ goods do not fall to those who are con tent to whistle for them, and as his mind was not only practical, but inge- nious, he set to work at once to consider Jhow it would behoove him to act in so pressing an emergency. At the end of quarter of an hour he sat down and wrote as follows:
 My DEAR MOTHER: You are quite right to leave matters to me, and quite right to abstain from going to Brighton. l shall start for that place without loss of time, and of course l shall do my best to bring about the rupture that you desire As a mutter ot theory, my uncle has d perfect right to marry whom and when he pleases; but, as a matter of fact. he will be doing me d somewhat serious injury by plunging into mntri- advanced remained q bachelor all his life, and he cant reasonably expect anything but opposition from me. lfmy opposition doesn take m active form and il he is foolish enough to believe that I am backing him up, that Is his affair. He has nc business 10 complain of stratagcms, because ht ought to be prepared for them. Besides don't doubt but that shall, as you say, be doing him aseryicc by delivering him from this man-trap will write again as soon us l have anything tc tell. Your ancctionate son,
 HUBERT WALLET.
 Three days after despatchng the above missive Mir Mallet arrived in Lon don, and on the ensuing afternoon he alighted at the Grand hotel at Brighton having previously ascertained that Lord Shepton was staying in that hostelry Lord Shepton is one of the examples tc whom those who value our ancient con stitution are fond of pointing in justiti cation of the existence of an hereditary chamber. He is not an altogether con vincing example, 1t is true, for he is sel dom seen in the house of lords, ant still less frequently speaks there; never theless, they point to him, because hi life is considered to have been such useful one, and because he has never yielded to any of the temptations whicl are supposed to beset his order. Instead of wasting his time in the pursuit O pleasure and his money on the turf Lord Shepton has chosen to devote him self to antiquarian and historical re search; and, not satisfied with daily add ing to his own store of knowledge,