Waterbury evening Democrat., 1888-03-01
tion; they can persuade her to listen to you.
 T l%l,, nc,


 and they shall!"
 The two ladies had accompanied Henry and some other guests who went away at the same time to the railway station, and had just driven back to the house when the servant announced that "a person of the name of Rol- land was waiting to see her ladyship."
 a woman3"
 "Yes, my lady"
 Young Lady Montbarry turned to Agnes.
 "Ihls IS the very person." she said, "whom your lawyer thought likely to help when he was trying to trace the lost courier"
 You don't mean the English maid who was with Lady Montbarry at Venicea"
 My dear! don't speak of Montbarry's hor- rid widow by the name which is my name now. Stephen and have arranged to call her by her foreign title before she was mar ried. am Lady Montbarry,' and she is the countess In that way there will be no con- fusion. Yes, Mrs. Roland was in my ser vice before she became the countess maid. She was perfectly trustworthy person, with one defect that obliged me to send her away "a sulIen temper which led to perpetual con- plaints of her ill the servants' hall Would you like to see her?"
 Agnes accepted the proposal in the faint hope of getting some information for the courier's wife. The complete defeat of every attempt to trace the lost man had been ac- cepted as final by Mrs. Ferrari She had de- iberately arrayed herself ill widows mourn. ing, and was earning her livelihood in any employment which the unwearied kindness of Agnes had procured for her in London. The last chance of penetrating the mystery of Ferrari's disappearance seemed to rest now on what Ferrari's former fellow servant might be able to tell With highly wrought expectations, Agnes followed her friend into the room ill which Mrs. Roland was waiting.
 A tall. bony woman, in the autumn of life, with sunken eyes and iron gray hair, rose stiff1y from her clair and saluted the ladies with stern submission as they opened the door. A person of unblemished character, evidently-but not without visible draw backs. Big bushy eyebrows, an awfully deep and solemn voice, a harsh, unbending man. ner, complete absence in her figure of the undulating lines characteristic of the sex, presented virtue in this excellent person under it's least alluring aspect. Strangers on a first introduction to her were accustomed to wonder why she was not man.
 Are you pretty well, Mrs. Rollands"
 "I am as we'll as can expect to be, my lady, at my time of life."
 "Is there anything can do for youa"
 
 you will please speak to my character while I was in your service I am offered a place to wait on an invalid lady who has lately come to live in this neighborhood."
 "Ah, yes-I have heard of her. A Mrs. Carbury. with very pretty niece. am told. But, Mrs. Roland, you left my service some time ago. Mrs. Carbury will surely expect you to refer to the last mistress by whom you were employed"
 A flash of virtuous indignation irradiated Mrs. Hollands sunken eyes, She coughed before she answered, as if her Hast mistress" stuck in her throat.
 "I have explained to Mrs. Carbury, my lady, that the person last served-I really cannot give her title in your ladyship's pres ence!-has left England for America Mrs. Carbury knows that quilted the person of my own free will and knows why, and ap- proves of my conduct so far. A word from your ladyship will be amply sufficient to get me the situation"
 Every well, Mrs. Roland, have no objec- tion to be your reference, under the circum- stances. Mrs Carbury will find me at home until 3 o'clock"
 "Mrs. Carbury is not we'll enough to leave the house. my lady. Her niece, Miss Hal- dane, will call and make the inquiries, if your ladyship has no objection"
 "I have not the least objection. The pretty niece carries her own welcome with her. Wait minute, Mrs. Roland This lady is Miss Lockwood-my husbands cousin, and my friend. She is anxious to speak to you about the courier who was in the late Lord Montbarry's service at Venice."
 Mrs. Hollands bushy eyebrows drowned in stern disapproval of the new topic of conver- sation. "I regret to hear it, my lady," was all she said.
 "Perhaps you have not been informed of what happened after you left Venice?" Az nes ventured to add. "Ferrari left the place secretly, and has never been heard of since"
 Mrs. Roland mysteriously closed her eyes as if to exclude some vision of the lost cou- rier, which was of nature to disturb a re- spectable woman. Nothing that Mr. Ferrari could do would surprise me" she replied, in her deepest bass tones.
 "You speak rather harshly of him. said Agnes.
 Mrs. Roland suddenly opened her eyes again. "I speak harshly of nobody without reason," she said. "Mr. Ferrari behaved to me, Miss Lockwood, as no man living has ever behaved-before or since"
 "What did he do3"
 Mrs. Roland answered with stony stare of horror: "He took liberties with me-"
 Young Lady Montbarry suddenly turned aside and put her handkerchief over her mouth in convulsions of suppressed laughter.
 Mrs. Roland went on, with grim enjo y- ment of the bewilderment which her reply y had produced in Agnes. "And when insisted on an apology, miss, he had the audacity to say that the life at the palace was dull, and be didn't know how else to amuse himselfW
 "I am afraid I have hardly made myself understood" said Agnes. q am not speak ing to you out of any interest in Ferrari Are you aware that he is married2"
 "I pity his wife," said Mrs. Roland.
 "She is naturally in great grief about him" !" Agnes proceeded.
 "She ought to thank God she is rid of him." Mrs. Roland interposed.
 Agnes still persisted. q have known Mrs. Ferrari from her childhood, and T am sim cerely anxious to help her in this matter. Did you notice anything while you were at Ven- ice that would account for her husbands ex- traordinary disappearance2 On what sort of terms. for instance, did he live with his nlas- ter and mistress2"
 "On terms of familiarity with his mistress, :" said Mrs. Roland, "which were simply sick ening to respectable English servant. She used to encourage him to talk to her about all his affairs-how he got on with his wife,