Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1889-11-16

is,te1, rnanKs. lie nao two pretty bad
nights. but is coming around slowly"
sand Miss Maitland-how Is sheY"
"Rather seedy. She has had good
deal of care and vexation of late, ] fancy,
and this is no place for young girl,
anyhow" i.
"Well, you have some appreciation OF
the true character of Dunraven as a resi-
dence, after alll' answerry Perry. "Now,
il you can give me any GOOD reason why
she should live in this utterly out.of-thc-
way place, you will lift weight from
my mind"
"Oh, they don't live here, you know"
spoke Even, hurriedly. 'She comes
here only when her father does. II Is
her own doing. She goes with him
everywhere, and will not leave him.
She's all he has, don't you know"
IL don't know anything about 1t.
You Dunraven people seem averse TO
any expression Of interest or courtesy
from your fellowmen, but I'm FREQ to
say should like to know what on earth
there is in American cavalrymcn TO
make them such objects OF aversion to
your master; and would be glad TO
know how it Is such girl as that is
dragged into such hole as yonder."
Even sat in silence a moment, study
ing the young fellows face.
iYou deserve better welcome there"
he presently answered, "and | don't
know that ! can do better than to tell
YOU the truth-what know of it. And
let me tell you that II the old man knew
of my speaking Of it to any one, I'd lose
the most lucrative but least attractive
place ever had. Do you seer
'Then perhaps you had better not tell
me. do not care TO pry into secrets"
"Oh, this Is no secret. 1t WAS that that
drove him here; everybody knew 1t in
England. You were mighty shabbily
treated ut the ranch, and you requited 1t
by preventing what would have been a
bloody row, and by lending US n helping
hand Even tho old man recognizes
that: and think he'd he clad 70 cav 60
10 you, and see you, IL you were not just
what you area cavalry officer"
"Why. what on earth can we have
done? If any Of our cloth have wronged
Mr.. Maitland in any way, it Is our right
to know 1t and take it up"
"It wasn't your cloth, old fellow"
said Even, thawing visibly, "but it was
the cavalry all the same that broke his
heart and his pride, and made his life
the wreck It is, and drove him from his
home, stunning the sight of his fellow
men, all these years-exiling her, too, in
the prime of her young life. Mr.. Perry,
there are only three or four Of us at
Dunraven who know the story, but we
have only sympathy and pity--no blame
for him, though he is tho hardest
master ] ever served"
"How did it happen?' asked Perry.
"All through his son. There had been
more Of them, but there was only the
DISQUALIFICATION the Lancers were
ordered to South Africa. He was n
youngster, only II, they tell me, and he
had just been gazetted to his cornetcy.
The old man was all wrapped up in him,
for of the three boys the eldest had died
only the month before the regiment was
ordered on foreign service and the sec
ond had been killed in India. Both
these two who were gone had mado
themselves famous among their COM
rades by their fearlessness and high
character, and the old man, of course,
could not ask Archie to quit the service
! just when orders for dangerous duty
| came The boy went TO the Cape with
his corps. and got into the thick of the
Zulu war just at the time of the massa-
ere of the Twenty-fourth at Isandlwhana
and tho fight at Rorke's Drift. l was
/ at home then, and all England was
| quivering with grief over such needless
sacrifice as was made of that regiment,
| and all ready TO fall down and worship
. such fellows rs Chard and Bromhead,
| who made the superb fight almost at the
same time.
"They say old Maitland wanted to go
himself, as volunteer or something, with
Lord Chelmsford. but it couldn't be
done. His father had fought at Alma
and lnkerman. and his grandfather had
led the Guards at Waterloo. The whole
| tribe were soldiers, you know; and now
| Archie was with the Lancers in Zululand,
! aud the Lancers were going to wipe out
! the disasters of the first fights of the
campaign, and Archie was to uphold the
| grand old fighting name and come home
covered with glory He was the heir
now, and Miss Gladys was but a little
| girl. ! have heard it all from Mrs.
| Cowan; she was their housekeeper in
those days, and a sort Of companion, too,
| to Mrs. Maitland, who was very delicate,
| The old man was very fiery and proud
! and full of fierce dcnunciation of every
| thing that had gone wrong in the cam
| paign; and he offended some people by
the way he condemned some officer who
was a friend of theirs, and there were
others who thought he talked too much;
but he fairly boiled over when the news
came of how the prince imperial had
| been abandoned by his escort, and that q
! British officer and dozen men had run
two miles at top speed from a beggarly
| little squad of niggers before they dared
look round to see what had become of
their prince, whom they had left to fight
the gang alone That was old Maitlands S
text for a month. If any son Of his had
| ever been of that party he would disown,
| disgrace, deny him, forbid him his sight,
| cut him Off forever. And right in the
midst of it ala judgment, some people
said-there came the awful news tina,
Cornet Maitland of the LancerS was to be
court martialed for misbehavior in face
of the enemy.
"Of course the old man only ragged q,
frst said it couldn't be true; twas al
some foul invention or ridiculous blum
der; but he ran up to London and saw
somebody at the Horse Guards-that'i
our war Office, you know-and cam,
back looking century older and simply
crushed to earth. Mrs. Cowan says they
showed him the official report of gen
eral officer who was called upon TO ex
plain why he had not sent certain troop:
TO the relief of an advanced and threat
ened post, and he replied that he hat