The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1889-01-04
THE LAST
OF
THE NUGENTS,
BY THE AUTHOR OF "swEErHHAnr.'

W - iAssN 3tStt bst~N - yoeA " w
keep your engagement TO me, I shall be
sure during my whole life that you blame
me for this miserable tragedy which has
taken place amongst US. Now you know,
Dolly, as well ss I do, that / am quite
blamelcss."
'Oh-quiteg' echoed Dolly eagerly
"of con,se we all see that"
sStill, if you throw mo over, that ia
what / shall always feel. Yon know, darl-
ing, l have no near relatives, no one to
make a home for me; and it won't take
me long to go the bad utterly"
s'Oh, no! After q time you will find
sorne one else" she began, when he inter-
rupted her.
ITO do what2 To marry met Dozens
Of them, Dolly. You forget that 1 am
what the mothers call a good match! If
you throw me over / have no doubt that
Christmas. i might go over and ask one
of the Carruthers Of Lean, or Mary Beau
vile of Low Ella-bless you, child, either
one would jump at mew
Dolly turned away her head that he
might not see the tears of humiliation
which were swimming in her eyes; and
Culverton, affecting not to see them, wen}
on speaking.
.'But, of course / shall not do that! A
great deal though would be at your door,
if l did. Six weeks of Mary Beauville
would transform me into u w~ife-beater,
and the end of it wonld be that l should
break her neck and get hanged for my
pains. Ishouldn't like that. Dolly, and I'm
sur you would not, even if they did grant
me Al silken rope"
~ thiak you are very unkind," said
Dolly in q qunvering voice.
. i, ~ Ill go, ,ls ant{ir,r Cha
whole case before you. 1 am coming to
another and far graver reason why you
should fulfill your engagement to me
"your father and mother wish it"
81 cannot think it," returned Dolly in
credulously.
"But it is so, child" said Culverton.-
Snow, be reasonable and listen to m e You
know, Dolly, that your father is sadly
stricken down and shaken by all this"
"Yes," she sobbed; she looked SO old
and bent to-day, l could not help crying
to see him"
swell, if our engagement is broken, he
will think naturally very much more of
his trouble than if he had us to look to
for strength; and, worse than that, if the
world sees that our marriage does not
take place, people will think and say,
that / backed out of it. You would not
INV VII lAbfS StliN siVtbh VI ilV 90 d WV
aldly cad, who hadn't pluck enough to
stand by the woman he lovedY"
"Oh, people couldn't think that!" che
objected.
But that is what they woald think" he
saidquickly. at is exactly what l should
think myself, if l heard Of any other man
placed in like circumstances ] should
think so, indeed!
For some moments he lay silently
Watching her. She did not speak at all
her hand rested passively in his, the 9Th.
or wandered restlessly among the folds
of grape which trimmed her gown; hel
eyes roved YEARLY about the old hall
fiea, the full length portrait opposite OF
Colonel Nugent of Marlborough's time
10 the gaily colored sunlight gaily-sun-
li,si.t streaming through the painted win
to5r halfway up the stairs-fiom that tc
the log and the cat lying so amicably
as!; y, and thence to her own slim little
ham4-anywhere but at the Earl of Gull
' yeIi . " ing on the sofa.
Il will tell you another reason" he said
presently THE Squire naturally is dread.
fi3i. giicvfd that the old name must die
nnt. You knew. Dolly, he and you are the
lmt eftho Nugents; and, not mn hour ago
he ,ald me. as if a bright thought haG
llsA-Liy. that orr second Son mus
take The name. Have you the heart t,
tell lin that he must relinquish all hop,
OF oaiiaing the old family up again2"
.Na,s cried Dolly, breaking down agar
-"no, | cannot do that. / must not ado
10 HIS troubles."
Il don't think that you will ever repen
it" said Cnlverton quietly-'certainly no
If ! can hcln it."
WAY" exclaimed Dolly, turning to hin
with hcr face all aflamc, II did not sup
pose that YOU would ever taunt me will
Culeerton broke out into soft laughte,
Foo. m instant the girls face relaxed as
she too would smile; but the scaldin,
tears rushed into her eyes, and she erie,
ont reproachfully that they had forgotten
poor Jasper already.
sDo you not think that it would be hes
for US ell To try to forget2s asked Culver
ton -glavely.
alf only cried Dolly in an agony Q
repentance, 81 had trusted you more
You have never said a word to me abou
that. II you would only scold me-onl.
Oh, am SO wretchedly unhappy
l feel "a il it was all my fault"
"MyDolly," said q low voice beside then
at which they both started, and Culver
ton struggled up.
"Come here mother, darling" he sal,
persuasively.
Mrs. Nugent went and sat betwee,
them on the couch.
"Dolly. l cannot bear to hear you blam
yourself" she said gently. "Your fear c
that person was only natural. l assur
YOU, if such a woman had openly ran at
ter your father as she did after Culver
ton. it would have driven me mad. 1 d
not know how You kept your secret al
that day as you did. ! think l shoul
have flung myself down and wept my
self senscless."
"But if | had not kept it, murmure,
Dolly.
my darling child, if we could look in
70 !he future. half of the great c~atastro
Plies which move the very world nigh
be averted. 1 think, if eventle wretche.
woman who has brought such bitter cor
row upon us. could have foreseen the re
suit Of her work, she would never hay,
come to Deanc Ella. We all acted for tn
~best-except poor Jasper. Don't thinl
children, that 1 nm blaming him. Or tina
l would not give my very life to have hin
back again. What / wish you to under
stand is this--you must not blame your
self for q fault which is not yours"
'That is what I have been telling her,
said Culverton gently. ave must try t
make up to you and the Squire as mucl
as We can"
"If any one on earth can make up t
us for our irreparable loss" eaid tho Mis-
tress, with a a smile, sit will be YOU
BERTHE. Well, what / came to tell O i
this-I have been talking to the Squire
and we both think that tho wisest thin.
we can do will be to go away for the win
teri
Decidedly" was Culverton's comment
. course. you intend mo to go witt
youY"
aoh yes. We thought the South o
France perhaps might do. You see til,
Squire dislikcs everything German SO in
tensely."
Anywhere will suit me-" replied cul
verton.
He understood as we'll as if she had pu
it in words what the s1nire's dislike o
everything German meant; for had no
he and Dolly arranged to take their we'd
ding tour in Italy by way of the Rhine
and were they not to have started tina
very day?
A few days later they set out from