Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1889-09-19
MIRIAM.
The Romance Of HGathGPleigA Hall
By MANDA l.. CRocKER.
Cor WRIGHT, 1859.
CHAPTER VII.

Ana after the scene closing our last chap
ter Lady Percival never saw another happy
day. From that wretched day on, until her
decease, her existence was but a living
death.
Not many months after the death of Lady
Percival there fell shadow over another
home beautiful country seat near Heather
leigh This one was the lovely home of a
former friend of the Percivals. But it was
not the shadow of the silent reaper's sickle
No, it happened in this case to be that OF
the grim-visaged horror of polite society
poverty, and the stricken was the pleasant
residence of Beechwood Terrace, and the
home of the Fairfaxes.
With one fell swoop, uncompromising
failure had swert the luxurious ease and
careless eontentment from the elegant stone
mansion, and its aristocratic inmates foun2
themselves sud0ouly stranded on the ruins
of its former prosperity.
So when the mother ofinvention sat down
in the handsomely Furnished apartments
TO devise different arrangements from those
of simply enjoying life, she sent a thrill OF
horror through the veins of their dwellerS
To be thus thrust out of their rank in life
and society, and reckoned with the plebe-
inns was 4 trying ordeal. The common lot
of the financially unfortunate cast dis
heartening influence across their day. The
social circles began to forget them, and no
member of the proud, refined family felt
the neglect more keenly than the eldest
son, Arthur, who had, hitherto, many warm
friends within the radius of the bon ton of
Hastings.
To be thus ignored, many a less suscepti-
BILE heart than his had found bitter fort
une; then marvel not when Arthur grew
morbid over his changed life, and looked
upon their circumstances as something
savoring of a criminal offense.
Society snubbed, society talked and spec
ulated until, driven almost to despair,
Arthur determined to retrieve the loss of
property in part, at least abroad. To this
end he resolved to embark in mining en-
terprise with an uncle in the coal mines,
which promised unbounded success.
But paramount to all the grievances he
endured in consequence of his unfortunate
circumstances, there was q wretched dread
of a possibility of more magnitude and i'm
portance to him.
In his palmy days he had been welcome
visitor at Heatherleigh, and had been a
favorite of the house, with the exception OF
Sir Rupert.
He, however, had treated him kindly, al
though he could not lay claim TO a title
This mark of favor young Fairfax did not
accord to the real reason, but was pleased
TO consider it in the light of meritorious
worth. Had he, for an instant imagined
that the master of Heatherleigh was only
condescending TO him, in consideration OF
the wealth and influence of his family, his
visits to the hall would never have been
made in the free and easy manner of an in
innate friend of its occupants.
But Sir Ruperts kindly tolerance fiat
tered him, and the sincerity of Lady Per
cival pleased him exceedingly; but, after
all, it was really the society of Miriam
which had held him spellbound in those
days.
Thrown into her charming company con
tinually, his heart had gone out to her in g
sacred attachment before he was hardly
aware of it, But when Miriam, who al
first had received him shyly and with re
serve, had grown to welcome him with cor
diality and heightened color, he awoke tC
the knowledge that he loved her passion
ately And often, too, he had fiattered him
self she was not indifferent to him.
After this awakening it was only natura
for him to indulge in dreaming of a happy
day "to be- when the beautiful daughter
of the Percivals would consent to unite hel
destiny with his.
Little did the young lover know of the
sad days of reverse and keen sorrow the
future held in store for Miriam as his wife
But since Lady Percival's death he hac
intruded on the sorrow Of the hall but
little, for Sir Rupert had seemed so silent
and grieved, and Miriam had not been Wis
ible.
And now, after his own reverses hac
fallen, would Sir Rupert ever be kind K
him againl Knowing his eccentric ways
and Of late years his strange reserve, hi
dreaded to risk visit to the gloomy Ole
gentleman since the failure of his father
and since by il he had fallen cut of ranl
with the Perciyals.
How the news of his family's changed
circumstances had been received at the
hall he had no way Of finding out, and how
il had affected the one sweet friend of his
life on whose yea or nay hung his future
happiness he knew not.
She would not Danish him as if he has
committed sim when it was really no faul
Of his that failure was written over agains
the family name, and that the ledger wa,
found without a balance sheet in the Fair
fax house, Arthur loved to think of it il
this way and argue himself into believing
as he dreamed.
Ithamer Fairfax was no tlnancier, and
being one of those untried individuals WHOSE
wealth comes to them by inheritance, cost
ing them nothing but the exertion of enjoy
ing it, he never acquired any business quail
ifications And it was owing to his dull
ness Of mental vision that he invested
largely with certain INSCRIPTIONS com
panies and in the end being swindled com
| pletely.
Not so with the son, for, although he ha,
not been obliged to toll, he had inherites
from his mothers family great business ca
pacity. Their name being connected witt
| the most successful mining enterprises il
the north and west of England gave Arthu
great confidence in himself, and he hoped 4
accumulate wealth aud be wise enough 4
remain on sound financial basis. But befor
he should go abroad in the interest Of tn,
enterprise he longed 10 visit Heatherleigh
and still he dreaded it.
As il happened, opportunity favored hin
| sooner than he had dared to hope, and h
found himself within the spacious rooms Q
the hail, where he had spent many happ.
hours; but the light of Heatherleigh has
| gone out, and every thing was so changed
| All the brightness seemed to have fed wit
the gentle spirit of Lady Perciyal
The heavy Grape folds here and there re
minded him Of her, while the shadowy