Waterbury evening Democrat., 1890-06-27
THE ATHELSTONS; VICTOR AND vANQUISHED.
BY MARY CECIL HAY.

darted past him into the house, and pulled up breathlessly beside the artist Curiously Lima looked from the strong, handsome. bearded face G .pSy. sR0ys hs,t1 tS the
 "She says-she says" stammered the child, hardly yet having seen the v,s. itors, "that we're both scamps, and ouRhtn't to be allowed to live here and then she never minds, because we're sure to be turned out soon."
 els that Mrs. Cheere next doorT asked Marjorie, coming to the rescue with her quick, kindly tact. "Oh she is rude to everybody. It's kind Of madness. Your little boy would be sor- ry for her, instead of angry, Hr. Spendir, if he knew how miserable she makes herself, e we'll as everybody else"
 "The gloomy individual has rather an inappropriate nams," struck m Neil, lounging little nearer to the group e they stood ready to separate.
 "Jet offended her mortally last oven ing" said the artist lightly laying his hand on the ohild's dishevelsd hair, "I'n tell you how. She is aocustoned to wear two large white aprons in the house on Sunday, ono before and ono behind, for the protection of her best I don't know which she calls it One Sunday evening shs forgot, before she went to church, te take of the one that protects tho back of the dress. Jet saw her as she came home, and told her of it. I don't won der she was mortified, and vented her anger on the boy but she cannot ap- preciate the justice of the case"
 "Is she often angry and cross with himp"
 MT. Spendir smiled a little as he answered Lina's very quiet question, perhaps amused because it was the first she had asked him.
 "Very often indeed, but what is boy worth if he cannot bear such thing as that?"
 "She is rude and cross to most with whom she comes in contact" said Col. Stuart "but, as Miss Oastillain says, it ii a kind of madness now & madness for which she is not unblamable (though she is to be pitied), as she brought it on her self by the fostering of a rebellious grief?"
 "There is some slight excuse for her," exclaimed Marjorie. "Shall tell you, MT. Spendir, or would you rather not hear a word about her?"
 CT should like to hear it, if it excuses her" he answered. "Is it grief which is likely to be lessened by the pursuit of universal revenge?"
 "Nearly thirty years ago" said Ma jorie, smiling, "shs had a little girl an only child-in whom her whole heart was wrapped up, for her husband had died before her baby's birth. One even- ing she was showing the child, to amuse her, the watch and chain which had been her fathers, and slipped them around her neck. When you are grown up,' the mother said, thisis to be yours, but I've another present for you to- night instead;' and she gave into the little one's hand a common gilded locket, con- taining two plaits of hair, her fathers and her mothers, with the names under Of course the child knew no difference in the real value of the things, but still she was unwilling to have the glittering gold chain taken from her neck, and she held up her hands to keep the watch pinafore. Just then there came knock ran delightedly to open it, anxious, most probably, for an opportunity of display ing her brilliant ornaments. The moth or sat there waiting. She heard no voices, but, in only few seconds, the door was shut again; and SO she sat there, waiting for her little girls return. MT. Spendir, to this very hour she seems |. to me to be just waiting fer her little girls return, just still suffering the mis- cry of that hour."
 "But how was t?" questioned Lima, with great pity in her eyes; "was the child stolen just for the sake of the watch and chain ?"
 Hardly, Miss Chester; because I should think they might have been taken from her without her making any sound that would have committed the thieves. The idea was that she WAS stolen partly for her own sake. She was an exceedingly pretty little girl--a beautiful little fairy like thing, believe. That's five-and-twenty years ago, and such crimes were not so rare then ae they are now; though even now we hear and read of them sometimes, don't we?"
 "I expect the chain and watch were the real temptation" remarked Sir Neil, "and the child was an after thought"
 "And so the mother is to be excused a little of her acidity, isn't sheP" asked Marjorie, turning with smile to the artist and his boy. "As tell you, she seems to be still looking for her daugh. ter; her little girl, as she calls hsy, though the little girl would be nearly co now. She has grown poor In her search. She spent all her husbands money-he was in a position above her, and mar ried her for her beauty, though you would not guess it now in prosecuting it in the best and most vigorousmanner, and, having only small annuity of her own left, she has had to remove from a pleasant house in Churchill to this cot tage. Poor thing one can not help wishing she bore her trial differently. But. after all, I pity her neighbors more than herself, knowing how terribly pen etrating her temper is"
 "HAs she never obtained any clue to the discovery of the child, Miss Castil- lain ?" inquired Fritz. "Does she search the papers?"
 "She used to read all she could buy, but they made her 50 miserable she cor1d mt hAar if ak laat n