San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1890-11-17
CHAPTER XVIII.

gone away. They had been happy
months to Gabrielle, but they had been
hard ones to Guy Dunstan, as through
out them he had prosecuted that weary
and fruitleSs search of his. On this
very March day, that was so glad day
to those two others, it was in a spirit
very remote indeed from gladness that
Mr.. DunStan, Indifferent to the wind
and rain that blew and pelted in his
face, toiled in the teeth of it,-almost,
one might have thought, since he chose
to go on foot, with no object except to
exhaust himself, pushing his way along
the high-road eastward from DumfrieS.
He had left the town behind him with
a passionate feeling of Indignation
against it,-a feeling such as made him
stand still once and shake the dust from
it off his feet. 1T gave her stones for
bread" he had said to himself bitterly
this was the cause of his anger against
it,; lit gave her stones for bread, and
it would give her stones again if she
came back starving to it now!" He was
thinking this as he went along,-too
full of scorn and of intense love and pity
for her to mind though the rain wet
wind buffeted him.
Hehad come here in the hope-which
he almost knew from the first was
vain hope, and which indeed proved
vain enough-of finding that something
might yet be done to establish her in
nocence - that some new evidence
might be collected-that some steps
might be taken that had been left I'M
taken. But he had found that he could
do next tonothing: the mystery (if mys-
terry in the matter there was at alD that
had not been solved before refused to be
solved by him. Hespent aweek in the
place, and with all the aid that profess
sional skill could give him the weeks
work had proved wholly fruitless. He had
seen people who had known her, and
who spoke of her, some with suspicion,
some with a strong belief in her guilt,
some few with pity for her, and partial
belief in her innocence; but of new facts
that told upon her side he had gathered
none.
His search for her too-that had
proved hitherto an absolute failure.
When he had left his own home first,
little more than four-and-twenty hours
after her appearance, it had seemed to
him, in the energy of his first eager pas
sion, as if not to find herwould be some
thing impossible: he would not face the
thought of her utter loss; through all
his anguish at the first he said-"I shall
find her SOON" For he was man who
was not used to failure. He had never
almost been daunted by anything; he
had never met great trouble face to
face, and been struck down by it. 1t
was his nature to he sanguine of sue
cess, impatient of delay. When Esther
left him he had followed her, utterly
disbelieving that he could fail to find
her.
But he had not found her. And now
two months had gone past, and the
search in which he had been baffled so
cruelty, and made so bitterly to feel his
own impotence, had begun to tell deep
ly upon him. 1t had not touched his
resolution, but it had taken the light
out of his face, and half the strength
out of his heart.
He had done everything that it was
possible for him to do. DOyou remem-
Der how in her letter she had told him,
Or perhaps had rather inadvertently
let slip the fact-that she had an uncle
"a brother of her father-living, who
was the clergyman Of a parish in
Devonshire? Mr.. Dunstan had been
quick to recollect this, and almost his
first step had been to go to Devonshire,
and find out this clergyman (which was
done easily, since he knew his name):
but he had gained little by finding him,
for the timid, scared old man when he
saw him was able, or protested that he
was able, to tell him nothing.
my niece? Yes-she is my NIECE"
he said nervously, "but what do you
want with her? She doesn't live here.
/ don't know what she is doing. III she
is in fresh trouble, II wash my hands
of it." he said. II am an old man, and
1 know nothing. helped her all 1
could before-I would have taken her
in here if she had liked to come, but If
she is in any new trouble now"
"She is in no new trouble. Neither
she nor l want anything from you
cept only that want this-to know
where she is" Mr.. Dunstan had inter-
rupted him impatiently. "She has
gomez"
Then the old man began to shake his
head.
"She may have left Cheshire or not;
it's more than l can tell you," he said.
1--WE not heard from her these two
months-two months, or more. I'll find
you the letter, if you'll wait. and you
can see what she says. 1t was a short
letter. / don't think there was any
thing in it worth keeping, but kept it
because l keep all my letters. I'll try
to find it if you like to sit down,-not
that there's anything in 1t, he repeat
ed.
II don't want to see it." Mr.. Dun
stan said. 81 came to find out if you
could tell me where she is now. not