New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-09-20

You. my love ?" ia
yes Arthur. l did not know when l s salI
that il was all theory. | love you you are gOodi
and YOU love me. AS your wife, however p opT,
| should be happy-happy! All, yes-and wlthouG
YOU" She burst into passion OF teaI b,v aha
| sobs conceang her face with her TWO hahus,
while through her slender fingers the big drops
showcrcd down, then hAstily looking up at MN MN
with wet, flushed cheeks, she cned: am I., noO
sorry that he is alive, am glad-bnt, Oh Arthur'
She wept as he had never seen woman weep be.
fore, and, turning away, he dashed the tears away
w God keep us he said and then there was
| silence between them -.
She was calmer now She was exerting all her
strength not to give way trying 70 is control her-
| YES" she said, speaking with diihculty, let
! us 90 together Let us do everything together
while we can" and she heavcd a painting.
Sir Hildebrand was slipping his wine alone, and
sprang up to receive Arthur with unieigned de-
After a hearty shake of the hand, he suddenly
| perceived what miserable young couple stood
before him and eagerly asked what was the mat
With weary eeng AGth Gs 6GfM so me-
| over again Ii seemed hard that he was doomed
always to be o sufferer and the idea flashed across
him with dd grim au fo n ss ms nferno
| Before he could speak, Maud having, with the
quick instinct of love. seen that he shrank lrol
TX,
the manner of one announcing death, john Is
alive 90 p.
Who is John?" cried Arthur, little bitterly,
irritated that the same question should he asked
by father and daughter. why my cousin Jonn,
your old friend john, Sir John IOrrlngtOh, thc
owner Of Pendean."
Nonsense He is drowned" ,,
" He i, not drowned. lie is alive lie came
Sir Hidebrand Courtney clasped his hands en-
the top of his head, and cried out with wlid ges-
He was like man who had heard of death,
at is" replied Arthur calmly He is young
not so old as ! am: his life is before him. lie
has as good right to it as have TO mine. We
ought TO be glad that he has been raised up from
the dead"
Maud eant back in chair white. as if about
to faint while Sir Hidebrand rallied his scattered
John is not dead he murmured. John is
not drowned and you" He looked strangely
at Arthur, and added with sort of sob, Ah'
-" It is new TO you," said Arthur simply. Il
have thought Of nothing else night and day since
we parted, and it seems to me very old, go
back to what | was" lie looked at Maud ana
a spasm of grief crossed his face. hope to
take orders"
Sir Hildebrand groaned And we were al so
be e pBssge de him to tell b@ Oo exacy what had hap
pened to which he listened attcntivcly, as also
did Maud, white and motionless in her chair;
walked home from the PriOry, found letter
from a surgeon, dated C--n, Norway. II told
me that an Englishman had been seized with ILL
ness there-that he was alone, and in fever
that he called himself Sir John TOrringtOn, of
Pendean, Norfolk, and his name in book or two
and some letters confirmed the statement. lie
enclosed some notes; one Of them was from you,
Sir Hildebrand, and contained message from
Maud in IT,"
moved Poor John; l always was fond OF poor
John"
And will be again." replied Arthur. little
drily. Well, / felt a conviction after reading
this that my cousin still alive and the per-
sonal description tailed well with what you gave
me a few hours later Still there was hope
God forgive me-a chance, that be might be n
thief or impOstor, former valet, or something of
that sort and the things fallen into his posses
sion and felt that | could only IN person satisfy
myself as to how the truth lay. The letter was
directed simply to the name Of TOrrington, Pen
dean, as the doctor did not know who lived there,
and he put TO be opened in the corner. | could
not make up my mind TO tell you OF Maud while
was in suspense | may have been fool, but
some things are impossible, and L simply could
not do it"
$50 that was what you left us for said
sir HildebIand, wonderngly.
Exactly; there seemed TO me nothing else to
do. Only | was obliged TO do 1t in silence or
/ should have been unnamed. Well l found
him very ill, and, with the photograph in my
hand by his bedside-did you miss il from the
album ?-I could not doubt his identity. lie
was Sir John Torrington, and I-wcIl, just what
/ was before the dreams of the last few months.
nursed him, the fever was typhus, and the
people were afraid, l kept with him day and
night; they say / saved his life. lie de-
rious, and his talk told me much Of his past
life and the sort OF a man he IS and when he
came to his senses he told lie more himself. lie
had wild time 10 look back on | am afraid, and
when he found he was supposed TO he dead, he
half, as it seems for joke determined to take his
fling, and lie perdu for a time, amusing himself
as he could hardly do under his own name. lie
is an easy-gOing, rather reckless sort of fellow,
and never thought Of consequences; but his
,xi.flft fafr
And through it all" added Arthur falling into
through it all, he says, he never forgot Maud,
but always hoped to renew the old claim and
marry her"
Il am very much obliged to him. Sir Hide,
Il am notS cried Maud, starting to her feet
u will never marry hun: | viii never marry
at all if I cannot All, should be the happiest
we might be; but | will never be the wife of any
other man, since that is impossible.
And who says it is impossible, pray?' de-
Arthur and Maud both stared at him in mute
amazement.
why is it taken for granted that ] shall
break my word l believe / am generally sup.
posed to be honorable man? Arthur, I
promised you my daughter, and l think you are
the very finest fellow l ever set eyes on. John
isn't fit 70 hold candle to Soqi Soa have have lost
promised her TO yOu, and by the Heavens above
us I'll keep my word. I don't believe there are
two such men in the world as yOu, and it would
be dirty thing to make that girl faithlcss be-
cause it has pleased Providence to ruin YOU. You
Think I'll break my word to Arthur because /
am Sir Hildebrand Courtney. of the Priory, but
faith, that is the very reason why I'll keep it.
Nobesse oblige."
The JOY of the lovers may be more easily
imagined than described, and although Maud's
first expression was that every tenet and principle
in which she had been educated was overthrow
by permission ~ become a poor mans wife, yet
she recognized that to q Courtney honor must be
all in all.
When Sir John himself put in an appearance,
the broad, sunburned. rOllicking young fellow
was certainly not exactly the husband Sir Hide
brand would have selected for Maud. lie seem d
TO think, also that that Young lady being
kept for him, and would pick up the handkerchief
whenever it was thrown to her, and was cX-