The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-07-12
CHAPTER VIII.


Miss Smerdon has been making herself as
unpleasant as IT is possible for a vivacious
young lady TO do when the matters are run
ming aslEew with her, and that, needless to
say, means that IWmbarlyn house is ron
dered generally uncomfortable for all
therein.
Whats come 70 the girl2" demanded MIR.
Smerdon petulantlY Of his wife. "SAe used
to be the life and the sunshine of the place,
and now she just mopes and snaps like a
puppy with distemper."
II don't know" returned Mrs. Smerdon
anxiously; she won't tell me, but there's
something that worries and frets her. She's
never been the same girl since her last visit
to Manchester"
Tie good lady did not think fit to cCnfde
her thoughts to her husband, but sac was
not blinded; she strongly suspected that her
daughter had brought a heartache home
with her. Che very servants wondered what
had come TO Miss Frances and said that there
really was no pleasing her.
One morning Miss Smerdon hastily caught
up the paper, as she usually did; she was
feverishly anxious to see it nowadays,
though formerly the perusal of the Times
had been either neglected or left for an
idle half-hour. She was so interested, she
said, in the doings of our soldiers in the
Crimea. All this, though unnoticed by
her father, was easy reading for q mothers
eye. She could not induce the girl to give
her her confidence, but Mrs Smerdon had
little doubt that Frances heart was in
soldiers keeping II she had thought that
before she knew it for certain that morn
ing. No sooner had the girl torn open the
paper then the head lines brilliant Ex-
plot, The Taking of the Quarries, Severe
Fighting caught here eye, and then came a
glowing and graphic description OF the po-
sition OF the dashlng manner in which it
| mad been carried, followed by spirit stir
| ring narrative Of the gallant aud obstinate
endeavors of the Russians to recapture it
during the night and speaking III terms of
unqualified praise of the bull dog tenacity
| with which the til chung to the vantage
| ground they had won.
Frances color came and went as she read
| at length che Cam9 to the postscript of all
| glorious bulletins. I'VE regret TO say that
| in the execution Of this brilliant and sue
cessful operation her majesty's TIL sui
! fered severely, having no less than five out of
the six officers engaged in it hors de combat
TAe subjoined list is return of tho killed
and wounded on the occasion.
"Killed-Lieut. Col. Croker command
ing the attack; Capt. Grogan, til Reg-
| ment.
Wounded-Capt Byng, til Regiment,
| Severely"
Ire paper dropped from her hand and the
blood left her cheeks Frances turned white
to her lips, and slight moan escaped her.
| Her head swan, and it was only by su-
| preme effort sac saved herself from faint
ing Her mother was by her side in an in
slant, while her father locked up from his
letters with open-eyed astonishment, and
exclaimed:
Good -, what's the matter!n
Nothing. Matthew dou't take any no.
tice of her; she will be all right directly. y
rej0ined his W Ife, sharply. She's only a
little faint she has been out of sorts lately,
you snow
81 think, mamma, III go and lie down: l
don't feel very well,h murmured Frances
and, assisted Dy her mother, she left the
room aud made her way TO her own bed
chamber. Arrived there, she broke fairly
down, burst into tears, and sobbed like a
child on her mothers breast
Mrs. Smerdon knew that this was no time
! for questioning. She let the girl weep pas
| slJnately on her bosom for some minutes
| knowing full well taat she would have all
her conhdences q little later. Then she
loose1ed her dress, made her lie down on
the bed, and said:
You can't sleep, l know Frances; but
try and lie quiet dear, for half an hour. |
will come back aud bring you some tea
then, and you shall tell me all your
troubles. VINO should you come to, child.
in your sorrow save to the mother who bore
your
And before an hour was over Mrs. smer-
don knew that her daughter had given her
heart away un wooed and was tortured with
shame and anguish because it was 80, aud
that the author Of all this mischief was now
lying IN grlevous case in camp before Sebas-
| topol.
We know that Tom Byng was in no such
plight, but he bad been carried away from
the QuarrIss for dead ia the hrst instance,