Waterbury evening Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1887-1895, 1894-01-31

reins Before the wheels had stopped w,
were on the ground, and those who had
been watching our desperate approach, pale
as death and crying with Joy and fright and
amaZement, were upon us.
The scene that followed is not to be de
scribed. The only person in it, outside 81
Tabal and Mahomet, who made any pre-
tense of keeping his head was Donald, and
he afterward said he had never known
| himsels to act Sc much like an idiot. The
rest Of us had not the least semblance OF
| sanity. There is a joy, they say, that kills
| Assnre'lly there is a joy that makes mad
and it was upon lis then in raging force
We were delirious with an ecstasy that sent
our wits flying like chaff in Il sudden blast.
! In n single instant, so to speak, we were
| whirled through million realms of poig-
nant feeling. The emotion of lifetime was
condensed into one burning moment, and in
the stress we acted as beings possessed. That
at any rate was Tabal's opinion, commune
Gated to me cpnfidentially few day subse'
! quent.
In any case was in no condition to OBJ
serve infinitely: consequently find it now
not only impossible to give an accurate &C
count of the demonstration, but hard to
disentangle even the major impression.
| Perhaps what remains with NE most WV
| idly (after my dear mothers frenzied EN-
| BRACE is that Sir Thomas Gordon, muir
muring words of gratitude for the service 1
had done him, took my hand and wept over
| it like child, and that Isabel in the pres
| ence of them all kissed me fervently on the
cheek.
All, mel Inever could forget that. When
l think of it after the lapse of nearly half a
century, that spot seems to glow with a
youthful heat as if it were the only part of
bat oil IS m
the right cheek, pretty high up, and some
times l go to her and say, Isabel. is there
a red ring on that cheek of mine?" And
she, well knowing what I mean, will an
swer with pleased smile and maybe a
slight heightening of the color, flush, tush!
A man of your years should be thinking of
other things" Nor can deny she is right,
for a man who has grandchildren climbing
over his knees ought not to be foolish,
though, as l tell her, can scarcely convict
myself of foolishnesS since it does one good
to try to feel young again. But all that is
too far ahead of this story to be gone into
here.
AS you may suppose, awondrous fuss was
made over Rance. Sir Thomas and Isabel,
to her unutterable delight, welcomed her
cordially in her own tongue, and my father,
forgetting his antipathies to foreigners of
her color. kissed her little brown hand in
his grandest fashion, and my mother,
though sorely puzzled what to make of
creature who dressed 50 oddly and under
stood no English received her with all the
warmth of n heart that knew not how to
be cold. But indeed RANGES pretty ways
were not to be resisted, and she was soon,
by virtue of her own good qualities estab-
lished as Il favorite with all. To Isabel she
was as sister, and to my mother as a
daughter.
should add that Tabal and Mahomet,
considerably to their embarrassment, came
in for liberal share of the good will, and
that with Donald and Rance they long con-
tinued to be objects of intense curiosity,
not merely to those at Kilgour, but to the
whole countryside. The general opinion
was that they had all come rs part of my
retinue, and every one suddenly remem-
bered how he or she had predicted speedy
wealth for me.
Il kennel ye would soon he back VII
fortune and wheen black men, sir" the
people would say when congratulating me
on my happy return. II aye said So
Good cause l had to wish that the fawn-
ing supposition was true. The first glad
ness of my home coming was scarcely over
and the tale of my adventures told when l
began to suspect that things were as bad
with us as when | lefr-that indeed they
were great deal worse. My father, being
a taciturn man, said little to indicate press
ing trouble, but my dear mother, who used
to be the light of the place, now went about
with white, drawn face and eyes that were
hardly ever dry.
At last her distress became so plain and
so painful to me that one day-the third or
fourth after my arrival-when we were
alone together, l asked why she was SO
troubled and if there was anything could
do for her. At this, throwing her arms
about my neck, she laid her head on my
breast and sobbed so sorely that could not
help crying for company.
MY darling mother" said, what does
all this mean? Tell me what is the mat
ter"
She did not speak, but stood weeping and
stroking my hair as she used to do in the
long past.
'TeA me, mother, what is wrong?" said
again. Tell mel cannot endure this"
"Oh, Andrew, it breaks my heart,' she
answered through her crying, ito think
that after all you have done and suffered
you come back to Il ruined home. Nothing
but miracle will save US from being turn
ed out like beggars on the heath"
The world suddenly swan before my
eyes
And who is doing this?'' 1 asked in
quick gasp.
The man who professed so much friend
ship for us-yOur fathers cousin, Thomas
Clephane, the lawyer of Dundee"
Thomas Clephane!'' 1 repeated, for the
idea could scarcely force itself into my
brain. Thomas Clephanc! And how
may he have the power to DO it,"
He has the power Which an overdue
mortgage on the whole plcc gives him"
Mother cried Gercely, ''he shall not
take Kilgour! L will kill him first
mo, no." replied my mother, clinging
closer to me. You will not commit muir
der must not lose my boy as well as my
home. No, no, 1 must not lose you.'
Stay, mother. Just one question more.
Has his son-has Peter been near the place
at all?"
'Yes; he has been both here and at The
Elms, l think he is friendly with Miss
Gordon. But why do you start so? You
must not be doing anything rash. Promise
me that, Andrew"
Il will do nothing rash mother, except
in your defense. Now let me 60"
My father entered, and 1 went out saying
1 wished to see Donald Gordon.
Five minutes later was at The Elms hot
with running and hotter still with anger.
In the drawing room 1 found Sir Thomas
Gordon, Isabel, Donald, Rance and-Peter
Clephane. AT sight Of him my anger rose
to a white hot passion that made it hard to
keep my promise to my mother. Rising to
his feet, Peter saluted me with feigned
smile of pleasure, saying he had heard
was home, and bowed slightly in return,
pretending not to notice the three fingers
he held out to me. Then we sat down and !
did not address each other once while we re
manned in the room.
When my visit, which was brief, was at |
an end, what must Donald in his devilment
do but propose that we three young men |
should have walk together To my sur
prise Peter Clephane agreed with alac- |
rity, remarking it was the very thing he |
desired. The reason was speedily made |
clear.
Sir" he said to me when we were in the |