The Press., 1894-02-22


 the tdtDUeT.
 bequest will not prove so valuable as might have been the case some 20 years back, or even when drew up this in- strument 10 years ago."
 feared not also, for knew that my uncle's stud, through a long run of ill luck and his own carelessness of ways and means. rather than any dininution of interest in his favorite pursuit, had of late years dwindled. almost to noth ing, so that it was not likely l should take much benefit from the bequest.
 Still was glad to have been remem- bered. Dear old Uncle Geoff, warm hearted and true, cheeriest friend of my boyhood, had not forgotten his nephew. Little else had he to leave him beyond his beloved nags, remnant of once large and fairly successful stable. His only personality besides consisted of his household furniture, which was left to my nother-his only sister-with picture or two and some antique chinaware of no great value. What money he had ever possessed had long been spent, with that free handed lberal1ty which had made Geoff Dalzyn while it lasted-aye, and even beyond, let it be said, to the credit of the sport ing coterie to which he belonged-most popular of men, Even his racing plate had gone to pay the interest of 8 mort gage on his real estate, which, being entailed, descended now to second cousin, one Richard Dakyn, who was not greatly to be envied therefor, for Stockwood Lodge was fearfully out of repair, and the bit of pasture land about it heavily incumbered.
 However, there was the legacy, such as it was, and I must make the best l could of it. The question of course was, Should 1 sell the horses at once, or wait to see what could be made by running them? The sporting instinct which is present, even if undeveloped, in most Englishmen inclined me to the latter course, while my mother, who had seen and indeed suffered much from the indulgence of this instinct in her own family, strenuously urged the former-indeed she would listen to nothing else than the immediate dis posal of the animals.
 ''If you had seen as much of it as l have, my dear boy, the mater said sententiously, you would rather pack them all off at once to the kennels than have anything to do with horse rac- ing"
 My sister Geraldine, on the other hand, was all for having 8 run with them and said 1 must give her new suit of furs for next winter out of my first win.
 ''If you ever get so much as new tennis racket. you will be lucky girl, Jill, rejoined, and indeed thought so, but I meant to decide for myself in the matter all the same.
 But there was some one whom l was bound to consider before either mother or sister. What would Ella have to say about it, and Elias people? My re- lations with the Rev. Cholmondely-Da enport, her father, were already some what ''strained," and as I had fully made up my mind to marry the daugh- ter 1 was naturally averse to anything that would be likely to increase the tension.
 The Rev. Cholmondely and I had never hit it off we'll together at all. I tried to respect him as much as I could, because of his daughter and because other people seemed to and because there was nothing in the least unrespect- able about him. So far from that, he occupied an extremely good position. He was rector of Rampington and magis- trate and rural dean, and both ecclesias- tically and socially held in first rate es- timation in his own county. Still some how 1 could not respect him. am not particularly religious or over squeamish about such matters, and perhaps, being only plain soldier, don't much un- derstand them, but I do like man to be true to his colors, and this did not think the Rev. CholmondelY could be.