The Dickinson press., 1895-04-06

"Blackwo0d. forgive mel" h whis.
pered, gently, laying her hand upon his
arm. If he does" she thought, her
heart beating rapidly-"if he puts me
now at peace with my W conscience
Il will tell, Mark every thing this
evening, and perhaps some day l shall
be happy" Meanwhile, Craven had
taken the little fingers that lay like a
snowflake on the coarse cloth of his
shooting jacket and spread them out
silently on his own palm, but not a
shadow Of forgiveness crossed his face.
Look here" he said. $50 long as I
can remember that this hand belongs
to another man. let him be who he
may. dead or alive, SO long I will not
forgive you"
Meaning Never?" she asked, quiet
~, growing deathly pale.
Meaning Never Blackwood Cra-
ven answered, just Is quietly, loosen
ing her hand u%nrelentingly.
"You are very hard on me-" she said
presently, seeing that he either could
not or would not speak.
Hard on your he repeated, with
the concentrated bitterness of months
IN his voice. How like a woman
that is-trst employing every ar.
tifice to gain a mans honest affection
waiting until she discovers
that his very soul is scarce his own
and then finging him over for the
first good matcn She can find, and, hay
Ing succeeded in embitterlng his whole
existence, thinking it had that he does
not turn round and humbly kiss her
hand! No." with a bitter laugh, you
have misjudged my character. I am
a good hater, most of my tender feel
ings have taken fight since last Sep
TENDER, and I hardly find myself sui.
ficiently moral to appreciate the benfts
to be received by kissing the proverbial
rod"
"Oh, Rlackwood," she murmured, Il
think you would be a little more merci-
full if you only knew how l longed
for your forgiveness, and how misera-
BILE I am without it,"
Il hope in reality you are" he an
swered, savagely. what! Did not
your riches, after all, then, bring you
the return you anticipated? A just ret
ribution, and one hardly to be expected
in this world, where the undeserving
mostly come by their own! This is the
last conversation, in all probability, I
uStAA CSCA nOAu Will yOu OA cIlll1I, d8
I 70 away tomorrow morning early,
and embark for India in another month
or six weeks; so 1 will waste no more
hard words, having let you know, once
for all, the esteem in which I hold you."
As he finished speaking he walked to-
ward the window by which he had
entered.
AS she saw him moving away from
her, forever, as it appeared-this man,
so cruelty unkind, so deeply loved,
20 ~irreparably WYGnSed-LSi5 War.
renne's heart s"nk within her. She
burst into q storm of sobs, passionate,
despairing, and made one last effort to
obtain the pardon she, In her ~lona''cess,
so eagerly gray,d
"Blackwood," she cried, "oh, wait for
one moment more, only one! If you
would but hear me-if you only kne6
al-you would not think me so base as
you think me nov Have not l suffered
also? Have you had all the pain? All,
surely, surely you will not go away
forever without saying one kind word
to me, whom one you loved!!"
She held out her small hands to him
b~eseechingly, sobbing with painful We
hemence. Her beautiful face was wet
with sad, repentent tears, and Black
wood, looking on. saw, as in some we'll
remembered dream, the same form, the
same hands held out to him. as in the
old oak parlor at the manor so many
months since.
The sight of her bitter grief reused
within him all the better feelings Of
his manhood; his stubborn will grew
weaker, his heart relented. Striding
across the room to her side. he accented
the profered hands.
You have conquered" he said,
hoarse.y. Il leave you my full and free
forgiveness! Take it, and be happy
In your new life. But, for all that, It
Is indeed. farewell between US two.
I shall never again, enter your presence,
or listen to your voice, or look on your
beloved face, SO bid me good-by, now,
and--and may heaven bless and keep
you. my n lover! His accents We're
broken with emotion.
When he was gone, Lady Warrenne
went up to, her own room and dressed
herself hurriedly to go into the woods.
Having gained q small copse on her
right hand, she saw Plackwood Craven
walking before her, gun in hand. She
had een him barely for an instant
nay, afterwardl it almost seemed as
though there was. not a seconds inter-
val-when the report of a gun run
through the air, followed by q sharp,
agonizing cry that told but too surely
Of deaths victory, and Rlackwood, with
q dull, crashing, lifeless sound, fell to
the sudden earth.
Lady Warrenne sprang forward and
knelt down by his side, just as Sir
Mark, from an opposite direction, came
hurrying up, having also heard both
the guns report and its attendant cry.
Katherine had Blackwood's head on
her knees, and was pushing back the
hair from his forehead, in a half un-
conscious, dazed manner, when he
reached her.
"Katherine," he exclaimed, "what has
happened?" STOPPING down and tearing
open the young mans coat, only to
lay his hand upon n heart that but too
surely had ceased to beat.
Sir Mark felt his face growing cold,
his limbs trembling. 1t was too awful,
too horrible to contemplate; he could
not believe it. Only half an hour since,
Craven had been in sEs. ;'~, and spir-
its-it appeared to Sir Mark now that
he had never seer him in such good
spirits as that morling-and now
now--Katherine, too; how did she
come there? 1t was no place for her,
poor delicate darling. She must be got
home In some way or other. He step.
ped forward and tried to raise the
lifeless hecS from her supporting arms
She pushed him from her.
do not you see that he Is dead?'
she said, in an awful wllisper-"deadi
Go away, and do not disturb him. He
Is mine now, you know; my own; you
cannot grudge him to me any longer
placing, as she spoke, her small fingers
over the dead eyes lovingly.
"Katherine!" Sir Mark exclaimed
half fearing that the horror of the
scene had stolen away her senses, and
half fearing something, else that sem
the blood rushing wildly to his heart
DO not speak like that, darling. Give
him to me, and tell me how It happen
ed, II you can"
Ellis gun went pr and shot him.
saw it all quite distinctly" Katherine
explained, methodically. "He gave 8
cry-oh, such a @ry!-and then he fell
Nfo ->~f-- NR-p-s,