Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1895-06-22

TX he wrote again. his letters would not
ne answered.; his brother had done with
him. Treated in this inhuman manner.
the wild lord became once more worthy OF
his name. He tried a new life as "A betting
man ut races and trottiug.matches. For.
tune favored him at the outset, and he
coDsidern y increased his legacy. With
the customary infatuation Of men who
gain money by risking the loss Of IL, he
presumed on his good luck. one pecuni-
AIRY disaster followed another, aud left
him literally penniless. He was found
again, I'm England, exhibiting an open
boat. in which he and his companion had
made one OF those foolhardy voyages
across the Atlantic. which have now hap
PLY ceased To interest the public. To n
friend who demonstrated with him, he
answered that he had reckoned on being
iost AT sea, and on so committing a suicide
worthy Of the desperate life TINT he had
led. The last accounts OF him, after this,
were too vague and too contradictory to
be depended upOn. At Que time IL was re-
ported that he had returned 10 the United
states. Not long afterwards, un%account-
able paragraphs appeared In par
declaring, at one aud the same time, that
he was living among bad company in
Paris. and that he was hiding disreputa-
bly, in an ill-famed quarter of the city Of
Dublin. called THE Liberties" In any
case, there was good reason to fear that
Irish-American desperadoes had e%ntangled
the wild lord ia the network OF political
conspiracy.
The maid noticed a change I'm the mis-.
tress which surprised her, when she had
reached the end of the newspaper story.
or Miss Henley's customary good spirits
not a trace remained. Few people, Rhoda,
remember what they read as well as You
do" She said IL kindly and sadly-and
she said no more.
There WAS "a reason for this
Now at one time, II now nj another,
Iris had heard OF Lord Harry's faults aud
failings In fragments OF family history.
The complete record Of his degraded life,
presented In an uninterrupted succession
OF events, had now forced itself on her at
tention for the first time. 1t naturally
shocked her. She felt. rs she had never
felt before, o entirely right her father
had been In insisting on her resistance to
an attachment which was unworthy of
her. So far, but no farther. her conscience
Welded TO its W conviction of what was
just. But the one unassailable vital force
In this world is the force of love. 1t may
submit 10 the hard necessities OF life: IL
MAJ acknowledge the imperative claims
of duty; 1t may be silent under reproach,
and submissive to privation-but. suffer
what IL may, IL is the master-passion still;
subject TO no artificial influences, owning
no supremacy but the law OF its own be-
ing. Iris was above the reach OF self-re-
prbach, when her memory recalled the
daring action which had saved Lord Harry
at the milestone. Her better. sense nc.
knowledged Hugh MoAltjoy's superiority
over the other man-but her heart, heI
peryerse heart, remained true to- its first
choice In spite of her. She made an im-
patient excuse, and went out alone, TO
recover her composure ia the farmhouse
garden.
The hours of the evening passed slowly.
There was a pack of cards in the house:
the women tried TO amuse themselves, and
failed. Anxiety about Arthur preyed on
the spirits of Miss Henley aud Mrs. Lew
son. Even the maid. who had ouly seen
MIN during his last visit to London, said
she wished to- morrow had come and gone.
His sweet temper, his handsome face, his
lively talk had made Arthur g ~favorite
everywhere. Mrs. Lewsou had left heI
comfortable English home 10 be his house.
keeper. when he tried his rash experiment
OF farming ia ireland. And. more won.
| derful still, even wearisome Sir Giles be
came an agreeable person in his nephews
company.
Iris set the example OF retiring ut an
early hour 20 her room.
There was something terrible In the pas
toral silence OF the place. II associated it.
self mysteriously with her fears for Ar
thur: IL suggested armed treachery on tip.
toe, taking its murderous stand in hiding:
the whistling passage OF bullets through
the air: the piercing cry OF a man MORALLY
wounded; and that man. perhaps Iris
shrank from her own horrid thought. n
monetary f%aintness overcame her; she
opened the window. As she put her head
out 20 breathe the cool night air, a man
on horseback rode up TO the house, Was
IL Arthur No: the ~light-colored groom's
livery that he wore was Just visible.
Before he could dismount to knock al
the door, "a tall man walked up To him out
OF the darkness.
SIS that Miles'" the tall man asked.
The groom knew the voice. Iris was
ever better acquainted with il. She, too,
recognized Lord Harry.
K.
There was the Irish lord-at the very
time when Iris was most patiently resigned
never TO see him more, never to think OF
him as her husband again-reminding her
of the first days of their love, and OF their
mutual confession Of IT! Fear of herself
kept her behind the curtain: while interest
in Lord Harry detained her at the window
In hiding.
"All well at Rathco'" he asked-men-
tioning the name Of the house in which
Arthur was one OF the guests.
Yes, my lord. Mr.. Mountjoy leaves us
Tomorrow"
Does he mean to return to the farm"
Sorry l am to say 1t; he does mean
that"
"Has he fixed any time, Miles, for start
ing on his Journey"
Miles instituted "A search through his
pockets, and accompanied IL with an ex
planation. Yes, indeed, Master Arthur
had fixed a time: he had written a note 10
say so TO Mistress Lewson, the housekeep-
err: he had said; Drop the note at the
farm, on you way TO the village" And
what might Miles want at the village, In
the dark Medicine, In a hurry, for one OF
his masters horses that was sick and sink
lug. And, speaking OF that, here, thank
God. was the motel
Iris. listening and watching alternately,
saw To her surprise the note intended for
Mrs. Lewsou handed to Lord Harry. "Am
I expected" he asked. loosely, Ito read
writing without a lighti" Miles produced
a small lantern which was strapped To his
groom's belt. There's parts of the road
not over safe in the dark" he said, rs he
raised the shade which guarded the light.
The wild lord coolly opened the letter aud
read the few careless words which II con-
tanned: ITO Mrs. Lewson: Dear old girl.
expect me back tomorrow to dinner at J
o'clock. Yours, Arthur"
There was a pause. -.
"Are there any strangers at Rathco!'
Lord Harry asked; ...
Two new men," Miles replied, AT WORK
In the grounds"
Inere was another pause.
"How can i protect himf" the young
Lord said, partly to himself, partly to
Miles. He suspected the two new men
spies probably who thew OF Arthur's pro-
posed Journey home. and who had already
reported to their employers the hour at
which he would set out.
Miles ventured to say n word: Il hope
you won't be angry with me, my lord"
"StufY and nonsensei Was l ever angry
with YOU. when l was rich enough ia
keep a servant, and when you were the
mani"
The Irish groom answered in . voice
that tremoled with strong feeling. "You
were the best and kindest master that
ever lived on this earth. can't see you
nutting your precious life In ucril-"
"My precious lifef" Lord Harry repeated
lightly. "You'e thinking OF Mr.. Mount
Joy, when you say that. His life is worth
saving. AS for my life" lie ended the
sentence by a whistle. rs the best way he
could hit on of expressing his contempt for
his own existence. 49,,
"My iordi my lord" Miles persisted;
"the Invtncibles are beginning to doubt
ycu. II any of them find you hanging
about Mr.. Mountjoy's farm, they'll try q
shot at you first, n ask Afterwards
whether Il was right 10 kill you or not"
To hear this said-and said seriously
after the saving OF him ut the milestone,
Was A trial OF her flrmness which Iris was
unable to resist. Love got the better oil
prudence. She drew back the window.
curtain. In another moment she would
have added her persuasion to the servants
warning. IL Lord Harry himself had not