The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1895-12-13

\ trait ri + ]. 2 40
"AS New YORK Evening MINI Sum Sun. !,
HER FATHERS SECRET.
! Emily Vane sat a. the drawing room
! Window which overlooked the sea and
the Cleveland hills: but she saw neither
sea nor hills: She and her father, with
the servants, had been hdw sonie Ave
| weeks ut Saltburn, in d large hUtSe
which Mr.: Vane had rented for the
| summer. Henry Vane, Esq, owned d
| goott-slzed mansion III Belgrayia, where
| he had lived for the past eight years dur
ing he London season; and an estate
near Nottingham, amid picturesque seem
| cry: where he generally resided when not
| in London, Each summer, however, he
rented his house Mt Saltbnrn: for not
only Emily, but himself too. was charmed
with the quiet, beautiful Yorkshire wa,
tering place. From all Of which it will
be ut once surmised that Henry Vane,
| Estl., WAS Il man of wealth.
His money had been acquired abroad
and though of his family nothing or lit
| tie was, known by society, he was we'll
even titled person does not care light
| ly: to offend one whose income is $4,000
| year. . ~ ;, -, f.. 5.
Emily vane saw neither sea nor hills.
| Her thoughts We're wholly occupied by
| two letters i'll front of her. Both had
come that morning. and both were pro-
| posals for her hand. The first of them
| was from the Earl. Of Scacroft, who for
some time had been paying, Miss Vane
noticeable attentions, and who, both as
regarded personal qualities and position,
was indeed no bad match for any Eng
lish maiden: He was vet young and
fact, since Emily had .'come out'-had
been Il, victim to her beauty and charms
She admitted to herself that Lord Sea-
croft's proposal was not one to be lightly
The other letter was from Hubert
Wells. Emily had met him about six
which time he had been her devoted adj
| mirer. She frankly confessed to herself
! that she liked him. that she liked his So
ciety. aud that she knew that he loved
her Blu. Hubert Wells was not rich,
| and had no particular position. He had
only about f4OO year, which his father,
long since dead, had left him to live
| upon.
Emily Vane still sat, looking first at
this proposal, then at that. She had,
for the past week or two, expected both,
and so unsettled and doubtful was she,
that she had given neither sutton any
chance of proposing personally. But
The ordeal had to be faced; the de-
.cision to be made! Her pride, her love
for her father her wish to raise the
name of Vane, said, '.Seacroft;" yet
there was Il small voice. underneath
which whispered. Hubert"
In her perplexity she picked up the
letters. and went to sec her father in his
study Emily Vane's mother had died
at her birth: her father was her closest
contidant AS Emily entered he rose
up and kissed her lovingly, then, smooth
ing her hair. said, quietly:
(Which of the two is it to be; !ove!
The beautiful girl gazed at him with
eyes half dilnmed with tears as she an
swered. blushingly:
"Whichever my papa likes! He al
ways chooses for the best.
well. my dear, suppose should say
Lord Seacroft? I have always wished
such husband for you-titled, yet noble
in natures best way"
Yes, papa
Yet | like this Mr.. Wells
Emily's heart beat shade quicker.
He cannot give you what the Earl of
Seacroft can, and what l have so often
pictured you: and yet-and yet-he is his
fathers son.
The girl gazed half in fear and aston
lSnment. IOr IleT IdtueI was dS piile Us
DEATH and shook visibly.
What is it, papa?'' she said.
''Sit down. my love-" replied Mr.. Vane.
1T has only come, as felt certain some
day it would God has brought it out in
His time. I must tell you now. Don't
be afraid. Emily. 1t is the secret of my
life which I've hidden for thirty-hye
years: now you must share it. | feel |
should not be doing right if I let you
choose today without telling you Of it.
When you have heard my story, you
must choose for yourself. and be as
stlred your choice. which ever it is. will
please me. AS for what you will hear.
it will remain your secret and mine; l
shall keep it as before, and I must beg
of you to do the same all your life, even
from your husband i
Emily sat in doubt and fear, sure that
the kind father who had so loved her
would not tell anything to distress her.
if he could help it; and yet anxious as
to what such an awful secret could be.
The master of Olton sat in a chair with
his face away from the light, watching
intently that dear, sweet face of his
daughter, upon which the full sunlight
shone.
''Thirty-tive years ago a convict ship
was sailing from England for Botany
! captain and crew. There We're no fewer
than forty convicts Oh board-desperate
| fellows of every descriptions; thieves,
highWaymen. manslayers. all kinds of
villains. Among them was one whose
| ease had excited much interest ut home,
since many people believed him inno-
/ cent-moralIy. at any rate-of the crime
| he was said to- have committed. Among
Il gang of pOacIers one night he. their
| superior in rank, had had the misfortune
to shoot one of the keepers who had
| watched for them and attacked them:
The shot had killed the keeper, but
there was some doubt as to whose gun
it had come from and, when the convict
in question was arrested and charged.
the keepers -swore that he had fired the
Shot. For himself. he knew not wheth-
III this was so: several of his fellow
poachers said he was innocent and that
the real culprit had escaped. His SEN
tence. however. was that of penal :seryi-
tude ut Botany Bay for Theoretically
the doubt alone saved him from being
hanged. f':
= Naturally his spirit was CALLED: he
became morose, wild, severe i'll aspect
as in temper. and his reputation on the
convict ship was that of the worst crimi-
nal on board HeErebelled ut his jailers,
at his food. at his confinement and felt
ready for any dark deed. The chance
soon came. The vessel was off the Cape
Of Good Hope, some miles away, when
he first got knowledge of u projected
mutiny, in which the captain. crew and
jailcrs were all to be murdered; and
the successful mutineering convicts were
then to steer for some unknown point
III Africa and land there.
''It was desperate scheme, and with
the mutiny he was thoroughly in unison,
but not with the murder: He was not
yet as black as that. and tried hard to
dissr,ade his fierce companions from it.
but in vain. As they, persisted il their
plans, he felt that all he could do was
to keep quiet till the time for action
came; but the captain and his wife had
been really kind to him, und he deter,
mined they should not die. Yet he would.
not bctray his companions, like a cow
ards - H. * >,@%s
"On September 8 the attack was made.
He stood near the captains cabin to pro-
tect it's unsnspecting inmates. When the
mutineers. having seized the watch on
deck and killed them, came rushing down
he ordered them back from that cabin:
they refused to 20. and Il fight ensucd.