The Yale expositor. (Yale, St. Clair County, Mich.) 1894-current, 1896-11-13

tionship and kindness to Miss Rowan
merited. He started on his travels
without any forebodings of evil.
His journey to Cannes and back was
hurried-he wasted no time on the road,
but was delayed for two days ut the
place itself before he could make final
arrangements with the owner and the
present occupier of the house. Think
ing he was going to start every moment
he did not write to Madeline-at the
rate at which he meant to return a
letter posted in England would reach
ho" Utmost as quickly as If posted at
Cannes
&c reached his home, which for the
last few weeks had been Oxford, and
found two letters waiting for him. The
first, dated on the day he left England,
was from Madeline. 1t told him that
her aunty's illness had suddenly taken
fatal turn-that she had died that
day, almost without warning. The Sec
ond letter was anonymous.
1t was written apparently by wom-
an, and advised Mr.. Carr to look sharp
ly after his lady-love or he would find
himself left in the lurch. The writer
would not be surprised to hear some
fine day that she had eloped with GER
tain gentleman who should be name
less. This precious epistle, probably
an emanation of feminine spite, Car
riston treated as it deserved-he tore
it up and threw the pieces to the wind.
But the thought of Madeline being
alone at that lonely house troubled him
greatly. The dead woman had no sons
or daughters-all the anxiety and re-
sponsibility connected with her affairs
would fall on the poor girl. The next
day he threw himself into the Scotch
Express, and started for her PARKWAY
home.
On arriving there he found 1t occu-
pied only by the rough farm servants.
They seemed in a state OF wonderment,
and volubly questioned Carriston as 10
the whereabouts Of Madeline. The
question sent a chill of fear to his
heart. He answered their questions
by others, and soon learnt all they had
| to communicate.
Little enough it was. On the morn
| ing after the old womans funeral Mad
cline had gone to Calendar, to ask the
advice of an old friend of her aunt5,
as to what steps should now be taken.
! She had neither been to his friend
nor had she returned home. She had
however, sent a message that she must
| go to London at once, and would write
| from there. That was the last heard
! Of her-all that was known about her
Upon hearing this news Carriston be-
came a prey to the acutest terror-an
emotion which was quite ineXplicable
10 the honest people, his informants,
The girl had gone, hut she had sent
word whittier she had gone. True
they did not know the reason for her
departure, so sudden and without hug
gage of any criptiol-true, she had
not written as promised, but no doubt
they would hear from her tomorrow
Carriston knew better. Without re-
vealing the extent of his fears. he few
back to Calendar. Inquiries at the
railway station informed him that she
had gone, or hal purposei going, to
LONDON, but whcthe.' she ever reached
it. or whether any trace of her could
be found there. was, az least, a matter
of doubt No good could be gained by
remaining in Scotland, so He Travelled
back at once to town, half distracted
sleepless, and racking his brains to
Know where to look for her.
"She has been decoyed away" he
said in conclusion. "She is hidden, i'm
prisoned somewhere. And l know. as
well as IL h. told me, who has done this
thing. / can trace Ralph CarristoI's
cursed sand through it all"
glanced at him askance. This NOR
bid suspicion of his cousin amountec
almost to monomania. He had told
the tale of Madeline's disappearance
clearly and tersely; but when he began
to account for IL his theory was wild
and untenable one. However much ht
suspected Ralph Carriston of longinf
to stand in his shoes, i could see nc
object for the crime of which he &C
cused him, that OF decoying away Mad
cline Rowan.
|