The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1896-09-16
/ Spelling a Scheme.


4 was disappointeu by tne hght OF a gas
lamp read:
"immodiate. Arthur Bellingham, Esq.
- Furnivals Inn. Holborn, L. c."
Bellingham2 BellinghamS seemed to
know the name For a minute or two
stood trying 10 remember whom it was /
had once met that owned il, but In vain.
What did 1t natter The affair was at an
end. dropped the queer letter into tho
letter box and went home TO my lodgings
A few months later / was strolling along
Oxford street. heard my name called out,
and looking up saw Arthur Bcllingham
standing before me- / recognized him at
onoe--a young engineer whom had met
once In country inn on u wet day in the
Lake district We had been capital friends
for a week, and ! could not understand
how had forgotten him when had tried
to remember what Bellingham had
known.
We greeted each other warmly, and he
would have me go with him to his cham.
bers I'm Furnival's inn and smoke cigar
with him.
"Beiiingham, said as stood on his
hearth rug, did II over happen that you
received letter written on ball pro-
grammc?"
His eyes and mouth opened in pure as
Constituent
"what do you know about thatS" ne
CALCULATED.
II ought not TO have known anything
about it, but plead guilty to having read
the address. posted the programme to-
you one night on my way homo from a
ball
My friend sprang up and wrung my
hand AS If he would wiring it off.
"My dear fellow" he cried, ~ am in
nnitcly Obliged to you for your tact and
kindnesson that occasion II you had not
posted that note 1t would have meant ruin
to me. Maud told me how awfully good
you were about IL. ="
maud? DO you mean
MAUD, my sister-the girl who slipped
the note into your hand.
sis she your sister"
Certainly she Is. It's rather an un-
common story. Shall tell it to your"
'If you don't mind. 1 confess / am
burning with curiosity"
1.-The fact is then, that some three years
ago my poor mother, who was n widow,
did what turned out TO be a very foolish
thing-she married again, and married
without making proper inquiries. My
stepfather, Mr.. Maddox, turned out to bo
q
er part of her fortune when she married
him, and we wero for time practically
dependent on my mothers uncle, an eccen-
trio old gentleman, rather fond Of money,
called Hodgkinson.
"Maddock Is neither more nor less than
an adventurer, and for a long time it was
the main business Of his life 10 exploit my
greatunclc. At last he nearly succeeded
Maddox and some friends of his got hold
of bit of land in South Africa, which
they wanted to sell as a gold mine I
don't believe there was an ounce of gold
on the promises. But my greatuncle said
that he would buy 1t at the high figure
they asked for 1t If would go out and see
It and send him private telegram advis-
ing him that the gold was there in paying
quantities.
"Of course I was ready to GO, and was
to have sailed the very morning after the
night Of the ball that you and Maud at
tended.
'Well, Maud happened to be in the con-
servatory attached TO the ballroom when
she overheard two men talking rather in
discreetly. She was standing behind some
Towering shrubs and heard every word
they said:
1.-THE two men were Mr.. Maddox and
one of his associates, and she heard enough
to make her understand that the thing was
a fraud, and that l was to be made the
means of their swindling Uncle Jonas on a
large scale. / believe the plan was that
they should send a false telegram TO the old
man In my name days before could even
see the pretended mine. Ono thing know
If the thing had come off, Uncle Jonas
would never have forgiven me- He would
have believed to. his dying day that / had
been squared You may imagine what q
state Maud was in. She'-
The door opened and Maud herself
walked into the room.
1t seemed that her stepfather had treated
her so harshly on account Of her having
spoiled his schemes that she had been
forced to leave his house and take refuge
with her brother
For some tirle the old man refused TO
believe that the reason Arthur gave for
not going to South Africa was the true
reason, but In time he came round, and
both brother and sister are now good
deal at his house. go there occasionally
myself, which Is not surprising, as Maud
and have been engaged for tho last six
weeks --Cassells Journal.