Evening star., 1897-09-25

am MOTTO HveI must risk my living"
cried. u
She raised her eyebrows, with a look in
her eyes that. r remember, puzzled me.
well, may be- she said a trifie tartly
And the otherifs neither here nor there.
For the rest, Dick, Z live at Capt. Gill's,
and his wife claws me Monday and kisses
me Tuesday"
And you have taken letters to London? ?''
I said. wondering at her courage.
Three times5T she answered. nodding
soberly And to Tunbridge once. A wo-
man passes. A imam would be taken. So
Mr.. Birkenhead says But" and with the
word she broke off abruptly, and stared at
me. and continued to stare at me. her face.
which was rounder' and more womanly
than in old days, falling strangely.
1t wore such a look, indeed, that 1
glanced over my shoulder, thinking that
''Mary!' cried. what is it? What is the
natter"
Are you the man-who came with Sir
John Fenwick to the shore?' she cried,
risen. "And betrayed him? Dick, Dick,
dent say it!' she continued, hurriedly,
holding out her hands as If she would ward
of my words. Don't say that you are
that man! l had forgotten until this mo-
ment-whom came to see; who, they said,
was here"
Her words stung me, even as her face
frightened me. But while WINGED, kind
u
sense OF injustice long endured. came to
me. and I answered her with spirit. NO."
1 said, II am not that man."
MOP she cried.
man that betrayed Sir John Fenwick. But
I will tell you what man L am-if you will
listen to me-"
What are you going to tell me?' she
answered, the troubled look returning. And
then Dick. don't lie to me!' she cried
quickly.
IT have no need,' I said. And with
that. beginning at the beginning, 1 told
her all the story which is written here. so
far as it was not already known to her.
She listened in silence, standing over me
with something of the severity of judge,
until came to the start from London
with Matthew Smith.
There she interrupted me. "One mo-
ment." she said in hard voice. and she
liked me with keen unfrendly eyes. "Yo GU
know that Sir John Fenwick was taken
two days later, and is in the tower?"
Il know nothing" l said, holding out
my hands and trembling with the excite
ment of my story, and the thought of my
sufferings.
No. nothing; not even that" 1 said.
Nor that within a month. in all proba-
bility, he will be tried and executed!''
No"
have not heard that Sir John has turned
on him and denounced him to the council
and the king?''
No said. "How should II"
'What?" she cried incredulously "You
do not know that with which all England
men,"
How should II" 1 said feebly. 'Who
been ILL.,
She nodded Go on" she said.
.! obeyed 1 took up the thread again;
told her how we reached Ashford. how
saw Sir John. how 1 fled and how 1 was
pursued; finally how / was received on
board the boat. and never until the follow
ing day, when Birkenhead flung it in my
teeth guessed that L forestalled Sir John
and robbed him OF his one chance of es-
cape. For if L had known" l continued
warmly, why should 1 fly from him?
What had L to fear from him? Or what to
gain, If Smith with pistol were not at
continued bitterly. seeing that I had con-
xinced her. What did I gain? This!
This!' And touched my crippled leg
Thank GodH' she said with emotion.
Thank God, Dick. But
But what" / ret0rted sharply: for in
the telling of the story L had come TO see
more clearly than before how cruelty had
been treated. ''Eut WHAT"
Well, just this she said gently Have
you not brought 1t on yourself-in meas
ure? II You had been more; that is,
mean. If you had not been So"
so what"' I cried querulously, seeing
We'll. SO quick to think that it was
Matthew Smith--and a pistol" she an
swered, smiling rather heartlessly. THAT
is ALL"
There was a mist" 1 said.
She laughed in her odd way. "Of course
DICK, there was a mist" she agreed And
you cannot make bricks without straw.
And after all you did make bricks in st.
James square. and it is not for me to find
fault. But there is thing to be done and
It must be done" And her lips closed
firmly, after a fashion remembered and
sun remember. having seen it a hundred
.Imes since that day-and learned to hui
NOR NOR II. one that must be done"" she con-
tinued Dick, you will not leave the duke
10 be ruined by Matthew Smith? You will
not lie here and let those rogues work their
him." 1' uenouiiceo
And may denounce me.' ] said, aghast
at the notion. May denounce me- con-
tinued with agitation. viii denounce me
ford, 1t was T."
And who are you?" she retorted. with a
look that withered me- "Who win care
.a Whet her YOU met Sir John at Ashford or
poor drunkard, as it's the fashion this
sac, call him. 1 say, what YOU will-at
ieast' ne flies at E:gh game and does NOT
hawk at mice!'
Nicer
aye. micer' she answered. with a sr,n
or her teeth-and she looked all over the
nttle vixen she could be. For what are
we! What are We now? Still more what
are we II we leave the duke to his enemies
leave him to be ruined and disgraced. leave
him to pay the penalty, while YOU. the
cause OF all this. lie here-lie safe nnd
snug! For shame. Dick! For shamer' she
continued. with such thrill in her voice
that the pigeons feeding behind her fiut-
tered up ia alarm. and two or three nuns
looked out inquisitively.
had my own thoughts and my own feel
ings about my lord, as he well knew in
after years; 1 challenge any one to saw
that lacked either respect or affection for
MIN. But mans wits move more slowly
than womans, and the news came on
me suddenly: 1t was no great wonder ff I
could not In a moment stomach the pros
pect OF returning to risk and jeopardy. to
the turmoil from which had been so long
freed. and the hazards of a life and death
struggle. In tie political life of twenty
years ago men carried their necks TO mar
ket: Knowing that might save the duke
and suffer in his place-the fate of many a
poor dependent-or might be confronted
with Smith, or brought face 10 face with
ferguson, or perish before 1 reached Lon
don In the net in which my lords own feet
were caught, foresaw not one but a hun
dfed dangers; and those such as no pru-
dent man could be expected to regard with
equanimity, or any but hare-brained eirl
ywnf- Il