Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1898-03-03
HARTWOoO's GAME.

LOIu ndIINOOu Jl4bSH hIiA49'4t
his strength Of character His daugh-
ters said that he was as obstinate as
mule. His neighbors privately oPin-
ioned that a more pigheaded elderly
gentleman had not been seen on earth
in recent times. These were all diff
ferent ways of saying the same thing
that when the noble earl had once
made up his mind to a certain course
ne was more difficult to turn than a
rusty windlass.
Of this trait no one should have
been better aware than his eldest son
Lord Fawnton, who had had excellent
opportunities of studying the parental
character for quarter Of century or
so. Not the least curious part of the
whole story, however, was that it all
came as a surprise to him. When he
first slipped off the narrow line ofcon-
duct which his father had marked out
for him, by implication ifnot by actual
precept, it had never occurred to him
that this derailment would be more
than a temporary episode 1t would
]
be easy enough, he thought, to return
at any time to the iron route Of filial
oil, ,dience and to ocondone the omissions
Of the past by lavish conformance in
the future. A balance would thereby
be struck and tly ..!o ..Go Journey cOntin-
ne without prejudice, as the lawyers
say, on each side.
In which conclusion he forgot two
important factors-frst, that it is one
thing to return from husk gathering
excursion alone, but quite another to
propose to bring with you fellow
passenger, and, secondly, his father :
most salient Characteristic
Now, Lord Fawnton's proposal to
marry Mrs. Sainton interfered disas-
trously with his parents pet plan.
This was to unite the lands OF Crock
Castle to those of HARDWOOD, with
which they marched for miles, by
the marriage of his heir to the only
child and heiress of old George Jar
gontoste, who had made a fabulous
fortune out of patent floor cloth and
had sunk a portion Of it in the pur-
chase of Crock from the Hernbys, who
had owned it for centuries.
When, therefore, Lord Fawnton,
after sowing a fair crop Of wild oats,
announced his intention Of marrying
Mrs. Sainton, the widow of an Indian
officer who was a few years older than
himself and possessed small pension
which would die with her, Lord Hart
wood, ex-diplomatist though he was,
few into violent rage.
Understand this r. he shouted, al
most foaming at the mouth. Il will
not hear it. will be no party to it
in any way. If you marry this wo-
man, not one Of the family shall be
present at the wedding. will never
receive her You shall not have one
penny while live, and, though l can
not interfere with the entall-worse
luck i will leave every other penny
that l possess to the girls. Now you
know, and you had better let her
know, too, and see if she will take you
on these terms"
Mrs. Sainton was the typical femme
trente ans. She knew life and was
a past mistress in the art of managing
men. India is an excellent school in
which to pursue these studies and
when one is badly cleft" proficiency in
them comes in useful. She was un-
doubtedly handsome.
When Fawnton explained to her,
using a certain discretion in style, the
scene which had taken place between
his father and himself, she saw at once
that the position was extremely seri-
Gus. 1t demanded the exercise Of far
more tact and greater command Of
strategy than Fawnton was capable of.
It was part Of her creed that she could
get round any man if she could only
get at him. Therefore she was bent
on winning Lord HARDWOOD over. OF
course if this programme absolutely
failed there would be nothing for it
but to marry in defiance of him, and
if the horrid old man persisted in his
threat of cutting off supplies-well,
Fawnton could easily raise money on
his prospects This would be horribly
expensive, especially if the father lived
long, and it was by no means the plan
she would have preferred, but 1t was
not likely that she was going to give
up such chance simply to please a
bad tempered elderly gentleman, or
that, once married, she would be con-