Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1899-03-15
CHAPTER VII.
AT TIE DUKE OF LUNDY's.

n
I never paid away ESQ in my lift
with greater pleasure than I did to Mr.
Rogers. was overjoyed at the success
of my plan, and felt that now, at any
rate, we had advanced one step towart
the solution Of the awful mystery.
The announcement Of the identity o.
the murdered Harriet Staples with th'
missing daughter Of the Duke of Lundy
increased thousandfold the interest o.
the public, for the case was now trans
planted to aristocratio regions and sur
rounded with a halo Of romance, ant
when it was further known tnat tht
discovery was the result Of the missing
letter competition the excitement wal
rendered still more universal
For the moment | was puzzled Il
know how it was had not aoticed tht
photograph of Lady Florence Mostyn ir
the albums at Scotland Yard; for dis
tinctly remembered seeing her mention
ed. I returned there to make inquiries
and to my great surprise found an alto
gether impossible photograph over bel
name No wonder nothing had come
from my search. The officials to whom
pointed this out were considerably in
terested, and the Duke of Lundy wai
written to on the subject. He replied
that the photograph in the album wal
not the one he had sent when his daugh
ter disappeared and was one, in fact
that he never remembered to have seer
before. So here was further mystery,
and the eventual solution of it turned
ont to be Of great consequence to us ir
our quest.
1t was now of the greatest momen,
to learn something more Of the history
of the unfortunate lady about whose
life so much terrible mystery had hung,
and hastened to put myself into COM
munication with tho Duke Of Lundy.
His grace was very peculiar man
q man one instinctively felt it impossi.
BILE to like, and yet person whom II
would be equally impossible not to re-
spect. He was parrician to the back
bone-faultlessly courteous, but icily
cold. The death of his daughter must
have affected him terribly, but he pre-
sented an untroubled demeanor to the
world, for had she not been dead to him
for years? / had one short interview
with him, in which he expressed regret
at his inability to furnish me with am
sotasle - bor l;fa tbof xpopl6 bo If CORY
ice to me. She had left his roof without
word of warning, and he was absolute
ly ignorant of her life from that day.
It was evident / should have to lool
to other quarters for assistance, and FOL
once in a way Dame Fortune favored
me.
found out that Henry Wray, an ole
schoolfellow of mine, was the rector o.
Lamford - the parish in which th'
dukes seat of Glenmore was situated
and to him 1 at once went. He hat
known Lady Florence Mostyn for som'
years previous to her disappearance
and he told me all he thought would b.
of use to me The girl-for she was on
ly 20 when she left her fathers roof
was of happy disposition, and she wa
q general favorite. She was equally a
home in parish work, in the hunting
field and in the ballroom. She was &C
complished and she was distinctly hand
some. AS might be well imagined, sh
had many suitors, but she turned dea
ear to all until certain MIR. Arthu
Durant made his appearance, and OF
this man, in many respects the leas
suitable of her admirers, she did no
look askance.
There was some mystery about thi
Durant. He was colonial, had mad
his money in a store-he did not concea
tbat-and he had returned to spend it
Had he been rich Lancashire cottol
man, or an ironmaster of native growth
it might have been difficult for him t
have obtained the entree to the circle II
which Lady Florence Mostyn moved
But to the rich American or colonla
most things are possible. He had hire
hunting box for the season, and, thank
to his splendid horsefesh, his own pre-
sentable appearance, unstinted liberalit.
and genial disposition, he was sool
moving on equal terms with the men b
met in the field. He did not seem t
care for society, and this made his socia
advancement all the easier. He wa
soon invited everywhere. Some invita-
tions he accepted and some he refused
and among the former were those Of tn