Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1899-03-23

once 10 HOt.. -,..uutDu. ,...t uit, ..,..
Cecil Lovbond most iutl.uato tricud ahG
tho executor 81 his will and come unicAt.
ed to him his sGrmigc5 ana doubts. His
surmiscs and doubts wcro SO wen support.
ed by the evidence III his hands and were
of n nature So grave that HOLES Nnuntou
called together the eldest Of Cecil Lovi-
bond : relatives, and after n consultnt ion
with them spoke in the namc of a forni-
dablc consensus of unclcs and aunts to
Bertio and Sibil
BERTHE, who was never Mt his case when
it was not possible to be jocular, content
ed himself with repeating lugubriously
that lot of the BonttlOwers, you know,
had been queer. Sibil would at first listen
to nothing, not even to tho suggestion of
cnlistinR the services of celebrated spe-
rialst. Her opposition was so determined
that she obtained ut last u promise that
nothing should he undertaken or done
against her mothers consent. On that
condition Sibil, with becoming reluctance,
consented that tho difficult business
should be opened to Mrs. I.ovibond, stipu-
lating for all possible tontativcncss and
dclicacy. Nothing, she said, could to Berthe
and herself bc at all worth while in com
parison with that, and BERTHE said of course
~ 'ouluH l.
Holles Naunton, III company with Sibil,
VINO INSISTED that she should be present,
undertook the llttIe ON nassy lie had long
hoped that Slbll WOULD consent to marry
horace ms second son, ana had learned
to regard her as little less than daughter
ana TO regard her interests as adaughter's
interests.
The tact and genticncss of his address
in the actual interview left Sibil nothing
to wish unsaid, nothing to wish undono.
It was "A matter of business simply, he ex-
planned, growing out Of scrupc on the
part, in the first instance, of a man Of
business, and except that her naturally
pale face became pcrccrtihly u little more
pale Mrs. Iovibond bore herself rs in the
presence of "a matter of business simply
and offered neither protest nor opposition.
She felt, poor lady, that she stood very
much alone. Her husbands relatives
when all was said, were just her husband's
relatives, and relatives of her own, except
some distant cousins, she had none. She
had been an only child and had brought
truth to tell, much of the estate which II
appeared that she was mismanaging t.
Cecil Lovibond on her marriage Even i
she diSavowcd all of tho strange thinV
that Sibil had done in her name, it WI.
possible she would not be believed. Hci
littlo public was preiudiccd against her,
and oven to an unprecedented public i
must be easier to believe that an old Won
an was out of her wits than to believe tbs
girl like Sibil had conceived so safo and
so audacious conspiracy Also to make
disavowal would be TO accuse her daugh
ter, and simply sh0 could not bring herself
to accuse even daughter like that. at
Is too plain, she said. Il may well be
mad, having, as | have, such children. ~
And she undertook to make over what
HOLES Naunton would to any proper trus
tees.
When the necessary papers and proceed
ings were nearing completion, Bcrtie, who
was slow always to take things in, showed
at last symptoms of revolt and declared to
coHtVst' thau IL was al u bloouy Shame.
l "clo !ou' ol"ii s'i" WIN men