Evening star., 1901-05-04
CHATTER XIV.
The Very same Day.

The very same Day.
shall wait up, ny lord? Miss Gains
borough has gone To her room. I've turned
out the lights and shut UP the house
Harry looked al the clock in the study.
ii was 1 o'clock
Il thought you had gone to bed long
ago, Mason" He rose and stretched him
H-lf. I'm going to town early in the
morning. l shant want any breakfast.
and shan't take anybody with me Tell
Fisher 70 pack my portmanteau-thingsf for
few days-dnd send it to Paddington. I'll
Etre it fetched from there. Tell him to be
aSiy TO follow NE if | send for him
Yes my lord"
Give that letter to Miss Gainsborough
;.-nurr0w morning. He handed a thick
liter. Two others lay on the table. After
moments hesitation Harry put them In
LIS pocket. 'I'n post them myself he
sid When did Miss Gainsborough go to
I-r ruom?''
About an hour back my lord
Did she stay in the long gallery till
Yes, my lord"
4 may he away little while, Mason. I
hope Miss Gainsborough-and Mr.. Gains
borough. too-will be staying on some time.
Mike them comfortable
Not sign of curiosity or surprise
escaped Mason His Yes, my lord" was
Just the same though Harry had or
dered an egg for breakfast. Sudden COM
ion of the house
An right. Good night. Mason
Good night, my lord" Mason looked
FOUND for something to carry off-the force
of habt-fOund nothing. and retired noise-
lessiy.
One o'clockw sighed Harry. "Ah, I'm
tired I won't go to bed. though; 1 couldn't
sleep. He moved restleSsly about the
room. His food of feeling had gone by:
for the time the power of thought, too.
seemed TO have deserted him. He had told
g.Sf !,
enough; he had yielded to an impulse to
write a line to Nina Observation-Disclosures she
had been SO mixed up in 1t all. The docu-
nnents that were to have proved his claim
mad" little heap of ashes in the CRATE.
All this had been two hours hard work
But. after all. two hours Is not long to
sp@nd in getting rid of an old life and en-
terins on a new He found himself rather
surprised at the simplicity of the process
What was there left to do? He had only
t. <" 10 London and see his lawyer-an in
tervtrw easy enough for him. though
Startling. no doubt, to the lawyer. Cecily
would be put into possession of her own.
There was nothing sensational. He would
travel a bit, perhaps, or just stay in town.
or To- use I'm making more: for his mothers
savings We're Individually his left to him
by a will. in which he. the real Harry, was
So expressly designated by his own full
name-even more than that-as Henry
Austen Fitzhuhert, Tristram, otherwise
Henry Austin Fitzhubert, my son by the
late Capt Austen Fitzhubert'- no
question of his right could arise. That
rhouev would not go with the title He
threw himself on the sofa, and in spite of
his conviction that he could not sleep
dozed off almost directly.
IL was o'clock when he aWoke He
went up to his room. had bath, shaved
and put on a tweed suit Coming down
to the study again, he opened the shutters
and looked out. 1t would be light Soon
and he could go away. He was fretfully
I'm patient of staying. He drank some whis-
Ky and soda water and smoked a cigar as
he walked up and down Yes there were
signs of dawn now; the darkness lifted
over the hill on which Merrion stood
Merrion, Yes. Merrion. And the major?
Well? DupIay had not frightened him. Du-
play had not turned him out. He was 60
ing of his own will-Of his own act any
how. for he could not feel SO sure about
the will. But for the first time 1t struck
him that his abdication might inure to the
majors benefit; that he had won for Du-
play the prize which he was sure the gal
liant officer could not have achieved for
himself. I'll be hanged If / do that" he
nuttered. Yes, / know what I'll do" he
added. smiling
He got his hat and stick and went out
into the garden The windows of the long
gallery were all dark. Harry smiled again
and shook his fists at them. There was
no light in Cecily's window. He was glad
t. think that the girl slept; If he were
tired she must be terribly tired, too. He
was quite alOpe-alcne with the old place
for the last time.
lie started at brisk walk to the little
bridge. reached the middle of 1t, and stop
pei short The talk he had had with
Nina Labriska at this very spot came back
1n;p tis mind The blood, not the law,'
he had said. Well. il was to the blood he
had bowed. and not to the law He made
a movement as though to walk on, but for
a moment he could not. When ii came TO
going for an instant he could not GO The
parting was difficult. He had no discop-
tent With what he had done But 1t was
hard to go. to leave Blent Just as the
Slowly growing day brought into sight
every outline he knew we'll, and began
to warm the gardens into life. II should
rather like to stay a day" was his thought
as h. fingered still. But the next moment
he was across the bridge. slamming the
gate behind him. and beginning to mount
the road up the valley. He had heard
Shutter thrown open and window raised;
the sound came from the wing where
CeciS slept He did not want TO see her
now; he did not wish her to see him. She
Tas to awake to undivided possession free
from any reminder of him. That was his
fancy: his idea of making his gift to her
Or what was hers more splendid and more
complete. But she did see him; she watch
ed him from her window. as he walked up
the valley. He did not know; true to his
fancy he never turned his head.
Bob Broadley was an early riser. as his
business in life demanded At o'clock
he was breakfasting in a bright little room
opening on his garden. He was in the
Jmiddle Of his rasher when a shadow fell