Canyon City news. (Canyon City, Tex.) 1903-1908, 1904-06-24

not wish his daughter to marry
the man OF her choice he locked
her up in the tnrret chamber of
the castle and kept her on diet of
bread and water until she was toe
weak to oppose patcrnal command. The
method Is unusual now in this part Of
the world and therefore the luck of
Stuart IIollingsworth may be called eX-
ccptionally hard.
Hollingsworth was engaged to Ruth
Warren without her fathers consent.
IIollingsworth had n great reputation
as wit and had said one or two very
clever but not unkindly things about
Albcrtus Warren.
Otherwise HolinGsworth was timex
Ccptionablc. He was not SO rich as
Warren, but he was in Il good way Of
business and striding on toward great
success. A brisk. bright, chccry fellow
he was despite the melancholy cast of
his countcnancc and the sad, sweet
voice which lent itself so well to The
purposes of his unfailing jcsts.
Warren was different from everybody
else in The world. but most particularly
from his daughter, who possessed n
very amiable disposition. She was
plump and pretty, exceptionally cheer
full in il gentle way and quite destitute
of any trait that could be called an ec'
ccntricity. 1t could he seen with half
an eye that she was saturated with
loyn r,r JI,Jl;ppcunrtb tho wny Of n
piece Of cake dipped in wine,
Her father had done his best to make
an old maid of her. She was already
twcntyfour. Many SuitOr had been
frightened away from the great, square
house, with its antique iron fence and
its strips of dusty lawn. But nobody
could frightcn IIollngsworth, He was
not Il tall man. and he was Slenderly
built but he was armed always with
the mighty weapon of invincible good
humor. Not even Albcrtus Warren
could quarrel with him, and perhaps
that is why the old sinner resorted to
desperate measures.
Whatever the explanation may be,
this is the situation: IIollingsworth
knew that the young lady was in her
fathers house. He had faith to believe
that she still loved him. but he could
neither see her nor get one word from
her The truth dawncd upon him slow
ly. He was Informed at the house two
or three times that Miss Warren was
not mt home. He expected Il note from
l,, "a
very earnest communication from him
self brought no response from her.
Then he called at Mr.. Warren's office
and was denied.
At the end of a week IIollingsworth
had Il confidential talk with his friend,
John Breck, who was lawyer. Breck
treated the subject with lcvity. He
had recently been the victim of very
good joke which IIollingsworth had
put up" and he expressed mean
spirited qualification that fate should
have avenged him. Coming TO Il more
serious view at last he said:
"Thcre are various things that you
can do. The young lady is of age She
can claim her liberty"
That's the way ] look at it," re-
sponded Hollingsworth
Breck shook his head.
"Thc old man will get tired of it," he
said "Ic won't imprson her long"
Two or three days elapsed without
bringing any new developments, and
then Breck called at Hollingsworth's
-, To
i've seen Albertus," he said. "and
I'm afraid that the matter is more Sc
rious than had supposed. The old
villain has got something up his sleeve.
What it is don't know, but he evident
ly believes it to be Il winner. If he
didn't, Stuart, my boy, could fix this
whole matter for you. This in conf
dcnce TO YOU: I've got very strong
hold on old Albertus Warren, and |
wouldn't scruple to use it in Il case of
this kind. If he were merely holding
out obstinatcly against you, with no
definite plan in view. could swing
him. But he's trying to accomplish
something. I'm sure of it. though |
don't see what it can be unless he in
tends to make her marry somebody else.
She is the sort of girl TO mind her fa-
thcr."
1T is her only fault" replied Hol-
lingsworth. But, see here. Jack.
There's one thing obvious--Shc is being
tricked. Nobody can convince me that
she doesn't suppose that she has sent
word to me. She has trusted her letter
to some rascally servant
rs there anybody in the household
whom you know particularly well:"
asked the lawyer And IIollingsworth
replied that he had occasionally held
amicable conversations with the house
keeper, who seemed to he friendly dis
posed toward him.
But" he added. 1--WE written to her
already and have got no reply"
"Write again." said his friend, "and
I'll try to d"livor the note and get an
answer Ask her If she can sugEest