The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-04-02
THE MINNEAPOLIS JOURNAL.

WdIuS 1l1lIl WHEN ne SdlU,
pray lose no time
And the impatient stamp of the foot
with which he emphasized his words
awed her into silence. With one
frightened glance at her little girl,
who had seized and was playing
with seal which was hung on Lord
Catheringtons watch-chain, she
the luck which had carried her thru
so much to be with her still.
For, altho she could not but know
that she was committing a deception
Of the most fragrant kind, yet the
despair she had felt an hour before
had been so untterably deep that the
mad idea grew ever stronger in her
tage of way of escape which Provi-
dence had prepared for her. And it
seemed to her sensitive, feminine
mind that the strange readiness with
which Ermyntrude had made friends
with the harsh-voiced, and rather un-
couth-looking stranger, was a sort of
sign that the disappointed man had
been sent from Heaven to her, to give
shelter to her and her child at the
same time that he found consolation
for himself in the artless caresses Of
the little one.
But, indeed, the pricks Of conscience
she felt were soon all but forgotten in
dliAlety 1eSI dlly lining s1lOulu INTERFERE
with the successful carrying out of
Lord Catherington's plans. All went
well, however. On reaching her own
room she found that no one had been
in during her absence, and it. was the
work Of a very few minutes to put into
her trunks such few things as were
not already packed, to wrap the poor
little dead babe again in its cloak, and
to go downstairs again to Lord Cath
eringtons sitting-room.
There she found that he had not let
the grass grow under his feet. Err
ing sweet biscuits; and Beatrice felt
something like a shock of vague jeal-
ousy on seeing that this stranger had
taken possession of her child in good
earnest as his own, and with blanching
cheeks she began to understand some
Of the Inconvenience and disadvan-
tages which her deceit was already be-
ginning to bring upon her. .~.-... "a. ---
The vtscount addressed her at once,
with an animation which surprised
her.
"Everything's ready for us to start"
ne said; The cabs are here. I've
taken the liberty Of sending for your
bills as we'll as my own and discharg-
ing them both. Beatrice Redeemed,
starting violently. Lord Catherington
went on, without needing the exclama-
ton she gave: And I've made any
chpiIudllOu OI your abrupt uGpdEI
unnecessary, by telling the people here
that you are going to undertake the
guardianship of my daughter. So we
leave it to them to settle who is my
daughter, and-off we go!"
"But-but-" stammered Beatrice.
She was not allowed to say more.
ME see dollies-boofer dollies! And
gee-gees!" cried Ermyntrude, with a
scream Of delight as Lord Gathering
ton threw her up in the air and
caught her again. Then he said:
eff you're ready, I'll ring for your
luggage to be brought down and We'll
waste no more time here. I've great.
lonely barrack Of a house not mile
away. To tell you the truth, hadn't
I the heart to take UP my quarters there
when I was all by myself. But now
that I shall go in pleasant company
I can face the family bogies with a
stout heart
was walking up and down, evidently
in a state of high excitement, playing
with the child whom he believed tc
be his. Beatrice was trembling from
head to foot. What was this new life
into which she was rushing so blindly
with a man, an absolute stranger, OF
whose means, character, reputation
she knew nothing? All that she was
sure of was that he was in the highest
degree impetuous, somewhat overbear.
ing, and bent on having his own way
without contradiction.
Was it even seemly that she shoult
: go to his house with him at all? She
} had a vague idea that she had heard
the name Of Lord Catherington, anC
that she had read In the papers some
, story connected with the bearer O.
the title; but what the story was she
| could not, in her agitated state, re-
member. For all she knew, this mar
!. might be an impostor, and his ankle
ty to get possession Of the child Nigh
be part of plot in which he was en-
gagged.
, Not that he gave her the impress
sion of being a designing person. Hi
: manners, tho brusque and almos
: rough, and wholly without any trac
, Of haughtiness, were not with
out certain open geniality which
attracted Beatrice, altho it seemed t
her to be inconsistent with his alleged
rank. And altho he wore the ordi
nary clothes Of an English gentleman
} yet he wore them with a subtle differ
( ence, as if he did not feel quite cas-.
in them, as if his collar was too tigh
t and his cuffs were in the way, which
. together with the fact that he wore
beard Of unheard-of length and tina
conventional fashion, made her feel
certain uneasiness as to whether h
was really entitled to the name an,
position he assumed.
But even while these doubt
crowded into her brain, Lord Gather
ington had given his orders to tn
waiter who answered his summons
and hurrying Beatrice out Of the room
before she could do more than STAN
! mer out few words of protest, ha
accompanied her downstairs an
helped her into a four-wheeled cat
the door Of which, to her dismay, h
shut upon her Immediately.
To her cry and look Of consternatio
he only replied by nod. BreathlesE
bewildered, Beatrice saw him, sti
with her child in his arms, jump int
a hanson which was waiting in from
of her cab, and bidding the driver c
the latter follow, he gave a directio
4 | to his own cabman, upon which tn
two vehicles started at once.
With the dead babe still in he
4 | arms, Beatrice felt so sick with tn
horror Of the difficulties she ha
brought upon herself that she mad
up her mind, long before the hanson
In front Of her reached It's destination
to make full confession the momer
! she alighted, and to run away wit
Ermyntrude without delay.
In the meantime her curiosity we
excited in spite of herself, as to tn
end Of this strange drive. They 500
4 got into the stately gloom of til
s southwestern squares; and it was wit
h a little sigh Of amazement that sf
d | fo,,y5 hath tho ,,p11