The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-08-18

enough for her saintship. It's been that way ever since you brought that cursed smallpox into the house. Pass the tank ard, Harry. All women are like that all gilts and nirts-every one of 'em."
 It was when Harry came home from his second vacation that matters came to d crisis He found Mohun again a guest at castlewood and my lord more reckless than ever, while his wife seemed by turns deeply distressed and coldy sarcastic Lord Castlewood greeted Harry with cu- r1ous difference, and bewailed his fate to him.
 One night when my lord and Mohun were seated at cards, before supper. Cas- tlewood said to Beatrix: When thou art old enough, TriX, thou shalt marry Mo- hun"
 q think my lord would rather marry mama," replied the spoiled girl, and is only waiting for you to die to do so She talked ever so long with him last night and sent Frank and me out of the room"
 Ask Lord Mohun what l said to him, Frank said Lady Castlewood, with great dignity, and, taking her daughter by the hand swept out of the room.
 T will tell you what your wife said to me-" said Mohun. ''She asked me not to drink and gamble with you any more. You know best if that was for your good or not"
 "Un. of course,Y sneered Castlewood.
 
 "I am no saint, though your wife is," retorted Mohun, and can answer for my actions as others must for my words"
 When you please, my lord," said the viscount.
 Lady Castlewood was frightened when she heard t.lat Mohun and her husband had quarreled. but when the guest rode away next morning the two lords ap- peared to have made it up, and parted as if nothing had happened A few days afterward, however, Lord Castlewood suddenly grew silent and reserved, treated his wife with greater kindness than he had done for a long while. and appeared to have much business with his lawyer. Sometimes they could hear him pacing his chamber all night alone.
 Harry endeavored to sooth the fears of his dear lady and to raise the spirits of his patron unavailingly. At the end of the month Castlewood announced that he was i'll and mus, go to London to see his physician. He took Harry along with him.
 In London they met, apparently by ap- pointment. Lord Mohun and two of his friends, Captain Mccartney and the young Earl of " arwick, and went to the Grey hound Tavern. There they were joined by Captain Westbury, an old friend of Cas- tlewoods and seemed quite merry with wine and carus in private room until Mohun snufring a candle' CastleWood said: Don't be so damned awkward, Mo- hun"
 "Awkward's damned awkward word my lord" replied Mohun. City gentle men don't use such words-or, if they do, ask pardon"
 q fling the words In your face, my lord shall l send the cards after them?' cried Castlewood.
 Harry saw it all-the quarrel at cards was only a pretext. In fact, as they left the tavern to go to the dueling grounds at Leicester Fields Lord Castlewood con fessed aside to him that it had all been arranged before. He had surprised let ter that Mohun had written to Lady Cas- tlewood which showed that, while she was innocent of wrong, Mohun was vil- lain He would have fought him before but that he owed him great sum of money lost at cards which he of course had to pay first.
 They had not been on the dueling grounds more than a couple of minutes, 1t seemed to Harry, before Castlewood lay on the ground with Mohun standing over him with bloody rapier.
 They got my lord to bed in a neighbor- ing bath house, and when the Rev. MT. Atterbury came out from confessing him he handed Harry paper signed by the hand of his dying patron. It was the story of Harrys own birth, which had been told to my lord by Father Holt when he made a secret visit to Castle wood during Harrys second term at Cambridge.
 Harry thought of all the klndnesses that had been done to him before his patron knew that he could claim them justly; of that sweet and sorely tried woman about to become a widow; of her children. whose fancied inheritance he would take away should he claim his own-and threw the paper into the fire.
 For his part in the duel Harry suffered short imprisonment in the Gatehouse. and there Lady Castlewood came to see him. It was a distressing interview. She reproached Harry for not preventing the duel: declared that he had brought dis cord into her home; reproaehed herself: seemed, intact, half distracted, and so at last the woman for whom Esmond would willingly have given his life went away declaring that though she forgaVe him she could never see him more.
 All thoughts of being a priest were now over with Harry and when he came out of prison he did not scruple to accept the help his fathers widow, the Dowager Lady Isabel, offered him, knowing as he did how much more was rlghtfully his. He would be a soldier. he decided, and so the Chelsea dowager procured him com mission in Colonel Quin's regiment of Flu sileers. Scarcely was the ink dry on Es- monds commission than King William died and Queen Anne succeeded with blare Of trunpelS ana Inucn pDHp or heralds MT. Esmond was soon off to the wars where he made name for himself and came back after two years of for eign service to find the Chelsea dowager as full of gossip as ever.
 Almost the first piece of news she told him was that the late lords widow was going to marry Tom Tusher, the chaplain at Castlewood. Much disturbed by this news. Harry posted off to Walcote. the little house near Winchester where Frank Fsnond lived before he became my lord. and where his widow was now residing with her children He minded not in the least now the prohibition which Lady castlewood had made about his never seeing her again. He was the head of the family. and as such had duty to per form. Marry Tom Tusher indeed.
 Al the house they told him that Lady Castlewood was at prayers at the Cathe- draI. she went to Cathedral prayers every day. The organ was playing. The win ter's day was already growing gray as he passed under the street arch into the Cathedral yard and made his way into the ancient solemn edifice.