The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1907-08-04

that twenty-three years ago they were
married in Sheffield and that the mar
riace was Kept a secret from his pa !.
rents. She thus retained the name Of
her former husband. Gilbert Merri-
E.dew-"
"Ah." cried Olive, interrup;ing. Nov
lI see"
/ She has always called herself Rachel /;
/ Merrldew, and l understand that the
/ Gilbert Merridew who was recently In |,
/ Belborougtl is her son. Her story is
that Mr.. Parmenter deserted her and
! fled from the country, leaving her to
/ support herself as she best could. She /
4 lost sight of him entirely and had 20
i resume her life on the stage. She went
afterward to America; and only re-
Gently heard from her son that mir. |
j Parmenter was alive. She Immediately |
cabled him from New York that she
was coming over, and crossed by the
first steamer
The latter part is about correct"
said Olive. after pause; and she told I
the lawyer what had occurred in re-
gard to the telegram. DO YOU be-
4 lieVe her story?"
Il have no means of Judging was
the cautious reply. "She gave me many
details when l told her l was acting
for YOU She showed me number OF
letters written to her in the old days,
and these all go to show that her tale
is correct. So far S could judge they
were undoubtedly written by Mr.. Par
, menter; and she gave me every par
ticular as to the time and place of the
marriage. so that that part can be
. readily investigated"
~ don't believe it." said Olive, In
;. dear father would have been the last
man in the world to act as she says.
4 more honorable man or one with a
kinder heart never nreathed. He was
incapable OF such baseness as to de-
sert her in suchNa way. Nothing will
ever make me believe It. But what
do you adviser"
, Il propose to so at once to Sheffield
: Tonight, in fact. I have the facts.
: and can hunt up the registrar by whom
: the alleged marriage was performed
: and find the witnesses (f any of the
! parties are still alive). It will not
take long, and I viii wire you the re-
suit Immediately"
] "And then?'
: will probably wish to make some pro-
vision for her. I think that should
J. be done"
But olives face hardened. 1--WE will
c wait and see. Even If her tale be true,
: why should she seek to put that shame
ION me to-day publicly. and stop the
2, marriage? She killed my dear father
G by her violence. Mr.. Easement. Why
7 should ] have more mercy upon her
e than she had on him? There Is more
. In this than we see at present. We
n will wait" And so 1t was left.
nights long and bitterly painful
s. reflection confirmed Olive in the YER
n tot CHI u Il fny Nfsr
I action; and she came near to a guess
at the truth In regard to her and her
e. son. II the woman had any real claim
on her father, why had the son come
Is first. to Silverbeech with the glib false
!sIhood that he was rich American
II Why had he sought to come between
ne her and her lover? Why had she moi
made her claim at once instead OF
~ sending a man TO spy out the lane
he first?
Tho son must have described he
ad fathers critical state OF health am
1t have known that such a scene as tina
ID in the church was certain TO hay,
at desperately serious and probably fatal
ng results And olives brows knittc
angrily and her lips were pressc.
We; firmly together as she thought OF nj
lex that this might mean.
~ In the morning Lady Belhoroug
drove over from the Castle ostensibl
IAN find out what she meant to DO Eh
And commenced with few surface OK
pressIons OF sympathy which DIV
the appreciated at their real worth. IAN
hey now. dear, what does 1t all near
lw- What are you going to do about lii
rch dreadful scandal?'
the IN the hrst place, ! shall wait
to see If there Is any scandal at all. Lad
Belborough," answered Olive uuietl
had MT Easement has gone to inVcstiga
red the whole matter"
this The lady's story Is very circur
stantial"
he "Of course you listened 10 IT, r
nav torted Olive codly.
, TO II really cold not help It. She fore
pre-. 1t upon me; and, OF course. I saw
hing once that the marriage could not la
place pntil It had been sifted."
such You may depend that ii VIII
ali Isifted to the uttermost Lady ~
az borough. ] am not likely 10 an
such an Infamous scandal to rest
omE my dear fathers name one nome
we'd. longer than necessary. All ! have
.way the world VIII be devoted to the III
!, - pose"
49, "of course, Of course. Bti WIN.
,ion affect you I'm regard to your fortune
~ az "Mr. Easement tells me St viii no
mn AN ! am glad indeed Of that.
=" nave lost your fortune q we'll az va
t,or, name would have"
. left IPoIboronah - 20, W. iua.aptly Ia
.,'s, do not wish 10 be betrayed into q,
49, ing anything 10 you which mil
a s,11 afterwards regret But / wni
all2" any one 70 Islander my dear ii
once .rYon t,lxo. a Jt,.I, ,a.|a
thines Law Ecllorongb ,i.,,. '' ~
rood "Ycefardav t,.d ~ ~"
tect t7n' to-day have no one h,n i
cam , lself and q Is ! ~Hp have in pro.
N"SS inc deia IRON calpmny OF this Kind.