The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-07-05
A CLASSIC IN A PAGE

a word of this outrageous hoei ! VII have you hunted out and hanEeai ooI
 Having dismissed the crestfaiien two. he wrote a letter to the proper qusr ter strongly recommending inat nentence passed by him on Captain T,ovett he commuted to transportation for life. Then he walked falteringiy to his carriage to keep an appeint- ment with Lord Maulevorcr.
 why doesn't he get out?" said Maui everer to himself when the venicie stopped at his door and there vas no stir inside. As he spoke servants crowded around. The door was torn open ana Judge Brandon was sssn sitting in the corner, his face dis- torted in e ghastly way to look ike sheer of derision.
 He wns dead. And that sheer of ne- rision that the fatal stroke had graven m his features might well nave been dertsion of hinseif who by a solemn ana awful Judgment of Providence had won the dreams and triumphs of his ufaIonw hopes to be blasted by them at the moment of acquisitionl
 Judge Brandon's death reused Lcng Ned to another effort in behalf of nia captain. Bravely he risked his necA to apprfse Lord Mauleverer or tns Identity of the condemned high way man. The nobleman's nasty examina- tfon of the trinkets convinced htfn tnat tha fala was true It thrilled those digestive organs which stood proxy TOT heart in him with as near an eP | proach to horror as he could resi. hAo could not think of the prisoners metS ,tS 1 CT. whom he had helped to rufns Witn- | out feeling some decided twinges or conscience. He ordered out his car rsaga drove to the Home Secretary and succeeded in getting Lovetcs sen tence commuted to life transportaeIcn. Saved from death. Lovett or Ci,k- | ford sat in bis cell. looking Hsus Suo less unhappy. With the pass1ls A oa as..s | strain of his wild career and his nnai l arbt for life all the interests of tne l world had fallen from him and lext nm l face 10 face with the overwhelming 1 knowiedge that the one thing thaK was l far more precious to him than nxA me | love of Lucy Brandon. was never 70 be his. He bowed his head to nis fee- tered hands and stared into future | far more hfdeous to his soul than even a felon's death.
 suddenIv the cell door opened. i,gbf ateD sounded on the stone floor. l He looked up. and Lucy was on ms I breast. Long Ned had told her ox ner l lovers plight.
 l ura of holding her seemed to sweep l him away from earth, the highway l man.g love remained greater than his l seIfish longing. Gently he tried to l digengage her arms. and courageougly l he begged her to leave him to his l doom. Hut Lucy Brandon clung to | hin, sobbinR: we are all that Is left | to each otherl Your father and mine l were brothersl Let me at least be to I A. last his fortftude forsook him He 1 surrendered tn the wild joy of tiie l moment Suddenly his eye brightened | I.-x rr,+e e l ..ee eve of Captain Clifford. His
 great form rese and lowered A steady and resoIute hope shone in his face:
 I 7"so be it then!" said he. My bride! 1 My brIdel In one year from this day l --t promise-I repeat--I promise" 1 Shortly after that meeting Lucy
 l<randon departed to an, obscure town by the sea. and there. refusing all SO | eietv. she continued to dwell until one
 day a letter with foreign postmar'S
 came to her
 1 Then she seemed to grow weary of
 her retreat. She transferrp- l wealth (which had been vastly in- l creased by her uncle's estate rha:-caTnr 1 10 kerb to France. Then ahe engaged l n v~ssal One day she boarded 1t. It
 was observed by the few 1oiterers that | tall graceful stranger who had
 stood aIoof wrapped in his cloak, dart l ed forward 10 assist her ah0afu. That was the last that was ever seen
 in England of Lucy Brandon. but in
 later years among the respected and
 patriotic citizens of one of the new
 cities of America there was a tall
 handsome. strong man, with keen l and naughty eye. who had come there
 with his beautiful wife. Lucy. He was
 foremost in all works of halpfulnesp
 If 1t was asked who cultivated thms
 waste. who procured the establishment of that hospital. who caused the erect-
 ion of that enlightened reformatory
 for young offenders. who obtained the
 redress of that public grievance--ths
 answer was "Cufrordw And about the
 time that this stranger arrived in
 America the English papers began tc
 print notices of curious restitution
 that had come to all the victims oI
 the famous Captain Lovett. who had
 returned to each one what he had been
 robbed of or its equivalent.
 And at about the same time 1t was
 rumored that this same Captain Low
 cit had made his escape in most Aar-
 ing and singular manner after only a
 short sojourn in his place of conden-
 nation.