The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1909-09-17

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Ignorance Of the Mot TINT h1d ha6sn
laid In train weeks ago behind the
Ibarred gates of the GRANGE: but. I'd
knew It would De useless to ATTEMPT "a.
deceive her now she wotld inayita-
bly, discover the deceit practi0ed. He
would have to make clean breast az
the truth he had partially suppressed.
"Miss Strangways,, he said. slowly.
not giving q direct answer to her cues.
ton, II suppose It never occurred TO
you that your father had - very def.
mite motive in urging that Syou should
go away from the Grange when Won
did? know how deeply he felt part.
ing from you, but he sacrificed his
own feelings, though he felt. as /
felt, that he would never see Won
again p
Then why did he send me away?.
the girl broke out, passionately. ooh.
I didn't want to leave him: 1t was
cruel to send me away"
But 1T was for your sake; youi
father wanted you never to know what
your unexpected return today makes.
II inevitable that you learn now. said
DR.. Brewer, In a lowered voice. They
nad come into the house. and he had
smut the door OF the room before an
| s"erlng. your rather mad set his
neart on Pride o Life running and
winning; ne was convinced that 1t
could win. ana SO much hung on its
winning, not Tor himself, but for you.
ne nad packed the horse heavily. He
nad Iorepodlng, we'll founded as
Knew that ne would not live till the
Gay OF the race. only he had deter
!nineo-ana ne nao mace me promise
10 neip nim-tnat whether ne lived
I'LL tne race or not. Pride o Life
snould run, TO win back OF his lost
fortune something TO leave to the
! daughter he loved"
But, cried the girl, still not under
standlng, since MS death would make
the nomination Tor the race void Pride
o Life could not have run in that
case"
THAT was why he was determined
that If he died before the race his
death should be kept secret from
the world. and we had discussed every
detail, guarded against every contin.
gency, In order that Pride o. Life could
start in the race. AS it happened, the
task left to me was rendered far cas-
Ter than l expected, for your father
did not die till late last night. TO me
it is amazing that he lived SO long. It
was only his iron will that kept him
alive. The cruel irony of it," he
broke out with sudden bitterness
that he did live to within few hours
of the race-to within sight of the de-
sired goal! That, had he lived even
less than another day, there need have
been no deception at all as
it is-well, Pride o. Life ran, as your
father determined it should-ran and
wont"
They walked out of the room, the
girl not speaking; DR.. Brewer un-
locked the baize door by which the
wing occupied by Ralph strangways
had been shut off from the rest of
! the house. The doctor and Margaret
Strangways, whose white, strained
face showed the stress of poignant
emotions within her, passed through
into the room where the man who
once before had masqueraded as her
father, deceiving Bonholt Hume and
the detective, jumped to his feet.
startled at tbs sight of her
Miss Strangways!" he cried.
It was not ten minutes ago that tha
doctor had come in excitedly with the
news that the dead mans daughter
was on her way home; but it had
seemed to both of them that hours
must pass before she could arriye-a
respite which would enable his fel.
low-conspirators to form plan to
meet this unlooked-for contingency.