Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1913-07-30
CHAPTER i = XVIII. !.

S3 ne nooHAIt0n OF tue W0tVusss v ifG
The day Of my lady's riding party
dawned; In the east . tender flame
burned. and, vanishing. left the
heavens an unbroken blue. Shoreward
the mists rolled up. until only in the
neighborhood Of the forts did the
white, soft vapor linger. On the Mount
itself sunshine held sway; 1t radiated
from the Notifications. "cuirass Of the
rock.' and cleaned on the church.
tiara Of its majesty" It warmed 9
cold palace Of marble: looked in at it,
windows, and threw bold shafts to.
tighten dark hooks and corners. ~
But my lady, mistress Of the Mount,
seemed not to feel Its benefcent
touch; standing In the full glow and
looking from >her easement she SHY.
cred little. Already was she:
dressed, and her habit Of dark green.
fitting close, served to accentuate the
whiteness OF her cheek which general
absence of color. In turn. made the
more manifest certain dark lines BE-
meath the restless, bright eyes. ;a,
your Ladyship! After knocking
in vain, Marie had entered the room
and set down the small tray she car
ried. There is Something your Lady
ship ought to know" with an air Of
excitement. IL ;s
The Governors daughter half
turned. What now. Marie Z" she said
sharply. 4 N sS8
cts about Nanette! !" Ny lady made
a. quick movement Of annoyance. i'm.
patience: II did dot tell your Lady
ship. but j was averse to having hsf
remain here. Your Ladyship does not
understand, OF course. and; HI Il.
II do understand. said my lady un.
expectedly. 'And-you need not sx-
plain. overheard you talking with
her that night Of the banquet a
your Ladyship &. startled.
"And l heard you speak Of her f.,
ther. Pierre Laroche. friend OF the
Black Seigneur.'
"And engaged herafter that!"'
.'Why not could watch-and \
have! But you were wrong, Marie"
NV lady's manner was feverish. Your
suspicious were ridiculous. phere has
been nothing thing And day aft
er tomorrow Is the wedding celebra,
ton, and the next day. he. the Black
seigneur She broke OF abruptly
Had Marie been less wrought up.
less excited, less concerned with the
information she had TO impart. she
could not have failed to notice the odd
break In her young mistress voice;
something unusual, almost akin TO de-
spair. in her. manner. AZ It wal. that
which weighed on the old nurses
mind precluded close observation OF
the other. &sl U.s. fs5 5s2E 3. f:ss&.
"But something has happened. my
Lady!'"s the woman half stammered.
comment z" The girl turned TO her
sharply. What Explain. Marie! Il
Disconnectedly, the woman launched
into narration Of the events OF the
night before; my Lady listened closely,
with an Interest and excitement she
stroye to concedl, half turning 90 that
the other saw no longer her face. II Il
"And here, ended Marie. extending
crumpled fragment Of paper is z
piece OF the note she dropped on On tns
beach. The man tore It up. but u
thrusting the bits Of paper into hi iil
pocket this fell out, and, after hs
walked away, i picked it up myself
from the sand. I can't read. as your
Ladyship knows, and there isn't much
On it-only word or two! But i
may tell something.
NY lady's face was now composed;
the hand she extended. steady; fos
several moments she regarded the
fragment. 55s
.What does It nay r. asked the WON.
N anxiously. els it's It Important
"a Her mistress did not at once an an
sver: twisting the bit Of paper IN her
fingers, stood AZ ~ IN thought. and th e
old nurse repeated her question.
tTo BE coNTINUED)