Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1914-04-10

CHAPTER vIII-Shirley's mother, Mrs.
reminiscen,ces during which it is revealed
that the major, Valiant's father, and q
a named Sassoon, were rivals for the
hand of Mrs. cambridge in her youth.
Sassoon and Valiant fought a duel on her
account In which the former was killed
CHAPTER K-valiant finds Damory
court overgrown with weeds and creep
ers and the buildings in a very much
neglected condition. Uncle Jefferson and
his wife. Aunt Daphne. are engaged as
servants
CHAPTER x-vaIiant explores his an
hunting party which invades his estate.
He recognizes Shirley at the head OF the
party.
CHAPTER xI-He gives sanctuary to
the cornered fox. Gossips discuss the ad-
tragedy in which the elder Valiant took
part
CHAPTER xII-valiant decides to re-
habilitate Damory court and make the
land produce a living for him.
CHAPTER xIII-He meets Shirley. who
has been gathering flowers on the Valiant
estate. and reveals his identity to her.
CHAPTER xIv-valiant saves Shirley
from the bite of a snake. which bites him.
Knowing the deadliness of the bite, Shir-
ley sucks the poison from the wound and
saves his life.
CHAPTER xv-Shirley tells her mother
of the incident and the latter is strangely
moved at hearing that q Valiant is again
living at Damofy court.
found it," he said with a short laugh.
Here / am, a bankrupt, with all this
outft-clear to the very inger-bowls-
handed to me on a silver tray, and I'm
mad as scat because l can't open the
first locked thing fnd!"
He ran upstairs and donned a rough
corduroy jacket and high leather leg
gings. Were going to climb the hill
today, Chum." he announced, and no
more moccasins need apply"
In the lower hall, however, he sud
denly stopped ~stock-still. "The slip of
paper that was in the china dog!" he
exclaimed. What a chump / am not
to have thought of It'll" He found it
in it's p~igeonhole and, kneeling down
before the safe, tried the numbers
carefully, first right, then left: II
$500. The heavy door opened.
Il was right" he exulted. tits the
plate" He drew it out. piece by piece.
Each was bagged in adark-red Canton
flannel. He broke the tape of one bag
and exposed a great silver pitcher,
furnished purple-blue like a ravens
wing-then a tea-service. Each piece,
large and small, was marked with the
greyhound rampant and the motto.
"And to think" he said, that my
neutrality-suspicious. buried you
with his own hands under the stables
49,. IT. - 1&N.5r xofI4ro ornonf fho roI
ley before the surrender at Yorktown!
Only wait till Aunt Daphne gets you
polished up, and on the sideboard!
You're the one thing the place has
needed"
= >
With the dog for comrade he tra-
versed the garden and plunged across
the valley below, humming as he went.
The place was painless and over
grown with paw-paw bushes and sassa-
fras. Great trees stood SO thickly
in places as to make a twilight and the
SUMMER spots were masses Of pink
laurel, p~oison-ivy, flaming purple rho
tdodendron and wine-red tendrils of In
terbraided briers. This was the for
est land of whose possibilities he had
thought. In the heart of the woods he
came upon a great limb that had. been
fwrenched off by storm. The broken
wood was of a deep rich brown, shading
to black. He broke off his song, snap
ped a twig and smelled it. Its sharp
acrid odor was unmistakable. He sud
denly remembered the walnut tree at
Rosewood and what Shirley had said:
Il know a girl who had two in her
yard, and she went to Europe on
them"
He looked about him; as far as he
could see the trees reared, hardy and
perfect, untouched for a generation.
He selected one of medium size and
pulling a creeper, measured its cir
conference and gaging this measure
with his eye, made a penciled calcula-
ton on the back of an envelope.
Great Scott!" he said jubilantly to
the dog; that would cut enough to
wainscot the Damory Court library
and build twenty sideboards!"
He sat down On a messed boulder,
breathless, his eyes sparkling. He had
thought himself almost a beggar, and
here In his hand was a small fortunei
talk about engagement rings!" he
muttered. "Why, q dozen of these
ought to buy a whole tiaral"
At length he rose and climbed on,