Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1914-09-11

filed with hatred toward those kins-
folk who had disowAed my father and
left him % die in need in a far coan-,
try. And here was. the guest Of
my grandfather and his widowed
daughter. and engaged to my half
cousina Charles.
But for the present the engagement
was TO be kept secret. That / in
sisted upon. determined that would
win the hearts Of his relatives also be-
fore allowing him TO present me to-
them as his future bride. / could not
but fear that the old comte might treat
him as he had treated my father.
On the third morning after my ar
rival | wrote to Mary Jenner. my
roommate in Winnipeg, for the first
time since my departure.
when tell you that am actually
In my grandfather's chateau" wrote.
you will open your eyes wide, in that:
taking way you have. and be glad that.
! am not there to say, I told you So
For were you not the ringleader In the,
conspiracy to keep me at home till the,
close of the school year, when We
were to make up party to see Eu-
rope! And. Mary dear, do hope that
scheme has not fallen through. Come
to France. and royal welcome awaits
you.
Have you pursued your acquaint-
ance with little Mr.. Spratt? Poor lit
tie man! / have not yet glanced in
| ~ thA toh
work Of his upon the Code Napoleon.
which he presented to me so proudly
at the moment of my departure. Be-
good to him, Mary, and, make a man
Of him. He's timid with ladies, so
don't be afraid to give him encour-
agement.
And now you'll want to know about
Castle Clichy, Mary. 1t is the very
quaintest place-all early Norman.
with bastions and meats and battle.
ments, set In the midst of an enor-
nous park, and most delightfully."- feud~-
al. But by the time you receive this
it won't be In the possession Of our
family any longer. Fancy being turned
out OF your home after you have in
habited 1t for eight hundred yearss
But we're wretchedfy poor and in the,
hands Of an INSCRIPTIONS banker, one,
Magnfn by name, who owns a mort
gage on US, and unless we can obtain
twelve thousand francs-$2, 400-with--
In few days, to meet the interest,"
Clichy passes out of our hands forever.
This Magniff is the most avariciouss
scoundrel imaginable, except his son.
who's worse. Mary, he's agreed to pay
me $4,000 for those bonds of mine
you always laughed about, when the
safe is opened next week. And so
thought might just as we'll pay Off
the interest on the mortgage out of 1t.
l wrote to him, asking him to advance
me S2,400, and he CURLY refused. He
has grudge against my grandfather
and means to turn him out of his
home. ] went to Paris to plead with
him, and he sent out word he would
not see me. Think of it; my GRANDPA
Their must lose his property when, less
than week afterward, shall receive
enough money to have saved it many
times over! Well, I've done my best
and there's no use crying over it now.
Come to France, Mary, and all Of
you, right soon. / embrace you and
salute you, as we French say.
''P. s. I'm quite French now!"
did not convey in this letter the.
sense of impotence, the burning anger
with which the bankers conduct had
inspired me. When had proposed to-
my grandfather that he let me meet
the interest due out of the proceeds,
from the bonds, he seemed to realize
the futility of the attempt.
tits no use, my little Anne" he said.
Il thank you from the depths of my
heart. But you will be beating against
a granite wall. Magniff means to have,
Clichy, and he won't advance you q.
penny until the vault is opened. Then.
nothing can be done"
And, as l have described in my let
ter to Mary, beat in vain against the.
granite wall of Magniff's vindictive'
hatred. Now we were already setting
our affairs in order, packing our few
cherished mementoes, ready to leave.
There was pitifully little that we
could take with us. The castle was in
deed, as Magniff had so graphically
portrayed it, "as bare as hounds,
tooth" All the furnishings of it's sew
en- and forty rooms had long since dis
appeared, save those of the half dozen.
in the right wing where we lived, at.
tended only by old servants who would
not be dismissed. Costly pictures, tap
estries, armor, whole sets of Sevresp,
had gone into the nav of Magntff, be-
ing sacrificed to meet the ever-recur-
! ring indebtedness. For twenty years,
, ever since the failure of the original
Panama company had ruined the comte,
: this process of depletion had been
, continued. Now our sparse furniture.
would barely have accommodated a.
family in six-room fiat.
, But they shall never take our mono
plane" said the chevalier, as we stood.
within the hangar and looked at the
( gigantic, graceful bird, which seemed.