The Lakeland evening telegram., 1917-11-03
Well. want to save Lucy that mourn.

You'll do that by getting we'll"
Il won't get well. I'll never leave
this cot alive. Now, want you to do
this: When You go home to England
go as Alan Hetherington. You're enough
like me to be my twin brother Be-
sides, this hell's crater will change any
man. 1t has changed both Of us. Lucy
will believe you are l. You have
what she would not get with me-a
fortune. By my death you will inherit
the title, but since you are sup
posed to be l you will get it either
way. Nurse. what became of my iden-
tification tag?"
Here 1t is, sir. And the nurse pro-
duced it from where she had hung 1t
at the head Of the cot
Alan was too far gone to take 1t, and
Ralph received 1t. When the nurse
was out Of hearing Alan, after q brief
rest, proceeded.
"Hang your tag on my cot, and when
l am put away as Ralph Hethrington
you will be Alan Hethrington. You
Will give comfort to my father and
mother and to the dear girl who would
otherwise mourn me. Moreover, when
you come into the title you will be able
to keep 1t up as 1t was kept up CEN
turtles ago when Richard Hethrington
received 1t at the hands of his SOW
ereign.
i desire that Lucy Arden shall re-
ceive all that she has been led to be-
lieve would be hers; that she shall be
Lady Medowcroft; that she shall have
the fortune you will bring to the bar
ony."
II see your design" said Ralph.
You would have me invalided home
as her tlance and that she shall marry
me believing me to be Alan Hethring.
ton"
There Is suitor with fortune dou-
BILE yours. But shudder at the idea of
her marrying him."
Ralph Hethrington made no reply to
this proposition. He was thinking of
winning Lucy Arden as the man to
whom she had engaged herself. He
shrank from the deception. On the
other hand, by perpetrating the decep-
ton she would be Lady Medowcroft
and he would be enabled to bestow
upon her the fortune he had made in
America. What II he refused? No
one could tell. But Ralph feared that
she would decline the title and the
wealth, possibly on conscientious scru-
pies. possibly because she would not
marry man she did not love, for he
had not seen her since she was twelve
years old.
Naturally this dying request had
serious effect on the man to whom It
was spoken. 1t was heightened by one
consideration of which the man who
made 1t was ignorant Ralph Hethring.
ton had carried with him to America
a vision Of his child friend, Lucy Ar
den, and il had grown into q dream
that some day he might return to Eng
land and the boy and girl friendship
might be replaced by the love Of
man and a woman.
Singular that plan for the realiza-
ton OF this dream had been provided
Tor him by the very man who, had he
hved, would have stood In his way.
Ralph was stupefled. He knew not
what to think about this strange fate
that had Overtaken him. Had Alan not
made the request that he should per-
senate him Ralph might so home and
quite possibly the plan be worked out,
Ralph maintaining his own identity.
As It was, he felt that the request com
plicated matters. But he shrank from
not carrying it out. in Difference to his
cousins wishes.
What Ralph finally did when he was
returned to England, retired from the
army, was to go to his cousins par
ents and say nothing as to his iden-
tity till they had shown whether or not
they regarded him as their son. The
father greeted him as such; the mother
probably would not have done so had
not her sight begun to suffer from old
age.
HethringtOn put OF making a final
decision as to whether he should PEI
senate himself or his cousin till he had
met Lucy Arden. Lucy was sitting
on the porch as he came up the
walk
At sight OF him she arose to run to
meet him. but paused In the advanc-
Ing figure she saw that which remind
ed her Of her boy friend of years agone.
Was 1t In the walk? Was It In the way
he carried his head? Was It a De-
culiar way he had Of swinging the arm
that was left him? No matter; he was
not Alan Hethrington. but Ralph Heth-
rington.
The figure advanced to the steps and
looked up at her inquiringly.
Ralph she said.
Lucy! You know meT'
"Yes. you are Ralph Hethrfngton
grown. ! see that you have come from
the war. Do you brings news Of your
cousin Alan"
"Yes he IL dead"
A shiver ran through the girls fig-
ure. Presently Ralph spoke again. In
low tone.