Northern Weekly Gazette. — 1902-07-12 (Stockton-on-Tees, Cleveland, England)

STANDING IN THE STEM OF THE VESSEL, SHE FLUNG HERSELF OVER THE SIDE.  of the house to give her love to the I younr tutor's keeping. So far as Ashcroft was concerned I have reason to believe his heart was sound. The late Earl of Devonton, as doubtless you are aware, was a patrician of patricians, and his feelings are shared by the present Earl, Ashcroft's then pupil. That his daughter should condescend to allow so essentially plebeian an emotion as love to influence her matrimonial prospects, must have appeared to him so preposterous as to be unworthy of a mome.nt's thought, and when at last his eyes were opened by Lady Constance avowing her infatuation for Ashcroft as the sole reason why she refused a wealthy and aristocratic suitor, his anger was almost too profound for words. He wrote immediately to his son, ordering him to dispense with Ashcroft's services, and it was the receipt of that letter which led to the quarrel between the two young men. Young Devonton declared that Ashcroft had taken a dishonourable advantage of his introduction into his father's house to win his sister's love, and rudely demanded that all further intercourse between them should cease. In vain Ashcroft gave his assurance that, so far as he was concerned, no  Throne of Barritzstein, but I have not told you that two days later the body of the Kinn. was recovered from the E . Enquiries showed that an Englishman had disappeared two evenings previously from a leading hotel, and that I had visited him shortly before his death. Without delay I had myself conveyed to the place where the body lay and unhesitatingly testified to its identity. At my expense the body was interred as that of Cecil Ashcroft and, not content with that, to make our safety sure in case of any inconvenient enquiries oeing made, I had the tidings of the accident telegraphed to the English papers. The very caution I displayed was nearly to prove our undoing. Had I allowed the account of his supposed death to pees unnoticed, it is more than probable that, hearing nothing of her lover, the affection Lady Constance bore him would sooner or later have faded into a more or less pleasant dream, but reading of his untimely fate, and hearing from her brother of the angry scene that had occurred between them, she blamed herself for being the primary muse of his death, which, in spite of all said to the contrary, she ascribed to suicide. , Her grief nearly affected her reason,  and a few months later her father became convinced that nothing would pacify but that she should be allowed to visit Ashcroft's tomb in order to see that proper respect was paid to him with whom she said her heart was buried.  Hoping that any change might have a a good effect in driving these morose thoughts from her mind Lord Davontoa consented. Two weeks later, in corn pany with her aunt, the Countese of A —' Lady Constance left England for Barritzstein. The Countess having instructioaa from Lady Constance's medical advisers to try by all means to rouse her from the gloom which overcast her life, with this object was armed with letters of introduction to the Court. From the first it, seemed evident the change of scene was likely to prove of good effect. Each day Lady Constance visited the grave, and with each visit much of her sadness appeared to leaar her. Enquiries at the police had colsvinced her at last that of a certainty Cecil Ashcroft had not taken his owa life but that his death had been due to ale numerous desperadoes who then infested Barritzstein, and that after murdering him they had cast his body into the river as the easiest method of removing all trace of their crime. The offer of a large reward for the recovery of the supposed assailants apparently oompleted the cure. That afternoon, much to the Countess's delight, Lady Constance acceded to her request that she should attend a Court ball to which, the Countess having previously lodged her letters of introdnotion, they had been invited. That ball the King and Queen were to honour with their presence. I had been in Paris for a few days, or the fact of Lady Constance's daily visits to Ashcroft'S grave would have been laid before me, for dreading that some relation of his might think of visiting the spot, I had given instruotion.s to the police that any enquirers should be referred to me. To my unbounded horror, on returning to the Palace on the evening of the ball, I found the particulars of what had occurred awaiting me and, although at that time I know noting of the details I have given you, I understood at once that the danger was a great one, for it was apparent whoever the visitor was, her affection for Ashcroft had been no light one. I endeavoured to reassure myself that after all the suspicions we had overcome from those who knew the King in ' Barritzstein, ft was, to say the least, unlikely that anyone who had not seen Cecil Ashcroft for months, changed and altered as he was, should recognise him now, but without avail, something told me discovery was imminent. Anxious to learn everything, I went directly to the chief of police. As I left the palace, the first arrivals for the ball were entering, but even then I had no thought that the danger was so nearly upon us. One who mourned so earnestly was not likely to attend a gay function of a Court renowned for gaiety. It required all my self-command to repress an exclamation of dismay as the chief informed me Lady Constance was to be numbered amongst the guests. With almost indiscreet haste, I fled his presence hoping to reach the palace ere the Bing had left his apartments, warn him of the danger that he ran, and urge him to plead some temporary indisposition as an excuse for non-attendance at the ball. Fast as I drove I arrived only in time to find that the King and Queen had entered the spacious ballroom.  My heart sank within me, as I fancied that already recognition might have occurred, but indecision is not one of my vices; a few minutes later found me an anxious spectator of the whirling throng. Eagerly I scanned each face. With a sigh of relief I assured myseff that the chief must have been mistaken in Lady Constance's intention t.o attend