Year: 1875




prepare for journey, at once"


"A journey, Louis !" she echoed in surprise.


"Yes. Do not pack up many things; we
shall not be gone long,"


''Where are we going?"


"To Wilmington. have business there"


"When do we start p


"To.night. Come, don't ask too many
questions we have no time to lose"


"Isn't this sudden resolvef" asked Vir.
gilia timidly.


""Perhaps. Is that of any consequence to
your"


"'May see my sisters before we startY p


"By no means. There will not be time.
You can leave note explaining our sudden
departure. Say that business has unexpect-
edly called me away"


Virgilia, constrained to be obedient, impic'
lily followed his directions. By dinner time
all her preparations were completed, and in
the evening they set out, leaving their house
in charge of their one servant, with directions
to let Virgilia's note be conveyed to Briefly
Farm the next morning.


"Virgilia's conduct is inexplicable," said
Edna, when she read it. "She was eccentric
enough before her marriage; but she is worse
than ever, now. To think of her pleading ILL
ness as an excuse for never coming near US
all this time, and now going off on a journey
in this sudden manner!'


"As to Mr.. Holdweg, detest him." said
Jennie. 81 believe he is nothing more nor
less than hypocrite. Perhaps they have
encountered Hugh. He was going off last
evening, too, was he not p


"He was uncertain whether he should take
the evening or the morning train"


Hugh had taken the evening train, and
was, therefore, unconsciously, fellow passen-
ger of Virgilis and Mr.. Holdweg. He felt
himself imperatively called upon to return to
Wilmington, where he had put certain opera
tions in motion, which, he trusted, would lead
to the removal of the cloud that obscured his
name. At all events, he resolved to spare no
effort by which this result might be achieved.


He was not afraid that the scandal would
be publicly disseminated, for the bank direct.
ors had implied to him that the knowledge Of
his supposed guilt should rest with them.
For the sake of his uncle's memory they were
willing to shield his name from reproach, and
Hendricks, having no interest in the matter,
had readily engaged to keep silence. But to
his proud and sensitive spirit, the fact that
such an odium was attached to him, even in
the minds of few, was sufficient to gall him
to the core of the heart Honor had ever
been his watchword, and the consciousness
that it was now tarnished by the breath of
suspicion, robbed him of all repose. Alone,
this trouble would have been weighty one to
bear but added to his grief for Claribel, it
was load that seemed to crush him to the
earth. 1t was now five days since the disap.
pearance of the latter, and the conviction had
impressed itself upon his mind that she had
come to an untimely end.


81 was marked out for misfortune" he said
to himself; "it is useless for me to hope for
happiness in this world. The brief glimpse
have had of it has been shaded by care and
regret; and even that has altogether vanished,
never to return. Would that had remained
in Italy. There I might, at least, have
passed my days in peace, and enjoyed the es-
TEEN of my fellowmen. But now have lost
everything that can make life desirable !; and
not only suffer myself, but have entailed suf:
fering on Others"


His thoughts, too, persistently reverted to
Virgilia's letter, and he found himself weigh
ing, again and again, the possibility of the
truth of her assertion regarding Claribels
changed feelings toward him. He had at
first utterly repudiated it; but constant dwell
ing on a subject, often seems to place it in a
different aspect from that which it at first pre-
sents and encourages doubt to creep in where
it did not seem possible that any should exist.
1t appeared to him incredible that Virgilia
should, out of malice or ill-will, purposely mis-
represent her sisters sentiments; yet he could
scarcely conceive of person being mistaken
on such a subject-and then the idea that
there might have been some ground for her
statements, gave new bitterness to his distress.
1t seemed as though a thousand scorpions
were twining about his heart and tormenting
him with their stings


He passed wretched night, and was thank
full when daylight came. At seven o'clock
they stopped for breakfast, and as the train
was to wait an hour at this station to allow
the up.train to pass, Hugh strolled off to some
distance from the house, finding it impossible
to eat anything, and willing to escape the
scrutiny of his fellow passengers, and at the
same time refresh himself by little walk in
the brisk, cold morning air. At the distance
of a hundred yards or so from the house, he
came to the edge of steep embankment
which walled in the railroad track on one
side. On the opposite side the ground shelved
precipitously doward to narrow but deep
and rapid stream. A thought came into his
mind of how easily couple of leaps might
bring him to the end of his troublesome
down the bank, the next into the swift water
below. Then he thought how horrible it
would be, if while man were standing on the
track, trying perhaps to gather courage for
the fatal plunge, from which at the last mo-
ment he might shrink in fear, the mighty To-
comotive should come laundering around a
bend in the road, close by-on, on, toward
the wretch paralyzed by an awful terror, and
unable to escape-and sweep over and crush
him into nothingness. The idea made him