Year: 1873

by Justin Mccarthy in Harper's Weekly.1


lcoNTINUED FROM YEsTEkDAY.l


"Pain ~ she said,' in tone that was
almost fierce. You have given me hope
when was down almost to despair; and
you have. at least, satisfied me, and my
father too. that am not becoming quite
insane or diotc. My course is clear"


Jennie, dearest, do not say anything
rashly."


My dear, dear father, you must not
blame me, and you will not when you
have considered. Let him not come to-
morrow. 1t he does, it will be Of no use.
| will not see him, and take back my
promise Tell him so in any terms you
like. | am for telling him plainly the
whole truth. will see him for that pur-
pose, if you like, but for nothing else.''


She hurried out of the room.


All this was embarrassing. to say the
least of it; and l began some sort Of apol-
ogy to Mr. Kendall for my presence and
my somewhat incautiOus words.


''My dear sir" he said, courteously but
sadly. Il welcome your presence just at
this moment. although l would give a
good deal that this extraordinary thing
had not occurred. Your approaching con.
nection with family we know so we'll
gives me a sort of claim upon your pa
tience and your confidence, and l shall be
glad Of some advice during the next day
or two. | am worn out and perplexed
with all this, and | want some counsel
other than my own. Let me at once make
friend of you. and tell you all.''


SO he told me in as few and frank words
as possible the trouble that was on him.
Three years ago his daughter met Charlie
West, my old friend. then young man of
great promise, and the son Of man who
seemed to be wealthy. and they fell in
love. Mr.. Kendall approved, so did
Vests father, and they were engaged.
Suddenly heavy calamity fell on poor
Charlie. His father had to confess to ut
ter ruin, which he had long attempted to
conceal under an appearance of splendOr
he had ruined with himself number OF
creditors; he was not merely disgraced,
but brought actually within the scope of
the criminal law-and he escaped by
suicide. Charlie came in utter despair to
Miss Kendall, and insisted ON renouncing
his engagement. He declared he could
not marry her, and could not endure to
live in the country where he had met her
and where he had to give her up. So he
had left England for Mexico, where, at that
time there was delusive promise of sue
cess to ability and enterprise. Mr.. Ken
dali frankly told me that he was glad that
Charlie had gone; that he by no means
liked the ida of marrying his daughter to
the son of disgraced and bankrupt sui
eide and that when West came up to him,
and passonately appealing to his friend
ship and his generosity. explained the
course he intended to take and asked for
his advice. Kendall assured him with cold
and decisive promptness, that he was
hound in honor to persist in renouncing
his engagement, and even in Withdrawing
his very existence from Miss Kendall
would have played the part of the gener-
Gus iather in romance and the drama, and
babe him to think only of his love. But
Kendall told him to go; and he went, and
had not since been heard of.


From that time not one day Of happiness
had shone upon father and daughter.
Miss Kendall had been utterly miserable,
most as if her mind were shaken. She
did not seem to have had any suspicion of
the part her father had taken in the ban
ishment of her lover, and that was Ken
dall's only comfort. When he found that
his daughters heart was really bound up
irrevocably with her lover he made ener-
getlc efforts to discover poor Charles
whereabouts, but without success.


"By God, Sir, he declared to me, strik-
ing the table as he spoke, "I'd give half
my fortune at this moment to find that un-
happy young man. Inever cared for him.
| was glad to be rid of him. But if his
father had been a murderer or a hangman,
| should not care, where my poor girls
happiness is concerned. But Charles
West, | fancy, is either dead or utterly
gone to the dogs"


had heard in China of the breakdown
and suicide of Charles father. and that
poor Charlie himself had disappeared. In
deed, heard afterward that some of his
family had received tidings of his death
in Mexico or California. OF his engage
ment to Miss Kendall had not heard.
| Lately, Mr. Kendall went on to tell me,
an offer marriage of most desirable kind
had been made to his daughter by a gen.
tleman of large fortune and high character,
a member of Parliament, one who would
still be called young for public MANN
short, Just the sort of person respectable


British father would accept with pride and


delight as son-in. law. All the influence
Mr. Kendall could exert he had brought
to bear to induce his daughter to accept


this gentleman, and at last she had made


a kind of conditional surrender ohe hau


promised to marry MIR. Patton, the sultor,


provided he was still willing to be suitor


when he had heard fully the story OF her
love and her disappointment. And Mr..
| Patton had heard, and was quite willing.
Mr. Patton, presume, was what would be
called q sensible man. He knew perfect
ly well that many of his personal
friends lived very happily with wives who,
according to all report, had been crossed
in love before marriage; and he saw moth
ing to object to in the fact that Miss Ken
dali before she knew him had loved some-
body else. The somebody else" was out
of the way, was probably dead and. even
were he alive and near at hand. MIR.
Patton was placidly satisfied that an.Eng-
lish lady married to Mr.. Patton, M. r.
would always conduct herself in manner
betitting the wife of such man. So poor
Jennie Kendall yielded and promised, and
the marriage was to take place in the be-
ginning OF the next year; and meanwhile
| the lover was to Join her father and herself