Year: 1870

snail be arrested for presenting the check
i shall at once admit that did it OH nv
ownresponsibility-


"And bear the punishment for my guilt
No, am not such scoundrel as to suffer
that, Lindsey" Sherwood interrupted.


Hear me, Robert" he cried, laying his
hand on his arm. "Think of your parents
and Corrie. You can settle all these de-
mands and have a home left for them, at
least. You are young and capable, you can
soon get into some business that will keep
you all comfortably-and, pardon me for
alluding to it, permit you to marry Miss
Austin"


We were to have been married in a
month, " he interrupted, sadly.


Yes, heard So But if she is true
woman she will wait willingly, and sympa-
thize with and encourage you, meanwhile.
If am anything, or ever might have been,
it is your kindness and sympathy that have
done it. L ask it as q privilege, my best
and truest friend, to bear this burden for
you. There is no one dependent on me,
now mother is dead, and no one will be
panied or unhappy on my account. l am
only Lindsey, you know, and no one will
be surprised beside, shall not suffer"
he was going to add, "because | have the
consciousness of innocence, but checked
himself, and substituted, 'because shall
have the consciousness of repaying in part
the great debt of gratitude owe you''


Sherwood at first positively refused to
listen to such n plan, but he was worn down
with care and loss of rest, and mind and
body were nearly exhausted in the strug-
gle. He felt the force of Lindsey's reason
ing, and at last yielded, weakly, perhaps,
but not selfishly, for it was not of himself
he thought, only of his father and mother
and Corrie-and possibly Of Floy Austin {;
no man is willingly disgraced in the eyes of
his betrothed wife.


Well, the blow had fallen, and all Grant
ley was confounded. But the bankruptcy,
incredible as that seemed, was quite over
shadowed by the dreadful turpitude of
young Lindsey, though not a few were
heard to declare that it was nothing more
than was to be expected of Lindsey, and
they were not surprised in the least-in
fact, had been expecting some such thing
to happen ever since James Sherwood was
so Quixotic as to take the boy into his store.
1t seemed the whole trouble from first to
last, originated in Lindseys crime, accord
ing to the odd logic of the Grantley-ites,
though Robert Sherwood took every occa-
sion to declare the true cause of bankrupt
cy to be an unwise and wild speculation
But this was set down as only another proof
OF foolish weakness in upholding and coun-
tenancing Alfred Lindsey - he had al
ways done so.


Only one person in Grantley (save, of
course, Robert Sherwood) believed in the
possibility of Lindsey's innocence. Why
should they, indeed, since he himself had
admitted his guilt at the first? But Annie
Morrison was stubborn little thing when
once she made up her mind to ANYTHING,
and as determined as she was stubborn. 1t
made her angry to see every one so willing
indeed, rather pleased-to believe evil of
one who had fought his way up so bravely
against the prejudices of his fellow-citizens.
She had natural love of opposition, and
so she espoused his cause, and was in her
element. If there was any other reason
that influenced her in the matter she did
not admit it, even to herself. She MANAGED
to see him after his arrest just long enough
to say, in a low voice:


You don't suppose believe this absurd
story Alfred? No, knOaO better and l am
going to prove it p'


"Miss Morrison, beg,'' he began, but
she nodded gayly, in a very positive way,
and tripped away.


sharp pang of regret, the first he had
felt, shot heavily through his heart. He
conquered the feeling after a little struggle.