Papurau Newydd Cymru

Chwiliwch 15 miliwn o erthyglau papurau newydd Cymru

Cuddio Rhestr Erthyglau

11 erthygl ar y dudalen hon

J?UBI,IBIIEI) BY SPECIAL AltRANGEMEVE

Newyddion
Dyfynnu
Rhannu

J?UBI,IBIIEI) BY SPECIAL AltRANGEMEVE THE ORIGINAL WOMAN. BY F. FRANKFORT MOORE, 'Author of "The Jessamy Bride," "The Girls of the House, "A Whirlwind Harvest," &c., &c. [COPYRIGHT.] CHAPTER XVII. Stephen TJrquhart was not accustomed ever to lose command over himself, and at the mention of the name of Claire La lioacho by lr. Trent, he merely raised his eyebrows for a second and examined the end of his cigar. There was a pause of some duration before he said, Of course, Miss La Roache." Ho was clearly musing upon the revelation made to him by his patron. But the patron was on his feet in an instant—* standing villi his back to the fire for a few momenta and then suddenly turning about and, leaning his arm on the mantel-piece, gazing into the glowing legs. Then he faced Urquhart once more, saying, "I judge from your perfect self-control that you are greatly surprised, Urquhart. I suppose it is the most, natural thing in the world that you should bo surprised; but I had a notion that you at least would be able to make a guess in the right direction. You may not think me very wise—I am, as you know, thirty-seven years old, she j", I daresay, thirteen years younger." "There is no disparity there," said Urquhart. "We don't get married at twenty-one as our fathers did; a man of forty and a girl of twenty- five—that's what people think sensible now-a- day." I'm net sure that it is the best in the long run—but—oh, we'll not discuss the economic aspects of the early marriage." No that would be beside the point, wouldn't it? Its enough for you to know that you are able to keep a wife in a way that approximates to modern notions of luxury. Have you spoken to Miss La Ivoaclie ?" Good Lord No. I tell you that I have only became aware of my—my feeling—that is to say, convinced—certain—within the past day or two." Urquhart nodded. There was a pause. Philip Trent broke it; but now he spoke more slowly-- more collectedly—he had been a little excited be- fore. "I am pretty sure of myself, Urquhlft-I wish I was as sure of her," he said. "When a man comes to my age he is generally sure of him- self. Of course she is a very beautiful girl-you must acknowledge that, Urquhart." Urquhart was generous enough to make such an admission. "But that fact of itself makes me feel a little hopeless," rr. Trent went on to say. "Yes, I feel that it would be next to impossible that such a girl should p-iss her twentieth year without having suitors. What do you say?" "I fLllip agree with you. She must have had suitors; hut so had Penelope—suitors by the Beor: s lid Urquhart. "You mean that she is still li part-whole ?" "I mean that she is still unmarried." "And that means that you think I need not despair p" Urquhart made so long a pause before answer- ing that Trent felt that he was answered. I see what you mean," he said. You have reason to know Lat she is not heart-whole. She loves someon" else." "Nothing of tho sort," snid Urquhart with reassuring quickness. The fact is that all that you say so surprises me that I am far from fluent in replying to you. You should give me notice of your questions, as they say in another place. Let me have the night to think over this amaz- ing announcement of you is—I don't suppose that it sliouli Y, called amazing, but owing to its coming upon me suddenly I admit that it has somehow taken my breath away, and I feel in- capable of—of—doing justice to the theme. Give me till to-morrow-take till to-morrow yourself— to consider the whole question." He rose smiling. Philip Trent also smiled. "I had a notion that I would surprise you," he said. But now that you come to think over the 111 atter-" "But that's just what I haven't done," sa.id Urquhart. "I'm going to do it now—I'm going to think it all over and by to-morrow I hope to have brought myself into a condition to look at it from every standpoint." "Good night/' said Trent, abruptly, but not impatiently. "Good night," said Urquhart. "By the way, if in the morning you should not wish to resume pur chat on this subject, you may be sure that I shall W'l be the on.' to start it." Good night," said Philip Trent from the foot of the staircase. Stephen seated himself once more in front of the smouldering log in the gra.te. Here-, was a very prelty conclusion to the incidents of the jaw Philip Trent, the man who provided him with his daily bread, was in love with the young woman whom his private secretary loved—the young woman, more-over, who loved his privute secretary. CHAPTER XVIII. Stenhen J'rquhart was quite surprised when r ■ curang up from the window seat in t l,b" V /t th,. moment of hi* the 1 V>.v s;vi„o: "Don't go away he had glanced round the room and seemed about to go Don't go yet; I am not reading. I want badly to sav something to you. "I am looking for Mr. Trent; but it is about nothing that cannot wlit," said he, closing the d0He approached her smiling. He put.out both his hands to her; he had glanced out of the win- dow that faced the front to see that the terrace ^Sh^Jave him one hand and that with no «p«fal fervour. But a moment Inter it seemed if hJ had relented from her coldness. She rmf her othei hand into his. P" Tlmft l>e!«er." sa.d he. "But that pause- that hesitation—I don't like it. It chilled me. w-h •ss&ss; <,« ,n gfepiien—something rather important to both of lis Yon must not be hurt, Step.ien. "I am hurt," said he. Good hoo-ens. What liaa happened, my dearest? S-meone 1.:1:J Iteen )I.) woman. Lady Innisfail is a foolish chatterer." •«tso—f>; what could anyone say? sae cried. "No;-Mil that Tt,(-) My is from myselt alone'. ¡ I feel it-I feel it." r, "What is it that you feel, my Eveyr ho nsked If vou tell mp just what you feel you may be sure that I will not be afraid to hear it. 1 have never doubted you, have I, She took awav her hands and stood before bim 1ik" a child'that is anxious to confess before fceing found out. Her eyes were turned to the floor; she was ill at ease. Ho was full of curio- sity. What she have to say to him that should upset hei- so? He encouraged her, with « kindlv hand laid on her shoulder. Stephen, forgive me—you are a man—von will forgive me. I want my freedom," she said in one brertth—one gasp. ITe took li is hand off her shoulder; his hand dropped, disappointed. Evelyn "Oh, I knew that you would hold me in con- tempt. Do I deserve it?" she cried. But I must have my freedom at any cost—even at the cost of your contempt." "Someone has been talking—some woman- coisonous praters," said he. "No one ha.s been talking. What should anyone talk about? No. But I hove felt that it is impossible a.ny longer to carry on this course -of--of-wf,ll, it's a sort of deception—dissimula^ tion," said she, stoutly. "What is a sort of deception? What is in your mind, my Evey?" He spoke slowly—sadly. "I thought that I explained. Oh, nù; I re- fnitmjber now. Stephen, you should not have jisked top to keep our engagement a secret." YOH agreed With me that it must be kept a pecret." It seemed so to me then—I did not know all ,that it meant. I know now, and I want to be Teleased or to have our engagement made public." He could not avoid giving a little start. It -was. however, a very little one. The publishing f his engagement to Lady Evelyn might gratify flifi va-nity, but it would lay his plans in ruins— ithe sememe which had entered his mind during the night. And he had said that a cat, a woman land the grave could keep a secret-that mankind tad been unjust to woman! "What has caused you to change your mind? Cannot you still see that it would be against our best interests to make any announcement relative to ourselves? Do you mean to tell me that your father would conspnt P" Stephen, listen to me. It is you who have changed your mind. You do not love me as you did. Is not that the truth r Evev—Evey, I am pained. I a111-" "t&iephen, do you stand before me and say 4hat y 7ve me now as you always dId P" She ";1. ioo-king straight into his face. His Jfirst thought that it was another Woman .who had done her best to prove that the gener- ally accepted view of the world on the subject ixf women and secrete was correct. Claire must have said something to his Evey—something that bad awakened her suspicion and. aroused TUMI jealousy, tie became quite sad and sadness, dis- apI?,mbn(,IJ't \"as th(\ n(}((í of his rC'p],y to her straightforward question. "Did I ever think that such a question would come from you, Evelyn?" hp. said. But it has," she said. "I wonder how your doubt originated," he pa-id, still sadly. No one has boon saying anything," she cried quickly, lie wondered how she divined what was in his thoughts at that moment. "I don't suppose that you love anyone else. I suppo-so a man can ceaso to love one woman without transferring his love to another." "I daresay; but it is unusual. Why need wo discuss points like this?" "Why indeed? Why discuss when one can feel ?" You do not seem to think that I can feel, or you would never have said to me what you have said, cruel Evey!" It is because I fool-I feel—what can a woman do but fed? That is pa.rt of our curse—to feel without being able to think. Never mind. I tell you that for sOome time—for some days—I havo been sensible of a change in 3'ou^ I sup- pose that is what made a change in me." "Oh, Evey! You change—you?" "It is pitiful-—pitiful!" she turned away from him almost passionately, and went to the win- dow. It is pitiful—pitiful!" lie repeated. Here wo are loving each other truly--de.eply-and yet —you havo a whim-a whim that seems to tell you that you have been too hasty-that you might do much better for yourself; and then-" Do not say that, Stephen," she cried. Let- ter for myself! Can a girl do better for herself than to love the man whom—whom she loves? WI) i:ii '? I tell you it is no whim. Oh, I fed-I feel! Stephen, assume, if you will, that it is I who have changed; but tell me that you agree to free me from the promise which I gave you." Evelyn—dearest child, it is my duty to save you from yourself," said he. I mean to do that duty even though you may detest me for it. I will save both yourself and me from the worst fate that could befall us. I refuse to listen to you. I hold you bound to me still. I hold my- self bound to you. Dear child, in a year or two -a month or t"N-a day or two—you will thank me for my firmness even though you may now with the influence of that strange freak upon yon-think me the most cruel of men. That is all that I have to say to you now. "Very well," she said, suddenly. "Let our engagement continue. After all, it settles one. I do believe that I love you as well as ever I did. And I know that the feeling that one is engaged has a soothing effect upon one. Sometimes, of course, one feels that one is in prison, but on the whole She gave a shrug-actually the finished shrug of a woman of the world who has outlived her illusions, and the laugh of the woman who is not disappointed in men because she does not expect much from any man. Stephen Urquhart watched her narrowly as she went past him. He wondered if she had any secret knowledge that gave point to that phrase, H Sometinws, of course, one feels that one is in prison." He did not forget that those were the words which Claire La Hoache had used in talk- ing to him on a rather important matter the previous day. Was it a coincidence that his Evey had employed the same striking metaphor? But she went past him, and (after her shrug and her laugh) smiled quite pleasantly on him. He said, acquiescently, Yes, on the whole——" And then he, too, laughed. But she went out of the room solemnly the moment he laughed. She took ca.re that there was no duet of laughter: their voices did not mingle. And then he was left to marvel what this girl meant—what this girl knew. She had never behaved in this way to him since he first knew her. She had over been sweet, natural, trust- ful. Never once had she shown a sign of jealousy. To be sure, he had never given her cause to do so; but he knew that if a woman has a leaning to jealousy But was this freak of hers now due to an impression on her part that he had relaxed in his devotion to her? He could not believe it. Then he went on to consider the question of its origin. He wondered if this subtle Power whoso aid he had invoked to influence Claire La l'oacho had at the same time, and without being invoked, influenced Lady Evelyn against him. He had no great depth of knowledge on the subject of the working of this Power. It was a mystery to him. It was certainly the most mysterious of all the forces of Nature, but it was a force of Nature, and being so, was it subject to the laws that govern other forces of Nature? Did one of its laws make it compulsory that the old love should be off at the same instant that the new love was on? Was it one of the rules of the game, so to speak, that the man was to retain a love to fall back on? There was a subtle force of Nature, the effect of which he had watched with rather more than a personal interest when he was a boy. It caused in fine weather the female figure at one end of a pivoted wire to emerge from an alcove in a pasteboard cottage, but in damp weather this figure swung into its alcove and the man-figure at the other end of the wire came forth. That remarkable phenomenon was produced by a simple natural cause, and he wondered if the same principle governed the operations of the force of Nature which yesterday was called Sorcery but to-day Science? Was it a matter of impossibility that the new love and the old love should be in view at the same moment ? He had heard of this Power fool- ing the folk who made use of it for their own purposes. The trite proverb about the necessity for having a. long spoon when supping under cer- ta.in conditions had its origin in a story refer- ring to such-like fooling. Ho felt that if this principle of hoisting the engineer on his own petard was inseparable from the operations of the Force which lie had invoked, it might not be.so valuable an ally as ho had hoped to find it. He was more far-seeing than Nature: he was not at all inclined to discard the old love until the new was certain. In matters of love one never knows what will happen; and it i best to bo prepared with an alternative. But the next minute lie had flung to the winds all such precautions of a provident mind, for Claire La Roache stole into the room, and at the sight of her beauty the greatest of all forces of Nature took possession of him. "Let them all fly to the limbo of the lost, so long a.s this one is mine, his heart cried out, and his arms wore open to her. "Perhaps this was what wa-s meant by the prison, after all," she said, when his arms were nbout her. He g-ave a little gasp. More about the prison!" ho said. "I told you yesterday what was the curious impression which I had—a prison," she Maid. "And now you think that you have discovered what it meant?" Perhaps. How did I know that you were in this room? And yet I knew it: I felt myself drawn toward th,is room." And I felt myself compelled to remain here, my Claire. Even now that you have come on tho scene I feel no inclination to fly from the room." "Can I make it worth your while to stay, Stephen?" You have made it worth my while already. 'The delight of thy face and the sound of thy feet and the wind of thy tresses.' Worth my while? Any one of the three would be enough to lure me from the uttermost ends of tho oarth. The earth ? From the gate of the highest 'heaven, my Claire." And he really spoke the truth as it seemed to him at that moment, so sublime is the action of that terrific Force of Nature which dominates even the most provident man at some moments of his life. He laughed and crushed her hand against his lips. It was as exquisite of taste as a peach that the sun has kissed during a long summer. But the room was oaie that had desks and writ- ing paper: it was being hourly used. It was not for lovorg who have much to say to each other. It was the room of the single kiss—quick—unpre- meditated premature electric risky. She would not let him kiss her face-oiily her hands; but even this made him breathless. "I must fly," she whispered. "Let me get a 6heet of paper—that will do for an excuse if I am caught." "I will ge; 0110 too," he said. "I will get one for myself and half a dozen for you. If one will excuso me a quire will hardly be enough for you." The notepaper was snatched from one of the morocco cases, but it got badly crushed during the next few seconds. When .she had left the room he sat down before an escritoire aaid picked up a pen. His fingers were trembling, and there was a certain quivering in his throat. Let them all fly down the Sirocco, so long aa she remains!" was the thought that beat with, his h cart-beats—fiercely—irregularly—improvi- dently. But when he had sat there for a quarter of an hour ho had pulled his old self out of the fire at which ho hna been warming himself when he had lost his balance and fallen into the deptha of the furnace. It will never do to funi such risks again," he said to himself, shaking his head. "Good heavens! If he should come to know it-if he should even suspect anything—after his con- fidences. I should have cautioned her. What have I been thinking of? And the other-the other-I wish to heaven I understood her." He founC himself in a. situation of "great faicety-one he had not arranged for when con. Btructing the scenario of his draJnne that iIllustrated very forcibly the troublous moment^ ,t,, be!el wWch. a ia JAkeJj, taifa^vV yhm he ba-s beeq warming his hands at the nre of love, and in an I incautious hour loses his balance and finds that he is in the depths of a seven-times-heated fur- nace. ■ To 10 sure he felt that he had plucked himself out of the furnace; but he was conscious of an odour of singeing in the air, so to speak,. The flames had licked him here and there. He must be cautious in future. So long as the science of calories nas proved unequal to the production of a really perfect stove, men will continue to warm themselves at open grates. When ho found himself in the neighbourhood of Claire La Roach o that same evening, he said to her, I wonder how you would like a voyage in Mr. Trent's yacht—not a cruise round the coast of those isla.nds of ours, but one across the At- lantic-to South America—in the Tropics—some place where winter may be passed among palm trees a.nd beneath blue skies." "How can you ask me (" she said. "If you were to be there it would be living. Why do you ask me p" I "Because I think it could be managed," he replied. "We are bound to go somewhere in the boat, and Mr. Trent will probably be making up a party. It occurred to mo that if you and your mother would come you might enjoy it. It would certainly mean the simplification of your problem of how to spend the winter." It would mean the most delightful possible solution of the problem," said she- We have been here quite too long already. Lady Evelyn is the only guest who remains of these who were here when wo came—Lady Evelyn and you. I think wo should go before Mrs. Archie tires of us. She has been most kind to us hitherto. She has spoken about our going to her in Battenberg Square in the spring." "Mrs. Archie knows the social value of a beautiful face," said Mr. Urquhart. "But the winter must pass before the spring arrives. That has tho sour.d c-f an adage, has it not? What may happen before the spring is here! By the way. I have J)"P1\ thinking over our—our position. For a month or two I think that we must be as though no understanding existed be- tween 1\S. There are many reasons why we should keep our affairs a secret." "That will be delightful," slip said. "There is no bond so sure as the sharing of a secret. Every time I look across tho table at you I feel that—that there is a bond between us. I Avonder if Mr. Trent will ask Lady Evelyn to come 4-n that cruiser" He looked at her narrowly. Was it possible j that she suspected something, ho asked himself. "You have become greatly attached to Lady Evelyn," he said. Would you like her to form one of our party—provided that our party comes off ?" "I was not going to suggest that," she said. "Of course, if Mr. Tient chooses her among his guests it would be quite delightful, but-" "I do not think that Mr. Trent will invito her," said Uiquhart in the casual way that one dismisses a subject of interest. "L knew that you would be of my way of thinking in regard to the other matter. It would be the height of folly for ns to set people gossiping about us. Seiiously, I should be blamed for having the audacity io ask you to give me your promise before you had a c-hance of making your mark in the world. As it is I have had somo twitches of remorse on this point during the past twenty-four hours." She laughed. You think that you may have saved me from a brilliant match," she said. He shook his head. Su.ch a girl as you he began, but she in- terrupted him. "Such a girl as I should be saved from the most spleulid humiliation to which a girl can be subjected: a brilliant match. That is tho only reflection which you should have at the present juncture. Wo shall have our secret, to- gether, Stephen. It wild draw us closer to- gether." "You look at everything through my eyes," lie said; and he allowed himself a glance of rap- ture at her. Ho had full command over himself; there wa.s no danger of his toppling over into tho furnace. lie was merely taking the chill off his fingers. I shall keep my Smre"-G-Lir secret," she whis- pered. I wonder if you would consent to my telling it to Lady Evelyn." He gave a gasp; all tho warmth that had come to his body within the previous five minutes evaporated. "Heavens above!" lie whispered. "Don't think of such a thing. Lady Evelyn! Our secret!" Oh, I don't insist on it," said she, laughing. He looked at her narrowly onee more. lie would have given a good deal to know exactly how much she knew. Ho was well aware of the fa.ct that ho had never been otherwise than dis- creet in his management of his indiscretion in respect of allowing himself to fall in love with Lady Evelyn, so that he could not see how it was possible for Claire to know" anything about it. Still he was a sufficient believer in the subtle forces of Nature to feel that the intui- tion of a girl in love has to be reckoned with by anyone who hopes to come to a reasonable con- clusion in regard to a girl's enigmatical phrase— even a girl's enigmatical laugh. Ho thought that on the whole it would bo wise for him to refrain from impressing upon her more vehemently than he had already done the necessity for particular secrecy so far as Lady Evelyn was concerned. He recollected the curious way in which Lady Evelyn had behaved in the library a few hours before-—the curious cynical laugh that she had given on leaving the room. And Claire had also laughed, though without any cynicism. (To be continued.)

Advertising

BARGAINS FOR CHRISTMAS

Advertising

The Undenominational Schools…

Advertising

Hwfa Mon, the Famous Archdruid,…

Advertising

Our Football Column.I

Beddrod Mam.

Advertising