SHORT STORIES. A LAD'S MISTAKE.

Otago Witness, Issue 2722, 16 May 1906, Page 82

SHORT STORIES.

A LAD'S MISTAKE.

(For the Witness.) '■' How lovely it looks !" Iris Heath cried rapturously, as she surveyed the great barn. Keith M'Dougal echoed her words as.. bis eyes rested on the fresh green foliage and pure while blossoms which decked ceiling and walls.- Nevertheless he sighed". ' - ' "What is worrying you now:?" the girl asked, a little shortly. "Surely this is notthe time or the place for care." Her companion forced a smile. " I beg your pardon, Miss Heath," 3ie said pleasantly. - " I had in" a measure forgotten the present, and v was looking into the future/ You' must' remember , that after • your, cousin's wedding I am destitute" of' an. ,- excuse. -to "prolong rriyr stay -here' at- tne 4 fitatipjlL'-' : '.'■'- \ .'■ 1 Iris did remember, and' her ' heart suddenly £ecaine heavy ; but she- merely smiled at the implied compliment, and 'then spoke - in a very matter-of-fact tone:' " You leave the station to-morrow. Have you bid a pleasant holiday?" " Ye-es" — hesitatingly — " at least I would Lave had, only that a certain outside matJvr has been troubling me." - ■ "Indeed?" interestedly. "Is it a business matter?" " Not exactly" — awkwardly ; "in reality it is a point ot honour." _, - The girl's eyes were very wistful, very anxious, but she kept them turned away from M'Dougal. "Don't you think/ she asked seriously, "that if you were" to -take me into your confidence it might make a difference?" Keith .looked at her almost fearfully. Was it possible tfiat she was acquainted •with hie secret? He felt hot and cold all over, but a moment later reassurance was granted him, for she turned her eyes upon ' him, and •in them he read nothing but feminine curiosity. He straightened himself up. "I'm afraid it -vould complicate matters/ -he laughed. tf Maybe the point of honour includes .a duel, .in which case.j your knowledge of^it would mean- confuMoh. I ' ' - . , ' ! Iris was offended. " You .are laughing i at" me," she said coldly. " Well, -perhaps you~are justified. * * Cert ainly T overstepped the bounds of our friendship ; but for the moment I- had forgotten the yearsMvhieh \ have rolled between -the present and the past intimacy:' Perhaps we had- better make for the house." „ i She started off quickly in "its direction, leavi"" Keith no alternative but to follow.' With a heavy heart he did so. He too well knew that the old friendship was impossible now. How fervently he wished that Time would journey backwards a few years, thus giving hint another chance. His heart yearned for the good, old days, in which he was jackeroo on the station, son in the house, and bosom friend to Iris. But it could not be, and with con- , strained cheerfulness Jie followed Miss Heath into the 6itting room. In it were a number of bright-faced -girls, a stray man or so, and the lady of the house. Each and all greeted the two with acclamations. "Thank goodness you've arrived !" cried one irrepressible. "I am simply longing % see the barn, and Mrs Heath warned ns that we were not to venture near until you came indoors." "My mother only obeyed instructions," Iris cried gaily. "I hated the idea of, anyone seeing our work in an unfinished . state. Had you come' over in lime to help ife would have been different. Away you go now, and don't criticise too unmercifully. Remember, lam only a little child.". „ . . •» *

"What did she mean -when she said' •remember 1 am only a little cMld' ?" Keit'h asked" in puzzled tones a moment later. jHe and Mrs; . Heath were- alone together, - f^ris- having departed to dress. the brid«s"and ; make her own ixjilet, wliile the otheris had > rnshed" to the barn. ' ' . - Mrs' Heath laughed. R lris is a little excited - just now," she said indulgently. " This is her first* appearance , as bridesmaid ; therefore you must excuse her. She ;was quoting from the notorious ' Buster Brown.' 'Remember, I'm only a little child, mother, and don't be in a hurry,' ;were the words of his pettiion on the way to well-merited punishment." Keith also laughed, and for a while <T ie two conversed lightly concerning the eminent personage so familiar to readers of comic papers. Then the man excused himself. "I had better consult with the groom," he said, rising, " else he may think . .that his supporter has forsaken him." ■ M'Dougal sauntered along a side passage, . iflnd finally entered a bedroom. Its occupant turned a relieved face towards him. "By Jove, Keith !" he 6aid cordially, "•"I an> glad you have come to me. Per■haps together we'll make those girl 6 listen •to reason. I wish to see Vera for a moment, and the orideemaid positively refuses. She says it's ' hot the thing.' Did you ever hear 6uch rot?" • . "Softly, softly," cried Keith, a genuinely iamused smile on .'his face . " Cannot you ;waifc until it is all ,over? Then you'll be jhaster of the ceremonies.'* /"Rubbish!." in an exasperated^ lone. - ' Here am I» ready, and there ere those $wo girls garbed like angels, and yet ihey ."will not let me have a peep, although* -we •'have half an hour to wait." '•' How do you know that they are garbed Jifce angels?" qneried M'Dougal unsympa-' §ihetically, ac he proceeded to don another suit. ' *' Because," growled Halbert, " that exasperating Iris flitted down this passage a moment ago. She had something, niftfe £nd soft over her arm, and ;ust is she

disappeared into her room she informed me that it was the veil which was to complete V era's costume."

"Ah ." comprchendingly ; then, quietly : "Never mind, old fellow. I envy you your luck in securing such a dear little woman. I may call Her that, you know" (with a smile), " without being too sentimental, for when I was a lad in ehort trousere and she a bit of a girl with short skirts and long hair, we played here together. Now/ briskly, "let us besiege the ghls ; perhaps" they'll yield to our joint persuasions." - His hope was" justified, for in a few moments Halbert and Vera were occupying one corner of the.library, and Keith, with Iris to keep him company, was keeping guard" jus£' ©utsrde the door. The bridesmaid was a picture, and the man feasted his hungry eyes upon her. He had forgotten the point of honour, had forgotten everything but her presence. In a vague fashion she was conscious of his loss of self-restraint, and fear fell upon her. Yet was It all fear? Why, then, did her heart sing for very joy? "Iris," he- whispered — "Iris, Iris! How J love you?,' -He- took possession of. , her I. unresisting hands, - and drew' her" -close ■s'to himself i then her bent his" 'head. An instant later Iris ran quietly up. to her own room, her brain in a whirl and her •heart too full for thoughts.

It was considerably after midnight; the newly-wedded pair had long since departed on their honeymoon. Even the great barn \fks empty now, for the wedding guests had driven away to their respective homes half an hour ago. Iris Heath stood in her ' own room, looking irresolutely at a note.

"I wonder what I shall find written." she murmured. "I hope. Ido hope, that corn-age has been granted him." / She toyed with the note nervously, and then opened it quickly. "It he has failed I had. better learn it at once," she added, still with a troubled quiver in her voice, "Here goes !" Five minutes later she deliberately tore the note up, anger in her eyes and decision in her action.

"He has forgotten the point of honour,'* she said, coldly. "So be it." There was something stern, even harsh, in her finality, yet the words which she had just -read were manly words — words of sincere love which any Woman ought to have been proud' to have addressed to her. And Iris perfectly well understood their value, only She took . her pen, c and sat down ta answe/ the epistle which had. so disappointed - her. - "DeaV Mr M'Dougal," 6he wrote, "you really ought not to turn your attention from the - point of honour which has occupied, you. since your arrival here. It Is {needless to ; speak of the. contents of your note to" me. I* do hot care to marry you, especially a I think you propose something which in your saner moments — in the moments in which your mind turns to 'the point of honour' — you will regret." , She paused, and indulged in a few minutes of meditation. Eventually she added her name, and sealed the note up in an envelope. This ehe addressed to M'Dougal. "It is harsh," she confefeed, "but he deserves it." Her eyes blazed. ("Yes," she reiterated passionately, "he deserves it. How dare he offer me his love under such circumstances?"

The eirl dismissed the matter — at least she told herself that she did so, — and commenced to make preparations for the night. Presently she was ready, and she put >ut her candle.

Hark! What was that? Down the passage came a Wealthy footstep. Iris's blood irote in her veins, and her thoughts flew io the valuable wedding presents on show in the drawing room below. The thought of these filled her with courage ; she would rouse the house. Keith's room was not very distant from hers. She would waken him. At least he was a brave man. Quietly she drew her dressinggown toward, her. An instant later she was standing by her bedroom door, ready -to* escape immediately the burglar opened it._ !Por some reason or other he delayed doinof this, although the anxiously-listening girl felt that he was stooping, because she conld hear his belaboured "breathing. The suspense was eating away her courage. With desperate resolution she opened the door. "Iris!" "Keith !'» It is hard Eo say which voice was the more startled 1 ; certainly in Iris's there was a note of relief. "I thought # you were a burglar," she murmured, shamefacedly. The man looked sorry. "What a clumsy fcol I am," he exclaimed testily ; then in a different voice, "I have brought you another note." _ "Yes," the girl whispered, penitence in her heart. How miserable hi. voice sounded. Perhaps she would not send him sucli a harsh answer after all. "Thank you." She conmenced to close Ihe door, M'Doußal hesitated. "For the sake of 'Auld lang syne' be lenient," he pleaded in an uneven voice, "and think as kindly of me as possible."

"Yes," she whispered again, ancl longed to tell him that the contents of this second letter were already known to her ; but instead ;>he asked a quiet question ; "When may I see you: to-morrow morning?"

His eyes were very melancholy— so much the _ bright moonlight revealed. "I'm afraid you will never wish to see me again," he answered, mournfully; "I've been a fool."

The girl took no heed of his protest "In the library at 7 o'clock. Is that too early?" she murmured, breathlessly. "No, I'll be there, but," dolefully, "you may not be."

"I will be," decidedly. "Good-night." "Good-night," he returned. The door closed, and the man stumbled blindly back to his own room. He had given up all hope of ever winning the girl, and the hopelessness of his love tortured him.

Not yet were the consolations of a clew conscience potent enough to ease h;s heartache. Five minutes to 7 found M'Do ig.il restlessly pacing the library. He scarcely dared hope that Iris would keep her appointment, and yet the possibility of her not doing so filled hi>T witn despair. At 4 minutes to the^hour the doer .opentd, and Miss Heath appeared. She wps quietly dressed in a light blouse_n.nd black skirt, but to the man she appeared moie lovable, more desirable than on ti»e previous evening, when a wonderful cream gown had enhanced her beauty. ile could not understand it, but It was so, and he was filled with an overmastering impulse to crush her in his arms. With a superhuman effort he nonqnetvd himself and faced her, bitterly expe-;tint of scorn. ' But it was not contempt that looked out of the girl's honest eyes. Had Keith been wiser, bolder, he would have known that this new expression constituted the additional fascination which so enthralled him this morning. Iris came quietly over to him. and put her arms round him. "Keith, dear," «he said in a gasping little voice of intense-" emotion. "Keith, dear, you -have made "me the happiest little woman in the world." Unable to believe bis senses, MTDougal put her away almost, roughly. "Didn't you read my second note?" he asked in a dazed tone. His companion drew away -from him. "Do you wish to read the answer which would have reached you had I not received your second letter?" she asked very soberly and yet lovingly. "Do you, Keith?" He answered 1 in the affirmative, and an instant later was reading the harsh words with which Iris had thought to end their friendship. He was still bewildered, but a faint glimmering of the real facts of the case was commencing to dawn upon him. "How did "you know?" in puzzled tones. "I cannot understand it.". .He passed his hand wearily over bis brow, his heed ached with the worry and uncertainty of it all ; that night he had not closed his eyes. The action, slight although it was, touched a compassionate chord in Miss Heath's heart. She pushed him into a chair and knelt down beside him. "Now," she answered in a motherly tone, and her fingers lovingly cares&od his brow, "don't worry, just listen to me. When first you came. I expected you to -tell .me what last night's Ssecond letter told me. You see, Keith, I was father's secretary/ and the 'letters" which came after his death addressed to tym 'X opened and dealt -with. One day a letter arrived .written on a familiar writing, .and I knew that it came from our old Jackeroo. I did not expect to find business in it, and would immediately have .handed it to mother had she been in. Fortunately, as it turned out, she was visiting that day, and I, being interested in my old friend, opened the letter. 1 found its, contents to be different to my imaginings. In reality the letter was a confession, and told that the writer had during the years which he spent on the station fallen once under a sudden temptation. " 'It was so easy,' the letter said. 'You had left the money-bag on a table, and the bright sovereigns tempted me. I had been gambling with some other lads, and owed £5, exactly the sum which lay 60 conveniently at my elbow. No one would ever suspect me, and you would never miss it. A thousand tempting voices urged me on, and I fell. You missed the money, but concluded that it had fallen from your pocket. Very speedily the incident faded from your remembrance, but never from mine. I have suffered, and still ' suffer ; will you forgive me?'

"So the letter ran. It brought the tears to my eyes. Immediately I destroyed it. Nofc^for worlds would I have mother become aware of its contents. Afterwards I decided to ignore it, as the eyes for which it was intended were forever closed ; but I hoped that some day you would come and confide it to me."

The girl's voice died down to a whisper. "I .was so -disappointed to find that you thought it unnecessary. You see, I had such faith in, you that I felt your sense of honour would compel you to speak of ft before " She blushed, and decided to leave the sentence unfinished.

"It was 'such a caddish thing to do," Keith said, with averted face. "I nave hated myself ever since." "Nonsense," brightly ; "you were only 16 then, Keith, and were not properly aware of the enormity of your offence." "Yes, I was,"' he answered gloomily ; "bub an evil spirit poss^eased me." He relapsed into morbid silence, which was broken by the sound of suppressed sobbing. Had a shot been fired in the immediate -vicinity Keith would not have moved with greater speed. "For heaven's sake, don't cry, Iris," he exclaimed. "I feel a big enough brute as it is."

"Yes," softly, "you are a brute, else you would not propose to me and then treat me so coldly."

It was more than even, such, a self-djs-ousted young man as Keith M'Dougal could stand. He forgot the past, and remembered only the happy present, to Iris's complet- satisfaction, be it confessed. "Gracious!" crfed Mi's Heath. "Good ,j?racious !" Power of speech deserted her as she surveyed the culprits, but it took sides with the audacious M'Dougal. He untwined Iris's arms and faced his prospective mother-in-law.

"In six weeKs," he asserted, "we'll have another such ceremony as we had yesterday, but Iris and I will not occupy the secondary positions." "Gracious !" again ejaculated Mrs Heath, and then, in the good old way, hugged them both.

— The rich man may say sometimes that he was really happier when ho was poor, but still ho keeps on ail the time trying to get richer*