KITTY'S FATHER

Auckland Star, Volume XXIV, Issue 92, 20 April 1893, Page 10

KITTY'S FATHER

BY FRANZ BARRETT.

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CHAPTER XI.

A STRANGE DISAPPEARANCE.

I walked up and down the little entrance

passage for some time, quite contenb bo waib there till I was wanted. When one ia happy a lodging-house passage is just as good as a a marble hall to walk in, and I had every reason to be happy, albiet my conscience reproached me for tho hasty judgment I had passed on Mr Sherridan and the bitter reflections I had entertained wibh regard to him, bub ib waa a pleasure even to know thab I had been in error, and to find him after all nob a whib less loyal and lovable than I had formerly believed him to be. Ab length the young lovers, discovering that I was nob in the room, opened the door, and with a laugh to find me standing outside in the dark passage Jack (for Mr Sherridan h?d no other name in our thoughts from that night) told me I might come in now. I shook hands heartily with him, and taking my dear Kitty in my arms congratulated them both as well as I could in such simple words as flowed oub of my joyful heart. Then we sab down to supper, and by the time we had finished the only fear in my mind with regard to the cold beef was that there would nob be enough to pub on tho table the next day.

When the moment came to separate and Jack had said good nighb to us both at lea«t half a dozen times, ho found something fresh to tell me beforo the final adieu.

' I may not turn up before bwelve or one o'clock to-morrow,' said he, ' it may be even later. As I told you, I heard something ab tho Albion to-nighb of a nature so serious bhat I do noo care to talk about ib unbil lam betber informed. I shall occupy myself in getting ab the trubh of it tomorrow morning, and you shall know all when we meet again.'

When bhe door was at length closed on him, and I looked at my watch I found to our surprise thab ib was pasb three o'clock ; but ib was a good hour later before Kitty consented to go to bed.

' To bhink thab lam to be hi 3 wife !' she exclaimed, hugging me round bhe neck ; 'I. Kibby Yorke, to be Mr3 Sherridan.'

Then seating herself on my knee, she made me bell her all thab I had known about Jack's intention. Thab involved my narrating all thab had passed between us on the day when he revealed his position and his relations wibh the vicar of Sb. Botolph's. •

' And why didn't you tell me all this when you saw I was in grief at the thought ot his going away . she asked.

' Why, as he had nob made you the offer, and had gone off as we supposed to wind up at bho Albion,' —I began.

' Surely thab was no. reason for keeping the matter secreb!' she exclaimed, interrupting me. ' How could he make : mo an offer when thab momeab bhe curbain fell everyone was crowding* round us. You knew bhat the play was a success, and you couldn't have though that Jack would be false. Thab wasn't like you, uncle, to bo so unkind bo me or so unjusb to him.'

' Well, my dear,' said I, suddenly bethiking myself of her father's gift; ' I'll admib myself in the wrong, and make you the besb amends I can bhink of. Waib a momonb.'

1 ran upstairs and fetched the sandal wood box from my room.

* There Kitty,' said I, puttingr the box in her hands; ' you will find enough in that to pay for your wedding oubfib.'

' What a lovely box,' she said, and then pressing the silver boss at my direcbion, she was losb in astonishment bo find a bundle of bank notes inside. She examined them in silence, and then turning to me in perplexity said—

' Where did you geb all this money from? Yesterday we could nob make up a quarter of this sum.'

' My dear,' I replied wibh somo hesitation, ' bhe money is not mine. Ib is a present to you from ono who loved your mobher very dearly. That is all I may bell you ; and I musb ask you to question me no further on the subjecb.'

She looked at the box and its contenbs again in silenb bewilderment, and I could see she was burning with curiosity to know more aboub this strange presenb and ibs giver, bub she refrained from questioning mo and only said wibh a little nigh—

' It's dreadful to have a mystery thab you may nob try to puzzle out; however, I won't bother you aboub ib. Ibs a lovely presenb, and I'm very mnch obliged bo whoever it was that gave it to me. _ou will keep the money for me, uncle. The box will do beautifully for my gloves.'

I took charge of the bundle of notes, and she carried the box up to her room, where I felb pretty cerbain it soori ceased to occupy her thoughts, having thab to think aboub, which was far more precious than a sandal wood box, though ib had been crammed full of bank notes. Ib was ben o'clock when I gob down the next moraine.

Kitty had nob yeb risen, and I sat down to breakfast alone, knowing thab she would nob make her appearance for another hour, us Jack had told us not to expect him before 12 or 1. But just as I was cracking an e<:g there came a knock ab bhe door which I knew musb be Jack's. A man's character i? generally displayed by his manner of knocking afc n door. Jack's was always firm and bold ; but this morning • the knocker fell in a regular joyful peal. I was surprised, and I euoss Kitty wa3 also, and not a little mortified into tho bargain to be caught napping ab this hour by her lover. In he camo as I opened the door, fresh, bright, and cheerful as bhe morning, wibh a great bundle of newspapers under his arm. 'Splendid notice?,' said ho, wringing my hand. ' Columns of praise, and an exhaustive stream of flattering adjectivos for Kitty. Where is she ?' ' Not up yeb. We didn't burn in till nearly five.' 'I "oiiKhb to have thought of thab. Poor girl, she musb be tired out. Confounded thoughtless of me to knock like that.'

A hurried pattering of foot over the sit-ting-room ceiling gavo me roason to say that I was sure she would bo greatly disappointed if ho had knocked lees loudly and to promise that sho would be down shortly. ' Now, let mo see the notices,' eaid I. He folded the papers and pub them before me, lih faco glowing with delight as he pointed out the unstinted praise bestowed on Kitty's performance. Bub whab pleased me almost as much was to find bhab one and all of the critics wrofce with enthusiastic admiration of the play itself, describing ib as brilliant, witty, masterly, and refined. The local prints all referred to the facb that the author was clo?e!y related to the highly respected vicar of St. Botolph's, observing thab there was nob one line in bhe comedy which the most rigorous moralist could tako exception to, or a singlo phrase, whicli a parent might wish to blob out from the work of his eon.

' Come,' said I, pointing out ono of those passages to Jack, ' Your grandfather will be glad to road thi- Who knows but that your play instead of still further estranging' you Erom him may load io *t reconciliation.' ' 'Ah.1 ho replied becoming suddenly grave, 'that opens a •■nbjecC of a very tiillbront kind. I told y.-.u ia.-. night that I wa.j di-tai'nod at the Albion by a. very serious

' Yes, and I remember al 3o your saving tnab you did nob care to talk about ib untH you were better informed,' «Jusb so. _ I hay hunting up information since eight o'clock this morning, and I have gob all there is to be had ab presenb; thats why I' m here before th time I expected. I h eard _- thftt my grandfather had cUeappeared in a most unaccountable manner You can imagine the reports that) would accompany such a iact. A certain class of parsons always jump ab the very worst conclusions in the absence of convincing facts. Rumour lasb nighb said thab my 'grandfather was murdered.

' Murdered !'l gasped. ■Of course thab i a oub of the quesbion. I learned enough in five minutes bo see thab bhere was no foundation for a belief of that kind. The old gentleman has been missing since Monday aigbt—thab ia all which was positively known. I n e g ect that ia all jknow now. Bub_ tho negative evidence ia tolerably conclusive thab ho has not been murdered.'

' You have been up to 'the vicarage this morning, I suppose.'

'Yes; these are the facts I collecbed there.' He took out his nobebook,, in which he had pencilled some memorauda, and, looking ab them continued : 'My grandfather seams to have beon a man of peculiar, perhaps eccentric, habits, aa a man living alone for the greater parb of his life must be. "Studious, sedentary, silent," he read. " Only one family with whom he was closely intimato, Admiral Strong, The Cedars "—a stone's bhrow from the vicarage, j went there—the Admiral and his daughter away in Ireland, expected homo to-morrow. Three female and one male servant living in bhe housecook, housemaids, and gardener coachman —all old servants. Rev. Crawley Shepherd also an inhabitant of the vicarage, acting as curate, secretary, and general facbobum seemingly. He was tho lasb person of bhe household who saw the vjcar. Servanbs wenb to bed at ten, Shepherd went up ab half-past. Before going went into the library to see if my grandfather " had any further requirement of his services thab nighb." The vicar replied in tho negative. He was then sitting by the table with a book and his reading lamp. When tho housemaid came into the room bhe nexb morniug —yesterday, Tuesday—she was surprised to find the French windows giving on the lawn open. Later on it was discovered that my grandfather was nob in the house. Further search proved that he was nob in the neighbourhood, and had not been seen by any of his parishioners or the servants abThe Cedars, where at firsb ib was thoughb he mighb have „one, There was no sign ofthe houso having been broken into. Doors and windows wero all secured, excepb bho library window, and bhab had been opened from the inside. He mighb have opened that for air, bub bhere was nothing to show that violence had been committed in the room. The polico suspßcbed shab somo of the roughs attending tho race 3 were concerned in the ali'air ; bub bho vicar's watch lay on bhe bable, whero he was in tho habit of placing it when he read, and nothing apparently had been taken from the house. Tbab disposes of the idea that thieves had mado away with the vicar. He has no personal enemies, so one cannot impute vengeance aa a motive for secret crime. So I think we may set the notion of murder completely aside,' „ 'That's a great tiling,' said I. 'If the vicar was of an eccenbric character it is quite possible that he has simply gone away for a few days, nob thinking thab his absence could cause alarm.' ' Or nob caring groatly, his ono friend, Admiral Strong, being away. 1 should think from what I obsorvod that he hold bho Rev. Crawley in considerable contempb, and waa fairly indifferent to his feelings. An odd sorb of a prig bbab,' he said, with a jerk of his head and a smile, ' tbo perfect bype of a fussy tool.' • Oh, yon think he is a fool,' 1 Can'b help thinking so.' ' Kitty thought him something worse.' 'Ah, weH, I daresay sho is right. Women aro quicker and truer of perception than we.'

( • Well you think your grandfather has simply gone away for a few days V I _.]__y eSi ' he replied reflectively, tapping I his nuckles with the notebook. ' There was a sheet of paper on his desk on which be had begun to write a lebber, the dabe under the embossed address, and the words "Bear Cunningham," were written—that's all. Cunningham, I find is his solicitorLincoln's Inn. It seemed to me that he broke off there, with the sudden intention to go to London and consult his solicitor personally instead of by lebber. Ib ia reasonable to suppose that, being greatly vexed by the production of my play, he took this course j with the view of getting away from the place and shaking off the worry.' j ' Perhaps Mr Cunningham may givo you i some information.' ' ' No. He has already been telegraphed, and his reply is that he has neibher seen my grandfabher nor heard from him.' • Oh, well. I don'b think you have any cause for alarm,' said I, seeing that Jack still looked grave. His expression did nob lighten, and be replied in the same dubious tone as before: . M—no. Still, there is one fact which makes me a littlo anxious. My grandfather's heart is weak. He is subjecb to syncope, and withoub proper treatment an attack of thab kind may bo fatal. Now, it he had simply strolled in tho night through the garden oub into the road anywhere, and was seized with one of these fainting fibs-- ' Why, bhen,' I interrupbed, his body would certainly have been found before now —the town and all the neighbourhood being thronged with visitors.' . . 'True. Well,' he said, rising briskly, and dismissing the subjecb as we heard Kitty's foot on bhe stairs, we shall see. Ib rained again bhab day, and at nighb bho theatre was crammed in every part-indeed we played to overflowing houses bho whole week, and thedays flew away wibh astonishing swifbness. We had all such cause for happiness thab we treated the mysterious disappearance of Jack's grandfabher more lightly than otherwise we mighb ivioieover, our apprehensions were greatly allayed by the view Admiral Sbrong took of the affair. But tlie interview wibh bhis, gentleman was of such a remarkable character that I think I must give it a place in the nexb chapber.

To be Continued.)