A BROKEN WEDDING RING

Auckland Star, Volume XL, Issue 76, 30 March 1909, Page 6

A BROKEN WEDDING RING

(By BERTHA M. CLAY)

CHAPTER X General Sir Arthur Hatton and his niece were soon settled in their new and magnificent home. To Leah it seemed as though she must be in the whirl of a' dream. Her own story was to her very much like one of the fairy tales that had delighted her when she was a child. "I am a real Cinderella," she said to herself, with a smile. But in no way did she resemble that humble little maiden. She was proud by instinct and by nature. She was proud of her mother's name of Hatton, of the good old family from which her mother came, of the blood that Tan in her veins from her mother's side. She was proud of being true to herself, of being loyal to what she believed to be right principles. The compact made between herself and her uncle had not been broken. The name of Ray had been given up, and she had adopted that of Hatton. "We will have no false pretences," the general had said. "You are my adopted > daughter and heiress, but everyone must know that you are my niece. lam in the place of your father; but while one lives who claims the title I should not like to usurp it. You are my niece, Leah Hatton; and, as we are discussing the subject for the last time, let mc say that, should you ever wish to marry, I will myself tell to your future husband what I think he ought to know of your history. •You must not da it yourself." After that, not another word was spoken between them on the subject. People were not curious. It was sufficient to know that Leah Hatton was the adopted daughter of General Sir Arthur Hatton, X.C.8., one of the wealthiest and most famous men in England. Leah was troubled at first when she I saw the magnificence of the home that wae to be hers. She imparted her fears frankly enough to the general, but he smiled at them. "My dear Leah," he said, "No woman can.be more than a be more i than refined, well-bred, graceful and accomplished. You are all those. You will soon be accustomed to the hew life; you . will adapt yourself to it naturally. If there is any little deficiency in your knowledge of society matters, you will meet it by studying attentively the habits and manners of those about you." From the first moment she entered his house she was, he told her, entirely mistress of it—there was no appeal against her authority Most girls of her age would have been too young for such a position; but Leah was older than her years. It was a marvellous change for her, from the small, gloomy house in a dull street to that grand old mansion, where everything bespoke the pride of wealth and luxury. Some young heads would have been turned by it. Hers was not. She fell into the position so naturally that no one would have dreamed that she had ever held any other. Miss Hatton of Brentwood was quite a different girl from Leah Ray. Sir Arthur had behaved in a most munificent manner. He had taken Leah first to London. It was a novelty for him to have the charge of a young and beautiful girL "You must have everything perfect, my dear niece," he said, "before you go to Brentwood; The eyes of servants are so quick to notice deficiencies. We must have a wardrobe, a case of jewela, and a lady's maid before we go home." Leah purchased just what she would, and Sir Arthur presented her with a superb suite of rubies. "I have whole boxes of precious stones at Brentwood," he said; "and you must choose from them, Leah. Most of them were spoils, I believe, once in the possession of Sir George Burgoyne. My wife left them all to mc." "That has a. magnificent sound, Uncle," she returned—" 'whole boxes of precious stones.'" "My dear," he said, simply, "it is true. I could not enumerate the treasures that my wife possessed. I do not care about them myself. I dislike the sacking of cities, but Sir George did not. My wife had shawls worth any money, jewels of every kind, the finest satins, I the rarest lace. She had embroidery and ' silk, ornaments of gold and of ivory, embroideries of silver and of gold. I have never known what to do with them, but now I give them all to you." "To mc," she exclaimed l —"all these treasures to mc!" Uncle, you must think over it; perhaps you may want them some day. You might marry again." . j "Never," Teplied the general, calmly. "I have the greatest respect and veneration for all women; but I shall never i marry again." He was about to add ! that he had not intended to marry at all, but he stopped himself. "They are j all yours," he repeated. "They have not | ■been unpacked even yet; but when we reach Brentwood, they shall be put in your possession. India was a land of treasure, Leah." "My life grows more like a fairy-tale every day," she said to herself; and from the depths of her heart came a great sigh that she could not share her treas- | ures with Hettie. ' Sir Arthur soon provided his beautiful niece with a magnificent wardrobe; no marriage trousseau prepared for a princess could have been more elaborate, more costly. A clever, bright Parisian maid was also found; and Sir Arthur purchased for Leah one of the handsomest hacks in London, engaging at the same time a staid and dapper groom. When all was ready and provided, they went down together to take possession of Brentwood. It was a bright beautiful day, and the park looked lovely; the grand old hall, in the dazzling sunlight, was strikingly picturesque. I "Is thi3 Brentwood, uncle 1" asked Leah, her face growing pale with emotion as she gazed upon it. "Yes, my dear; and it is a fitting home for the Hattons. It is mine now; it will be yours when I die." "Mine!" she exclaimed; and a solemn sense of heavy responsibility came over her. "Yes,yours, Leah; I have no relatives but you." "It must be a fairy-tale," she said to herself; but her heart beat fast when her uncle led her into the magnificent abode that was to be her own in the years to come. Though so grand and stately, there was something" home-like about Brentwood. The rooms were all light and lofty, full of sunshine, and from most of tiheni there was an uninterrupted view of the green undulating park; the corridors were long and spacious. In the whole mansion there was not one gloomy spot;.the"windowß were large, the .perfumed.breeze,from, the gardens seemed t'p. sweep through the place, It was very ancien , t--Tich in grand oak carvings, . priceless dak-panelled walls with every kind, of pretty, nook and, earner. Just

where one least expected it was some bright little room, some flowery corner, some deep bay-window overlooking beautiful scenery, some pretty quiet nook seemingly made for tete-a-tetes. There ■were a large picture-gallery and a fine ballroom. "We shall be happy here, Leah," eald the general; "we have everything to make us so." And she smiled in the fulness of content. But when she had taken possession of the suite of rooms prepared for her, when the magnificent dresses had been put away in the wardrobes made of cedar-wood, when the superb store of Indian treasures had all been examined, when she had grown accustomed to the luxury of a lady's maid and a groom, of horses and carriages, her heart turned with a great and tristful yearning to Hettie. She had loved her; and that love, checked by the rebellion against her fate, returned with double force now that her fear and dread were gone. To jher proud, sensitive imind, it appeared a species of cowardice to leave her sister to a fate she could not ■bear herself. Yet Hettie had elected to be so left; she would not come away with her. Her remembrance of that loving sister was the only drawback to her perfect happiness. She was alone in the cosy morningroom one morning when Sir Arthur came to seek her, his face full of delight. "Leah," he cried, "can you guess what strange, good fortune ihas happened to mc?" She looked up at him with the brightest of smiles. "How can I guess, uncle, when you have already all the good fortue in the world?" | "I have my share of it, Leah; that is quite certain. But this piece of good luck is something quite unlooked fori and unexpected. You have heard mc speak of a very dear friend I had many years ago—a young captain in our , regiment—Hairy Egremont?" "Yes," replied Leah, who delighted in nothing so much as in listening to her I uncle's stories of Indian life. "Yes, I I remember the name." "He was one of the finest fellows in the world," cried the General—'* so simple, generous, brave and noble! I have lost sight of him for many I years. I hear that he has unex [pectedly succeeded to a peerage. I find that he is Duke of Rosedene, and that he lives only seven miles from here. His estate and mine run parallel for miles, and I am so delighted, Leah." "So am I, for your sake," she said. "What is the place called?" "Craig," he replied. "Do you remember a picture in the gallery of a grand old gray mansion standing in the midst of a magnificent woodland, with the sunset falling over it? That is Craig. The duke and duchess live there about three months in the year; they are generally in town for the season, and during the rest of the year they live at Dene Abbey, a beautiful place in Sussex." "Then the duke is married?" said Leah. "Yes; he married a fashionable beauty, and I hear that she is a very nice woman. lam glad for your sake; she will be such an excellent friend for you. They are at Craig. I shall go over tomorrow, and then you will see that all your difficulties will be ended." On the morrow he carried out his resolve, and received a welcome that made his heart glad. The Duke of Rosedene was delighted to see him; he overwhelmed him with the warmth of his greeting. "To think," he cried, "that I should have you for a neighbour! It is the greatest piece of good fortune that could have fallen to my lot." Sir Arthur asked for the duchess, who received him with a pleasant, gracious manner that charmed him. To her, in his simple fashion, he opened his heart about his niece; he told her how beautiful she was, and that he had adopted her ub his daughter and heiress. The duchess was too much of a woman of the world to express any surprise; but, remembering his vast wealth, she knew that his heiress would at once become a person of distinction. 'Tt is my niece," he said, "that I want to interest your grace in. As my old friend's wife, you will do mc a kindness for his sake, I am sure." "I will do it for your own," responded the duchess, kindly; her heart warmed to the brave soldier who thought so little of himself and so much of others. "I will do all that you wish for your niece," she continued; "and, as a preliminary, I will drive over to see her to-morrow." And, much delighted, the general took his leave. (To be continued daily.);