THE MESSAGE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLVII, Issue 14525, 12 November 1910, Page 3 (Supplement)

THE MESSAGE.

I BY LOUIS TRACY,

" r ..^^ ECIAIAKBANQEMEirr -

„ , flf «E«nto Island." "Jlie Pillar of *"S? "Wl o' Fortune/' etc. etc. ' V" •,' ' cOPTIUGHT. I, "Halabo* Island." "The Pillar of ■-• J%£% o' Fortune." etc. etc. , ti£W» r M? eOPTBIOJHT. ■• f > : ■- fHAPTEB Vll—(Continued.) - " • \m« to pass that Evelyn, who was .' and perplexed by the I •' #??'-%%!,„ two men concerning whom I : " f Wbad told her so much, was still ? ' ****. b f,dcred when Mr. Baumgartner I " ?L himself of a lull in the conversation I dinner-table to say casually: i-' ]+!£ t£ way, Miss Dane, is Langton, m " - '- /inire, near your people place. ■- - or S> ,he said, wondering what the |■•. = ~*■■ X*' _ * , > then, you parsed through it ■-- .'J** ss" home after quitting the Sans ; ''*#£?Won is our station'; *W What a email world itie A %i Si if mine Mr. James G. Hertz, of > ; Sit staying there now.. I suppose :■ chance to meet him.' 1 " ; T °*vT Our village is three miles away. / : -'' ' A,* is a. long distance in the country. I truth Mr. James G. Hertz, of 0*& who was buried in Boston, could 'ffif-JfcTnore impassable gulfs. '• : «£«««■• Laing was sitting next to ■ -wS she noticed the eager attention If . :C fr'.fi?* i:„i, he followed this trivial bit of '■- Fv ttauTh his limited knowledge of Eug- : ■ ; SS most of the lively chatter at ■ ■"■£?££ unintelligible. . ■ • Were vou in Cowes during the regatta -'' Wkf Senbor Fignero?-' she asked _ It was a reasonable deduction from hie " '''Joae* at Locbmerig, but she little r-nessed the devilish purpose engendered in ;; i+jTatot brain by her aimless inquiry. ' ■ felt that he was at a dieI ' 'Xatat* among the gay throne gathered ; " .It* Jaumsartncr's root. His nimble -5 were dulled by ■ the barrier of ■ : s«mage. ' Ifc ut him the I ,' a -' • jafcaT might be occurring wbien outfit' to know, but which were bidden ■ ■■:•• fc him owing to this drawback. In the f wjdiful woman by his side he might find [ - , ! • an excellent go-between if only he could ■'-- iwm*A interest. Was that old flame ■f. ■" tjaite q««iohed in her heart, he mused? \ She had married a rich man. but had she 'onitiea—did anv woman ever forget—her . ' ftp* Jove? He thought not. At any rate, : tew was an opening provided by the gods. ' : '•I lib for Cowes-one-time, senora," he ; murmured, "an' I see sonneting dere dat I •. fell you if vou not vexed." -1 -Why should I be vexed?" she said, " «iiling*a.v the odd expression, though she quito conversant -with the lingua, franca if the coast. - "You 'member dem Captain Warden?" |..: ' " Of course I do." "And you keep secret dem t'ing I tell . foaf I" "Where Captain Warden's affairs are tell ."Where Captain Warden s affairs are concerned. I shall certainly not discuss him ' # or them." , . ' j-l-":-Fignero'.paid no heed to the intentional dittb. ".",' "You understan , better vren I tole you deal secret. -You promise not speak 'im sf&aaybne?" v.. :■„■ • '*' Well-yes." . "He fit for marry dem Mees Dane."ik;,j- ''Don't be. idiotic.'' Mrs. Laing could not help it. She was ;■".:-. so startled that she raised her voice, and - more than one of her neighbours wondered ! . what the sallow-faced stranger had said I 1 that evoked the outburst. Fignero looked S^'.'aanoved. 5 - He was not prepared for such | m fHieoient repudiation of his news. FortuII nately, the Honourable Billy Thring was vm firing a realistic account of his failure to H becare an heiress during ft recent wife-hunt-r||- ;?ing tour m Americahe tried lots of 'em, , he explained, but they all said he must kill toff at lest' one brother and two healthy b' =X nephews before-they would risk marrying V- a prise dode like him—so Rosamund's em- |,'; phatic cry passed almost unheeded amidst I the iaaghter: evoked by. Thring'6 exploits. ? .'■- r "Yea fit for chop," muttered the Portuf .", -gaesesarcastically. "You fit for fool pala--ver Yoir plenty-much silly woman." J " "But what yon say cannot be true," she ||||||hiSf whispered* and the man's astute senses . warned him that it was dread, not contempt, tk:t drew the protest from her lips. ;' ' "I fit for tell you Warden make wife- " palaver wid dem girl at Cowec If yon no . believe me, make sof mouf an' ax Mees : Dane." ,| I*l V■Then, the woman remembered Warden's s? k: anxiety to return to the Isle of Wight. He. § had not \vritten to her or to Lady Hilbmy | ■ during the past month, and this fact, trivial I ; - as a pin-prick before, now became a rankI -,■■' liag wound. , I % " You keep dem secret?" went on Figuero, ip watching her closely. . I : J "Why did you tell me?" ehe retorted • -: ■'■?-} " Cos I no want Warden marry dem giri. ■'-. : '•. Sany?" ■.'.■'. ' ' ?; "Do you want to marry her yourself?" i,£t «he asked with a bitterness that Bhowed .. bow deeply she was hart. - - I He grinned, and wetted his thin lips with :, ■■■' jbis. tongue. ; "You t'ink I tired goin' by lone?" he , said. ■ - ; "What is your motive? Why do you :■:■■••' choose me as a confidante?" . ? Fignrrp suddenly became dense. > "I teii you leetle bit news," be said. ; 1 Dat is English custom. Wen we. chop one-time palaver set. But you no say risotto tele yon dem t'ing." . vj Rosamund *did not reply. She endeavoured to eat, and entered into conversation >wrth ; a man - near her. The Honourable !?-« y:^ ending his story, r * ! &> I am etill eligible,"*' he was saying. ; : I went to America full of hot air, and . . came back with cold feet. But I learnt the , r «mj?oage--eh, what?" '■■/ That night, i u the drawing-room, Mrs. . .'■svf jaa, ?.<».*ied; out the opening move in a : -' fW lsl ' . he had mapped out for herself. v if Kgourc'g story were true she would 5 smite and spare not. If it were untrue, ' 5 * v eJyn wonld be the first to deny it and , «o»mond trusted to her own intuition to 5'SdS. T far ■* Bdl denial "US l * be •A tm. who was talking to Evelyn was :-, ;™»«ed,to bridge table, and Rosamund - « k 'j l ? onobtrosively. v -Inen you really were on board the Sans .:.: cl a t.°°we6, Miss Dane?" she began - with a smile. 6 ■&< ' m i Yeß i' *$* Evelyn, at a loss to deter- .#; h er brief sojourn in the Solent enoaid at--act such widespread attention. ' '"• '• TV d I^ met Captain Warden there?" |p a iw attack was so direct and unexpected ¥- : flkLjiV ?* woman blushed and * Med.from lt Still, she was not to be §- 3 - admissions like * frightened '■} several people on the island," she r : }mt&£&S '•'** a crowded place during week'f- " nit * * -Biiu^-? 11 ? ' now purred the smiling i - 4rSvS ? e does not for S et » man of I ■■ { vSLr a *M* » readily—and after F 'A\-^^' too! You see, I know i : ■ thW Llttle birds whispered these V Si rtllar did not tell ™ when he woK T^t ia are always kind-beartod SSf ' J? 1 aere Me ah?^s kind-ihearted S«? Ilmg enou S. to gossip if they ; -. cn ™« they are annoying one." I ' B D 2.W^ i^f cient innuc ndo in this brief '-" •mSof to J, Mrs ' Lain g' s worst esti- ' SS Not one barbed : " iSn if v lta , niark - If words could :S&?2 Evelyn' must have succumbed, - ShU inflict are not always ■: ' -tloX fe¥P fc a rtiff upper lip, though ; tbmzk her heart raced in wild tumult. h - hJ£Fn* * that you are far more in--1 St m Capta garden's visits to Cowes - ' £?i ?3£% Person caa pretend to ■J*> she saxd slowly. AW 5* w to-*™*a Phrase to hurt, : - 'voice JtLt- ******* though her own I -ton - W tors °* U % had come ' : 'he' Perhaps y° °^ to be told that f Jtattil^M^ff* 6 *'" said Rosamund, : fSf t v Udden f,li y of tying. " Don" l: be^f'^ 1 S""" 60 susceptible ! But : Sdrifc ra fe thon g atless We were ES other years ago, but were l£ff^ a mother's folly. Now Awlte* that at least a year shoiUd •■ -^SnoW^! 1 my husband's "death and : tofoUren S a All teftfSSiJ ** £ad story, and would mfSSSnJT" 6 ? but one has m**™h£&££P t blood and would 8919 °i teste, but one has $£ VtJ*®* !le of th 6 P uWi e-" «»bSS; f^ !s bbod ««*»«d to :-v r*'**:»Sa% {the room and its occu-

pants swam before her eyes, and the pain of repression became almost unbearable, 3 r et she was resolved to carry off the honours in this duel unless she fainted. '"I gather that you .arc warning mo against Captain Warden's thoughtlessness, as you term it ?" she said, compelling each word at the bayonet's point, as it were. Oh, I was not speaking seriously, but we can let it go at that." "And you wish mo to understand that you are his promised wife." •' There, at least, I am most emphatic" ; and Rosamund laughed, a trifle shrilly, perhaps, for a woman so well-equipped with the armour of self-conceit. " I suppose, then that the late Mr. Laing has been dead a year, as I form one of that larger circle whose favourable opinion you court ?" For an instant Rosamund's black eyes flashed angrily. She had expected tears and faltering, not resistance. " I only meant to do you a good turn, yet I fear I have touched you on the raw," she sneered.

" Pray do not consider me at all. By your own showing, I have no grievanceno locus standi, as the lawyers say—but, since you have gone out of your way to give a mere stranger this interesting information, I wish to be quite sure of the facts. For instance, let us suppose thai. I have the honour of Captain Warden's acquaintanceam I _ at liberty to write and congratulate him V " That would place me in a false position." " Ah. Is there nothing to .be said for me ? You spoke of a ' violent flirtation,' I think. If 1 may guess at the meaning of a somewhat crude phrase, it seems to imply a possible exchange of lovers' vows, and one of the parties might be misled—and suffer."

"We women are the sinners most frequently." "I do not dispute your authority, Mrs. Laing. I only wish to ascertain exactly what I am free to say to Captain Warden ?"

Tell him you met me, and that I am well posted in everything that occurred at Cowes. And, for goodness' sake, let me see his reply. It will bo too killing to read Arthur's verbal wrigglings, because he is really clever, don't you think ?" Somehow, despite the steely tension of every nerve, Evelyn caught an undertone of anxiety in the jesting words. Her rival was playing a bold game. It might end in complete disaster, but, once committed to it, there was no drawing back. " The proceedings at Cowes were open to all tho world," Evelyn could not help saying. "Even you, with your long experience, might fail to* detect in them any trace of the thoughtlessness you deplore."

" Then you have met him elsewhere ?"

Evelyn, conscious of a tactical blunder, coloured even more deeply with annoyance, though again she felt that her tormentor was not so sure of her. ground as she professed to be. Every woman is a born actress, and Evelyn precipitated a helpful crisis with histrionic skill..

-"' The whole story is yours, not mine, Mrs. Laing," she said quietly. "Perhaps, if you apply to your half-caste informant, ho "may fib in further details to please you." At "that moment the Honourable "Billy Thring intervened. He was one of those privileged persons who can say anything to anybody without giving offence, and he broke into the conversation now with his usual frank inanity. "I find I've bin lookin' for a faithful spouse in the wrong direction, Mrs. Laing," he chortled. "Barkin' up the wrong tree, a Chicago girl called it. What a thorough ass I was to spin that yarn at dinner with yon in the room. Will you be good, an' forget it ? Don't 6ay I haven't got an earthly before the flag falls." " What in the world are you talking about cried Rosamund, turning on him with the sourest of society smiles. " It sounds like the beginning of a violent flirtation," said Evelyn, yielding to the impulse that demanded some redress for the torture she had endured.

" Right you are, Miss Dane," said Billy. " By gad, that clears the course quicker than a line of policemen. You see, Mrs. Laing, I really must marry somebody with sufficient means* for both of us. I have expensive tastes, and my noble dad gave me neither a profession nor an income. So what is a fellow to do ?"

" You flatter me," said Rosamund tartly. "Unfortunately I have ,just been telling Miss Dane that I am bors de concours, as they put in the Paris exhibitions." " That is the French for ' you never know your luck,' Mr. Thring,'' cried Evelyn, with a well-assumed laugh. "Mrs. Laing may change her mind, too, not for the first time." . Without giving her adversary a chance to retaliate, she darted away to join Gladys Baumgartner, and soon seized an opportunity to retreat to her own room. Once safely barricaded behind a locked door she bowed before the storm. Flinging herself on her knees by the bedside, ehe wept as though her heart would break. It was her first taste of the bntter cup that is held out to many a girl in her position, and its gall was not diminished because she still believed that Arthur Warden loved her. How could she doubt'him when each passing week brought her a letter couched in the most endearing terms ? Only that morning had she heard from him at Ostend, whither the Nancy had flown sifter making a round of the Norfolk Broads. He described his chances of speedy promotion once the threatened disturbance in West Africa had spent itself, and oddly enough, reminded her of his intention to" curtail his furlough so as to permit of a visit to Rabat in a coasting steamer before going to Madeira on his wav to the Protectorate.

Not a word did he say of the Baumgartners or their queer acquaintances of the Isle of Wight. It was tacitly agreed between them that Evelyn should not play the role of spy on her employers, and, indeed, until that very day there was little to report save the utmost kindness at their hands.

Why, then, it may be urged, did she weep so unrestrainedly And only the virgin heart of a woman who loves can answer. She feared that Rosamund Laing was telling the truth when she spoke of a prior engagement. She knew Warden had said nothing at Plymouth of meeting Rosamund in London, and she was hardly to be blamed for drawing the mosrt sinister inference from his silence. Did he dread that earlier entanglement? He was poor, and she was poor : how could he resist the pleading of one so rich and beautiful as her rival.

In short, poor Evelyn passed a grievous and needlessly tortured hour before she endeavoured to" compose herself for sleep, and she was denied this consolation of knowing that the woman who destroyed her happiness was Jsicing another room like a caged tigress, and striving vainly to devise some means of extricating herself from the morass into which Figuero's tidings and her own rashness had plunged her.

CHAPTER VHI. SHOWING HOW SIAXY ROADS LEAK THE SAME WAY. Next day, her mind restored to its customary equipoise, Evelyn thought she would bo acting'wisely if 6he gave Warden some hint of recent developments. Too proud to ask for an explicit denial of Rosamund Laing's claim, she saw the absurdity of letting affairs drift until the hoped-for meeting at Madeira. At first, she thought of resigning her post as Beryl's companion, and j returning to Oxfordshire, but she set the notion aside as unreasonable and unnecessary. Most certainly Warden should not be condemned unheard. Without pressing him for a definite statement with regard to Mrs. Laing, it was a simple matter to put the present situation before him in such guise that he could not choose but refer to it. So, after drafting a few sentences, and weighing them seriously, she incorporated the following in a letter of general report : : "Yesterday, we bad three new arrivals, whose names must appeal to you powerfully. First, a Mrs. Rosamund Laing came here from London, and she lost no time in telling me, among other things, that she was aware of our meeting at Cowes. Her informant, I am sure, was Miguel Figuero, and you will be even more astonished to learn that lie and Count von Rippenbach turned up by the same train as Mrs. Laing. The latter, by the way, said that you called on her at Lady Hilbury's when in London. Is that true ? There are some hidden forces in motion ai Lochmerig which I do not understand, Mr. Baumgartner tackled me openly at dinner with regard to my. journey (rom Cowes to Oxfordshire. We know from Peter that Figuero saw us together that morning, and your Portuguese friend evidently recognised me at once. But Mr. Baumgartner's pointed reference to Langton a* my destination was rather puzzling. How

does it strike you? I expect my news will prove rather in the nature of a thunderbolt, and that is usually a very striking article, I assure you I am somewhat shaken myself. Mrs. Laing's personal attributes remind one of those galvanic batteries you see at fairs in the country—the more you try to endure her magnetic influence, the greater your collapse." ,

Before sealing the envelope she re-read Warden's latest letter. She even read it aloud, and the straightforward, honest, loving words assumed a new significance. Then she turned to her own effusion, and viewed it critically. To her surprise she detected a jarring, somewhat cynical note in those passages which she regarded as all important. To her judgment, events in the near future would follow a well-defined course. Her lover would say whether or not he had met Mrs. Laing in London, and give the clearest reasons for his omission of her name from the subsequent recital of his adventures, Evelyn would count the hours until that reply reached her hands. Perhaps Mrs. Laing's curiosity anent Warden's skill in " wriggling" would then bo sated. She might even give an exhibition of the wriggler's art in her own behalf.

Evelyn refused to admit now that she had ever yielded to doubt or anxiety. The hysterical outburst of last night was natural, perhaps, under the circumstances, but quite nonsensical. Even Warden himself must bo made to believe that Mrs. .Laing was only indulging an exuberant sense of humour in claiming his fealty. Meaning, therefore, to tone down any apparent asperity in the paragraph referring to the three newcomers she added a few lines beneath her signature.

"The Men of Oku have not yet appeared. lam longing to see them. They are really the most picturesque villains in the I am just going for a stroll by the side of the loch, and I shall not be a little' bit alarmed if I find a decorated calabash sailing in with the tide."

There is nothing new in the fact that the most important item in a woman's letter is often contained in a postscript, but never did the writer of a harmless and gossipy missive achieve such amazing results as Evelyn Dane brought to pass by the words she scribbled hurriedly after the magic letters "P.S."

For others than Evelyn Dane were taking thought that morning. Baumgartner, Von Rippenbach and —locked in the library, and seated round a small table drawn well away from the doorwere settling the final details of a scheme that aimed at nothing less than a very grave alteration in the political map of the world, while Rosamund Laing was planning an enterprise which should have an equally marked effect in the minor sphere of her own affairs.

Yet the fortunes of these five people gathered at Lochmerig, and of many millions in other parts of the earth, were absolutely controlled by one of those trivial conditions which appear to be so ludicrously out of proportion with ultimato achievement. Baumgartner, being a rich man, objected to delay where his interests were concerned. Refusing to await the tardy coming of a country postman, he kept a groom in the village" to which the mails were brought by train, and it was this man's duty to ride in each day with the post-bag for Lochmerig Lodge and return some hours later with the first out-going budget. The. house letters were dropped into a box in the entrancehall, and a notice intimated that the time of clearance was at noon. To an unscrupulous woman, such an arrangement offered the means to do ill deeds that makes ill deeds done. Rosamund, ready to dare anything now to save herself from contumely, actually set out to find Evelyn and taunt her into an admission that she had written to Warden.

" Miss Dane is not in the house, madame," said the London footman on duty at the door. " She went out some time since—in that direction," and he pointed towards the glistening firth that brought the North Sea into the heart of Inverness.

Mrs. Laing pouted prettily. "Oh, dear," she sighed. "I do hope she has not forgotten to write. I shall never find her in time. Did you happen to notice if she posted a letter V" Tho footman sought inspiration by stroking his chin. "Yes, madame," he announced, after a pause. "Fm almost certain Miss Dane went to the box. Yes, I'm sure of it."

Madame was very much obliged, and tipped him half-a-crown, informing him with a most charming smile that she did not on any account wish Miss Dane to believe that she was suspected of forgetfulness. It was then some minutes after 11, and this gracious lady was sympathetic enough to inquire if the 'footman did not become very tired of remaining on duty so many hours in one place. ' "Oh, it's nothing compared with London, ma'am," said he. " Here we, have sunshine—if tho weather is fine— fresh air all the time. I only came on duty at nine o'clock, an' I go off at 11.30 for tho first servants' dinner."

Mrs. Laing was talking to Billy Thring in the hall when the postman groom came to clear the letter-box. She darted forward with that irresistible smile of hers.

"I'm so glad I happened to be standing here," she exclaimed. "I have just remembered I stupidly left out of a letter the very thing I most wanted to say. It would never have occurred to me if I hadn't seen you. The letter is addressed to Captain Warden. May I have it ?" The man was Baumgartner's servant. He had never before set eyes on Mrs. Laing, but be know the Honourable Billy quite well, so he raised no objections to this smartly dressed lady's eager Learch for her incomplete letter. Though her hands fumbled somewhat she soon picked it out. "Here it is I" she cried delightedly"this one—Captain .Arthur Warden, Poste Restante, Ostend. Now that will save me a heap of trouble. It was so nice of you to come in at the right moment. You have saved me a lot of trouble." The groom grinned as he pocketed half-a-crown. Some ladies were easy pleased, to be sure. Even Billy Thring, experienced ■hunter of gilded brides, was bewildered by Mrs. Laing's excited manner. "Seems to me I've made a killin'," he mused, when she gushed herself away. "I s'pose Baumgartner can be relied on. He is all there as a rule when he talks dollars an' cents, but he's a perfect rotter every other way. By gad, I'll kid him into wearin' kilts "before the end of the month." The notion tickled him. He lit a cigarette and strolled out through the open door. A glorious sweep of moorland and forest spread beyond the loch, whose wavelets lapped the foot of the sloping lawn and gardens. A little to the left the Sane Souci lay at her moorings. A steam-launch was tied to a neat landing-stage. A string of horses and moor ponies returning from exercise crossed a level pasture at the head of the loch. The letter-carrying groom was clattering down the broad carriage-drive towards the distant station, and a couple of gardeners were cutting and rolling the green carpet of grass in front of the house. " He talks of buyin' this property," communed the Honourable Billy, who was 35 and had never earned a penny in his life. " Can't be 10 years older than me, though he looks 60, bein' podgy. Now, why can't I have a stroke of luck an' rake in a stack. Then I might have a cut in for the giddy widow." Evelyn's trim figure emerged from a treeshrouded path. She walked with a lithe elegance that pleased Mr. Thring's sporting eye. " Or marry a girl like that," he added. The wild improbability of ever achieving any part of this fascinating programme brought a petulant frown to his handsome, vacuous face.

Ho strode up to one of the gardeners, a red-whiskered Caledonian, stern and wild. " Where the devil is everybody 1" he yawned. "No shootin', no yachtin', not a soul in the billiard-room the bloomin' crowd V" The dour Scot looked at him pityingly. "Aiblins some are i' bed," he said, "an' there's ithers wha ocht to be i* bed." "Bully for you, Rob Roy," cried Thring, who never objected to being scored off. " Aiblins some people are cuttin' grass wha acht to be under it, because they don't know they're alive, eh, what V" "Man, but ye're shairp the day," retorted the gardener. "Whiles I'm think in' there's a guid pig-jobber lost in you, Maister Thring." " Pig-jobber, you cateran ! Why pigs V" '■"■'*' Have ye no heerd tell that fowk a bit saft i' the lieid have a wonderfu' way wi' animals, an* pigs are always a lino mairket."

" A bit heavy, McToddy. Trim ver whiskers an' change yer trousies for a kelt, an' nieebe ye'll crack a joke wi' less deeficulty."

The tinder-gardener chortled, for the Ho*ouralde Billy could imitate the Sett, d»M with an unction that was decidedly mirthP " Mime's no McToddy-' began the 0t »Well, then, McWhuskey. I ken the nbo from your rid neb that ther mightj little watter in your composition." (To r?fe continued on Saturday Rest.)

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