HELEN OF THE MOOR.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIX, Issue 14931, 2 March 1912, Page 3 (Supplement)

HELEN OF THE MOOR.

fOBMSHED BY SPECIAL ABSANGEMEHT.

B Y ALICE AND CLAUDE ASKEW, t-fhexs of " Tho Paignton Honour." " The *wfl«Qiulamite," "Love, the Jester. Etc., Etc. ■ m: COPYRIGHT. CHAPTER X. ' iobbIUWOCB yawned as he threw himself . town in tho chair before tho fire. " I'm really quit© tired," ho announced, "for [his has been an eventful day, even more a for you two young people than for mo. And I "notice that it's already getting on ' for one o'clock." He glanced as ho spoke ™%i small, aggressively-ticking clock upon " -the mantelpiece. "However,! think that L. all wo have gone through a httlo more hot water and whisky cannot do us m ]iarm ." Ho smiled pleasantly and ' turned his attention to the kettle which L steaming upon tho hob. Even Harry, who never allowed himself to bo put out, - Lid not help admiring tho placid 'calm " exhibited by a man who, but an hour ago, had been in imminent danger of losing his

life l t' t yfta warm and comfortable by tho fire a pleasant change after the damp mist Shout, and neither Philip nor Harry ' was in anv particular hurry to go off to l«d For his part, Philip would have been ' Mite happy to have spent the rest of tho Sight before tho parlour fire in pleasant Spanionehip, for now that he was free o think of it the prospect of retiring to the old and vault-like bedroom which they had elected to occupy, a bedroom to which * n ch queer stories were attached, was not . Secularly enticing. Even Harry, as he noticed with some pleasure, appeared to ha in no hurry to move. ~,... Is if by tacit consent, the subject of tho ■ ni»ht's tragedv was avoided between them, ; nor did thev 'pay any heed to tho sounds hat came to them from without and within the house, tho tramping of feet upon the road, the shouting of hoarse- ; voices, and below, in tho public room of the inn, the clatter of plates and glasses, ,hero Silas Marden, in defiance of the licensing laws, but presumably with the consent of the police, appeared to be- adfpf ministering bodily comforts to a large number of guests. '~ V Lord Raynour showed himself to be a, brilliant conversationalist, and with no apparent 'effort contrived to make himself Ktiryjagreeable to the young men. He had a peculiarly easy manner, and there « was about him a combination of the polish of •i bvgone generation with a light modern- • ity "of tone that" was particuia/ly attract- . ive. He spoke freely of himself, arid he induced his companions to speak of them- ' selves, so that it was not, long before they seemed to have been on intimate terms

for years. Lord Kaynour s knowledge of the moor i was on a par with his love lor it. JI'J was i well versed, too, in the history of its ani . tiquities, and had much to.tell_abont.the cromlechs and barrows, in which Harry ' was keenly interested. There was a large : umber or these, bo explained, in their immediate vicinity, and many hidden away . in mora distent parts of the moor, but quite accessible to anyone who was not afraid of a long walk. He hoped he would have the opportunity, since his two young friends proposed to stay in. the neighbourhood,, of taking them to see one or two of these strange old monuments. But first of all they must not overlook Torren Pound, which was within easy reach and ■HI worth a visit. , * m "I suppose a lot of people explore Torren - Pound," remarked Philip, and though, we've been there twice to-day I can't say we've seen it properly yet." He gave a slight shudder. ; ''But 1 don't think 1 want to go in that "direction again," ha muttered under his breath, "nor anywhere near the marsh either. I could not help thinking of Wild Barbara." "And of the Wretched man who was shot," put in Harry hastily, fearing that his friend might commit himself. "Of course; I mean that too," Philip went .on, flushing. "But I was thinking • of Wild Barbara at that moment, and the '.' way she guided us across the Mire. _ Heaven knows what might have happened • to us it it had not been for her. ,It seems ; to have been her mission in life to help folks in trouble." He paused, then changed the subject quickly. He had suddenly remembered the curious brooch, done.up in a bloodstained handkerchief, that he had picked up that afternoon by 'the stones of i'crren Pound. He had not yet spoken of.his find to Lord Baynour. "By the way," he asked, do you think that Wild Barbara can have been the 'owner of this brooch?" He hunted through , his pockets as he spoke, but without success; then he remembered that he had 'left the piece of jewellery in the pocket -of-a fight overcoat which he had been ' wearing that afternoon, and which ie had • left upstairs when he had changed his 1 clothes in the landlord's room. *' Oh, I haven't got it here after all," he added. A brooch?" Lord Raynour turned with tome show of interest. His hands—they .'.era long and white and beautifully fashioned—had been hanging listlessly , over the arms of his chair, but now he raised them and clasped them together , about? his knees. Did you say you had round a brooch?" "Yes," returned Philip, "but it's only [ a piece of sham jewellery, I imagine—a I large, gaudy-looking turquoise. .It was wrapped up in a handkerchief that had peculiar stains upon it which we took '-- be blood." "Ahindeed. A large turquoise." Lord I Baynour leant forward lor his tumbler and Sps|wpped: reflectively from its contents before he made reply. Then he smiled, show- " < ing his "teeth, which were still white and regular lor a man of his age. " But what fffll| aes you think that this brooch can have belonged to Wild Barbara?" he asked. "I should say she was the very last person ,in the world to own jewellery of any sort '« unless it was stolen." Philip shrugged his shoulders. "Only ; because I picked it up directly after she had left us," ha said, "so it seemed likely that she must have dropped the object . * there. But, of course, 1 quite recognise | that it may have been lying where I found it for a long time, and that plenty of other folk must visit Torren Pound. /"'I think that's a mora likely explanation," Lord Raynour went on, sipping from his glass again. " Very pleasant," he ob- . served, as 'ho let his glass down on tho ramshackU little wooden table by his side. .He drew a sigh of content. "The night air is to treacherous," he added, " and one P catches cold before one knows of it. It's all very well for young men like you. But about this brooch "—lie yawned, as though ■ ins subject was one in which ho took no .particular interest — "what do you propose to do with-it?* '"I shall take it to the police station ; ■ « Lydford," replied Philip, "not flat it is of any value, but still it ' May be a piece of finerv belonging to soma poor girl who would "like to have it -lack." ."Perhaps you would prefer to leave it \ , S ? o '' s "'gg este d Lord Raynour. "1 , snail be seeing Farren, the inspector of ! police from Lydford, to-morrow up at ■ VVendlesham; " I could hand it over to '"m then—of course, it's just as you like, »nan only suggest this to save you • ■ "•rouble. ' ' Philip returned to his chair. " I must • ._> 'give it you to-morrow, Lord Ravnour," lie , "-?*' "f or l don . suppose I had better disturb Mr. Harden' B slumbers. And 1 ,' ,«ncy it was in his room that I left my ..coat. Any time will do. It's onlv as a conI Any time yourself," returned as a convene* to yourself," returned Raynour. m threw the stump of his cigar into tho ;::""* m * rose slowly to his feet. "And ">JZ' ?° u "8 gentiemen, with your permis- *" 0? ' I think I shall retire for the night, - £° urse » >' 0 rnav remain here before IV- as lon ' as you please. But before M*? ~- ho beamed benignly upon, them L, he yoke —" I have a suggestion to jj av iJt ''as just occurred to me that 1 I? r?'» ennously lacking, in hospitality. ft,™ T witl ' & big house and no one ; * • teA ■ my " elf ' m wife, and daughter, coin™ * are J OO **<> young men who are ' tt*L j put *P at a Lvdford inn. I have , ' : h»d r, efl excursion* with vou,- and yet it •'*or»W* r occ - mpd tf > me* that these ex- - : £ •■»* can be made from Wendlesham **** conveniently than from Lydford, ■ '

You must forgive me, especially considering how indebted I am to you, Philip his glance fell upon the young man, and once more he showed his white teeth and smiled you must forgive mo for my discourtesy, and prove your forgiveness by consenting to be my guest at Wendlesham for as long as you care to remain on Dartmoor. . ' .'.■'■',.

There could be but one; answer to so hospitable a proposal. Both Philip and Harry expressed themselves delighted to accept Lord Raynour's invitation it was pleasant to think that tho agreeable converso of that evening was not to be brought to so abrupt a ''conclusion. There was no difficulty in the way, save that their rooms at Lydford had been ordered and that their luggage was waiting for them at the hotel.

" Leave all that to me," said Raynour heartily, "I'll send ono of my men over to Lydford to-morrow to fetch your things, or we might even drive over there ourselves. I could sco Frazer, the landlord of tho hotel, who knows mo very well, and put everything right for you. So is that a promise?" Ho stretched out his long, aristocratic hand first to one and then to the other. Philip and Harry both agreed that it was a promise, and then bade their host of the morrow good-night. "We are not quite sure that we are going to find rest even now from all the varied emotions of the day," smiled Harry, as Lord Raynour, lighted candle in hand, stood in the doorway. "I don't think wo mentioned tho fact to you, and so much has been happening that I fancy wo forgot all about it ourselves, but you may be interested to know that wo "are going to spend the night in a haunted room."

CHAPTER XI. "A haunted .-com?" Lord Raynour paused, and took a stop back into v the little parlour. "Aro you joking?" he continued. " I never knew that there was anything in the way of a haunted room in tho Running Horse Inn." " Oh, but there in," laughed Harry, "or so our good host informs us. And though it is very much against his will we have induced him to let us sleep there to-night. But surely you must know something about it, Lord Raynour, living, as you do, so close at hand?'*' "Upon my word, no. And really you surprise me very much." Raynour set down his candle and returned to the fire. " Well, perhaps 1 am misleading you in using the word haunted,' resumed Harry. "If I remember right, even Mr. Marden repudiated the suggestion of a ghost. But, nevertheless, for some/ reason or other, the best bedroom in this old house has remained untenanted that is, it has only been occupied once since Mr. Maiden has been here." . "That is a little over a year, if I am not mistaken," interrupted Raynour. "Just so — a little over a year. Maiden's brother, an unfortunate gentleman, named Bill, appears to have slept in the room on this one occasion, and to have met with a tragic death. Our host told us the whole story this evening. But I am surprised that you know nothing about it, for according -to Marden the story caused quite a commotion at the time."

"Ah, now you come to speak of it" —Lord Raynour closed his eyes (a trick he had) as though throwing his mind back—'" do remember something of the kind. But, as a matter of fact, I was absent from Wendlesham at the time, and when I had returned the whole thing seemed to have blown oyer. I was only told that someone had died under rather - mysterious circumstances at this inn, and that a certain suspicion had been . thrown upon the landlord himself. Folk looked at him askance for some little while afterwards, and his trade fell off badly, although, as I understand, he was able to exonerate himself completely. I made a point of getting to know Mr. Harden after that, and since I found him a thoroughly honest man I tried to help him, although, as a matter of fact, he is not one of my own tenants." There was no affectation in this admission ; it was by such small acts of kindness that Lord Raynour had endeared himself to the county! ; . " I don't think I've ever set foot inside the Running Horse Inn before this," Lord Raynour continued. "It had stood empty for many years before Harden took it, and it was be who turned the old house into an inn. It had a bad reputation because of some -tragedy t v -I happened to its former occupant. This was before I came t-> live at Wendlesham, and I have only a vague impression that two brothers died mysteriously, or were killed in the house. There was a burglary, I believe, and a man was sent to Princetown in consequence. But I did not associate this with Mr. Marden's trouble in any way. And so there is really a room with a mystery attaching to it?" Lord Raynour dropped back into the chair which he had so recently vacated. "I really don't think I am so very tired after all," he smiled ; "not too tired, at any rate, to hear a ghost story. So, perhaps, you will tell me all about it."

Harry, filling his pipe once more, complied. He told all that he knew himself, the whole story as it had been related that afternoon to him and to Philip by Silas Harden. " Of course," he concluded, the whole thing is absurd. Mr. Harden practically admits that his brother was semi-intoxicated when he went to bed, and so it is quite feasible that poor William, waking up in that great, dark bed, had a fright, and suffocated himself with the bed clothes. But taken altogether the story is interesting and proves what pranks superstitious fear may play with a man. Something don't know what, and the point is not very material— pened in this room about 20 years ago. As a consequence the house stands empty till somewhere within the last 15 months. Then it is sold, together with a lot of old furniture, to Mr. Harden, who evidently thought he had picked up a bargain. But no sooner is bo in possession, than the neighbours tell him that there is something wrong with one particular room of his house, and as a consequence he neither occupies it himself nor lets anyone else do bo. Then comes the brother, who, in a spirit of bravado, faced the mystery— With the result that I have told you of. From that time on, right up till to-night, the room has been untenanted. Wow 1 am quite convinced that after Philip and I have spent the night there, with no disastrous results to ourselves, our friend Harden will understand that his fears were groundless and futile, and will bless us for having proved this to him. Lord Raynour laughed. "That's a very kind feeling on your part, he said, and I hone vou will pass an undisturbed night. Indeed I am quite sure you Will, for I am no believer, any more than yourself, in haunted rooms and such-hk* delusions Nevertheless, before I go to b.xl, I should like to have a glance at this room of yours, more especially as you tell me the furniture is queer and antique. I am rather a fancier of that sort of! thing, you know "And you will be particularly interested in this furniture." interrupted Philip, " for it appears to hail originally from Wendlesham. Harry and I had a good look at it this afternoon, and we deciphered the Tarrant crest and arms upon the chairs." . • ~ " Indeed, indeed ! You do interest me. Lord Ravnour sat bolt upright in his chair, an attitude which contrasted with the usual lounging posture he adopted. " All the contents of Wendlesham Manor were sold before I purchased the property, as perhaps you may have heard, he said, " and I mado rather a point, when I first "took possession, of- hunting and buying back all the old stuff. It seemed somehow to belong so essentially to the house, and it was such a shame to have dispersed it all. I succeeded in tracing nearly all tho pictures, but I was less fortunate with the furniture. And to think that all the time there was some of it close at hand without mv having any idea of the fact! "You might just step across and have a look at it," suggested Harry. "The room is close by, only just on the other side of the landing." Acting at once upon his own suggestion, he sprang to his feet and lit a second candle. Then, followed By Lord Raynour and Philip, ho led the way to the "large bedchamber, unlocking the door with the key which he had been carrying about in his pocket ever since his first visit to the room. ""- Even the light of two candles was But a poo* illumination, and Philip, standing in the doorway, shuddered a little at the' thought that he was going to spend the night in this -gloomy apartment. It was so cosy and warm in the little parlour,

and though the chairs were of coarse horsehair, though tho table was covered with the commonest of green ' cloths, frayed, stained, and in holes, though the wallpaper was of, flaunting ugliness, though mantelpiece, sideboard, and brackets were covered with cheap ornaments and preposterous chinayet the little room was redolent of life, while herewell, it was apparent upon,tho face of it that the room tiad not been occupied for many years past. It had a damp, unwholesome smell; tho paper, as ho noticed now, was peeling from the walls, and in more than one place plaster had fallen from the ceiling, lying upon tho floor in little heaps' of dust. The boards he trod upon -were rotten too, and creaked ominously beneath his feet. Long and uncanny shadows crept up the waits, and tho figures of Lord Raynour and Harry, as they stood by the loot of the bed, appeared to him cutiouß.y distorted. Ho longed to be able to say that ho would spent the rest of the night in the other room but since Harry had made up his mind l'hilip had no intention ot deserting his friend. "I can't say 1 think you'll be particularly comfortable here," Raynour was say- : ing, *' but 1 quite appreciate the peculiar charm there must bo m proving by actual experience that there s homing amiss with a room that has the sort oi reputation that this one has. And as to tho furniture, you aro quite right, Mr. Sherard; i it has ail como from Wendlesham, and I ! can almost guess tho very rooms to which these things belonged. "Then, as to the [ bedhe "held up his candle and made ! careful examination of the heavy drapery, which, closely drawn between the four massive posts, completely enclosed the bed — "unless 1 am very much mistaken, this bed has a history of its own connected with one of the many legends that aro told of Wendlesham. Of course tho whole thing .is a myth, with just a substratum of fact, but there is curious confirmation in tho design upon this tapestry. What do you niako it out to be J:' "Philip and I examined it this afternoon," returned Harry, "but, worn and faded as it is, wo found it hard to make out anything distinctly. But we thought that the pictures are incidents in tho ale of Theseus." # " Quite soquite so." Lord Raynour was speaking in a low tone. Philip, still standing by tho door, could hardly hear what he said. His curiosity mastered him, and he advanced a little into tho room. " Do you remember your mythology sufficiently to recall a certain adventure of Theseus in which a bed was particularly concerned?" the old man was saying. "No? One is apt to get rather rusty upon these points. But tho bed to which 1 refer belonged to an extremely unpleasant individual name Procrustes, commonly called 'The Stretcher.' Ho lived in tho Vale of Cephisus, and he" professed the greatest hospitality to all who passed his castle. He would make boast of his wonderful bed, which would fit alll comers, however tall or short, and upon which they would sleep as thev never slept before. But m reahtv Procrustes was a robber, and the bed fitted his guests for the simple reason that if they were too tall he cut off their feet, and if they were too short he stretched their limbs till they were long enough to fit it. ( No one ever rose living from that bed, and it was well for the folk of Cephisus that Theseus killed the monster. It's not a pretty tale, is it. " I remember the tale now you come to speak of it," said Harry, not a little mystified, " but what on earth has it to do with a, bed that, though it may be several centuries old,, comes from a respectable house like Wendlesham Manor?'' " I can onlv explain that by telling you something more as to the story of Wendlesham itself," returned Lord Raynour gravely, " and in any case you must not let these reminiscences of mine upset or. unnerve you in any way. It is no doubt nothing but a curious coincidence after all. The essential fact is this. There is a story which tells of a mysterious bed at Wendlesham Manor, which went by the name of the Bed of Procrustes. I tried to trace this bed— of sheer curiosity only—but since I could learn nothing of it, I decided that the whole tale must be a myth. But now it seems to me "—he glanced triumphantly at the two young men- it seems to me that here before lis, with an evil reputation of its own, is tho Bed of Procrustes itself."

(To be continued daily

[PUBLISHED BY SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT]