THE WEAVERS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIX, Issue 15055, 26 July 1912, Page 3

THE WEAVERS.

MJBLIBHED BY (SPECIAL ABBAKGEMEST.

BY ALICE AND CLAUDE ASKEW, Authors of '"Euft Shulamlte." "Hie Etonian," '■'." The Eod of Justice," etc, " In one sense we are all weavers." —Andrew Carnegie. . COPYRIGHT. CHAPTER XXV.—(Continued.) Andrew put his father into a big armchair as soon as they entered the diningroom, and then poured some brandy into a tumbler and added a little soda water. After Jabez had swallowed the . stimulant a faint colour stole into his cheeks. ■■'..,- ■'■" Andrew, my lad," he said, "before the Coroner arrives I'd like to explain a few things to you, but first of ail we must go back to what happened last night.". He paused, then added, speaking.. slowly and reflectively. "Let mc see, you were sitting in the stud}' with me, were you not, when Johnson came in and announced that Mr. Conrad de Lille had been ringing violently at the front door bell and demanded to see me? And you heard what I said to Johnson, how I told him to tell Conrad de Lille to go to the devil and not to come bothering me at midnight? You heard me say that I utterly declined to see de Lille— that he must write to m© if he had anything to communicate?"

" Yes, I know, father. I was a witness to all this," Andrew answered. lie spoke in low, rather puzzled tones, and scratched his fair flaxen head. ■'And you've nob forgotten what happened next? " Jabez continued. " You remember, I expect, how Johnson went to give my message, and I turned to you and was about to take you into my confidence with regard to de Lille, who, as you know, now, happened to be my nephew, and a very ungrateful nephew. But just as I was about to speak the study door was flung open, and who should come bursting into the room but Conrad de Lille him-N self," ;

! "I remember, father," Andrew nodded his fair head. "You sprang up in a temEir," lie continued, "and you ordered de ille fiercely out of the room, but ho just stood and mocked you in the doorway. It was quite evident that he had been drinking heavily, and was certainly not master .of himself."' The poor devil didn't know what he was tiding." " ■_ " I'm not so sure about that," Jabez retorted, frowning. "He was drunk, ofcourse, but not so drunk as to prevent his trying to do a bit of trading with me. Don't you remember how he shouted that he'd com© with letters in his pocket to sell, a bundle of letters. And that he should expect a fair price for them, too— a cheque for a thousand straight off. In fact, he wasn't sure that he wouldn't make it two thousand."

Jabez paused a moment, then he turned irritably on Andrew. "And what, did you think of me," he demanded, huskily, "when I told that drunken fellow that if he'd modulate his voice a bit and sit down we might do a deal after all, ,angry though I was, furious at the way he had forced himself into my house? Still, being there, it would be as well to get the matter under discussion settled at once* so that I could wash my hands of him for ever. Weren't you a bit puzzled by your old dad's behaviour, Andrew? Weren't you a trifle afraid that his past held some guilty secret? "> Did you. think a skeleton was going to pop out of the cupboard at last, and shake his grisly bones?" " . . *

"I don't know what I thought," Andrew muttered, still• scratching his head. "I was ;so dumbfounded. I felt as if I was looking on at a scene in a play-—nothing seemed real or natural."

"It was a bit like . a play, wasn't it?" Jabess agreed, nodding his grizzled head. "But I can tell you now, lad, if it will , bo • any satisfaction to you, if ; it. will relieve your mind with regard to any doubts that'you may. be entertaining about your old father, that those letters I bought back for a thousand pounds from the dead ; man upstairs - Were) merely . half-a-dozen ; epistles thai I had written to my sister, ! alii about a love affair that didn't come \ off. For, oh, there was a day when my blood was hot, just like any other youmg fool's, and your mother, as you may have guessed, wasn't my first love. But my; first love flouted me, married another fellow; and I made a fair fool of myself in those letters! wrote Lucy Em'ly. They were written in blood, Andrewheart's blood— you can understand, lad, that I didn't want any prying eyes to read them; they were letters I'd a mind to destroy myself.'* * ">]•-"■. The veins in lug forehead swelled as he spoke, and he breathed heavily. Andrew gazed at his father in dull amazement, "for fie had never credited Jabez Gihnak with a love story. ',';/.' "■:;'.':.' . .-OvvlV'v'tj'-' "I understand, father."- Andrew nodded his head slowly.. "Oh, -I • can quite see how it was that you wanted to buy those letters back. Why, - it's just how I should feel if I'd been writing about; Fancy to anyone." ' ', *" I'm glad you understand, Andrew," Jabez smiled approvingly. Well, you noticed, didn't you, how, after I'd made out my cheque and handed it to Conrad de Lille, a long pause fell before he gave me the sealed packet which he said contained the letters I had just bought bought at a pretty stiff price." '■~ "Yes," Andrew interrupted eagerlv. "But when you broke the seal of the packet and took out the letters to count them there were two missing, you said. And I shall never forget your fury as you turned upon de Lille and demanded the , return of those two letters; and you called I him every hard word that you could think of."

"And didn't he deserve it?" Jabez demanded hoarsfely. " Hadn't he tried to play a vile trick upon mo? For you'll never make me believe that he had omitted to put those two letters in the packet by accident. Why, of course, he hadn't— 'twasn'b likely! Ho was keeping them back or. purpose so that he could do a little more blackmailing later on. Bui I told him what I thought of him pretty plainly, didn't I, Andrew The old man laughed gruffly. He had | quite forgotten for the moment that Conrad de Lille's corpse lay in the house. Then his heavy shoulders suddenly began ] to hßave. ...:."..•; . . . ■',;, ,\ ■ „■'■-- " Lord," he grunted, "he had the rough side of my tongue, hadn't he, Andrew? And it sobered him. for a moment, halfdrank though he was, for, he turned white and began to shiver. I wonder how he got that yellow streak in his blood, for, he. was a coward if ever there was* one-— pitiful coward/' : ; /'Yes, ho was certainly a coward,," Andrew admitted. Then he moved to his father's chair, and rested a strong hand, on the old man's shoulder. " I cannot imagine what came over Conrad de Lille," he continued, "the extraordinary change that suddenly occurred, for in the flash of a second he ceased to shake and tremble, and seemed to go mad. Oh, I shall never forget that demoniacal look that came over his face, the way he howled and raved, shaking his fists in your face, snarling out that you should never have those two letters, that he would keep them to the day of his death, to mock and taunt;you with them, if he chose. And then, just as 1 was hurrying forward, intending to take the young brute by his shoulders and fling him out of the house, he hit you straight on the forehead with his clenched fists, and down you went, father, like a log. I thought he had killed you, for his aim was wonderfully straight and strong for a drunken man, wasn't it?" "Yes, I saw a few stars," Jabez answered. But you ought to have collared him, Andrew, instead of bending down over me. You ought to have been after the young devil who had dealt me such a murderous blow, and net allowed him to escape." ' ' ', ' '""■ "Father— if I could. My. first thought was of you. Plenty of time for me to punish Conrad de Lille later on, I reflected. But, thank God ! you were not seriously hurtmerely stunned/rendered unconscious for the moment—and whilst I was bending over you, trying to make out if your heart still beat, de Lille realised that he had better roake''.tracks for safety. And so what does he do but jump out of ; the open "Study window. I suppose ho »a- j ~r\ ', :?,..„ ►~. < .... l i.j ,'»,... , ' y . "

Used that it was only a few feet from the ground. But, anyway, be took thn risk, and jumped out into tho night—and a dark night, too, for the moon had gone in by now, and rain clouds were sweeping across the sky." _ , ' -> Yes, it was an angry night,' Jabea muttered. "And then, whilst you were- \ . bending over your father, Thor did, his;;><■,& little bit of work, didnt' faithful old : .\ Thor? But tell me again what happened, Andrewyou, who saw it all, teE me howl Thor did his level best to aveng© his mas*. ter. Perhaps the old dog thought I was dead?" i " I really believe he aid," Andrew interrupted, " for Thor sprang from behind . , your big armchair, where he had beea crouching for the last few minutes,, every hair on his grey body bristling, and his eyes looked > red, and before I could ■• «'ire:a call him back he had leapt out at (the window in wild pursuit of de Lille. And what a chase that must have been; Conrad hurrying along madly, tear* ing his way through bush and bramble, ~ and Thor panting to avenge his master."; "But you whistled the hound back, Andrew ! ? ' Jabe2 protested, and there was an angry and half-aggrieved note in hia voice. "Ye made a mistake there, lad, you should have left him alone." ./""■" Why, he might have torn de Lille limb from limb, father, and in all probability that's what he'would have done if I had not whistled for him. And Thor, who is '! always obedient, as you know, bounded back, leaping in through the window again. But a minute or two later, whilst I was bending over you trying to restore you to consciousness, he jumped out— never noticing— was off again in pur- .., suit of the man whom he doubtless be-, lieved had-lulled you." * " Ah, and ho tracked Conrad down finely, , Andrew. And I don't wonder, upon my soul, I don't wonder, that Conrad lost his . head and ran on wildlydesperately—for sv .'.'- he heard the great hound tearing _ after him, and imagined what the snapping of Thor's jaws would be like, and how < tho big brute might rend him limb from limb. - "; Oh, it doesn't surprise mo that, in hie fear, in his terror, he stumbled and fell into the ,';" lake, for it was a black night, and he didn't know his way." ,5

(To he continued daily)