THE WASTREL

New Zealand Herald, Volume L, Issue 15269, 5 April 1913, Page 3 (Supplement)

THE WASTREL

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|- ' :". .;.,.[,;'; h> i;. ;;;,;,;-. :.-/.f:r--j .V';.! BY BUNDLOSS, ' I- anther of " The Impostor,*' f"33» Pioneer," i p '.'Hawtrey's Deputy." ete, . .- ¥& ■ '•■•.■■ • : ■ ;■'■ ':■■;. - : :-;■'"''••'';: ;••:•■; &■■ -•■'■■ •■ ; "•■•'■'.'.' ---V- • ' .':'-) k*/- ' •' '. '"'■■■■ ;■ >; ■■'.■■. ,; ■".'.< ■ ■■'.'. .~ ■' .-'v. i p, ; [OOMTBJOHT.I '■_ . ; CHAPTER I. if:' OnmSTKOHAM** HATTY OTOIIOHT. The air waa cooling dowr towards evening at Sebastian, which collection .of wooden' bouses stands upon a branch line on the Canadian prairie. The place is not attractive during tho earlier portion of the short Northern summer, when for the greater part of eveiy week it lies sweltering in beat, in spite of the *trong west winds that drive dust-clouds through its rutted streets- Ae a rule, during the remaining day or two the ternperature sharply falls, tender crashes between downpours of heavy ram, and ■■? the wet piank sidewalks provide a badlyneeded refuge from the cement-bke had been aad onusually hot when Prescott, who aad driven in from his wheat farm at some distance from the «et«emeny walked toLds the hotel. Ho was 28 years of age, of average height, and rather sparofigure; his face, which had bsen deeply bronzed bv frost and sun, was what is called open, hk grey eyes were clear and steady, the set of his lips and mould of chin firm. He locked honest and good-humoured, but one w bo could, when necessary, sturdily hold his Q?r.. His attire was simple} * w*de crev hat, a saffrari-coloured shirt with fiannel collar, a Kght, tweed suit, something the worse for wear. , - r as he passed along the sidewalk he looked about. The small frame houses «*re destitute of -paint and any pretence of beauty, a numberof them hadra»ed, square fronts which hid the shingled roofa, but bevsnd the end of the street he could «e the" prairie stretching back to the horizon- In the foreground it TO a Jiweep of fading green and pale farther off it was tinged with grey and purple, and where it cut the glow of green piak on the skyline a long raa in: * cold blue emeax. To the left of the opening rose threo huge wooden towers with there xowed in and devices of alaw andl flom> bags painted thair feet raa the rwlroad toack, ettcumbeted mth *. ateafr oi freight cats and a tall water t«&- » grimy stage for unloading coal ; ««i » mail office parked lio a^ tjt*a« ' ~ - v p«*co*i, however, did not notice much of this; he was more interested ua the new of conflict ou the persona \f<&*. ■ men he met Some locked;^;^^y i had beai violentiy Joßed ». the dust; others wore torn jackets; and the faces ". of feveral were r by brmscs. $ - &rpty Jwhlch; make /hahSy chibs^ •';■ -were' suggestively- ; : aca^eredUab^^ e : . iiroad. AB tins was unusual, but Prescott goosed some aßowance must be made U fact that it was the anm^waty ol the famous victory of the Boyne. Moreover, there, was a oommumty of Canadians, but fall ptov the Botaish faitb, engaged in some railroad work not far away. In front of the bofcal ran a wrandah -tipa&d on wooclen P "SfSrs was" set out oa tbo match-strewn «dewalk beneath it f Moat of them were : several of the mea bore scars. stepped and lighted his pipo* seem tof,have hvely l ?;?t ;: the implement man and found he couWa t " talk Btraighti with half bis teeth knocked : ' :■ out. the North-west troopers ; - • :+ : haW: stoppea' ■f"'. : - f One of,the j»en laughed; % '•We've.had -. *fgreai'dWK«^'rft^^^' ;f^'--0 Dasofbas and Jetnyngliam hsd^a sweat ■■fliio^lrt ,^l«in.t«ft4>l»;l«w»''« IB V: ii vasn Y t oa&.yoa could out with." **How did he get the swordt** » «It was King Bißy's/?^'expl'^ 3^ 1 *: other man; - who was actmg^im Jemjngfaanr got up &i the horse instead aa4 led the last charge when we whipped ■.'■ ■ :<hem^'a«2ross'tb^;trac>.*',''•.; • - . ' . the Pipotestant: cW guard home, the stores would be wrecked; Reeve, Marvh» butted in. Telephoaed th»r_ railroad boss to send tsp gravel cars for his twya, faOd the other troopers in if they Ordered all a&g«rs o* on the now we're down> , «,Where's Jeruyjogbamf ~:,;;-.■.»-..■ The man jerked his hands towards .the. hotel "> Ihfbu roomi* bit tb^f^f:, 10 * wear. Mrs. Jernyngham nursxag hmji / Pushing opett the door, Prescott entered the building. .Its interior waa shadowy■ and wrth_cigar «noke; flies buazed everywhere and the smell of warm resinous boards pervadm the rank atmosphere. The place was des»tutc of floor coverinra or drapery, and the passage Prescott walked down was sloppy with soap and water from the 01 vraeh-baems, near which hung one small •wet towel. Ascending the stairs,, he entered a little and very scantfly furnished room with walla of uncovered pine- It, however, contained a bed with a ragged quilt and a couple of plain wooden chairJ, in, one of which a man leaned back. He ; wis about 30 yearn of age and roughly r?«embled Prescott, only that his face, which was .» rather handsome one, bore iho stamp of. indulgence. His forehead •wae covered by a dirty baudage, there was dost on Ma cwthea, and Preßcott thought he not sober.-v In the other chair eat 'ft\'young'fffoiJD^ : 'with,fme- ; 'dark eyes and gloesy lilackf hair, whose appearance wcTildbive been prepossessing had it not been spoiled by her slatternliness and cheap finery, .'fpue/ smiled at the visitor as he walked in. "If you'd come sooner we might have kept hun out of troublOi" she said. "He got away from me when things began to hum." ' ■ '' ; '»''■'., Her slight aceenb, which was not Westem, suggJsted the French-Canadian strain, though I>reecott imagined that there was a trace of Indian blood in her. Her manners weri> nnfmishedf her character primitive, but Prescott she wa3 as good a <xmeort as Jernyngham deserved. The lattir had a smaH wheat farm lying back on the prairie, but his erratic temvperamenf prevented bis successfully working it I>rescott, who was not» censorious person, had a liking and some pity for the ':' man.- ' "Well," he said, in answer to the f woman's remark, "that was eertainly foolish o:! him. But what had he to do with ;' the row, anyway?" $■ " Have a drink, and I'll try to explain," f f said Jernyngliam. "A big. cool drink f might clear my head and I feel it needs ■■". :■'. . it." f . ■ ' V ""Sou kin have soda, but nothing else, O the woman broke in, r" I'll send it up, and ? : now T kin leave you, I'm going to the if store." Rhe turned to Prescott; " Nothm 4pm but soda,- and.see he don't get out." IP Shs loffc them and Jorriyngbam laughed. r &% t a good sort j I sometimes wohW • der how she puts up with me. Anyhow, & Vm glfid you came, because I'm.in what . g -i mijrht b«v called * dilemma." rf As this-,wasfnot' ' v.asam, Prescott made, nof commenijf and .' ' b? «nd by two semi-Rlobulnr tumblers f-'•".;. •'Ontnining iced liquid 'were brought \lof : - drained his thirstily and -coked «p with a grin. J 4 "t;>::f >:■■■.--■ ;.';■.-■ .■:.■/.■■.■;■ ■•'•■•.•■'■ ; :- '--■,■.'.■'■--'.-;, .:•*■•- ■■'■.•■::'■■■; '.-■'.■

" It isn't, exhUaratingj but it's cool/* he i said, v " Now, however, you're curious } about iny honourable sears-—I got them ; frotn i bottle. It broke* you see, but there's some satisfaction in remembering that I knocked out the other fellow with the Sat of the Immortal William's Sword-";':

" You'll get worse hurt some day," Prescott remarked severely. "It's possible, but you're wandering from th® point. I'm trying to remember what led mo into the fray "m the incongruous company of certain hardshell Baptists, Ontario Methodists, and Belfast Presbyterians. As a young man, my sympathies were with the advanced Anglicans, perhaps because my people were sternly Evangelical. Then the whole thing's unreasonable—what have I to do, for instance, with the Prostestarit succession ? '* ''It isn't very plain," said Prescott. " Btill, everybody knows what kind of fool yon are." ..".;.• t "I live,!* rejoined Jernyngham. "You steady, industrious fellows grow. The row began at the ball game—disputed base, I think—and our lovhad got badly whipped at the first round when I stood' on the verandah and sang them, 'No Sur- j render.* That was enough for the Ulster' boys, and three or. four of them go a long; way in this kind of scrimmage." Prescott laughed. Ho had no sympathy j with Jernyngham's vagaries, but one could not be angry with him; the man was irresponsible. In a few moments, however, Jernyngham's face grew graver. "Jake," ho resumed, "I'm in a hole. Never troubled to ask for my. letters until lato in the afternoon, and now I don't know what to do unless you can help me," "You had better tell me what the trouble is." ' "To.make you understand, T}l have to go back some time- Everybody round thta place knows what I am now, but I believe I was rather a promising youngster before I left tha old country, a bit of a rebel though and inclined to'kick against the ultraconventional. In fact, I think honesty was my ruin, Jake; I kicked openly." ; ■ ' ', . _'■ ; "Is there another way? I can't see that there's much use in kicking unless the opposition feel it." f " Don't interrupt;" raid Jernyngham. "This is rather deep for you, bnt I'll try to explain. If you want to get on in tho old country you must conform to the standard, though you can do what you like at times and places where folks of your f ropier circle aren't supposed to see you. didn't recognise the* benefits of the system then—and I suffered for it." He > paused with a curious, half-tender look in his face. "There was a girl, Jake, good as they're made I still believe, though not in our station. Well, I meant .to: marry her—thought I was Btrong enough to defy the system—and she, not knowing what manner of life I was meant for, was fond of meC^' ." What manner of life were you meant for?"

v Jernyngham laughed harshly. "The Bar, for a beginning I'd got my degree. Tho House later—4bere was strong family influence—-to assist in propagating the Imperial idea. Strikes one as amusing, Jake." ■;■■ . .'a : . ; Prescott thought his companion would ; not have spoken so freely had he been wholly sober* but he had long noticed the purity of the man's intonation and the refinement that oeeasionally showed in his manners. , ■ " You're making quite a tale of it," he said- ''•'■ '-.'..-

'," Well,", resraned Jerayngliami " I didn't know what I was up; against, the systembroke me. Wlien the etresa came, I hadn't nerve enough v to hold oat, and for that::l've been punished. My ■ sister—• she iticaht welt-jgot hold of the girl, persuaded her to give me up* for my sake, jtake. Wouldn't see me, sent back my ■ letters,,: s%td; I , went out to Canada, beaten." f ■• ■-■-, ■■■'■.- , ' ■ ;; He" paused. " There's a reason why you ,mn^^ti7vtb''''-^liße'.'my': , fatheir : ''ahd sister. He's unflmchingly upright, conventional to a degree; Gertrude's a feebler copy, as lust., Irofc perhaps not quite eb hard. Well, Fve never written to either, but I've heard from friends and the conclusion seems to be thai" as I've never asked for : ;'■J^JM^;:ha^;;^^o^^i■•. , ■ There's a desire'for a reconciliation, my father's get-,-', ting-old,, and I believe, in 'their reserved they were fond of me. Don't be impatient 5 ; I*ta coming to-'.'the point at last. Fd a letter fwm;Ck)ißtori~though tho man's a relative, I haven't sesri him eihee jX left school. He and his wife are passing through on their!way to British Columbia, and tho idea seems to. be that he! should see me and;repori»" '.; i ■ Preecbttmade a: sign of. understanding. Jernyngham, stamped with dissipationy injured in 0 brawl, and hia small homestead where everything was in disorder and out of repair, were, patdlylikely to create a favourable impression upon : his English relatives. h Besides''theiti'VwasMrS.'Jemyng*' ham,* if .thai were hercorrect .title, about which Pr^ effect of her, appearance and conversation might be' disastrous. :"Now; M continued Jernyngham, "you See { " how, I'm fixed.; "1 haven t much to thank my people for, but I want to spare :Ifit would make ,tlungs easier for them,: I dOn't mind their thinkof me than I deserve.*" pondered fthls. It was crudely put, but it showed a rather fine fe©ririderataQn,' Prescott thought, for the people- who were in part responsible for ithemaa'a perhaps, a eertain^[senise.:''of;"shame: and contrition. JernyngbamV desire could not be 1 found fault with. ■■■ .'- i 4 What are you going to do about it V he asked. , • /'Nbt&ing," said Jernyngham with a reckless v laugh. " You'll dn all .that's rieededil mean to leave my friends to you. Strikes me as a brilliant idea, though not exactly aovei; made a number of excellent fcomediee.Did you ever; see ' Charley's v. ■?, . Pmcott fwjwned. ". I don't cTeal." *' Think! You're not unlike me aud we're about the same age; Colsfon hasn't ;seen me for fourteen years, hia wife neverl" "No," objected Prescott. "It can't be done.'", - - . , "It's hardly good form io remind you of it, Jake, but there was a time when we ; took a grading contract on the line and got into trouble close in front of the allast train." ; ■■ ;'■■,'" ; .'■'... . ; •.',•' .-.' ? :.' Prescott'a determined expression changed. '♦ Yesi" he said; "it gives you a pull on me—l can't go back on that." He spread his hands out. "Well, if you insist." "lor the old man's sake,-said Jernyngharit "I want you to take the Colstons but to your place and entertain them for a day or two;/they \. *wV«tay. long. They re coming in by the West-bound this levelling." : -\*..: : '■'■■■• .■ '■:.-■.■ ■■ ■ ■. I "Then," said Prescott, starting, ! '"'they'll be here in half-an-hour if the ! train's on time. If there! are any_ points I you can give me about vbutfarauy history, [you hadnbetter be quick,'V "In the first place, I was rather a wild i youngster with an original turn of. mind, and supposed to bea bit of a rake, though that wasn't correct-r-my eccentricities were harmless then. Your maverick describes me joretty well • I, didn t belong to the herd, I wouldn't; be up with the others arid let them put the brand on. That's no doubt why they credited me with vicee I didn't possess. Jernyngham laughed. "Still, you mustn t overdo the thing; you want to delicately convey the idea that you're now reformed. 1 he part requires some skill; it's a pity you re not smarter, Jake. But let me think--■ ; He went, into a. few Retails, .abbot.his famUy, and by and by fmtotb Mt him, and, after giving an order, to .have his team ready, proceeded to the station. It was getting dark, but sky was toll 'a sheet pale_green, against which tfiS tali elevators, stood out bfack and sharp. .The headlamp of a freight locomotive flooded track and station with a dazzling electric glare; the rails that ran straight and level across the waste gleaming far back in jfMgg radiance. This 8 helped Pwycott: to over, come his repugnance to his task, qfe he remembered another summer night when he : had attempted to hurry his team across the track before a!J.ballast tram Startled by the blaze of .the head lamp and the scream of the whistle, one of the horses plunged and kicked; awheel of the waggon; eiuking in the loose ballast, skidded against a tie, and PrescotV stood between the rails, struggling to extricate.the beasts while the great locomotive rushed down on them. There was a vein of stubborn tenacity in him and it looked asr jf he and the horses would perish together when iJernyngbam came .running to the HoW they escaped neither of them ».- : .. : '■'.;'■'■' •■•:■■:/;■ : :'. : \: ::■-■ :'"■: ''.■v'.-'-"'i ' : . ;; . .

could afterwards remember, but a moment later they stood beside the track while the train went banging by, covering them with dust and fragments of gravel. Prescott admitted that he owed Jernyngham something for that.. .Nevertheless there was no doubt that *n« part he had undertaken to play would "be> difficult. v He could see its humorous sido.jbut he had not been a prodjgal; inhe was by temperament and habit steadying and industrious; The son of a small business man in Montreal, he had after an excellent education abandoned city .life and gone out to the' West, where | he had prospered by frugality and hard work. He was by no means rich, but he was content and inclined to be optimistic about the future, When he reached the station the usual crowd of loungers had gathered to watch the train come in, and, lighting his pipe, he walked up and down the low platform, wondering uneasUy how ha would get through the next few days. Jernyngham, he felt,, had placed him in a singularly embarrassing position. CHAPTER 11. -. MUBIEI. SEES THE WEST.

The sunlight was fading off the prairii when a party of three sat in a first-das* car as the local train went jolting west. Henry Colston leaned tack in his seat with a Winnipeg paper upon his knee; and his appearance stamped him as a well-brought-up Englishman travelling for pleasure. He was thirty-four, his" 1 dress,, though rather dusty, fastidiously neat; his expression but there was an air of formality about him. One would not have expected him to do anything startling or extravagant, even under stress of emotion. Mrs. Colston resembled him in this respect; she was a handsome- woman, a little reserved in manner, and tastefully dressed in travelling tweed, Which she had found too hot for the Canadian summer. Muriel, her sister, was twenty-four, and though the two were alike, the girl's face was fresher, more ingenious and perhaps more intelligent. It was an attractive face, crowned with red-gold hair; broad brows, straight nose and firm mouth hinted at some depth of character, but,her eyes of deep violet were unusually merry, and her warm colouring hinted at a sanguine temperament. ' • So far, Muriel Hurst had taken life lightly and foiled Mrs. Colston's attempt to make a suitable match for her. The daughter of a man of taste who had died in difficulties, she had not a penny beyond the allowance provided by her sister's generosity. Nevertheless she was happy and had a strong liking and respect for lier prosperous brother-in-law, though his restricted views sometimes irritated her.

She waa now trying to arrange her impressions of Canada, which wero mixed. She had looked down on Montreal with its great bridge and broad river from the woodca mountain, and from there it had struck her as a beautiful city. Then she had seen the handsome stone houses with their lawns at tho foot of the hill, add afterwards the magnificent commercial buildings round the post office. These could scarcely be equalled in London, but the rest of the town had not impressed heri It was fitrewn with sand and cementdust: they seemed io be pulling down and putting up buildings and tearing Open the streets all over it. Afterwards the Western Express had swept her through a thousand miles of wilderness, a vast tract of forest filled with rocks and lakes and rivers; and then she had spent two days in Winnipeg on the verge of tho prairie. This city she found perplexing. , Tho station hall was. ?alatial, part of the wide Main Street and 'ortage Avenue with their stately banks and offices could hardly be too much admired, and there were pretty wooden houses, running back to the river'among groves of trees. But apart from this the place was somehow primitive. There were numerous hard-faced men hanging about tho streets, and it jarred on her to see the rows /of well-dressed loungers in the hotels lolling in wooden chaira close against the great windows, a foot ; ,or two from the street. lb gave her a hint of Western characteristics; the people were abrupt, gcod-natuiedly so, perhaps, but devoid of delicacy. Last had come the prairie—the land of promise—which -seemed"to run on for ever, flooded with brilliant sunshine under a sky of dazzling blue. Banded with miles of/wheat, flecked with crimson flowers, it stretched back, brightly green, until it grew grey and blue on the. far horizon. It was relieved by the neutral purple of poplar bluffs, ana .little gleaming lakes; its vastness and openness filled .her with a sense of liberty. " Narrow restraints, cramping prejudices, must vanish in this wide country; one's nature could expand and become optimistic here. Then Colston began to talk. "We should arrive in the- next half-hour and I'll confess to a keen curiosity about Cyril Jernyngham. , He was an amusing and eccentric scapegrace when I last saw him, i though that is a very long time ago. "v "You object to eccentricity, don't you ?" : said Muriel. .„ :•: "Oh, no. Call .it originality, and I'll own that a certain amount is useful, but it should be kept in check. Indulged in freely, it's apt to rouse suspicion." ; ■•'" Which is rather unfair. "I don't know," Mrs. Colston broke m. " Considered all round, it's an excitant rule that if you won't do what everybody in your station does, you must take the consequences." Colston nodded. "I agree. One must think of the results to Society as a whole." " Cyril Jernyngham seems to have taken the consequences/' Muriel resumed. *'■ Isn't there something to be said for the person who does so uncomplainingly"? I undcr-

stand bo never recanted or asked for help." :- ;., Mrs. Colston shot a quick glance at her. She did not wish her sister's sympathy to be enlisted on the black sheep's behalf. "I believe that's true," sha answered. "Perhaps it's hardly to his credit. His father is an.old man who had expected freat things of him. If he had' come omo. ha would have been forgiven and reinstated." " Yes," said Colston, " though Jernyngham seldom shows his feelings, I know ho has grieved over his son. There can be no question that Cyril should have returned; I've told him so in my letters." "I suppose they'd have insisted on a full and abject surrender?" "Not an abject one," said Colston. " He would have been expected to fall in with the family ideas and plans." "And he wouldn't? " said Muriel with a mischievous smile.

"I think he was right." Reading dieapproval in her sister's expression, she continued: "You dear, virtuous people are a little narrow in your ideas; you can't understand that there s room for the greatest difference of opinions even in a harmonious family, and that it's very silly to drive the non-conformer into rebellion. Variety's a law of nature and tends to life."

Colston glanced meaningly at his wife. He was not a hypercritical person, it 'did not please him that his sister-in-law, of whom he was fond, should champion Jernyngham. - . "I don't wish to be severe upon Cyril," he rejoined. "As ti matter of fact, I know nothing good or had about his Canadian life; but he must be regarded as, so to speak, on probation until he has proved that he deserves our confidence." (To be continued.)

Another instalment of this very interesting story will be given in these columns on Monday next, and instalments will appear daily.

Jewellery said to have belonged to a princess who had sacrificed her treasures to replenish tho Turkish war chest has been sold by auction at the Salle George Petit, Paris.. Dealers and collectors from all parts of the world were present, as well as a large number of fashionable women. Amid great excitement a magnificent necklace was knocked down for £48,200, which is believed to be a record price for a necklace .Sold by auction, Composed of small rows of Oriental pearls, ft weighed 3250 grains and included a clasp composed of three large pearls and eighteen brilliants. Mme. Blondin, a young Parisian bride of 19, met with a sad end recently. Some friends had visited her in her little home on the sixth floor of a buildinjr in the Avenut de la Grande Armee. On their departure sho got on a chair to wave a farewell from the window. The chair slipped on the beeswaxed floor, and Mmo. Blondin fell out of the window into the; street, almost at tho tefc of her friends.