THE WASTREL.

New Zealand Herald, Volume L, Issue 15308, 22 May 1913, Page 4

THE WASTREL.

PUBLISHED Bl SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT.

BY HAROLD BINDLOSS, Author of "The Impostor." "The Pioneer," "Hawtroy'e Deputy," ©to. • : v ; COPYRIGHT. • CHAPTER ; XXlX.—(Continued.) Then Gertrude's nerve gave way. All that had happened was her work she had, when he was wavering and questioning the justice of his suspicions, driven them back more firmly into her father's mind, and as the result of this he had come near to killing an innocent man. Overwhelmed by the thought, she swayed unsteadily and clutching at a pillar fell against it. "Miss Jernynghain is fainting," Mrs. Colston cried, hurrying towards her. "Bring her in" said the officer, and when it was done, with Colston's assistance, called to the constable; " Stand at the door; keep everybody out." The big general room was cleared, and he gravely watched the way the actors in the scene arranged themselves. Prescott stood well apart from the others, with Muriel at his side. ■ She was flushed and overstrung, but her pose and expression suggested that she was defying the. rest, and she cast a hard, unsympathetic glance at Gertrude, who sat limply, with clenched hands. Colston, booking embarassed and unhappy, sat near his wife,' who had preserved some composure. Jernyngham leaned against the counter, dejected and apparently half-dazed.

"Before you. go any farther I'd better -ell you thai I fired the shot," he said). " When I came out, the pistol was in Mr. Colston's hand," the officer rejoined n a meaning tone. "That's true," Colston broke in. "I took it from him, for fear of an accident." Mr. Jernyngham was in a very nervous and excited state. He has, of course, been bearing a heavy strain, and I imagine you must have said something that rather upset his balance."

" I was perfectly sensible," Jernyngham harshly interrupted him. "I found I could get no assistance from the police; it looked as if my son's death must go' unavenged." ; • Coltson raised his hand to check him. Jernyngham could not be allowed to explain his action, as he seemed bent on doing.' ■' '■ ■■'■■ ; ■'• . ; . '.*' No! no!" he said soothingly, " you mustn't think of it. Please let me speak." He addressed the officer. "You can see the nervous state Mr. Jernyngham is invery natural, of course, but I think it should appeal to vour consideration." The officer reflected. He had been brought up in the old country, and could sympathise with the people before him; they deserved pity, and he had no wish to humiliate them. Moreover, Miss Hurst, whom he admired, seemed to be involved These reasons should not be allowed to carry much weight, but there were others. It was obvious that Jernyngham was hardly responsible for his actions; the man's worn and haggard face showed that he had been too severely tried. Justice would not be served by probing the matter too deeply, and Colston's attitude indicated that this would be difficult, "As you seem to be the one who had the narrowest escape, Mr. Prescott, have you any complaint to make ? " he said. '.' Certainly not. . I'm sorry the thing has made so much stir."

" It was my duty to investigate it." The officer broke into a dry smile. "I, however think that a charge of unlawfully carrying dangerous weapons, which is gumshable by a fine, will meet the case." [e turned to the trooper. "You will attend to the matter in due course, Constable Blade." V -

Then ho bowed to the company and went out, leaving Colston to deal with the situation with the assistance of his wife, who thought it desirable. to break up the party as soon as possible. t * "The : teams must be ready, and it's too cold to keep them.standing,' she remarked. ■ ~ "They're outside," said Colston. "We'll have an inquisitive crowd breaking in on us if we don't get off at once. Gertrude, bring your father." ' Gertrude led Jernyngham to the door, and Colston turned back to Prescott. "It was very regrettable," he said. "We arc grateful for your forbearance." Then his wife joined him, signing to Muriel. "Be quick! The people haven't gone away the street' 3 crowded." Muriel, disregarding her, looked at Prescott, who had spoken to nobody except the officer. His face was troubled, but he made no attempt to detain her. "I believe you saved my life," he said. " I can't thank you now. May I call tomorrow?" s

" We should be glad to see you ; but, with Jernyngham at the homestead, wouldn't it . be , embarrassing ?" Mrs. Colston broke in. " Muriel, we really can't wait." t The girl smiled at Prescott. "Yes," she said quietly, "come when you wish." Then her sister, knowing that she was beaten, drew her firmly away. They went out and Prescott sat down, feeling that he had done right and yet half ashamed of his reserve, for he had seen that Muriel had expected him to claim her, and was ready to acknowledge him before her friends. This, however, was when she was overstrung and under the influence of strong excitement; . the sacrifice she did not shrink from making was a heavy one, and si e must have an, opportunity for considering it calmly. He' was not long left undisturbed, for. men flocked in, anxious for an account of the affair, but he put them off with evasive answers and, making hi 3, escape, hurried to the livery 'stable, where he hired a team. ':■/.:. , Next afternoon he drove io Leslie's.in a quietly-exultant mood. His long fight was ' over; nature had beaten him, and ho was glad to yield, 1 though he had not done so under sudden strees of passion. During his , search for Jernyngham and afterwards sitting by his stove on bitter nights, he had come to see that if the girl he deshed loved him, no merely prudential reasons ought to separate them. He had feared to drag her down, to rob her of things she valued, but he now saw that she might, after all, hold them of little account. He was, for his station, a prosperous man, there was no real deprivation his wife need suffer; he had a firm belief in the future of his adopted country, and knew that in a little while all the amenities of civilised life could be enjoyed in it. Wandle's trial would free him of suspicion; when he had stood facing Jernyngham, Muriel had revealed her love for him, and since it could not be doubted, he need not hesitate. It was her right to choose if she would marry him*. Only she must clearly realise all that would imply. He had expected some opposition from Mrs. Colston, but. when it was inevitable, she could gracefully bear defeat. Moreover, she had never agreed with Jernyngham's suspicions of , Prescott, and in some respects he impressed her favourably. There was no reserve in her greeting when he reached the homestead. "The less that is said about last night the better, but I can't pass, over it without expressing our gratitude, for the line you took," she eaid.," Harry had driven Jernyngham out in the sleigh had been in a curious limp state all morning— Gertrude had not yet got over the shock." "It must have been very trying for, Miss Jernyngham,'" Prescott remarked. "No doubt." There was not much pity in Mrs. Colston's > voice, for she guessed how matters stood. "However, I am disengaged and I believe Muriel will be here directly." ■ -' - Prescott followed her into a room and made an effort- to talk to her until she rose and went out as Muriel entered. The girl, to his surprise, was dressed in furs, and he felt his heart beat when she looked at him with a shy smile. V "I have been expecting you," she said, giving him her hand. "I wonder," he said, gravely, "whether you can guess why. I have come." . ■ " Yes," she answered in a steady voice; "I think I could. But we'll go out, Jake." He followed her, a little puzzled, but not questioning her wish, and they walked silently down the beaten trail that stretched away, a streak of greyish blue, across the glittering - snow. Brilliant sunshine streamed down on .them and the nipping air was wonderfully clear. By and

by they passed ' a birch bjuff that; hid them from the house, and Prescott stopped. - ■ "Muriel," he said, "I think you know I love you." ; l ; -- There was a warm, colour in her face, but for a moment she met his eyes squarely. "Yes; I knew it some time ago, though perhaps I should have shrunk from owning that 60 frankly, if it hadn't been for last night. But .why were, you afraid of telling me, Jake?" • ■ , He read surrender in her face and yielding pose, and with a strange humility that tempered the wild thrill of delight placed his arm ; about her. Then, as she crept closer to him, resting her head on ; his shoulder, every feeling was lost in a delicious sense of triumph. . It was brief, for he remembered how he was handicapped, and he held her from him, looking gravely down at her. ■" My dear, there is something to be said." . ■■■■:.■■, •;'":- • "Yes," she rejoined;, with tender mockery; " you either took a great deal for granted or there was one important thing you were willing to leave in doubt. Now take my hands and hold them fast. You know I have suffered something fears and anxieties because of. youl want to feel safe."

He did as she bade him and she looked up. ",Now lieten, Jake, dear. All that 1 have to give, my love, my closest trust is yours, and because you said I saved your life, that belongs to me. I think it's all that matters." He was silent for a few moments, overwhelmed by a sense of his responsibility. " Still," he said, " you must understand what you are risking. I should have told you first." . Muriel released her hand, and her glance was grave. Yes you had better continue, Jake. I suppose we.-must speak of these things now, . and then forget them for ever." '. "You know what Jernyngham believed of me. I could not marry you with such a stain on my name; but it will be wiped off in a few more days, and this I owe to you. It was you who insisted that I should clear myself." • v She started. "Remember that I know nothing, except that you went away." Prescott told her briefly what he had learned—"at Navarino and of Wandle's capture; and her deep satisfaction was obvious. % '"'■'- . .„ "I'm so glad," she said. "This will make it easier for the others, though it doesn't affect me. If I had had any doubts, I couldn't have loved you. Then I'm 'pleased you told me before you were really cleared. To have waited . until everybody knew you were innocent would have looked as if you were afraid to test my faith in you." -' ; No," he said " that couldn't be; but I was afraid of your having to make too heavy a sacrifice, and, unfortunately, there's some risk, of that still." "Go on, Jake," she told him quietly. "I'm far from a, rich man, though J never regretted it much until of late. You know how we live here; I can guess what you have enjoyed at home. Lite's strenuous on the prairie, and' • though I think it's good, it makes demands on one you can't have met in England. r There's so much that you must give up, many things that you will miss. I feel anxious when I think of it." Muriel smiled at him. "That is very foolish, dear; but I've a confession to make. I was a little daunted once, until I -saw , how unreasonable it was. : Fm •; a girl without a penny, really living on charity, and I've got rid of the silly ambitions I once had." . > .''■-.. She paused and looked far .across the plain which ran back, glistening in the sunlight, until it faded into cold blues and purples towards the skyline. The grey bluffs, standing one behind the other, and the long straggling line of timber by a ravine' 'marked its vast extet. ' It filled the girl with a sense of freedom; its wideness uplifted her. "Jake," she resumed, "I wonder whether you can understand why I made you take me out. The prairie has drawn me from the /beginning, and I felt it would be easier make a great change in this wonderful open space; I. wanted to adopt the country, feel it belonged to me. Now I've made Imy choice, J-my home is where you are; I want nothing but to be, loved and cared for, as you must care for- me." - , Prescott drew her towards him, but there was; more of respect than passion in his, caress. "My dear," he said gravely, "I feel very humble as well as thankful. It's a great thing I've undertaken, to make you happy; but I think you'll try; to forgive me if I sometimes fail." Muriel laughed and . shook herself free. " I'm not really hard to' please, and even if you make mistakes now and then, good intentions count for a good deal. But you are dreadfully solemn, and there's so much that is pleasant ,to talk . about." ; They walked on briskly,' for it had only been possible to stand still in the shelter of the bluff with bright sunshine streaming down on them, ami the cold they had forgotten made itself felt. By and by Prescot looked thoughtfully at his com panioh. .'■ ■.;"■■".• - " I can't quite understand Jernyngham,"* he remarked. ''.One can't blame him for persecuting me, but there's something in his conduct that makes one think him a little off his balance." : c Muriel's eyes sparkled with indignation. "I suppose he ought to be pitied, but I can't forgive him, and I'll tell you what I think. He has led a well-regulated life, but his virtues are narrow and petty. Indeed, I think they're partly habits. He is not a clever or a really strong man; but because of his money and position, which he never ventured out of, he found people to obey him and grew into a domineering autocrat. I believe he was fond of Cyril and felt what he thought of his loss, but. that was not all. -The shock brought him a kind of horrified anger that anything of a startling nature should happen to him— felt it wasn't what he deserved. Then his desire for justice degenerated into cruelty and when he came out here, where nobody gave way to him, he somehow went to pieces.; His nature wasn't big enough to stand j the strain." ~,,,. , It was a harsh analysis, but Muriel was not inclined to be charitable. Jernyngham had made things very hard for her lover. ' : ;. , „ •., 1"I daresay you're right," said Prescott. " But "the moraine: after he reached my place in the blizzard I had a talk with him and found him reasonable. I think he half believed in my innocence, but soon afterwards he was more savage than before." " Isn't it possible that you took too much for granted? He couldn't be rude to you when you had saved him from freezing." ;, ''■'- ;' "I don't think I did. He was : pretty candid at first and I wasn't cordial, but he listened to me. and I feel convinced that before he left lie was beginning to see that he might have been mistaken. What I don't understand is why he changed again, when nothing fresh turned up to account for it.' _ »■ - A light dawned on Muriel. She saw Gertrude's work in this and her face flushed with I anger, but it was ■ not: a subject she meant to discuss with her lover. ■ •/ " Well," she said, " it's scarcely likely that you will learn the truth, and after all, much of Jernyngham's conduct can't be sensibly explained," She smiled at Prescott. "If : he'd had any reason in him, he would never have doubted you." They turned back to the homestead presently and on reaching it ; Prescott found that Colston had arrived. : The latter gave him an interview in the barn, which was the only place where they could be alone, and listened with a thoughtful air to ; what he had to say. This included an account of his meeting withiLaxton and the pursuit of Wan die. "I'm ;in an unfortunate position," Colston remarked when Prescott had finished. "You see, every prudential consideration 'urges me to oppose you—-looked at from that point of view the match is" most undesirable—but I must own to some sympathy with you, and I don't suppose my opposition would have much effect." i .;.••' v ■••■;." It.;; certainly wouldn't," Prescott ;r re-' joined. ■ ■■■): ;'\ • .''After all." Colston resumed; "I have no real authority.;-• Buriel's f. of age and she has no possessions. Still, I'm fond of the girl and .anxious about her future. I think you ought to satisfy me that you're able to take care of her." ■ :" I'll try," said Prescott, who gave him a concise account of -his < means, > farming operations, and plans for the future.

• Colston listened with satisfaction. The man was ; more prosperous than > he nad supposed and had carefully considered what could be'done to secure the ; comfort; of his : wife; ; his ;' schemes included the" rebuilding of I his house. >■.; It was obvious that Muriel heed not suffer ; greatly from the change. Moreover, he had liked Prescott from the beginning . and ; found; it - hard> to.< distrust him, even when appearances were blackest against him. "Airthis," .he said, "is a relief to me. But'there's another and more important point. He-paused a moment before he continued uf'To my mind 7 your-: name is cleared, but you must agree that the mystery isn't' quite unravelled yet. Now I have no power to interfere, but Muriel is my wife's sister and I think she owes my views some deference. Neither ;of us can. countenance an engagement or your meeting Muriel often while a doubt remains. The matter must stand over." ', "I must yield to that; you have been more liberal than I could have expected.' Then Prescott smiled. " There's only one thing which could really clear me; thereappearance of my victim, and / I don't de- ' spair of it. ' The police are trying to trace him' on the Pacific slope, but it would be quite in accordance with his character if he suddenly turned up here. / They went out together, shivering a little, for the barn was very cold, but on friendly terms and mutually satisfied. ;.

CHAPTER XXX. prescott's VINDICATION'.

On the day after Prescott's V avowal. Muriel found Gertrude alone and sat down opposite her. '■ ' , ; '',:' : : '-.... : " Don't you think you ought to insist upon your father's going , home?" she asked. "The strain is wearing him out; he may lose his reason if be stays." Gertrude looked up sharply. There was no sympathy in the girl's tone and her eyes were bard. Muriel might have forgiven;aj wrong done to herself, but she was merciless about an injury to her lover. >• ' "Ah;'' said Gertrude, " you wish to get rid of us ? " ■ . - ; '.'] • . . ,

" No," said Muriel; "my suggestion was really generous, because 1 would' sooner you both remained and saw Mr. Prescott proved innocent." Not' knowing what had prompted her rival, Gertrude gave her jealous anger rein. " I'm afraid: we couldn't wait. Even my father's' patience would hardly hold out." "It wouldn't be long tried;, but in la way you're right. It's dangerous for him to stay here, and you're responsible for his condition." : • v

"I'm responsible?" cried Gertrude with a start.. , :;.■ . i; -''::'-cV : '-; ; "':''- ;^': ■■'."'■■■'■ '■.■■■:^.

":'-." Of course. You knew /Mr. j Prescott went away to look for your brother, and you kept it secret; when he saved your father from freezing he nearly convinced him .that he had nothing to do with Cyril's disappearance. You must have known how. it would have eased-his mind ;to r get' rid of 'his. dreadful suspicions, 'but you worked upon him and brought them back." Gertrude sank down in her chair, with ? a shiver. A denial would serve :no purpose and she was conscious of her guilt. ?:*'■ " Would you expect me to be indifferent to the loss of my brother?" v You knew ydu had not lost him. Yon believed what Mr. Prescott told you until we came." Muriel flushed and hesitated, for this was as far as she would go. Even in her anger : she would; not taunt 'her beaten rival -with defeat. "Now," she continued, " you must see what you have done. You have made: your father < suffer terribly; I think you have weakened his mind, and if I hadn't turned the pistol you would have driven him to kill an innocent man. He seems too dazed and shaken to quite realise what •he meant to do, but the thing was horrible." •-■■.-. ;; Gertrude sat silent for ; a: few moments, her face drawn and colourless. % Then she looked up. "I couldn't see what' it would lead. to. Do thet others know what you have told me?—does Mr Prescott ?'.' ■, She looked crushed 'and defenceless and Muriel's resentment softened..£.-■ v;--; ;/,y..y : ;>y:;';

"No," 'she said. "Nobody knows/ and Mr. Prescott will never suspect.he's; /riot the man to think hard things of a woman. But I'm going to insist on your taking your father away." ' :'.,.. " But how can' I ?" cried Gertrude. "You know how determined he is.' "You have influenced him already; yon must do so again.v- You will Tegret it all your life if you let him stay.' , ~J ; "Well, said : Gertrude : desperately, "I must try." Then a thought struck her and her expression grew ' gentler. '"Muriel, have you realised . that if we leave here soon : - the ; Colstons ■{ will ? accompany us ' and you will have to go with them?" ■ "No,".- Muriel with a little resolute smile. " I shall stay."" -. ...;Gertrude turned her head and there''■'war silence for a while. v Then* she said with aa effort: "I can't ask your .forgiveness; it would be too much, and I'n? not sure that I wish-to have it. But ' 1 feel x that you are generous." ' ' "Take you* father home," i said Muriel, and getting up went quietly out. ■ (To be concluded to-morrow.) ;