Page 3 Advertisements Column 8

New Zealand Herald, Volume L, Issue 15410, 19 September 1913, Page 3

PUBLISHED BY SPECIAL ARRANGE- ' ■- . MENT. 1 - 5 J • LEILA AND HER LOVER. „ by MAX PEMBERTON, Author of "The 'Garden of Swords, 1 * My Sword for Lafayette," " The Iron Pirate." "The Gold Wolf," "Red Morn," " The Hundred Days," ■■ " The Lodestar," etc., etc. CHAPTER XVl.—(Continued.) • " -He doors of the house stood open when tiiey reached it, .and a very pretty young I 1 Tenckwoman waited there for the negro. She had her apron to her eyes, and it was evident that she had been crying. When Hugh spoke to her as kindly as he could, she merely said, " II est mort, monsieur!"' and went on weeping. They passed through to a glorious courtyard, so bowered iq blooms that it might have been a vision! of the Hesperides. Here the blue sea was visible through a balustrade almost hidden by gigantic white flowers which Hugh had; never seen before. He" hardly noticed! them, however, as the nigger led him on. rate mocked his steps and whispered that: this was the supreme irony. Dan Heresford dead! Then surely there was na ihope. Ihey entered the house through a conservatory abounding in tropical shrubs) and the rarest blooms. A hall beyond was beautifully furnished, and contained, moreover, a wonderful stand of arms, both rifles, guns, and pistols of the latestf fashion. The collection of these had been} one of Heresford's hobbies, and was re-, markable in a man who was known fori the gentlest creature alive. The wide, low staircase showed other weapons and soma fine cloisonne. They went up to the first floor, and, having knocked upon a door and obtained no answer, the nigger entered immediately. The bedroom was of vast size, decorated in the grand style and boasting aI ceiling which Joseph Vemet should haver painted. Its magnificance, however, ended with the fabric, and its- ornament, for the furniture was sparse enough, and the bed such as may be found in camps. Not a rag of carpet decorated the floor, but at mat of straw lay by the bedside and a great* armoury against the southern wall suggested that if there were ricihes in thd apartment this was their hiding-place. Hugh entered the room with soft steps,, as men go into a house of sickness, and fort a little while he foufid himself hardly able) to breathe in that foetid atmosphere. Heresford lay upon his back; his eyed were wide open and glassy; bis hands appeared to be clenched. There was no move-; ment of the chest whateverthe heartbeats could not be felt. A handsome face i the pallor, accentuated by the trim black beard, was that of death. Hugh believed it to be so—nevertheless he acted as though the .sick man were stall, alive and could be saved. _" Open the windows," he cried' to tfca nigger. " All of themquick, man; youn master's life depends upon it." The fellow obeyed him immediately was now cowed by authority, as his racef [ ever is.' Hugh's next question concerned!, " a doctor. Did he know of one in Cintra? The nigger shook his head,, but he had notl got to speech when the little French giri came in and approached them with' fright-, ened eyes. Hugh had enough French to understand what she suffered. She had loved Dan Heresford— the love of ai J good woman who would have saved his| soul. t , . . ... • ... •-! . " He is not dead, sir." she said in iher own fcongua. "Oh, if you will send foil Dr.' Vaguna and the priest. For God's sake, sir—yon will not refuse I , He id dying, and there is no one hereno one." The nigger made a grimace of disgust} and tried to silence her. . - 1 ; "Get yo' out of heah, missy—Mara.' •; )S Heresford don't want yo* any more. Yo' get along and leave me and dis gentleman! ' to see 'bout it—now, there's a good missy, ; sure." - Hugh silenced him with a word, and! then in & tone which brooked no argument! ■■■j he told him to go and fetch the doctor. ■ ■ "Is he near here?" "Down bv the saloon-, gah—that'sf where lie be. ' v ; "Then ask him to come here immedi-i ately—say Sir Hugh Donald sends fo4 ■' ■ him."' ' ' v - / ■&* * " I'll say it, Mars' Donald— yoU . be feared—l'm gwine right now-—" "And the priest," said the girl; "oh* surely, the will bring a priest! <•> - "Do you understand that?" cried Hugll ;; after him. " The' priest .is to come—but - the doctor first." • , ■ ';:V - The nigger grinned and pointed inso*. lently to the weeping girl. '■• ■ ' "We ought to have had ft priest in did /. Eeah house a long . while ago, Mais*' t > Donald... To' .ask missy dere—she'll tell :'V; yo' something"— ho vent off shoeing his teeth with all the ; impudence of-hid >'• -. ; - kind. Hugh took no notice of it -what- / - ever. He heard steps upon' lie verandah' and recognised the voice of Mat Michel, ■ who had come up from the inn with the /W-i . captain. Both were a little surprised that' there was no necessity to blow down the door, and the captain seemed much disappointed.. He had looked to make .at ' pretty report to his superiors at Lisbon, and yet here was the obstinate door wide - . open and the nigger slouching out. /IS was really a grievance, and he came "upstairs very 6urlily until he met the pretty French girl, to whom the bowed with thai' ' ; - suspicion of familiarity'the occasion seemed. v to justify. ... • >• -' " Good afternoon, Mademoiselle Adele-J -\ t; f and how is Mr. Heresford?" . ■' "He is dead," she said in French, an 3 • passed down the stairs to wait- upon thet '■ verandah for the priest. 5 Mat meanwhile! - had joined Hugh in, the room and stood! - watching the unconscious man. ' He -did ?.* 7 not put a single question, but stooped! " and laid his head upon Heresford'a heart.. - " ■ Then he touched his pulse • with..;., light! fingers and his diagnosis was confirm "I shall put my seal upon everything in this house , and communicate immedi-t / ately with the American Minister," Hugh said ; "it is all upon my shoulders, gentle-t • . men" —and he opened them out as though! signifying their ability to bear the burden^ ;i" Hugh left Mat. to deal with him," and went out into the gardens until the doctor! should come. The import of the soanO ~ had just witnessed was not lost upon him, but it was too early as yet to cope with] the magnitude of that misfortune. In ai dull, dazed way, he told himself that all. was lost. There would be no message oB hope for Leila upon his return, no wordl of salvation for her sister. St. Denys had won all along the line:—there could not bef ■ any doubt of it. What course he raast . now take was not to be imagined. Tha i hopelessness of the struggle, the irony ofl his own passionate love, were thoughts) . which dominated his mind in the beautiful garden, whose beauties' death had thiddeij . from him. Half an hour passed before Dr. Vaguna; came up from Cintra, and with him a mild-t faced, kindly priest, who. had no French! and did not discover that Hugh spoke German very welL He talked a little while to Hugh in Latin, but his queer accent made but a poor job of it, and Hugh had forgotten the best part of his classics. Hel followed the priest to the bedroom, however, and with them went Mademoiselle Adele, who watched the doctor with feverish eyes and hands clasped. Tha diagnosis was brief and altogether startling. Heresford was not dead, but lay in a trance, Vaguna said. And he added that! it was lucky he had 'Come, or assuredly they would have buried him. All this wad translated by Adele, who spoke like an automaton, but with tears of gladness im her eyes. "me evil of drugs, gentlemen," the doctor said. " I cannot tell you what drug, but a very potent one. We can do nothing but give him plenty of fresh air audi force stimulants upon him. I should say that, as he has lived so long in this state* he will probably recover. These cases o£ trance are distressing in their way, for wa are aware that the patient's mind is active and that he knows perfectly well what i^ being said of him and what is his condition." Adele cried aloud at this, and the priest) nodded his head sagely. There seemed nothing obvious for him to do, so he led the girl away very gently, and comforted . her with what solace he could. The threa men meanwhile stood about the bed watch- ■- ing the trance-like sleep of the man they! had come so far to see. Would he ever! -' -r wake from it again? God alone could};". '- - kno&.th&t. 7 1 ><"j: [> , (To be _ 1 , : '