Chapter 11.

Otago Witness, Issue 1832, 31 December 1886, Page 9

Chapter 11.

Another mound had "been added to the number already in the village churchyard. The long, attenuated Bhadow of the church spire swung across day after day as the sun sank below the horizon, as though bestowing an evening benediotion. Already the coming season heralded its approach by throwing a faint web of green over it, and fresh flowers were laid there every morning. It waß the grave of ' Robert Grey, of this parish, who departed this life on Friday, March 5, 1855, aged 63 years.' Margaret was now entrusted to the guardianship of Mr Balder, and had passed several weeks in the barren society of that family. A few visitors dropped in, ventilated the conventional phrases of condolence, and then proceeded with the true inquisitorial purpose of their visit. ' Pore girl,' ' they remembered her mother, pore thing, and ' Lor', it seemed only J^yißterday,' &c; and one, with handkerchief and crocodile tears, committed a bold plagiarism on the minister's sermon, and revamped bis words, feebly disguised by defective pronunciation, as her original sentiments, When the period of these visits was over the time passed as cheerlessly in the company of Mrs Balder. There were no means of amuse-

ment in this anomalous household. A place .more destitute of every kind of interest can aoarcely be imagined. And, to increase the forlornness of the situation, the peculiar structure of tbe bouse had imparted to it tbe most eeriesome accoustio properties; and often in the long and frequent silences Margaret sat and listened to the long-drawn cacophony of the wind as it sighed and whistled in the eaves and chance projections of the building till it took the sound of a funeral dirge, and reminded her of the hillock out in the cemetery. Mrs Balder sat before the fire with folded hands, sleepily nodding the hours away, never speaking unless it was to murmur over a short formula of consolation which she had adopted, and beyond which her conversational powers were unable to 'take her, There were no available books. One dusty, squat volume — a farmers' manual of some kind — remained undisturbed on a high shelf. It had been purchased by Mr Balder years before, but he bad long abandoned his efforts at its perusal, having been early discouraged by the multiplicity of polysyllables in which the author indulged. A family Bible shared* its superannuation. When by chance it was referred to, it always opened at the same place, not because any particular passage had been a constant subject of reference, but because a letter Mr Balder had begun to his friends long ago had been deposited there, and never afterwards disturbed. In fact, the whole bouse was infected with an appearance of hardness and gloom, from the carved faces at tbe angles of the cornices to tbe bare floor and plain, coarse furniture.

The appearance of the grounds outside were not much better, for the farm was ill conditioned and oovered with a false growth called Yorkshire fog. The outhouses and fences were dilapidated and rotten, and the latter presented scarcely any impediment to the cattle .which roamed at will through the numerous gaps. As soon as her grief abated sufficiently to allow her to take any interest in anything, Margaret made it a point to avoid the unbearable stagnation .that affected everyone in the bouße. Though there was nothing attractive within the precincts of the farm, unless she wished to be initiated into the mysteries of the dairy, as Mr Balder had once kindly and prudently hinted, still by extending her walks beyond it she found abundant amusement.

One evening, some time after she had entered her new surroundings, she was returning homeward about dusk, wondering when and how she should be rescued from tbe intolerable monotony of her life, 'although,' she added, unwilling to criticise her entertainers harshly even in mind, ' they are all very kind to me.' As the thought was passing through her mind, the first link in the ohain of circumstances which led to- such a calamitous issue was formed. She saw a not unknown form approaching her Borne distance in advanoe. As the figure came nearer it proved to be a young man with a large bunch of flowera in his hand. As he approached he assumed a hypocritical air of nonchalance, as if he were there by a mere accident. Yet when the preliminary greeting had passed between them, and he had stammeringly given the flowers— which, he wished it understood, he bad also gathered by acoident— to Margaret, he suddenly found he had no purpose of going farther on, but turned back with her, absently flioking the grass with his switch as he walked. They went on a short distance without speaking, no subject of conversation being suggested by either. The silence was broken abruptly by a rustling in the bushes close by, and the sound of footsteps running on the turf followed. They stopped, and the young stranger (was he BBtranger?) asked boldly 'Who was there? 1 prepared to perform Arthurian prodigies of valour if any danger menaced his fair charge. Nothing further was heard, and the remainder of the walk waa accomplished without incident. „ "v- When Margaret entered the house she noticed y that an obvious air of constraint rested upon all. Farmer Balder sat with compressed lips ; his son, who was flushed aB if with running, looked ill-tempered and sullen; and Mrs ' Balder looked even more vacuous than usual, if that were possible. The father growled out bis usual greeting ; the son, with his hands in bis pockets, glared and remained silent ; the mother made a fatuous observation as Margaret, wondering what could have caused the peculiar behaviour she witnessed, passed on to her room.

The domestic polity as presided over by Mr 'Balder was of a very primitive description in fact, as the gossipping wives said, 'it was just a from-hand-tomouth style of living.' ' It was in consequence of this neglect to adapt means to endsthat he had been brought to a precarious position from a monetary point of view. Tor yearß he had consistently followed a downward course, and about the time of the death of_Mr Grey he had been brought face to face with the fact that unless something nnusual happened he would come to utter ruin. He saw no meaas of avoiding the catastrophe, and had no thought of improving matters by applying himself to his work with greater energy and diligence, for, with characteristic perversity, he chose to regard himself as the irresponsible victim cf ill-luok, rather than recognise his own culpability. Suddenly the desirable responsibility that devolved upon him at the death of bis friend opened a way of

Ever since Margaret had come to live in his house bo had endeavoured to impress upon bia sou the desirability of marrying her. But, apart from a chronic disposition on the part of the latter to oppose everything in the shape of advice, circumstances had arisen which impelled him in an opposite direction, There had existed for a long time a rivalry between Edward Balder and James Armstrong, which owed its inception to the deposition of the former from the position of champion athlete of the village, otherwise 'cock o'-the-walk, at the hands of the latter. Thus Edward, whose perceptions were not as bright as might have been, having, upon insufficient evidence, formed the hypothesis that Armstrong had fallen in love with a certain village belie of rustic chirme, named Lily Smith, was at' once incited to attempt tbe supplanting of his rival in her esteem. The impetus imparted to his courtship by his false idea soon won over the affections of Belle Smith, and for a season he enjoyed the greatest delectation in the thought of the complete subjugation of his obnoxious rival.

While under this belief he had opposed his father's importunities to better his condition by marriage with Margaret, whose property would in the latter event become his own. But, on the evening which we have before mentioned, ho suffered a rude awakening, He had seen the meeting between Margaret and Armstrong, and had with chagrin observed the gift of the flowera. Aroused at once to the consciousness that he had been acting on mistaken ideas, he resolved without hesitation to transfer his fickle amativen6ss _to this new object. Hurrying home, he had imparted the intelligence to his parents, and thus caused the unusually curt reception accorded to Margaret as she entered with the evidence of the truth of the story in her hand. Thenceforward Edward required no urging to adopt the course his father desired, and abandoning without remorse his former love, he devoted himself to winning the affections of Margaret, From bis position he possessed an immense advantage over young Armstrong, towards whom he began to entertain a fixed hatred, induced by a variety of causes, the chief ingredient being an obvious one. It is easily seen how this combination of circumstancss would influence Marpraret, from the mere fact of her situation. For, having been dedicated by her deceased father to the affectionate guardianship of Mr Balder, she entertained an exaggerated sentiment of gratitude towards him, which all his boorishnesß aad illnature but slightly diminished. Being thus disposed to view any of the family favourably, Edward had a powerful factor in his favour, and, though it was a trying task to him to obviate his natural characteristics and maintain an appearance of amiability, his defective simulation was eked out by her preconceived rajrard. Now, eks had not jjoeitively gone to such a length as to fall in love with James Armstrong, but her feelings were rapidly taking that direction, and from the inception of Edward Balder's wooing she viewed it as incumbent on her to so modify her bearing towards the former that, while he could be under no mistake regarding her real sentiments, she Bhould still preserve his friendship. Poor James, while forced to accept his secondary position, did not resign all hope of regaining his former standing, or rather that standing which he imagined he bad occupied. The persistency with which he clung to this hope did not escape the observation of Edward, whose perspicacity was intensified by his jealousy, and whose allegiances was increased as he suspected the security of his tenure. His judgment of human nature was based of necessity upon data furnished by his own conduct, he regarded inconstancy as a predominant trait in those about him.

Mr Balder congratulated himself on the complexion affairs were taking, and hoped Boon to be free from his burden of debt and anxiety by enlisting the help of bis son. Influenced by this hope, he began to pursue his business with greater energy, and in a short time effected such improvements that his observant neighbours thought there must have been a repeal of the providential displeasure under which he had laboured so long.

Then, after a due interval, came the marriage of Edward, eldest son of William James Balder, to Margaret, eldest daughter of the late Robert Grey, both of this parish.

Belle Smith tore up the paper that contained the hateful announcement, and it required the exercise of all her philosophy to appear unmoved by it ; but she succeeded in suppressing all external show of disappointment, and walked abroad aa if unconscious of the 'existence of the recreant Edward.

By regarding his son's filial love as a foundation to erect aerial castles on, Farmer Balder had made an egregious error ; for nothing was farther from Edward's mind than to sink his money in agricultural speculation, and his father's insolvent condition did not appeal to him nearly powerfully enough to induce him to do so from abstract sympathy. It is apart from my«purpose to enter into any but the essential particulars of his early career, for I must hurry on to the event which chiefly concerns the central character.

There passed a troublous time, Mrs Balder, from her inability to grasp the situation, being perhaps the only one who escaped the general worry. Edward bad no sooner become indissolubly connected with her whom he had sought through jealousy and obstinacy rather than love than he repented of his action, and to assuage his disappointment proceeded to squander the money his wife had brought him in the pursuit of congenial and vicious pleasures. While his wife, hurried into the marriage by a fseling of gratitude entirely uncalled for and by pressure of adventitious circumstances, soon realised the misery in which eho was involved. Left alone in the bouse day after day, and receiving no return from her husband for the love and benefits she bad bestowed upon him but consistent illusage, she gave herself up to hopeless brooding over her forlorn situation. Mr Balder, finding human nature, as illustrated by his son, more depraved than even he bad suspected, suffered a relapse, and allowed his farm to take care of itself, which was principally the kind of supervision that had brought it to its then stage of decadence. Things became so bad at last that it was borne in even on the mind of Mrs Balder that something was wrong, at which point her analysis of affairs ceased.

And so things drifted on. Mental anxiety brought on illness, and Farmer Balder, who had for some time gone about a rugged shadow of his former self, took to his bed. His malady increased and assumed a fatal character, and, after a dreary interval of mental and physical prostration, the old farmor died, hia departure darkened by the knowledge that hia ohcq splendid property was run to rnin, and that unsatisfied debtors were hovering round his door. To increase the sadness of his last moments, ho had become estranged from his son, who remained away durinpr the whole period of bia father's illness, although the latter had made friendly overtures for final reconciliation,

Mrs Balder was thus left a widow, but she was relieved of the irkßome responsibility of taking care of herself, by her friends, who took her with them.

Tfcus ends tho first epoch in the history 'of the Balder family.