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Otago Witness, Issue 2299, 24 March 1898, Page 49

THE NOVELIST. [Published By Special Arrangement.] A TORN-OUT PAGE.

JBy DOZ?J. MUSS ELL. Author of "Footprints in the Snow," "The Broken Seal," "On Golden Hinges," "A fatal Past," "A Bitter Birthright," "The Last Signal," " The Diift of Fate," " Beneath the Wave," "The Other Bond," "A Man's Privilege," etc., etc. [COPYBI'JHT.'] Chapter XL IV. "And dotli not a meeting like this make amends ? " S the ward maid turned away «;o jay that the lady saperinten- | dent would see Sir George Fairfax and Mr Tsmperley, the probability of all the patient Lad stated being true occurred feo both i he hospital officials. " Sister," eaid the ladysupericteßdent, "would you mind going to the si&ter-in- charge of ' this— this viatienfc and saying I wish her [ carried into the pay-patients' room. Lefc her i\ofc be iv any other way disturbed. Say I am coming to see the girl in a fewminutes." Sister Rouss went away at once to carry ouc the instruction. Interchange of services often took place between the staffs of the General and Maternity Hospitals when there was nothing in the matter of health to forbid it. In another minute Mr Temperley and Sir George Fairfax were in the room of the Lady Superintendent. "We have asked you to see ns, sister, under rather special circumstances," said Mr Temperley. "My Mend, Sir George Fairfax, whose wife has br-en, until quite recently, on a visit il fjpain, has had a letter of a clever young artist quoted to him by a friend of Lady Fairfax. This friend is an eminent artist. He once painted a picture of Lady Fairfax, which is now in the possession of. S>r Gsorge. Well, the ycuug artist has been allowed to make a sketch of ths hospital ward here for Loid Locgdown, and he thinks that he has seen as a patient the original of his master's (Mr Faval) picture. Now, Lady Fairfax had recently written to her husband cf her arrival in England ; and as she has not since communicated with him, you may imagine Sir Georgo'a anxiety to follow up even the vaguest hint which might lead him to his wife." " " I remember that visit of the young artist, Mr Temperley. He asked who the patient was, and was told that she was Miss Madge Medlicott. He seemed disappointed, and remarked that he saw a striking resemblance to a Madame de Vere. but he never men- : tioaed the name Fairfax." | " Has the patient herself nob mentioned j it, sister 1 " " Yes ; lam bound to say she has." Fairfax started, and, eagerly stepping towards the lady superintendent, was about to ask to be allowed to proceed to the ward once " You must lefc me prepare the patient for a visitor, sir," said the judicious matron. " And, besides, you may be entitled to inquire why no step was taken to verify her statement. The answer is that the patient came in in a state of semi-consciousness ; and that, even when rational upon other subject**, she seemed to suffer from confusion of mind as regards tbat very matter of her name. She has s>g*,in and again declared that she had read the name Isabel Fairfax on a tombstone. This, together with the fact of a patient in another hospital having described a daughter as having been with her in the accident of the 2Sth, in such terms as exactly fitted our patient, mada ua look upon ths lady's claim to be Lady Fairj fax as one of the delusions of her condition. 1 I have now directed the lady to be placed in a separate room ; and, if you will take seats, I will myself go to arrange that there is no delay about seeing her." With such patience as he could command Sir George sat down, whilst Mr Temperley chatted cheerily to him of the possibility of their being now under the same roof as Isabel. " You had better be prepared for a disag-

poinftment, my dear fellow," he said? ; " out j even then ??3 can at least decide that we i may pass on to a" ne*.7 Held of search, and ! that will savo Lime. I • ! Fairfax smiled nervously. He was listen- , ing for the returning steps of the lady super- j intendent. The entrance of a sister with a message made Sir, George start up, and again sink down, trembling and agitated. At last the matron returned. She closed the door behind her with what seemed to the impatient husband unnecessary deliberation, but met his eager looks | with a congratulatory smile. j " I sball not keep you a moment in suspense, Sir George," said she. " I bad only to mention that Sir George Ifakfax and big old friend had arrived, when the patient exclaimed, 'Mr Temperley ? ' and besought me to send you to her. I have no more doubt that our patient is Lady Fairfax." " Take me to her now ! " pleaded the yenng husband. "I will do so at once," said the lady superintendent ; " but you must be guarded as to your manner with her. She has to be kept parfectly quiet, and we are a little acxioua about the possible eff-sct of this excitement in any case. But, above all, you must be prepared for a little wandering of miod as regards that tombstone. It is the r last of her delusions, but it shows the neces- [ sity for great care still. If you are ready, j then, I will take you to— to Lady Fairfax." ! As the two gentlemen arose Mr Temperley i held out a hand, and," very heartily gripping I that of bis friend, said : i " I shall be here if you send for me ; but at first you must see Isabel alone. God blesa yon ! " j The sister went ahead, and, battling with his agitation, Fairfax stood outside the door until be heard the beloved voice say : " Yes, ye?, sister 1 I will be calm and good ; but send him in ! I cannot bear a single j instant's delay I " i Then Sir George opened the door. I The two most beautiful eyes in the whole j world were turned to welcome him. The tactful sister was already on her way to leave the apartment. She met him with a smile, only holding up a warning finger as j she passed out ; and at last — oh, at such loEg I last! — these two were alone together. i Tl c words which they uttered each in ths other's ear were sacred. The beautiful silence spoke even more eloquently-hearb to heart. Joy never kills. But as George, bending gently over fcis darling, and taking her softly in his arms, heard what she had to tell hira, it were hard to find another room ia all the kingdom which held so much happij ness. j Both-bad had ths wise warning steel advice j of the experienced sister, and they controlled their emotions for all the dearest reasons. After the first raptures of the meeting Isabel's earliest question was about Janey. This led up to Mr Temperley's presence being rcqus&tcd, and soon he too had a greeting trom iWbcl. When husband and wife wera again alone tb§y arranged to inquire as to the time and manner of the move home to Fairfax. It was decided by the doctor that, travelling in a proper invalid carriage and by short stages,, the patient might start within two days- When- that lime came she was well able to do so. Befora leaving the hot-pifcala sum quiteequal to that which Sebastian Lopez bad demanded was placed to the banking account of the institution ; ar.d in the " Fairfax Ward " many a feeble, flickering life has sines been. [ sheltered and wooed back to its proper flarae i aud strength sgaia. The earnest, loving so nls still, day by day, fight battles against 'disease and death untiringly, hardly notices!. But I do not think any happier acoiden*. will ever bring two such loving hearts together as when Kitty's clever friend levers made a sketch in a hospital ward, and told his master that he believed he had teen the ■ beautiful original of " The Gipsy Qussn." Chapter XLV. Good Helpers at Sccial Extremes. During the time that Lord Longdown's yacht remained at Biismoutb, the .party, when* not on board her, had its quarters ?l the Venturers' Hotel. It was inevitable that S ! r George and Mr Temperley should sea something of <.hat ether group. But on the morning on which the young baronet received Mr Faval's telegram, ifc was ' a curious coincidence which did not become .known to tbs principals for many aday after that young levera was actually in conversation with Sir George when the* latter nervously apologised for reading the message over again, and then abruptly broke away from the circle for tba moment to bliow it to Mr Temperley. Another minute saw the two friends in s. cab, and the driver had even by instinct guessed that his horse was to put its best leg forward. Ho was told to drive as fast as he could' r.o the Maternity Hospital. The rest we know. But how strange it was that levers should ! have been the ultimate cause of Sir Gacrge ( tracing bis wife whilst baying no idea of him J or his affair?, except in so far as they were ! both guests at the same establishment 1 On the return cf Mr TempfcrJey to the I hotel, his not having his friend Sir George Fairfax with him led to a few courteous remarks, hoping his presence was not lost to tho cempacy, These elicited an account from Mr Temperley of the circumstances under which Sir George had so eagerly hurried to tha hospital. "May I ask you what was the name of the academician who quoted his pupil's impression of the picture-model being a patient in the ward?" said Lord Longdowc. A merry smile had flitted about; the face of levers during all the story. Before Lord Longdown could receive an answer from Mr Temperley, the questioner bad glanced up and oaught the look of amusement. " Why, that reminds me, cousic," said the peer, " you were at one of the hospitals yesterday to sketch a ward. Can it have been you who sent a report to your master ? " " The name of the R.A. is Faval," said Mr Temperley " Then there, in my cousin levers, you see the pupil who so cleverly saw the likeness to • The Gipsy Queen,' " said Lord' Longdown. Mr Temperley sprang to his feet to shake hands with the lucky fellow. And when Sii | George, having reluctantly left Lady Fail-fas foe the night, came back to Bleep at th<

| Venturers'! levers was led up In triumph and[ (need ifc be said ?) received^ the overflowing thauVs of Sir George. ! About the hsppiest young fellow in Bris- , mouth that evening was levers when a letter j from Kitty was "put in his hand. It was couched -in the most moderate language, and, of course, it came from a wife. But it so sweetly expressed contrition, "by the desire of the admiral," for any discourtesy of which he had reason to complain afc her hands that leverß very foolißblyread ill I over several times, and at last kissed it. To ! that went a reply, assuring Mrs Dundaß thafe she need not give another thought to tha matter. It was such a letter as cculd be and was shown to the admiral ; and it only confirmed! that officer in his view that Mr levers was a very charming young man. It modestly told; Kitty that it was owing to his having seen "The Gipsy Queen" in the hospital ward ; that she would soon hear more of her neigh- ' bour, Lady Fairfax. ! For this happy accident Kitty never ceased to praise levers, and she ultimately rewarded him with at least as much appreciation as , the admiral could have desired for him. We I shall see I j Another person who heard with great; de- ! iighfc of Lady Fairfax'e discovery was Mra Hitchin — shs who will be remembered as having had Isabel' as a lodger under the ) name of " Mrs De Vere," before she wa3 1 abducted by Sebastian Lopez. No kinder-hearted man than Mr Faval, ttio R.A., ever broke bread. He bad never forgotten the deep solicitude cf worthy Mrs Hitchin for Isabel's safety. And when a full i tale of the finding, with eager expressions of gratitude for the message which he had I sent, cams to Faval, he loHt no time about ; driving over to Mrs Hitchin's hotel- and tellI ing her all about " Mrs Be Vere " being now ; safe and happy and with her loving husband. ! " Ob, I thank God this day ! " said the j honest creatme, wiping tears of emotion and i happiness from her eyes, " that no injury haa ! been done to the dear, sweet young lady. I j have seen all sorts and sizes of people, Mr ' ; Faval. I was brought up in the servants' ! quarters of a very big county gentleman. I know gentlefolks when I see them, and for . true gentleness — for the courage to be familiar with those under your orders, because, you have no fear of beingr mistaken for anyone less than you are — give me the pure English young lady. Next after her — and. with not a heap of difference between them — is the young foreign-bred lady who has a love for painting, or else for music or sculping or something of the same sorfc. Now, sir, Mrs De Vere had just about equal shares of the two. To think of her sweet, kind eyes being new bent on her husband — and she not killed for the lovely diamond watcb ! " 11 Yes, Mrs Httcbin, I believe that has been your fear from ths first — that she would be murdered by robbers for her watch." " And it is a gift, I suppose, from her husband. Mr Da Vere ?" f " Ob, her husband's came is not Mr -Da I Vere. She is Isabel, Lady TTairfax, of Fairfax; in Midmorelandshire." Mrs Hitcbin took her handkerchief away from' her, ejes and uttered a gasp of surpriea. " Sir," she whispered, " did n I hear you "aright 1 Am I a-dreamiDg, or did "you say thai; dear Mrs Do Vere is—is Lady Fairfax, of Fairfax ? " • "That; is indeed tiue, Mre Hitchin. Do you recognisa the name 1 " " Recognise the name, Mr Faval 1 Sir, in these arms did I nurse Sir Grenville Fairfax's little welcome son and heir. I did, indeed. Sorry I wjw that they decided to name him anything but Grenville after his father. Bat they wished to pay a compliment te bis uncle George, who left him a large strongroom fall of silver. Only think of it ! Mra De Vete tha wife of my little foster child I ' " Not only that, Mra Hitchin, but, don't you see, if yon h?.d not taken her in I could not have painted her portrait. It was by the picture that I came to meet Sir George. Aad it was by Mr levers " " A dear sweet gentleman the C4ame, sir." "By bis recognition of the likeness that Lady Fairfax was found." "Eh ! but. ifc is wonderful ! " And Mrs Hit chin swayed from side to side, i no doubt meditating upoa the smaliness of } the world. & It is pleasing to be able to record that nob veiy many weeks after that convergatiot Mrs Hitchin was an hononred gaest at JFairfax ; and although she found it difficult at first to •' my lady "the " Mrs De Vere* of the King's ! Croso' days,' she ultimately got right upon ' that matter sooner than she did about her I error in speaking of Sir George as " Sir Gren.,.vi11e." . , • Chapter XLVI. The Grouping Before the Curtain. When Mrs Winchelsea heard that the admiral had bar} a very severe fall amongst the woodbines over the arbour on the evening of her call with her Jiance, iv is sad to kave i to relate that she said . " Then serve Kirn right. If he had been i commonly civil to us, and stayed in to enterlain up, he would not have sprained his prei ( cicus ankle." : I Even when she learned that the accident 1 was more severe than it had been thought by the local practitioner — a London surgeon detecting a fracture near the joint— she merely uttered some unsympathetic grunts. Bub when &he heard of high fever and some danger from gout, which was taking an irregular course, she was more concerned than one might have expected. Kitty proved to be an admirable, a tireless nurse. Something appears to have attracted her to all that concarned sick nursing and hospitals, aud when levers called to inquire for the admiral he was astounded to find that the young wife bad even donned a nurse's cap and the biggest housemaid's i apron she could get. Bat everybody was astonished at the effect of a few days' confinement to bed on the admiral. His form appeared to shrink; a 1 peculiar sallowness took the place of his manly colour ; he aged at the rate of at least i six years a day, and when Mr Featherstona > was ushered into the sick room there wan very special "verve" in the manner in, i which be exclaimed c " Why 1 bless my soul 1 I had no idea !" t The fact is the rector had never ceased t<j i miss his bright little Kitty. His cvm mat*

riage had been a nature 1 , ¥»h.olesouie compact, in which wera included health, B.ympathy, and euitabla ages. He had not too cordially welcomed Admiral Dandaa'a attentions to any one of his dear children. He bad the repugnance of all clean and robust people to the cosmetic arts by which is produced any* of the false appearances of youth. But especially did. this repugnance apply to such practices in men. And tha mincing old msn, so little resembling the popular idea of the* English admiral, with his dyed and greased, hair, his ecented pocket handkerchief, and his affectation of all youthful ways, was by no means a welcome suitor for the hand of any of his girls. But whilst the rector was trying to reconcile himself to allowing Janey to be the mistress of Heathfield, the old fop had been fixing what he called his affections upon the rector's beloved Kitty. Id was disgusting. No ; the rector had never become reconciled to it. J Too honest to pretend a satisfaction which ,' he did noc feel, the rector had not gone { much to Heathfield. He bad' heard with wonder of Kitty's seeming content with the life she had to live ; but he did not care to be a. witness of it. Now, therefore, when duties of office aa well as relationship compelled him to visit the sick room, he was absolutely unprepared, for the ghastly change the admiral's appearance. Mrs. Fo&therstone, too, came to see what comfort or help- she could he to Kitty. , She did not feel it necessary to see the sick old. man. But one thing forced itself into her mind, and was ever after a j>y and pride to her. She saw for -herself that Kitty was full .of pity, patience, and a kind o£ affection for the man she bad married. Love is of go many sorts ! We love when we are young those to whom we feel pityingly, because they seem.to us to have none of the- joys with which our own blood bounds. We love the deformed, the helpless, the ailing in body and mind. There is the love of pity, too, for those even whom we cannot esteem. And the fact is we have the benefits of love for the very reason that lova has so many shapes. One form rewards us for our having felt the other. Nothing is more common in society than tq,~find some sensible man, eligible in the eye* of those who, like himself, have never felt the pinch of narrow means, who passes by possible alliances in his own class to j offer his ail of love and home and honour to some pure and unselfish girl whose tender -discharge of duty to those depending upon her he has noticed. Such a case, as we know, was that of Mr Temperley's- proposal to Jane Featherstone. A more perfectly happy and satisfactory union of hearts, and lives never took place. Yet even Mrs Featherstone herself bad hardly- hoped for stfch dulifulriesa as little Kitty had ever displayed towards her old, but not venerable, husband. Mothers are, perhaps, more ambitious for their daughters in the question, of matrimony than fathers ; and whereas the rector winced when a visit to Heathfield was suggested, Mrs Featherstone had frequently gone over tor a day with her darling. On such occasions she bad found-the philosophical Kitty quite willing to smile over the admiral's attempted deceptions in the cos- - metre line. What was it to her 1 She was a kind-hearted girl. It pleased her to see her husband pleased. " Ob, mother," she one day said, " I was po iorry for the admiral this morning ! He ! thought I had gone downstairs at my usual j lime, acd, coming to my dressing room for his keys, which I had mo&t carelessly forgotten to return to him over night, he hurried into my august preser cc without his teeth, his rouge, or his wig. Fortunately he ■was in his soft slippers, and I was standing at my glass, in which alone I saw him. By the greatest good fortune I was singing-as I put up my back hair, and although he uttered a faint exclamation, I had the nerve to go on with my dressing and my song without seeming to see him. He evidently thinks that I did not notice him, and blesses . the slippers accordingly ! How funny he Looked. You know, mam, he likes me to believe in the whole bag of tricks — the roses and the eyebrows not more than the manly bosom and the pearly teeth. I don't suppose it is a crime to let him think I did not see him — otherwise, lßt us say — this morning, is It, mater ? " Kitty had never had a secret from her mother. She asked her at their very first meeting after Mr levers bad appeared upon fche scene if she had seen him at the rectory. She' graphically described the tableau at the moment of the curtsey, and the admiral's high opinion of hisnew admirer. " I am afraid this young gentleman is a bit of a. humbug \ " said Mr 3 Featberstone,wiping away the tears of laughter. " But he has our Ned's f;ocd opinion after six yeare of BOhool-life together, and I am inclined to

think he .must be a good feliow. There are people, dear, who are thoroughly sincare, although they find, as by instinct, the right and the pleasant thing to say. ' Old Dobbles ' ia like that." " That's what ths admiral save, mater," said Kitty; and thero the topic closed. Bat all fchase merrily philosophical conferences, ia which Ki^ty always talked her own particular slang, with never an illnatured word, ceased when the doctor's next. report was handed in. A' first the. worst thing had bean the admiral^ impatience at not being allowed to sis up to devote the usual attention to his toilet. Oa the third day' of his confinement to bed, be ssked the nurse, who had been sent in by direction of the physician, for a hand glass. When he saw tho disrepair into which all his aids to nature had fallen, he moaned wearily. Thencefor- 1 ward he never appeared to make aa effort, j or take any interest in the progress of his cass. * The doctor's report was that the gout by which he had been attacked bad taken a stronger and more dangerous hold upon him. At last all pain ceased ; and thep~hysiciansgaid the end was only a question of days. Kitty, wonderfully steadied by the position in which j this illness had placed her, and able to treat j him with a respect, in his natural appear- i ance as an aged man, whicblsha conkl hardly-! do when he was appearing aa a hilly old fop, now narsed him with zeal, ictelligeuce, acd affection, Bat neither skill nor tenderness could ward off the end. It came after two cr three flicker in gs of hope, and it was actually found that Kitty had worn herself out in her care of her old husband. For several weeks shs was an invalid herself. • It appeared that tbtt late Admiral Ducdas i had no relatives -who wished to be present at j his funeral. At the reading or the will it j was found that Kitty had been left sole | legatee of all the admiral had to bequeath. J When she was down and about again the ', rector came on a visit to her ; and although she was decidedly solemnised in manner, " she yet allowed her dear dad's words of praise and blessing for her loyal and faithful discharge of duty" as a wits t o cheer her very considerably. She had, indeed, little even to reproach herself for — if we say nothing of a parting or two with the young artist to whom the admiral had wished her to be so civil. Chapter XLVII. Mrs Winchelsea Wins. Mrs Winchelsea had done many clever and tactful things is her life, but nothing bad' j ever redounded to the credit of her charity, j her social instinct, or her discrimination sc much as the line she took as regards Lady Fairfax. It were useless to pretend that the case of Isabel had escaped ths adverse comment of those who iive, like the Athenians of old, ' to hear or to tell some new thing. To be dowered with beauty is to be placed upon a throne on which a very fiarce light beats. If to that too-of ten fatal gilt be added Ihe eort of history which was told at the county ball, it is not wonderful that the local gossips had something to talk about. No le?s so was it after Isabel had won the love of almost the most eligible parii in the county. Bat when Lidy Fairfax disappeared so abruptly, and the gossip of servants bad made everyone aware of the foim of the disappearance, the fact that Sir George spoke of his wife as away on a visit, and silenced discussion by reference to her family affairs in Spain, did little to lay the dußt of chatter. At last things arrived at a climax. Dolly Ayres, viciously disappointed ab the reception given to her report of the rumour about Isabel having been seen at the scene of the murder, took the French maid, whom Sir George had discharged with a quarter's wages, into her confidence ; and as soon as it was quifca certain that no money was to be | made oufc of Isabel's friends, these two deterj mined to have such enjoyment out of the spreading of the story as they chose to find therein. It was at the very point where the admiral ceased, demonstratively, to defend the reputation of the girl whom be had once spoken of by his own name that Mrs Winchelsea took up the cudgels in her defence. " I know the whole story, my friend," she would say in a confidential tone which carried weight with it. "I knew Sir George well enough for him to tell me some of it, and the [ rest I found out myaelf 1 " Ths admiral's relationships in Spain were cot illustricu3. He undoubtedly married Isabel's mother for her property. I see no harm in that. But it was a part of his selfish plot to keep the daughter at a distance from her .T-ther. And it was while she was away f ronj her natural home that she got into the i Biuanfiiement which, baa marred tier life. As'

she has told all about it to her husband it ia no concern of ours. . " Bub whether or no, I say that Isabel Fairfax i« a good woman, and her future position in the county will be unassailable. She has been persecuted by a wicked and unscrupulous Spaniard. Her foreign education prevented her perceiving how foolish it would be to fear him in England. She was chivalrous ; and she was in love with her husband. To save him any of the shame and annoyance she herself had, she decided to go away. "Bat it will one day be seen that her life i was free of blame either aa regards her complicity in the murder of the Spandiard or her manner of leaving her home. " Mark my words — Lady Fairfax will one day return to Midmorelandshire unstained 1 " Not long after Mrs Winchelsea 'a prophecy had been most tfC.otively uttered, a telegram came fco Mrs Teaiperley which told of her safe finding, of the death of her persecutors, and of her early home-coming in all honour. The pathos of the occasion was increased by the fact that the poor unpopular admiral had so ungenerously absolved himself from. all. responsibility for ths career cf a girl whom ho had introduced, to local society. Sir George's loyal love, Isabel's sufferings, and perhaps not a little her present state of health, did much to soften all hearts toward^ her; and it was conveyed to the French maid and Miss Dolly Ayres that they would be well advised to. discontinue their slanderous talee. At last came the letter of Sarah Kingeley, in which the murder was explained. In the revulsion of feeling which follows in' the generous popular heart any conscious- ■ ness'of having done an injustice to an innocent person Lady Fairfax became a county favourite, and her home-coming was awaited with generous and affectionate expectancy. But; tha person who benefited most by the j new aspect of raattera was tho clear-sighted J-ride-eleci;, Mrs Winchelsea, sines the popular Mrs Ipswich. Only the readers of this tale have ever heard that in the., despair aud ignorance of her youth Isabel had left her. stepfather's dcoE with the intention in her mmd — the weapon wag even in her hand — of doing tho deed wtich she had found already accomplished. (To be continued, )