XXXIV. CLAUDE'S SACRIFICE.

Otago Witness, Issue 2732, 18 July 1906, Page 84

XXXIV. CLAUDE 'S SACRIFICE.

By Lads Cattdli.

(Specially written for Special Subject Week, 1906.)-

Iv a low red brick house just out of & srsia-11 village in Devonshire lived two old maids, Mips Betty and Miss Hachael, and their niece, Effie Campbell' by name-. The latter was a small slip of a gixl, with large blue eyes and laveiy golden hair, wbicfa. hung in small ringlets around her shapely head. Her aunts had brought her up in perfect simplicity. She was- only 17 r but had no" foolish, romantic ideas, a* most girls of that' ago have. One thing her aunts had taught her was to hate the master of Trevlyn Hold, who h«d for years been travelling orv the Continent with his 1 mother. One? day, as Effie was in the woods close to- her home, ' she. heard a- shot, and almost at fh& same, time * groan, as of a strong- man in great agony. She- ran involuntarily to the spot whence th& sound come, and* these- sa£- a. man with, his coat off and ~bloos trickling down hia aim. He was tall, dsnk-, and very handsome. Effie took this all in in » glance. She went up to him. and with Ma handkerchief bound up a wound on the fleshy part of his arm. All this time he- never spoke, only watched her with kindly brown: eyes, lie" then rose to- his feet, and said:

"I suppose you do not know whom you have helped?" She said th«t she did 1 Hot know, hut the could not bear to se» anyone in pain. "You will find out sooner or later, ' said he, "so I may as well tell you my name is Claude Trevlyn, master of the Hold." He noticed how »h« shrank as he mentioned his name. He turned: to hex with an angry frown on his face, and said: "They have j>lso told you that story. But never mind, you will get used to hear such ta-le3 about me, but take my word for it, I am not so bad as people say I am." Effie turned and said, "I am so sorry."

"TheTO is no need to be sorry for me. I am used to such accidents," and with that ho turned' on his heel and disappeared into tho woods. Kffo ran hems and told her aunts all that had happened. They were very angry,, and. tokl her not ta mention it to. anyone in tlie. villo"^ s>n.<J not to speak to thai, nmn r-gaia, as" Mrs TrGvlyn, li&d aeen. there, and. I had confided in them, telling how ha was. i treating his brother Dick in London. It must be known that Dickr was .Claude's' only bi other, being four years his junior, and had bees in London gambling andsquandering money for two or three years. He had always written to his mother; Eaying he was so busy that he could not join them in their travels, as Claude was getting meaner than ever, and he scarcely got a. penny from him now, and had just to live on his own eornings. Claude never troubled to conrradicT these letters, as his* mother would not have believed that he had paid Dick's gambling debts until he had not a. penny left, nor that Dick was at present in the- neighbourhood, and had tried that very afternoon to- shoot Claude. But he kept this from his mother, aa he had promised his father on bis deathbed that he would not break his mother's heart by letting her know what z scoundrel Dick was. It must be said he had faithfully kept his promise, for he had shielded his brother's name at the cost of his own. I'or all the wrong Dick had done he always, gave Claude's name instead, of his own, for the tw-O' were very much alike, and no one for a moment thought it was Dick that was the rogue. Almost every day Clauie met Effie— at first by chance, and then by appointment, until she- became a very part of his existence. One day he asked her if sho- would; marry him if ho ever got the chance to clear his name. She promised, and told him she would be proud to be called his wife, even if he never cleared his name, for she did ■ not believe what people said against hint. - It was then that he told her all his troubles', telling her at the same time not to mention it to his mother, as she- was very weak, and could not stand excitement. H« asked her, too, to visit hia mother as ofteHf as she could, and try to cheer her up, aashe had caught a. chill while out driving; . and the doctor did not think she would recover. She had written to Dick asking;, him to com© home, but he had aiwayjs put itir off wih some plausible excuse-

Effie went to the Hold almost) every day, until at last the doctor told her to get Trevlyn co write to his brother and tell him to come at once, as hia mother was continually asking for him, and sh« had

only a few -days to live at the most. Claude wrote, and sent a cheque for £50, beseeching him to -come, as his mother had such faith in Tiim J «nS she would die happy if he would come.

When Dick Received this letter an oath escaped his iips, and his accomplice, Morris, who -was in "Uie Toom -with him, asked him what was wroog. Dick «xplained all about th» letter, «nd an 'evil smile crossed Morris's face «s he e*kl: "The yery thing: I shall go to-night and do away -with Claude before the anoniing, aad you come up with the next.*tain, and no one will suspect you or Morris did as was planned; but Claude had -sent a telegram to l>kk to come «t once, as Mb mother *ras dying. Of course Dick came -with is earlier train than Morris expected him. As no one was at the station there -was nothing for it but to -walk to the Hold. Erne, seeing him walking up the drive, and taking him for Claude, nan down to meet him. When she leached the veranda she saw hisn lying there dead, and cried in a voice of great agony, "Oh, Claude!" Just as the cry escaped her lips Claud© himself caane up. When he saw Dick lying there shot through the heart he could only say: "Poor Dick! Killed by his own weapon. I have no doubt that this -was meant for xne; • his accomplice- must have taken him for me."

The nurse flien eaxne clown, and told Claude that "his mother was asking for Dick, and -thai «he had «nly a few moments to live. When £3*a<le heard this he made up his mind to go in Dick's place, .so as to let Ma mother -die happy. Dick and his mother were -burned in the .same grave three days .'later, and, Claude was free to clear his name.

Whea the news leached the village that Clause had taken sdl the blame of Tiis brother's -wrongdoing iox nis mother's sake the people were astounded, and most of them .said, "Well, I for one could hardly credit that such a, nice iellow as the Master of the Hoia could "be as black as he was painted." ' Shortly afterwards CJaude and 1 Effie were married. Ko*r the corridors of Trevlyn Hold ring with the happy laughter of their children.