THE DREAM AND THE MAN.

Timaru Herald, Volume LXXXII, Issue 12845, 1 December 1905, Page 2

THE DREAM AND THE MAN.

SERIAL STORY,

(By Mrs L. Baillie Reynolds.)

CHAPTER X.—(Coctinued.) Moving . like one in a trance, Honor 'aiechanically made tea. and drank it, her eyes on the letter, wondering lest it should vanish away and prove but a- dream. But there it stayed. When she had- finished her meal, and .her head, was a. trifle stronger, she took her .hat, with the idea, of going at once to the Harveys ; then quite suddenly an idea came to .her—a whole plan.' It rushed upon her mind,, detail alter aetail shaping itself to her excited imagination. ; les, this should be her own affair,- her; own throughout.. " We. will have no more: intermediaries,"• she ; murmured to herself, j "This is between us two."

She sat down, wrote a short note to Messrs Hazell and Bland, telling them that she should call' upon them at ten o'clock next morning, and a line to Madame Cormne. saying- that she must unavoidably be kite next, da.y at business.; -bub would make up. the,.time.in the evening; and then settled herself down' to 'reading' and work, and went to bed with few outward or visible signs-'Of the excitement which was drivinoher like a strong wind. ° : She easily found, the offices of the Torbnta solicitors' agent's, aid'.smiled'to herself as she knocked at the doon at the thought of her first.visit to a solicitors office, and of the maiiHvho had waited for her there. She'took with her her certificate of baptism; and her marriage-'ines. and oxplained to the gentleman that, she was mar-' ned since the period when Mr Harvey-.bad made enquiries about her. There were people both at New Gross and Penn-e who could identify her; perhaps the matron of the hospital in. East .London she had dragged through.'the'weary weeks of her long, illness would.be the" most easv to find/ '.She..explained the destitution"into winch she had and quite convinced tLe.;kv.yei;s i^a.t'--sha.'.was the person she pretended (p beV by .correctsv giving .'the name, of Edgar Gray's .farm" in England, and the year, in whicL Jie emigrated, with various details of his 'personal appearance which her vivid memory had treasured, " ; The. money was hers, "they told her. quite unconditionally,'»nd" she. could ba put into possession of it as; soon as her identity was formally established.

- "Then," said Honor. '\l shall want vou to act for me ia a, matter of business" as soon as possible.. -My husband should have been heir, to a small estate, in Hertfordshire, Which was willed to a distant cousin., who is anxious, to sell it. My husband is'very fond of the place,, juid .was- ciuelly -'disappointed at not inheriting it:.' Ishould like to buy it, if you please, at- onca for him." .The lawyer suggested that her husband had better come and' explain matters to tiern.' Ho:-.or smiled at- him. as she shook her head,, and said, that Mi Morrow was in Africa, unable : to stop in England, on account of his poverty. She then entered into particulars- regarding, Dellthorpe, and asked if they would be. wiL'ing. to actas her solicitors in the matter. They were only too pleated to do so. and listened with no small degree r.f interest as she: explained that ner special stipulation was- that her name should not appear in the transaction, and that it should be conducted with as great speed as was- consistent with, discretion, i

' I wish to make a. deed of- giit of ft to my lhisb*ml,." said slie,. '"and also of as much Inone .is can be spared after the- payment of tl»-.-. -vrckase-money. I have special reasons fo; isKng to do this-; -.and as tiia money is . mine, I can do as I p:eas *f V 1 ' " r3nd to lcce P five thousand pounds fo- ;::v?elf, and to make over the whole of _'';e vest absolutely to-hiui; and if. you ,^t=. : jot: make these arrangements for me.. I suall be obliged; though with great ;regret., to go to some other tmn "who wilL"' .:'. ■ > - .. ■

Jniertfioa.- necessitated n 2r«at deal of talking and argument list ween' herself and .Jlr Bland. Jhe had to declare explicitly .why she specially wished the Harveys ■■not to know of her sudoen access io>-.. Thev -ivill veiy hkelr know eventually, 'she said; but if I tell them now. thev are sure to tell him—my. kusk-nd—and I most particularly do not wish him to know from whom the gift comes. I should like you "to write to. him by the first mail that is possible, enclosing a. cheque for his passage home. ;vnd telling him that the negotiations for the purchase, of the property are on foot, and that you hope, when he hinds in.England, to be able to hand him the titledeeds. Please to ascertain immediately the price asked for De'Khorpe, to send down a thoroughly reliable person to inspect it. and tell you wlfat it- is'worth, and to find out on what day I could go and see it myself.'* '

'" ion are very business-like for mi youm* a lady. Mrs;'. Morrow."' said the pWas.-.sl-lookins lawyer, with a smile. " I have had' to think- for myself a good deal. Poverty is a hard teacher, but ai thorough one." she said. ' "Wall," he. said, "you have had the hist of her lessons, let- us hope. And now let us go into the question of securities." The long convMs-ttioii ended in his going down with her to New' Cross, and !»tsrview-irg-'Mrs Carter and Mrs Gow. and'also Mrs Nevill. the wife of -the vicar, who Imdly recognised 'her old parishioner at- first. Thence they went to the hospital. wheTe matron, nurse, and wavd-sister alike uuit-ed to congratulate the heroine of -such'-•;a ro-' mance. It was past two o'clock when she hastened to Mad:!nie Corinue's. and. drawing her aside whispered to her that the reason of her absence was that she had got a little legacy, and had been to see the lawyer about ir. . . The exact amount they could not tell at: present: hut in answer to urgent enquiries as to whether it • would ' be likely to be as much as five hundred pounds, she answered that she- thought it might be a bit or:-!-! However.--she did not" want to leave madams just now in the drive of the season. ' R!:-2 could stop a month, at to <r;ve rc:-:dair>e time to turn sound. "You're a god girl," said madam:., who had been bred and born wiikin sr;u::d '.f Bow Bells. c " Yov.'re a givl. and TilJ't's iV-r- t:-'-V; - ;, n ' yfj,, tnau vv.r xi. hundred ov so into the busii"e«*. It 'ucl-nay you 10 per cent.!" It was not possible to cable a

sufficiently distinct massage to Alan; so they would have to wait the weary while tl.at it took for a letter to reach the Cape and a traveller to return. But there were compensations. The purchase of Dellthcrpe could not be completed in a moment, and when it was. she had determined to. spend a certain sum upon modernising drainage, etc., which the surveyor described as urgently needed. She determined to work against time, and laid, her plans with the utmost care and thought. She did not want to give up her present work,' nor to do anything which would cause comment, until" the Harveys left town; and she could hardly conceal her joy the following Sunday when she learned that, in consequence of Mildred's having ( felt the heat exceptionally, they had taken k. ho.use at Hindhead for the month of July. >-,, " You nrnst come down for week-ends, said Mrs Harvey, as she sat languidly in the coolest -corner of the breathless drawing-room, on one of the hottest Sundays of that hot season.

"I don't expect I shall get much in the way of week-ends yet." said Honor. "Wc are simply driven; a huge batch of orders j came in yesterday for this grand reception of the Kaiser, -which is more or less unexpected. I wonder how Corinne keeps her head; she said yesterday that if I deserted her she should go mad.' "We are so disappointed to-day," went on Mildred; " I feel quite de-pressed. I hardly know .whether I ought to tell you or not, but I feel as if I must tell somebody. Edmund wrote;, a; couple of months back, to jQitn, offering kirn the post of head-clerk in his office, if he would take it, and sending him' bis passage money. He writes to day that he thinks it is.best for him" not to come back. He has a chance of doing fairly well where he is, and he would not like to deprive you; of your only friends it impossible" for you to come here without the risk -of meeting him." Honor's pulses bounded. She was obliged' to wait quite a perceptibly moment before replying, lest her voice should sound unnatural. ''Does he say that " she said at last. *" : Mrs Hervey was too preoccupied to notice the lame, answer, the obvious.. <uabarrassment. ; "You may read the letter," she.went on, holding it out. The "girl shrank ' back. "No, thanks; I am sure the writer never intended ins to read it. if ha wcnisd ta write to me, he could, he kiwws my address." " -.'. ■" ■

" I expect he thinks you wochb send it back unopened." "By the way, Mildred, I -ougut. *s> tell you that I have moved from KiithtrS Ter:race," slowly said Honor, s" "Moved!* What is that for?" " The room was expensive," saiduhe.- girl. " Have you found cheaper ?'.' " Rather." • " You had better give me your, ng-.v. address while you think of it." There was a pause. Mildred looked up. "Don't you want, me to know your address!" • ■" " I don't mind your knowing, it.? "I am not likely to tell any one: else,, if that is whiit you mean." ."If you will promise.' "Certainly I promise. I wish you would come and sit down. Honor ;. yojiviaiakii. mq, so restless reaming up and down the room like that." " One gets the breeze." said Honor. " and I have so much sitting still all the week. Mildred, who is this man with the b?g beard on the cabinet here? I„ have nanex seen the photo before. I believe he is a Morrow; his eyes are like . . . n.v husband's." "It is your husbard before he siit off his beard. I found it in an album shy other day, and put it out to slunv you. 1 wanted to see if you would rcr::gnfse him; he looks ?o different, doesn't, he.?" "Yes," said Honoi faintly. It was lucky that .Mildred, havir.g j as! implored her to sit. down, took «., notice of her sudden collapse into the ncaiest <Jmr. She knew the face now: it was Hit- Mai of her dwaiu ! . .

CHAI'TKR XII. It was j* the end of the'firs; werf; in Juiy that Hugo Denver came buck to. town fulJ of excitement of that curiously fascinating sense of anticipation, of mystery, of breath* less interest, which is known "as romam*. He meant to find out all about the woman who had had power so to touch his heart and fire his imagination. If .she were, as he could not help suspccUn-r, Alan's wife legally, only, there should b\i a way out of the, tangle somewhere': there was a formidable ..obstacle, but/one, not impossible to be. surmounted. Ainu, might be bought off, or might die-in Africa—lie had a vague idea,, unsupported by evidence,, that he was in the a" thousand things might happen; and when he reached his rooms j:e found that, one thing had actually happened : there was aj) oifer to buy Dellthcrpe. • ( He went a:.;', once and intui viewed Messrs Hazel! and Inland, and there was some discussion between them ::*-, to the desire of the purchaser to remain anonymous. Hugo was inclined to be arrogant,, and to ask for many guarantees. As many as be demanded were kstantiy forthcoming. The intending purchaser wy.s willing to enter into an agreement never to seTto any future purchaser without guarantee that the Xilate should not be .cut, up. The intention was pledged to be simp!}' that of private residence, and the payment should be made, if preferred, entirely in Bank of England notes. It was his first real chance to sell, and he could not back out because of this curious fact that he did* not know with whom he was treating. The whole affair was settled out of hand, and Honor, long before could have believed it possible, found herse'f ■•mistress, actually mistress, of her husband's ancestral property. This accomplished, Hugo repaired in g:eat satisfaction to Prince's Equate, to lir.il thai the Harveys were in the country for the month of July. In many respects this did net fit in with his plans, for it. was the outplace in wh'.eh he cculd meet Honor or. neutral ground. He frowned on the caretaker who appeared in lieu of "the immaculate f.'iisby, and sauntered away in disgust. To discover Honor's whereabouts w,:.s the nextmove. He tried waitins up and down lioad street one evening, with no effect but to think himself the object of curiosity to the nussers-by. Then he -.Tent In a detective, gave a minute account of Honor, and ex-

plained that he wanted her sh:. -Sowed Jmr.ie. The man came, alter three day>. ior-ay that no young lady in the least ;uiV..-ering to Mi Dei.yer's description, liad eu.ei'ged from Maaame Curinnes premises, lue msi rute was suggested by the detective: lie called 0:1 Madame Ouinnc with an a!ie":cd 3iak bill, and boldly asked for M*> Morrow's present address* Madame answered t-imply that Mrs Morrow was no lunger iu her employment, and she did 1:0: k:mv her address.

Then Hugo began to believe that ULs own stupidity in wasting his time m Ascot and Henley had caused him to !0.-j his one, chance. Had she real'y disipjie-iria! S.ie could not have gone tar. he .-i-giied with himself; she must bo in London.' Sun bad no money ; she must be working somewhere. The fact that he hud no photo of l,cr. ai;d did not beiievc that there was sui-:i a thing in existence, made it. very dhfieuii to <*ei detectives to find her. more especial'y as the nnin he employed seemed l« quite misunderstand the character and motives of the young lady in question, and would hnn<t looked for her in plaies where si.e could not possibly be. He passed a miserable week of hesii.-■::< v and doubt. The Harveys. of course, knew, where she was :■ but if she did not wish him to know, they doubtless would not !<••] him. However, he" casually called in .1! Lincoln's Inn to tell Mr Harvey of the silc 01 I,V:'thorpe. "I expect you lind it pretty good at Hindhead these dog-days?" he reinarcd in conrse of conversation. "Is Mrs Morrow spending her holiday with you'.'" " Holiday ?Xo ! Mildred* wanted her to come down last week, but this Madainu l";i----rinne keeps iter so busy that she his not' time: it was three davs before she even answered the letter. The girl will overwork ijei-seif she is not strong." Hugo had learr.t much. He did not again refer to Honor, bsit sat awhile pondering. The girl was gone, and for some unexplained reason she had nos told the Harveys; she had disappeared com- -, pletely, tUough. her letters were evidently] forwarded. Why and wheie was she gone"?! He was hopelessly baffled. - There seemed \ nothing to- do but relinquish his pursuit < until the autumn, when the Harvey* would! be back in town, and she presumably would S return also. " I

One wiid idea crossed lib mind, which was that slm might have gone out to her husband. He sat so silent that Edmund ■ Harvey looked curiously at una over me top: of, his spectacles. :;- "I was,not surprLsed to see you to-cby," he said: "I thought you might lock ;.*:.* in connection wkli this sale of Delkhoqw. " "You have, heard o£ it already, thea!" The lawyer suiiled. " Yes, I had icdeed. M.:y 1 a&k the ntuue of the purchaser. Hugo explained that the purchaser had preferred not to divulge his name: b:i: ;that the tiim was a thoroughly leliable ■one., the guaranties sound, the price se- ' cure. " I think I can tell yuu why they preferr>ed to keep dark." went on Mr Harvey. >iill ! smiling.. ~tii««iigh who they are is as great a pu7.z!e to :sie as t> you." " What d<-\ you mean! JSpeak cut'." crkd 'Hugo. " Wha; s«li->u!«l yen- say if you heard that tin. i>!<.ivv:v haa been bomjtit Kr ; Alan Mortal -' Hug.. st.utrd. "Well. I should h:ive ::o objection." }-.,: said ,s'.«\tly. "a> lor.- a> 1 got the ujkuov. IJat how could Mo: row afford ii .-'" " I iaiu-y be mu.«i have h.ul a >:r«k<j of luck." replied Mr lUrvcv. " Hut a cable .-ays .v. little. Here* is whit he >ent- me. He ought to be home in a ifortuigiu." He laid a cable message upon the table Wfou Hugo. " l3e:ll::oipu Utjiie. Cheviot ■ Morrow." " j "Of cour>e." slowly said Hug>. "hr I would instinct another til ai. because he I would think 1 .shuiild guess at once ii you j bad the business. Uut v. hv should 1 "not | guess? Why should he think 1 would j bt unwilling to sell to him?" "I suppose he thought y<.u were his enemy -that yon behaved hadlv about the] will, and that yon would do him over this if ;»n.u o.;i!d. especially as he couid «<«: j be i'!i the spi:." \ " 1 cannot see that 1 behaved badly i ab cii the will. I knew that my uKcfei could leave him nothing, and I did n-1 ] kiuiv. of Mrs Moriow's existence. If am--i one was to blame, i; was vourseif. Mr Harvey, if you will tVtjiv.- mv savin- >1( . Why did you not let my uncle know t,:\ Alan's as socn "a« v;.u knew «}'" it yourself?" * ;

- The voting nian spoke with ? smile (hi; was hard in,- the other to bear. " Weii." he said. " it is best to leave :ul that: it is now over. But I think his easy to urn!; island why Alan should no; have wished you to know that vou weie dealing with h'm " "1 am quite willing to let it all \>? over and done wiih-for the present." *oid Hugo quietly. " Hut tliere may come .-« time when I shall !:nd it necessary to remind you of the part vou took in iringir? the marriage about; "it may possibh- he of impoi lance some day." M.- Harvev looked "up. "Is- that a threat *•" "A ilueatT I hardly understand y<-n." paid Hugo very po'ilelV. "iW the "way. M:s .\foiro\v surely need not lie working so hard when her "husband is on his way home. having bought an estate for her!"- " Mrs Morrow is independ'ert: she is n<-.? under my jurisdiction." ren'led th* lawyer. " She must .be delighted to think she will see him so soon." wen. on Hugo. "I think I must call and congratulate her. . She has changed her lodgings. I believe?" "Yes: she thought them too exj>ensive. I understand." ! "What is her present address?" asked Hugo, rising and smoothing his hat with a, careless air. "Mildred has it: I don't know." replies H:nvey: and neither moved a muscic of his face as they said "' Gpod-bye."