CHAPTER V.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XVI, Issue 44, 22 February 1889, Page 3

CHAPTER V.

HOW FODB OF TJi CAMK TO BE UNDER THE SHADOW o*' CLO MBER. I trust that my readers will not Bet me down as an inquisitive bnsybody w. en 1 Bay that as the dayß and weeKS went by, I found my attention and my thoughts mure and more attracted to General Heatherat'me and the mystery which surrounded him. It was in vain that I endeavoured by hard work and a strict attention to the laird's affairs to direct my mind into some more healthy channel. Do what 1 would on land or on water, I would still find myself pulling over this one question, until it obtained such a hold upon me that I felt that it was useless for me to attempt to apply myself to anjthing until I Had come to some satisfactory solution of it. I could never pass the daik line of live-foot fencing and the great iron gate, with l s massive lock, withou' pausirgand racking my brain as to what the secret might be which wad shut in by that lnscratable lamer. Yet with all my conjectures and with all my observations I could never come to auy conclusion which could for a moment be aocepted as an explanation. My sister had been out for a stroll one night, visiting & Bick peasant, or performing some other of the numerous acts of charity by which she had m ide herself beloved by the wdole countryside, "'John," she Baid when she returned, " have you not observed (Jloombcr Hall At night ? " " No,' I answered, laying down the book which 1 was reading. "Not since that memorable e\e vug when the General and Mr. McNeil came over to make their inspections.' " Well, John, will you put on your hat and come a little walk with me i " I could see by bur manner that something had agitated or frightened her. '• Why, bless the girl ' " cried I boibteroußly, " what is the matter f The old hall has not gone on fire, surely I You lcok as grave aa if all Wigtown were in a blaze." " Not quite so ba las that, bhe baid, smiling, " But do come out, Jack. I should viry much like you to ste it." I had always refruned from baying anjthing which might alarm my b a er, so that bhe knew nothing of tr c liUertst which our neighbours doings had for me. At her iequest 1 took my hat and followed her out into the daikn> s». She led ibe way along a little footpath over tne moor, which brought ua to tome risn g giouud, from which we couid look do«n upon the Hall without our view being obstructed by any ot the tir-tiueb v^hicb had bceu planted round v. " Look at tt at,' said my vaster, paus ng at the summit of ti.is little eminence. Cloombi r lay b«Le»tn uh m a blazf ut light. In the lower floors the shutters obMiurt d the llluiniuat on ; tut above, from he broad wiuHiiwoot the becoud t>tor> to ti.e thiu a ltd at the bum in it of the tower theu 1 wng noi a chiuk or an aperture \\ hich did not tCud forth .i biie mut lacinnce. sj u< zz mg w^s tbe tfLct tbat tor a moment 1 wad lUbuaded mat the bouse was in lire, but the steadinebS i>nd Cit-aru' mof ihe liglu toon fro dme iroiu tua appiehenbiuii. it wtl cleany the result ot m<»ny Jacops plac-d hysiema icaily nil over the buihuug It added to the htiaiig,. <_rf c\ tbat all ihese bril'iantly lhumi atcd rooms wt.re apparently uultnai tt.d, riid uume i f ihi m as far as we could judge, we»e nut e/cn turuithed. Ihrough the whole great Loure the c wa-i no sign of movt ment or cf Lfv.—uothiug but the clear, v winning Hood of ytllow light. 1 was sail lost in wonder at the siL'ht wh n I heard a su r>, quick sob at my side. •' What is it, listber. dear / " I atked, looking down at my cornpan iod. " I feel S3 frightened. 0., John, JoLn take me home ; I feel co fnghtemd'" She clung to nay arm, and pulled at my coat ia a pel feet freLfy of fear. | " It's all safe, darling," I said soothingly. " Tkere is nothing to fear What has upset yuso ? ' •' 1 am afraid ot them, Juhu ; 1 am atraid of the Heatherstonea. Why is thtir house lit up like tv s eveiy night / I have beard from I others that it is always bo. And why dots the old man run like a Iright ntd haie if anyone comos upon him. There is something wioug about it, John, and it tii^uteus me ' 1 pac.fie i her as well as I could, and led her home with me, where I tock care that she saouLl have some hot port negus before going to bed. 1 avoided the subject of the Heatherstones for fear of exciting her, and she did not rc-ur to it ut her own accord. I was convinced however, fioni what 1 h.id heard from her that she had for some time back been making h>-r own observat'oua upon our neighbours, and th it in d< ing so she had put a considerable fctrain upon her nerves. I could see that the mere fact of the Hall being illuminated at night wss no: enougn to account for her extreme agitatun, and tbat it must have dt rived its lmpoitance in her eyes from being one in a chain of incident*, all 11 which had kft a weird or unpleasant impression upon her mind. '1 hat was the conclusion which 1 came to at the time, and I have reason to know now that I was right, and that my sihter had eyeD mure cause thau I had myself tor believing tbat there was something uncanny ab>ut tbe tenants ot Cloomber. Our mti resi in the mitter may have arisen at first from nothing higher than curiosity ; but events soon took a turn which associated us more cli slysly with the furtunes of the Heatherstone family, Mordaunt had taken ad vantage of my invitation to come down to the laird s house, and on several occasions he brought with him his beautiful sifter The four of ua would wander over the moors together ; or, perhans, if the day were fine, set sail upon our little skiff and stand off into ti c Iribh Idea. On buca excursions the brother and sis er would be as merrj ami as I appy as two childien. It was a keen pic lbure to iht-m to ei-cape fiuin their uull foitress, and to tee, if only for a fiw hours, iriendly aud sympathetic faces around them. Inert

conld be bnt one result when four young people were brought together in sweet forbidden intercourse. Acquaintanceship farmed into friendship, and friendship flamed suddenly into love. G*brielle Bits beiide me now as I wiite, and she agrees with me that, dear as is the •nbject to ourselves, the whole story t.f our mutual affection is of too personal a nature to be more than touched upon in tbis statement. Snfficeit to say that, within a few weeks of our first meeting, Mordaunt Heatherstone had won the heart of my dear sister, and Gabrielle had given me that pledge which death itself will not be able to break. I have alluded in this brief way to the double tie which sprang up between the two families, because I have no wish that this narrative should degenerate into anything approaching to romance or that I should lose the thread of the facts which I have set myself to chronicle. These are connected with General Heatherstone and only indirectly with my own personal history. It is enough if I say that after our engagement the visits to Branksome became more frequent, and that our friends were able sometimes to spend a whole day with us when business had called the General to Wtgtown, or when his font confined him to his room. As to our good father, he was ever ready to greet ns with many small jests appropriate to the occasion ; for we had no secrets from him, and he already looked upon us all as his children. Tnere were times when on account of some peculiarly dark or restless fit of the General's it was impossible for weeks on end for either Gabrielle or Mordaunt to get away from the grounds. Tbe old man would even stand on guard at the avenue gate, or pace up and down the drive as though he suspected that attempts had been made to penetrate his seclusion. Passing of an evening I have seen his dark, grim fignre flitting about in the shadow of the trees, or caught a glimpse of his hard angular face peering out at me from behind the bus. My heart would often tadden for him as I noticed bis uncouth nervous movements, his turtive glances and twitching fcatun.B. Who would have believed that this slinking, cowering creature had once been a dashing officer, who had fought the battles of his country and bad won the palm of bravery among the host of brave men around him? In spite of the old soldier's vigilance, we managed to hold communication with our friends. Immediately behind the Hall there was a Bpot where the fencing had been so carelessly erected that two ot the rails could be removed without difficulty, leaving a broad gap which gave us the opportunity for many ;i st jlen interview, though they were necessarily short, tor the General's movements were erratic, and no part of the grounds were secure trom his visitations. How vividly one of these burned meetings rises before me ! It stands out clear, peaceful, and distinct amid the wild, mystenous incidents which were destined to lead up to the terrible catastrophe whichhas cast a bhade over our lives. I can lcmembcr that as J walked through the fields the graes was damp with the rain of the morning, and the air was heavy with tbe smell of the tresh-tunied earth. Gabrielle was wai'ing for mo under the hawthorn tree outside the gap, and we stood hand-iu-ban I looking down at the long sweep of moorlaDd, and at thr broad blue channel which encircle i it with its fringe of foam. Faraway in the north-west tDe sun glinted upon j the high peak of Mount Tbromon. Krom where we Btood we could see tbe smoke of tbe steamers as they ploughed along tbe busy waterway which leads to Hclfas'. , "Is it not magnificent/" Gabritllc cried, clasping her hands round my arm. '• Ah, John, why are we not lree to sul away over these waves together and leave all our troubles bjhiml us on the shore ?" '' And what are the troubles which you would loive bchm 1 you dear one /" I ask » J." May Iku iw them, and help jou to bt ar them ? ' " I ba\c no secitta from you .John.' she an->wen 1 " Oui elm I, trouble it,, as you may gues*, our poor father's strange behaviour. Is it not a sad thing for us that a man who has played such a dis-tiu guished pait in the world should t-kulk fiom one obseuie comer ( 1 the country to another, and should defend himself with locks unit barriers as though he were a perftct thief Hying Lrom justice ' 'I hi.-. 18 a trouble, -lobn. which it i* out tl your power to alleviate " But why does be do it, (Jabnelle ? ' I abked. " 1 cannot tell," sbe answered frankly. " I know only that, be imagines some deadly danger to be hanging over bis hedd, and that this danger was incurred by him during bis stay in India. \Vhatit\ nature may bo I have no more idea than you have. " Then your brother baß," I remaiked. " 1 am sure trom the way in which he spoke to me about it one day that he knows what it if, and that he lookb upon it as real." " Yes, he knows, and so does my motner," she answered ''but they have always kept it secret from me. My poor father ib very excited at present. Day and night hu is in an agony of apprehension : bnt it will soon be the oth of October, and after that be will be at peace." " How do you know that." I asked in surpiise. "By experience' said she gravely. "On the sth ol October these fears of bio come to a cnsie. For years back he has been in the habit of locking Mordaunt and myself up in our rooms on that date, so that we have no idea what occutb ; but we have always found that be has been much leheved afierwardp, and has continued to be comparatively in peace until that date began to draw round again." " Then you have only ten days or so to wait," I remarked, for September was drawing to a close. " By the way, dearest, why is that you light up all your rooms at uight / ' " You have noticed it, then / " she said. "It comes also trom my father's iears. He dec? not like to have one dark corner in the whole house. He walks about a good deal at night, and inspects everything, irom the attics right down to tbe cellars. He has large lamps in every room and corridor, even the empty ouch, and he orders the servants to light them all at dusk." " I am rather surprised that you manage to keep your vrvants, ' I said, laughing. '• The maids in these parts an a supers' itious class, and their lmginations are easily excited by anything which they don't Understand, '

" The cook and both housemaids are from London, and are used to our ways. We pay them on a very high scale to make up for any inconvenience to which they may be put. Israel Stakes, the coach* man, is the only one who comes trom this part of the country, and he seems to be a stolid, honest fellow, who is not easily scared." " Poor little girl," I exclaimed, looking down at the slim, graceful figure at my side. " This is no atmosphere for you to live in. Why will you not let me rescue y«u from it 1 Why won't you allow me to go straight and ask the General for your hand / At the worst he could only refuse." She turned quite haggard and pale at the very thought. " For God's sake. John," she cried, earnestly, " do nothing of the kind. He would whip us all away in the dead of the night, and within a week we would be settling down again in some wilderness where we might never have a chance of seeing or hearing from you again. Besides, he never would forgive us for venturing out of the grounds." " 1 dou' think that he is a bard-hearted man," I remarked. " I remarked. '• I have seen a kindly look in his eyes, for all his stern face." '• He can be the kindest of fathers,' she answered. " But he is terrible when opposed or thwarted. You have never seen him so, and I trust you never will. It waa that strength of will and impatience of opposition which made him such a splendid officer. I assure you that in India every one thought a, great deal of him. The soldiers were afraid of him, but they would have followed him anywhere." " And had he these nervous attacks then 1 " " Occasionally ; but not nearly so acutely. He seenaß to think that the danger —whatever it may be —becomes more imminent every year. Oh, John, it is terribln to be waiting like this with a sword over our heads—and all the more terrible to me since I have no idea where the blow is to come from." " Dear Gabrielle." I said, taking her kand anddrawing her to my side, " look over all ibis pleasant country hide and the broad blue sea. Is it cot all peaceful and beautiful ? In these cottages with their red tiled roofs peeping out from the grey moor, there live none but simple God-fearing men, who toil at their crofts and bear enmity to no man. Witbm seven miles of us is a large town, with every civilized appliances for the preservation of order. Ten miles further there is garrison quartered, and a telegram would at any time bring down a company of soldiers. Now, Las you, dear, in the name of common sense, what conceivable danger could threaten you in this secluded neighbourhood with the means oC help so near. You assure me the peril is not connected with your father's health / " " No, lam sure of that. It ii true that Dr. Kasterhng of Stranraei, has been over to see him once or twice, but that was merely for some small indisposition. I can assure you that the danger is not to be looked tor in that direction.' 1 " Then I can assure you," saidllaughing, " that there is no danger at all. It must, be some stiange monomania or hallucination. No hypothesis will cover the facts." '• Would my father's monomania account for the fact of my brother's hair being turned grey and my mother wasting away to a mere shadow .' ' " Undoubtedly," f answered, '■ The long continued worry of the General's restlessness and uritability would produce those effects on seLsitive natures. ' 11 No, no,' sail she, shaking her head sadly. •• 1 have been exposed to his restlessness and irritability, but tbey have had no such cfl ct on me. Ihe difleience between us lies m the fact that tbey know this aw ful secret and we do not. ' " My dear girl,' said I, ' the days of lamily apparitions and that kiud ol tnin,' are gone Nobo ly is haunted nowadays, bo we can put that supposition out of tbe question. Having dove so, what lemains lheie is abfeo utely no other theory which could even be suggested. Believe me, tbe who c mysteiy is ibat the beat cl India has b<.en too much for jour poor father's braiu. ' What she would have answered 1 cannot tell, for at that moment she ga\e a start as if some sound had fallen upon her car. As she 'ooked around a])prehecs;\ely, I suddenly saw her features become ridgid .uul her eyes I'xtd and dilated. Following the direction of her gaze, I felt a sudden thrill of fear pass thiough me as I perceived a human face surveying us from bebiDd oue of the trees —a face every feature of winch was distorted by the most malignant hatred and anger. Finding himself observed he stepped out and advanced towards us, when 1 saw that it was none otner than the General himself. His beard was all a-bristle with fury, and bis deep-set eyes glowed from under thur heavily-veined lids with a most sinister and demoniacal brightness.