WILL HE WIN HER?

Manawatu Times, Volume IV, Issue 85, 3 November 1880, Page 2

WILL HE WIN HER?

BY JAMES GEAWT;

Chapteb. 'LX-EE-. ... Balarino did so Vwithout muchi.cere-. ' mpny, % and Adderfang opened his eyesT gaapirig heavily the while, and terror, came over him. on seeing; the point otGrordon'% ssrord within -an inch of his, throat. ■'.■-. . ',. " Ach, Gflttirihinimel-li Would jo\\ kill me, h.err.majpr ;?" he moaned. '* With as -'-littlei^ . compunction as "1-7 would spit a." rat," said Gordon sternly. S; A ' .^Haye. mercy 1"- . L "In one minute mpreTt shall pass, this blade, through -youix body if -you! hatch a" single - lie. Answer us, Jew :. what is the xdatter with this la dy ? Has. she fainted or what ?* "' * ' '"7. • "It is but a slumber. I : didX but give her a soothing draught to. ensured one for an.hour or tw 1 © arid cairie' here, to see how it acted. I did, indeed, mein herr, as I, have heayen to < ,answ;er ,tp forv it : bu t this is my reward-^this'ii m j re-, ward." ■.-•'■ •'- ----" Silence dog and. liar !"- replied the. officer, sheathing his sffor*3,\ greatly tos, the relief of tho human .reptile it had threatened. " "l^edicaja^ ojgioji^ _

jaid he with an emotion of anxiety that drew tears f rom nae. " WeVshali take her immediately with &s to Altona. Wrap her carefully up »nd convey her to the droschki— Ye night is cold and chilly," said the k'nd old major, as he gave me his large blue military cloak, which was lined with Bcarlet and I rolled it round her. * Oh, how my heart beat with tenderness-,' cotnpassibn, and a great, fear &at shemight yet die, as Iraised her m my arms and bore her from the pestilent den, while Graves and BalarinO dragged Adderfang forth, amid the curses and reviling -of his mother,' and the yell*, screams, and maniac laughter from the •ttooms or cells wherein Piter the Great Twas bellowing to Irs imaginary Muscovites, arid the Count of Holstein was V galloping on his> broomstick. Adderfang was secure 2 by handerchiefs to the. seat of the. ilao'se-khi beside the driver. Balarino, weM content with his night's work, his pocket srell lined with, rixdoliars : was left to follow us on foot, and with Clarice m •my arpjs .her, head pillowed on my shoulder, we drove to Altona and drew up at the first station occupied by the Prussian gendarmes, to wbpm we'made our report, and handed over our crestfallen prisoner. On. what slender threads may the whole destiny of a life turn. : .yy g|Had we/ lingered m the smoking j room of the hotel' that even«ng, instead pf setting forth .to walk; had we turned down any other, street than the Alster Arcade, .we had not met ßalarino. Had his" pocket not been- picked, there had been no row, . no = ; interference on my part, and no | reco^gjtion of him; his subsequent revelaSfcns we should never nave heard $ and our merciful interposition at Rolandsburg had never taken place. I thought oyer all these things: with { a'k'hd of wild terror m my heart— a . {terror that mingled; with v thankfulness tqheayeh, and the purest compassion for the. poor and inanimate .V;si.eeper whose tender cheek was resting on my shoulder, and to whom consciousness was qnly beginning to. return .as we rkttled through the_gas-iighttditreets of Altpna.. : ,: . V;

Chapter LXLT,

Three or fotir' days after this, few would have recognised m the fashion-ably-dressed lady who was seated with ineiat the open window of a handsome room On the first Stage bf the stately Hotel de rEurope, watching the ; plffa-sure'-'boats'-oh the sunny Binned Alster, * the gayViflags and spires of Altona risi-ig aboye.the Vlofty i roofs of the Never fTungfemsteig, . the poor wan aud •--fasted being who had been -..rescued, dri that auspicious night from Rolandsburg. Iliad brought her to our hotel, and there • she had been most; skilfully treated by a medical man of the first eminence m Hamburgr-Hbe same who related the story of the hidden wou:: V pn that day m the public cemetery — and she was now recovering fast m some respects, though^ iri fact, she gcarcely seemed to wish it. She was much too delicate m health yet to appear at . ihe crowded table d'hote. Moreover, she shrank from the curiosity her attendance there would excite.; Her room adjoined :the one oc- ',.-■ eupied by Grav«s ; and me^ and ti nies there were m the night when I could hear through the thin wooden partition the. sqbs r she tried to stifle under lie r bedclothes," and at times the pacing of her bare feet on the varnished floor. 7J£een then, grew the longing m my heart to rush m "and comfort "her, but fate bad raised between 14s an impassable barrier. -' ' T strove to form plans --for her fa ture guidance and my own. Her mon" ster spouse she must never see agai_t. 1 would be to he*- father, (brother or dear kinsman'; I Would place her with some family m Hamburg Yperbaps m the house 6f our.; fonsul— rtill- T could get her sent to her sister m r the West Indie*, and once more T would, resume my own .solitary wanderings. But these resolutions had another s.equel, for "the the best laid schemes of mice and^ men gang aftangley," as Burns has jt. ■;::■;-■-:-■■ With Clarice, her torture of the mind was all I had.- to_ fear now. 7 I had her m my possession and under my carle asCeompietetely/as if 'she s had: been a sister. Not bven : Van Niekerque' could, take her from me Tnpw, Our position I was ' strange and* awkward, yet not without a melancholy charm... , Here was the • woman . T had 'ioyed girl whoV had hdped'to "be: my pride, iri; her 'suhriyvyputh-^rescued by me from ajterrible; fete, froriaVa serious of , degrading calamities— cast' entirly my hands m a- foreign o6uritry ; . She had, no protector, no friend save me, and she was the wife of another—- ' a wretch who neither cared nor dared to claim her; ■'.'.-. * "•'■"■ : CirQumstanced as we had been and were how, great tact and delicacy we** necessary for. my line of conduct, ksst % should place her m a false ; fibsitiSh with ra, world at all tiroes too ready to be censorious. Yet tbese v were topics .which it' seemed impossible to avoid," simply, because we felt forbidden to approach them. .7 We were much, alone . now, for Crrav-es . .-' and the worthy major Von Gordon felt that - perhaps Twe : Were better left so for a tirrie at . lea» t, as *we had much to narrate" and explain tb each other; - -■•-.-' • : She was pale and attenuated, but her akin, -was beautifully white and transparent,::her:;rich b.rovrn hair w^ dressed to perfections, and a farhidriabW milbner m the Alster Arcade haddpae all; the rest. ; :■:-■ For a while'T could see with- pain that there was an expression of 'startled uncertainty m her eyes, ; as : if she feared etjery one, or knew not,; who; to trust, but after a time it passed away, ©specially when with me. - V S,he was now gazing dreamily on the * beautiful and brilliant scene that spread before the windows of that magbificerit hotel, .as if she-would scarcely believe it was real, a,ad ha:* small hands in 'the prettiest of attitudes' that smaUV handscan assume, played with a splendid Roman, fan, I just bought her.* j'Ab-^ lam here— -actually, here and with you,'*' she said m ..a sweet, touchtone of voice, r while gating upward at me earnestly and trustfully with those plear hazel eyes, whoso smile I had never forgotten " here with yon, Dick fi*44flS^'- *M (but

7 V laugh was a hollow and bitter one —painful to the heart and painful to the ear. As I mutely pressed her hand m mine, I felt her wedding ring. Oh, fa- : l ring ! It struck a chill to my heart, and with that chill a sense of ang*r and jealousy were mingled. " Oh. Clarice," said I, " had we never met, then each had never known of tlie other's existence, and how much unhappiness had been spared us 1" ■■■■•'■'■ And! might have been still at Eolandsburg," said she shuddering. ." Oh, of how deep a scheme have I been the victim 1 I can now remember, dearest Dick, how the deep sleep fell upon mo iv Ulrik JRosing's cottage, and the terror of his wife, Gretchen. Then followed a delirious kind: of dream, m which I had no power qf utterance or volition —7a dream of being carried through a window, placed" m a boat, \ ahclrowed away, away into .space, and then I can recall no more, till I awoke m that place, where, months after, you found me." _■■ . , " The window was that of Ulnk a cottage ; the boat was Moses Adderfang's, and it floated on the Alster." "O , what do I owe you and Percival. Graves, and that good Prussian .- major P" she exclaimed looking up at mo, with eyes .full of affection, as I beat over her chair. "A little gratitude, Clarice— nothing more to me at least-^only a little gratitude noio." "y '.' " But I love you, Dick," she er claimed 'it*. -a piercing voice ; "love you still as I have ever done 1" " Do not say sol" said I, m a broken voice, and m sore perplexity. -." It is useless—worse than useless no'ir." " Do you-misuriderstand me," she replied/as a s.carlet flush crossed her face, to leave her paler than before; |' I love you Dick, dear, dear Dick, with that- depth of pa-tsion known only to those whose days are numbered, even as mine are." v." Clarice, all our* days are numbered." ■■- X " Yes, but I feel mine are few, oh, so few— and that from this world I am quickly passing away —so the avowal brings no shame to me." She pressed her hand upon her heart as she spoke, for she really believed hersel f to be dying and added— "Kiss me once .again as. if old, Dick, and say you forgive me— forgive your poor lost Clarice !'\ Then I pressed my lips to hers m a tremulous and passionate kiss, with which our tears mingled, AU this was wrong— perilous, too, perhaps—and I' should at once have made other arrangements ; but she was so helpless and sorrow stricken, that . her tears were a source of great pain to roe, and! said— ''My lost love, can it be that you are so devouledly mine as of old ?"' "Obi yes, yes !" . f '*And yet the wife of— that man? Oil, Clarice, it is. a coil of horror ! No wouian was ever loved twic«? m her lifelime as you have been loved by me ; ye his is the end of it. Think how you blamed. Fanny for her treatment of poor Gerard Douglas " " But I thought you dead, and then — then you don't know all I underwent," she faltered, amid a torrent of tears which I strove m vain to soothe, while her shoulders shook convu%j.ve]y, and I could see that when- speaking iiow nervously she fingered her wedding ring, even seeking to conceal it from me. ' . "I do not mean. to upbraid you," said I, putting an arm tenderly round her ; ,f but how came you ever to think of tbr.t man as— as— — --' " A lover,|you would say." " Yes ; and as a husband." ' "Did not Fanny tell you all, at Datetree Pen?" Alas, alas! it began by great gratitude, and a little admiration. It was fate and habit." . " What do you mean by habit, Cla- , rice ?" •'•'■■ "My poor heart was empty ; I was alone m the world. Fanny . had her husband to love arid ; protect her, but who had I ? And there were kindness, association, and propinquity by sea and m a foreign land. Even Fanny urged that m niy loneliness I should not morbidly treasure a mere memory. And to it came to pass," she added sobbing. "We are all. of us very perfect creatures until we are tried, Dick, as I was sorely tvi ed ; but pardon me, darlin g — say youdo : JV : I " Most terrible has been the expia? tioriy"' said I* pressing my lips' to her hot, flushed, forehead ; but weeping and talkingevidently relieved 'her, s7 she resumed — " I know that I ought not to. have married him while loving another— fpr I ;loved you- evehVih death, as I deemed arid wore mourning for you as. yo.ur widow, but- 1 was, weak; ill— rbalf m Sane, I tbiuk— aud E'auny and Douglas urged me to accept him. I felt, somehow, tbat I could not help mysolf, for I was a poor and dependant creature when first we met — indeed I could not," and she clasped her poor Jilfcle bands lightly together as. she added;," And ah, -Diick, Dick, if you did but know the 'horror of living with a man one dqe ; S:not Jove, and never can love, and of whose mysterious bearing and violent conduct! was ever m fear you would pity me.". "I do pity > you, Clarice ; but you must have some pity and compassion for me— -I, who loved the ground you trod on. iNever did, m an . l°Y e . more." " All avail usinothing 1 My life is a lost one, ani luckily for aU concerned will not last long now ; ; but while itdpes last we shall be dear friends, Dick, as Tre can. bf nejvj7x\g xaflpe," And again 'he sad bitter smile stole over her pale face. "What has been done cannot be undone, Dick;, and now I am life her who is 'mentioned' m the prophecy of Vanda, 'a widowed wife, a wetideJ. ma 4 d.' " " 01a.-ice," said I, taking her hands m mine, "married though. you -vvere to that man, there was a link between you and me too strong "to break, a tie too tender for the world to see or know arid thought so mutfh time has elapsed since last met and spoke, the link and tie of heart to heart were there still Daring, did you not feel all this ?" 'She bent her face oyer my hands and kissed, them ere I oould prevent her. Then, as if to change the subject, she looked up, and asked— " Tell me, Dick am I much changed P" " In appearance ?" 7 . "Yes/'-- ; ' ~^'-' '"■'.

" A very little ; but that little will soon pass away." " Too soon — I feel it here m my heart." " But yon have the same loving and beautiful eyes," said I, pretending to ignore her meaning, " with their soft expression and wonderful lids." "Is this flirtation or flattery P" she asked gravely. " Could it be either, darling, with that ring on your finger, and when we have the terrible past to look back upon and before us— what ? — a hopeless and blighted future." " Pardon me for that, Dick— pardon me." "You are a woman, Clarice, for a man to love once and for ever, and for yourself alon'*-." How much more of this sort of thing —this painful and half strangled lovemaking, for such it was fast becoming -^•might have gone on, I know not; but at that moment, fortunately, perhaps a known ring on the door, and a waiter, entered to say that, " Major Von Gordon and Herr Graf, as they persisted m calling Graves, were below and wished to see me m haste." " Excuse me, dearest Clarice — a little time, and. l shall be with you again." And kissing her hands I left her. With her slender, wan, white, fingers interlaced, her pale cheeks paler still, m anticipation of sotaie fresh calamity, her eyes turned to the closed door with agaze fult of anguish, sorrow, lone and utter despair, Clarice, it would seen}, remained for a time like a statue after I left trie room. CHAPr.EE LiXIII. The faces of the major and Percival Graves were full of importance — they were quite radiant, m fact, with excitement. • After politely inquiring for the health of Clarice — " What a jolly row we've been engaged m this morning," said Graves. "A row?" " Yes, Haddon, by Jove 1 No end of a row, indeed !" " We have to congratulate the lady pn a happy release," said Von Gordon. " From what, or whom now P" " Can't you guess P" "Moses Adderfang." •' Bah ! A husband," replied Gordon, stroking his grizly, gray moustace. " He — he— has he committed suicide P" , '• Not at all ; he was too great a coward for that," replied Gordon. " Yet he died hard," added Graves. "It was a most painful scene." "Dead! Is Van Nieukorque dead?" I asked, m a breathless voice. Yes, shot by a bullet through his heart," replied Gordon. "Or where that organ was supposed to be, major," added Graves. " When did this happen ?" " Within this hour." .*■" And where P" " At the nearest military post, m the Admiralitatstrasse." " How shall I break the news to his widow P" " Gently, of course ; though I don't think the shock will kill her, with all her gentleness," said Gordon,. dryly. Tell me how this came about, herr major — or you, Graves?" In truth, the story they had to tell was rather a stirring one. . During the last four days the Prussian gendarmes had not been idle. They had cleared out Bolandsburg, where five miserable captivus had been found m detention. Four of these were imbeciles, but the fifth was perfectly sane, and had been secluded there for nea'ly a year. Her discovery -for the captive was a woman— 'involved the arrest of the other guilty conspirator:*. The imbeciles were properly disposed of by the authorities. The aged virago, Eachaol Adderfang. had been carried m a frenzy of fury to the Great Krankenhaus, m. the suburb of St George, and the two degraded women, her servants or accomplices, had been sent to prison, with Moses the chief culprit, while Balarino, was detained as a witness. As for Adderfang, we need recur to him no more save to say that from the prison, after trial, he was transferred for life to a Prussian fortress, where probably he still solaces his leisure hours by breaking stones for the highways or polishing cold shot for the batteries. In the first gust of his rage and fear, he had divulged that the long sought for Schencke van Nieukerque was concealed m his house near the Stubberneuk, It , was promptly surrounded, and there the culprit had been found m one of the half-empty and comfortless apartments of that old and- dilapidated mansion, from whence he was conveyed by the gendarmes to the nearest military post, there to be kept till the charges of fraud, cruelty, and conspiracy were made out against him, arid until the syndic of the district decided further on the matter. There, m charge of lieutenant's guard of the 75th infantry, be had passed a night, sullenly defiant m tone and manner. , On the morning after his capture a corporal of the guard, Friedrick Hosing — a younger brother of the miller at Ependorf — entered the cell m which he was confined with a breakfast for him of the same kind that was furnished for the soldiers from tbe. nearest cheap restaurant. The cell m which Van Nieukerque bad been placed was somewhat remote from all the others attached to the guardboise, and was situated at the end of along co ''idor. AfHimated by despair- and fury on the discovery of his true chrracter, and the total failure of all his schemes for wealth and position, he was yet resolved to. make a desperate attempt at liberty, though his keepers - were well armed, and were twenty to one against him. Snatching up the heavy stoneware, jug m which the coffee was brought him by- the unsuspecting corporal, he dealt, the latter a dreadful blow, on the head/with it cutting through his. tough leather helmet. Stunned by the stroke, the corporal immediately sank on the f^oor -vi-ithout a groan.7 from the cell was easy enough now, but only so far as the corridor on which it opened, for at the end of the passage, at the door without, and under the verandah m the streot, were double, sentinels with their needleguns loaded.,, -'-. . Va*i jyiukerque ground hi* tteth

with rage, so, instead of rashly sallying forth, he took another and very strange resolution. He dragged the insensible corporal into a corner of the cell, and there secured his arms behind his back by his waistbelt. He then barricaded the _door on the inside by means of a billet or short beam of timber, that had lain m the corridor outside. He next proceeded to arm himself with Corporal Rosing' s bayonet, and when that unfortunate fellow, whoso face was deluged with blood came to his senses, Van Nieukerque threatened bin wilh instant death unless released by the lieutenan m command of the guard. The cries of the corporal on finding himself menaced by his own bayonet m tbe hands of one he deemed a madman on one hand, and the fierce, growling threats of Van Nieukerque on the. other., soon roused the attention of the officer, who brought Major Von Gordon to the spot as it chanced that the major, as field officer- for the day, was visiting the post, accompanied by Graves, who had nothing else to do. "Beware, mein herr!" cried the prisoner. "Beware of attempting to open the door, for so sure as I am heard m heaven and menaced by hell," he added, with many a dreadful oath, "I shall kill this mail !" Then, on peeping through an eyelet hole m the massive door, the major could see that the sharp point of the bayonet was held within two inches of Corporal Rosing's breast, which was covered with the medals of honorable military service m the recent Prussian wars. He could also see that the usually pale face of Van Nieukerque was ghastly with wild emotion, and that his eyes were blazing m their sockets with passion and fury. * (To be confAiued.)