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Clutha Leader, Volume I, Issue 8, 27 August 1874, Page 4

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'{Continued.) , "I ata sure you will like each other,'' "6aid his father, brightening up again. " Your uncle said you would, and his judgment Seldom erred. As you suggest, *we shall say nothing more on the matter till Olive's arrival, which may be looked for very soon. I shall look the shipping list every day for the of the Cynthia ; and now, my boy, I must join our guests, who must wonder at j my long absence. By the way, you I had better come with me. You scarcely saw M'Dougal in the morning* and Menzies came only an hour or two ago, when you were absent." " I dont care about seeing them," replied Victor, coldly. "I am not an admirer of either the one or the other." " Why not ? How fastidious you are. They are both highly prosperous men, especially M'Dougal, who was only a few years ago a small agent down at Rothesay ; now he is the wealthiest and most fortunate shipowner in Glasgow. Menzies has lately become his partner, and is bound to share in the other's good fortune." " If the men are fortunate, their ships are not," observed Victor, drily. " True, an extraordinary number of them ' have foundered at sea ; but M'Dougal was always prudent enough to have both ship and cargo fully inu red, so he suffered no loss. They are prosperous men, I tell you, and their -acquaintance is worth cultivating. Not that we need to care so much for that sort thing now, for your uncle's death *makes us independent of every one. Still, we must cultivate the society of rising men, and Menzies and M'Dougal are such without doubt." " I have no intention to cultivate the society of those I don't admire, and there is something about both these men that I dislike. You will, therefore, excuse me to-night. I will forth into the park again, and try to digest the import of the news from India." Saying which, the youth quitted the '■ library and sallied forth into the now radiant moonlight. His father stood for a few minutes in the embrasure of the library window, 'watching him as he passed away under the trees, " How high-spirited, head-strong, ' and obstinate he is," he muttered. "He'll be difficult to manage in thismat- ; ter, I find. Good heaven, if the girl is such that he doesn't take her he'd think nothing of foregoing the splendid fortune that's meant for him. If Walter's report of his girl be correct Victor will fall in love with her at once. But, then, he might regard her with the blind partiality of a father, and she may be many degrees inferior to his representation. In that case — good heaven -*— that boy will refuse to mary her without hesitation, and he and I are sent back to povprty. Oh, the thought is distracting. That girl Julia Hardinage, who is coming with Olive, may be a fascinating creature, and she may take his fancy in preference to the other. I must watch this, and if there is the slightest probability of it I'll have her removed out of his way. Nothing — positively nothing — must prevent him from marrying Olive. Dear, dear, this •engrossing matter is causing me to use my guests very badly. I must join them at once, else they will be deeply 'offended." The speaker might have remained on this latter score, his guests having certain important matters to converse about which rendered his absence all the more acceptable to them. We shall therefore enter the diningroom where they are, and at the time . he left them, and by listening to their words come to have some idea of their dark and terrible secrets. From the reference made to them in the conversation between Mr. Moredant nnd Victor, we have learned something of tbe town "men respectively — that they "Were very thriving and prosperous Glasgow merchants, shipowners, exporters, and importers being joined together in these operations by a certain •partnership which existed between them. The partnership was not entire at all points. They had separate offices and did separate trade j it was only in the shipping business that they were conjoined, and this in a way little suspected Tby the commercial men of Glasgow with whom they had business connections. M'Dousral was the elder of the two — a tall, stout man, with florid complec* 'tion and sharp restless features. His companion Menzies was considerably .•younger, was dressed in a showy manner,and possessed a smooth,winning address, which was calculated to impose on those who did not know him intimately, though the very oiliness of his manner ought to have raised in shrewd minds a suspicion of his sincerity. He had arrived at Beechwood about the middle of the afternoon, and had no opportunity for private conversation with M'Dougal till their host retired to the library .o read his letters. No sooner, however, had Mr. Moredant left the dining-room than the pleasant society manner of both men changed to <one more natural, and which was at the same time sharp and eager.

"Now, then, what news?" asked Menzies in quick, low tones. " Successful as usual," was the reply. "Ha ! the ships have been foundered, then?" • . ' " Yes ; Duncan has done the business all right for the Agnes, and Rivers for the Wave. They are both at the bottom, and can tell no tales of how they were sent there?' " And the. crews ?" " 'Most providentially saved,' as usual — you understand. " "Ha ha ! yes, * most providentially saved.' What do the underwriters say ?* " They did not receive the news very pleasantly,of course,but they cashed up,* and as a token of my appreciation of their prompt meeting of the claim, as well as to soothe them for their losses, I banqueted them last night in the tontine, and wined them into the best of humour." " The insurances are paid, then ?" To the last farthing." v For both ships and their cargoes ?" " For both, and we have got twenty thousand to divide. A splendid stroke of business, is it not ? Only the captain claims a heavy share — that's the worst of it." "Still, we must not grudge to pay them," rejoined Menzies j " for, if they did not do the job for us, we could not make the money out of it. " " True, but they are getting exorbitant and I had no little difficulty to beat them down to something reasonable. Never mind, a year or two more of this work will make our fortunes." "Yes, if— if no suspicion should arise," faltered Menzies. " How should it? Dnncan and Rivers are both faithful, and so are their mates. As for the crews, they are not trusted, and they change them every voyage. So there is no cause to fear* And now to get up our next spec. Have you made inquiries about the Mary and the Friends ?" • " I have ; they are both old worn-out things, and can be insured for double their value." " Will the owners soil them ?" " No doubt of it: and glad to get rid of them." ° "Then we shall negotiate at once. How about freight ?" "No difficulty there. Finlay, Douglas, and other houses want calicoes sent to holland and Trinidad. We can have both vessels chartered in a i'ew months. " Good ! Calicoes are convenient for stowing, and can easily be sold. There's another twenty thousand for us in the venture, Menzies. <3ome let us drink to its success." So saying, M'Dougal, with great glee } poured out two glasses of Moredant's best port ; and the toast, " Success to our next venture," was drunk with fervour by the two "partners," who continued to converse in the same low tones on the same dark subject till the return of their host terminated the conference. But from the portion of their conversation we have given, the reader can understand what daring and desperate course these two men were pursuing. They were conducting fraudulent transactions of the most dangerous and reprehensible character, such as on discovery would send them to the gallows, for at the time at which we write — fifty years ago — the casting away or sinking of ships at sea for the purpose of defrauding the underwriters was a capital crime, and justly considered of the most heinous magnitude. Yet these men, under the influence of the passion for gain, and in their baste to be rich, had entered on a systematic course of such daring criminality. Hitherto, success of the most complete kind had attended their operations. They were considered in Glasgow as two enterprising, active,, clear-headed merchants, who by legitimate means of trade were becoming wealthy, though it had, even at this time, begun to be remarked as curious, that so many of their vessels had foundered at sea, while fortunately in every case the captain and crew had escaped and been picked up by passing ships. Such a series of events happening to the same owners, and always in the same way, was certain to lead to something more than wonder — even to engender suspicion ; and none but infatuated men, blinded by cupidity, would have continued a career of such frightful risk. But success in fraud and crime does ever render their perpetrators infatuated and leads tbem on further and further, till detection and ruin comes — I to the horror and amazement of those , who know them — and their own punishi ment and disgrace. As yet, however, M'Dougal and Menzies are regarded w ith confidence and respect by the commercial men of Glasgow-— their first Crimes are undiscovered, .and they are preparing to perpetrate rxevr atrocities of the same character. Yet is the gulf before them, and most surely are they drifting towards it.