THE PRIDE OF THE MORAYS.

King Country Chronicle, Volume IV, Issue 217, 16 December 1909, Page 4

THE PRIDE OF THE MORAYS.

it. ituun :s !<!•:.• i .u\ y.i>-

H-. MU'KK'H '. SCO I I'. A-i'hor uf • Th- Mark of the Broad Arrow. ri<;. etc.

TAUT 9. ttv n r. m that after the inftn >t »h> unfortunate lady's remains* v-id !w> rt iiinvnl In Edinburgh for inl«umni in th-> Moray vault. '* !«.■ i> t «>»■•:- ilmpprti from Barbara*.ih'rvrlw I ami °lh n »h«* wa<* dead—buried in the Suiiih of h»T nnwslors. "No. (rrho|(* not. Perhaps the •• n uest "" had disclosed the fart that it vat pn»r Alison Stanniforth mho had b-*n killed and whom sh •. Barbara Moray, had sent to her dta'h. How to find out! Vainly .-hi; ranitiidid th«» columns of the nmrs|w|vrt. h-r only reward being the discovery of a paragraph to the ef(itl that Imck numbers of the "Weekly Budget " could always be purchased.

Feverishly »hc wrote a polite re-qw-st that half a dozen copies of the milnrqui-nt weekly iwucs might be wnf lo her. and despatching the liule maid-nvnant to the office in Flif-t-street, awaited, in a fever of Mj*l*n*r*. ht-r lardy return. In lh* msnnwhile Dr. Heriot called ami was on* thing but plrawil at the slate of BTfow excitement in which he found his patient.

But now Barbara. e\en though >h* bail grown lo long for his. coming, and live on the sound of his voice. wa« filled with an intense desire h. phould leave her before the maid ; return with the newspa|H-rs from lrhntx' she expected to learn «o niuvh. "I should like to get you away from he said. "This quarter is too noisy, and I strongly disapprove of your being alone."He looked at her keenly. His clear prof«<ssional eye discerned a change in the previously qniet unemotional "t'ousin Alison."- But had the change arisen in consequence of the fthork -he had sustained, or had memory returned, and with it hitherto forgotten trouble. Of one thing hu felt certain. If recollection had come to her, it had brought none dearer than himself to b*r remembrance, llis word had beet) passed lo Hermann, but ho. too saw the girl's eye brighten at his coming, saw the warm blood suffuse her cheek, felt her pulses thrill as he held her hand within his own.

She lovrd him: everything told him as much; and yet he must wait. Honour demanded it-

"What i* this you are reading?" he said, taking up the "Weekly Budget "

Mr Bertram very kindly lent me hf* I'res.s notices to look over." Poor old »hap! And then you hrtv - lie- n reading about shocking n's and murder*, just to work up into a slate of excitement compared le w~hich the 'knives art ' was mere soothing-syrup." Unrl ara laughed, but tha laugh was aFm.vst hysterical-

•*Y'-s. I was reading this—the two tramt tcli-fropfn? one another on Huncerford Bridge. Frightful wasn't it" |io >iitt remetiilier the collision?" Sh • spo*>e timidly, n* if in fear. '"Y-e*." repliid Keith, sorrowfully.

"I nn- on fh- m- »• almost immediately it happen* d- It was doubly pafn'ul to me. involving as it did the dra'h ttf poor little Barbara Moray" * Yo'i tn n her?" * B> n.mie only. But our ancestors h.i^•, foregathered, and must have (xiiclit '? hinid-r lo should r' on many a hard-won field. I'oor little T;t.h ' Yet from my heart I am altm>,i imUird to think her fate pref. rabt" i!,» li\ing as th" wife of a t: i i s.he ought never to have niarr:-.| " Vmi mean I mi on Sir Talbot Hester. He .t.s no lilting mate for a little Srntih lassie such as, 1 am told, « ;t. ■« lUirl>ara Moray." *-I»»d «pu see her after—after?" Hiirlmrn could scarcely recognize her • > »»HT. I>t>n"« talk of it Alison, dear." *n>d Keith, in accents of great tent) ( n . I could wish you had not <i> on th- »tory since it has ndrciitl ♦ «»u so d-fply. The poor lit 110 Itriile was inutilatetl and tjj»bsrurnl tiliiiii*' In-yond recognition"— "Bui—but was "* — "Id -nt ified—yes By her clothing; afco by h-r hair." "Hut supposing—supposing"— Barbara knew she was treading on dangerous ground, yet she could not rewist th** im|fcilse to ask the question—"awipp«»ing an error had been made" "An error?"'

woman Mippowd to bo — to be U*l>- Hester, had not been nil"?"

"IwiHWMbie. ' Aliwo. dear. Her bmk* n h n-i-il old father identified hj« r. •<- u her aunt. and, of course, her Im-Jiaiid."

••jlot—ju*t (or the sake of argument—*upfxwtifig »hey wen* mistaken Th •—t he |HK>r woman was buried—- ««» >h- Imrii d?"

•\\j*mr»d?>: in th rt Moray vault. M> own rrinlivra at tended the funeral."" ••-|h n— * bin it what tntwisls me—if n mi-take had l*t n made, would the numm who w«nt through the »iv with—with Sir Talbot leMer. Mill lie his* wife?"

*V«hi in (in. were i-h-* living?" • "Ye*. lhal i* what I mean. Supiui.« h -r woman had been buried under her nan*'. l»Ut that Hhe Mill iivul. would the tie Sir Ta'bot's

w iiV?" "t Vrta r nly." • Ami roiihl he force licr to livo mtli him?""

"I .-hou'd inxis'iiiK no." laughed K»-ith. "though in the*e enlightened da>M ttivin scorn to render obedicnco and "

•Jkrn'l loujb plenite. I—l am inirrcstid In Inowing. though of iiwrsi'. Un y for the mike of inforraa(um. A* l« tig n» *he livi«. the woui(ni w ho mnrri>'d Sir Talbot Hester i*. hit u if.-—the fact that he hfld bl|Fi> «l <rno»h«»r woman under her name •■t.>urd not annul the marriage?" No. indeed. And I think a woman »h-> wilfully absented herself from her lawful spouse. l*efore she had even sampled his good or bad

would It.iVi; a dillirulty in mpft-tiy from his MaI d.m i upprove ot if'Mer. Uit e\«n he could hold his mm in such a case. Hut what has put ail this nonsense into jour head?" •'1 hardly know." she said, crushed l.v tb - disappoint men t convey« d Ir. the words. "I was reading the account of the accident, and the hous.hL came to uic"— "Alison. d-ar." asked the young dn-*o~. earnestly. "are not other hmghis end other memories coming to you?" "lVrhaps," she replied. wearily: 'but it is all confused. I nm not clear—not dear. ine now. Dr. lb-riot —have mo. 1 1.-'g of you. 1 vans lo I«e alone. Oh. why cannot 1 Ir* aim/?" "lh- appeal was so piteous. thai nfter going Mmv to warn th- laiuldy to summons h : m in rase of I'Til, atnl rosolvin-; to call again la••r in the day. Koiih left h -, r. first -ntisf.iing himself that sh - ? was sur--oi:n l"*d by every available comfort. \inl th n at la-t tb« maid returned tviih th* t»a«-k numltcrs of the "Weekly Budget "" for which sh • had s<-nt. fn intiti-Ee excilem nt Biirbara lurn•d over the page*, llierc was a do- • nil«-d account of th-» fun -ral—h -r own •moral. J : h • r-ad of th» griof o' th stricken father, of the doting husband. .-o cruelly deprived of his fair vo-n? Iride. She rend the name of Heriot in mouin *rs who stood at the graveside lo pay h-iiunge and respect to the !a-t o( the Moray. Tin n. in a later issti •. ?.he rend how Bii Talbot Hesler. unable to l»*.*ar his loss with I'ortitcd-. I.i>d « n<:" again placid his valuable services at llv disposal of •he Co ei ii-n. ir. and wax proceeding •o «h- l-ta<t on an intricate and diplomatic mission. uhi«h would detain him abroad for at least twelvo monih<. That twelve months had passed, ami more. He wn< in again now. nnd Barbara hi.- wife. The |»apers apix-an-d to furnish no further information, un'il just as she was about to r»*lingui-h her search, her eye caught the name which once «a« h-r own. . "We regret to ttiuiuun • h*- death of Sir Malcolm Moray. llaron"t. at his house in I->lin!>urgh The d<*«-ease<l ;en? I'-iiu.n had Ir*. n ail-"- for sf»nie lime, haviiit; n-ver recovered from the -hock indict. «l ly ih- tragic death of his onlj «lrtUj.*ht«T. H«-ster. unhippily killed in the appalling collision on llungerford Bridge in Noveinlfr last." And then a low wail-ng cry rang through th" bouse ie I.isle-street, and the landlady rush-d in. to find Barbara stretched upon the carpet, th>! itettspnper clutch-d tightly in her clenched hand. CHAITUK XIII. KKITII lIKHIOT'S -'Bit; SISTER." "B-.it. Keillt. d«-ar lad. you must *«-e even as I do. that th - thing is an utter impos.Mliiliiy."

Keith lb-no' sat wiih grave, ear-m-st fac«- cla>ping and unclasping his -!■ nil -r. yet firm, "surgeon's " hands th- on"* sign of Irresolution, but one •agerly seized upon l.y th,- gentle, wbili-'haireil woman to whose sympathetic ear ho was confiding his per* plexitie*.

"I see the objections likely to be raised. Jland dear,'/ replieel Keith.

"I have reali/i-d tlvm from the first, faced th- in without attempting to 'e**<n lh-ir Importance. Hie qiiesis. ought the one chance of happiness in a man's life to In- sacrificed out of record to the conventions? And renumber. Maud. I am not infatuated with a lieatiiiful vulgarian. Alison's *oice mid manner equal your own." "You overlook the accepted axion :hat love is blind, "my dear Keith." replied Blair. Keith's elder sister. who had always been more as a mo h r to him since his earliest veors. "And with regard to the 'conventions.' don't you think wo all owe something to the race from \tb'ch we spring? We Ileriots have a •»|Kiial duty lo rentier to those who have preceded us? And also. Herlots have n *ver Ik*« ii snoljs. Your wife might l>e the daughter of a peasantfarmer. giv« n that th-* family be inately gimtle. But lb;-se people who iuggle and tumble for the public! nil\v are no doubt industrious and worthy in their own sphere. But. Keith, dear fellow, you cannot be serious.*'

"Yd, admitting the irulh of qjl \«>ii nssert. I am intensely serious," h>» declnr-d. "Hill Htippow we cull n tnicc. Yqii will conic to ih- n-n-sinj: hom?. mid sw Miss Stjuitiiforl h. for my sak* l —will you not It will not compromise you in any way." "Will it compromise you, Keith?" n-ked Lady 'Ulatr, looking affect ionutely al the young brother to whom .-he was so deeply attached"No. Maud," ho repliecj. "As 1 told you I passed my woid to Hermann, and I have kept it loyally. Ali.-on may read my love for heif even as I am assured she loves me, but co words have passed between us. At times I atn l'"d to believe her memory has returned to her, and with it the realisation of a deep--*»ated trouble; but until she breaks thy ice I do not feel justified in inviting her confidence. Hut she is so utterly alone that I am compelled to ask your kindly interest for one so d> ar to me. Also. I cherish ihe hope iha* its expression—from ore so rich in loving sympathy for suffering as yourself, Maud, dear—may open up the floodgates of remembrance, awl poor little "Alison's mind at

"Hut. Keith, why not this female cousin of whom you "No." returned Keith deciiktllx. "Mr*. Sianniforth is, I oiu sure, an wtimahle little woman, but of a iln>* apart."

"Is the juggler then, so .superior to hi* wife?" a«ke<J LaJy Hljuf"ln some ways, yes. though ih«> distinction is not so marked. Hut Alison is not the least like Sianniforth. lie has a pronounc.d American accent, and hi* betrays his origin. Alison's diction and pronunciation arc as pure and faultless as your own.'*

"And how is that accounted for?" "I confess I haw n p vr inquired; ip fact the singularity or it never struek me until this moment. For Sianniforth is a fellow—a man in every sen** of Uv word. and one. I am sure who ••v<>>i!d n'-v>-r pre.sumc on Ilon't Inok o distressed, Maud. dear. Vou will coinc to visit

my pal', in. at the nursing home, wil you not. and '.lnn we can disoiss tin matter more fairl>?"

I-iuJy Blair looked out of tli«: win dows of her iieautiful old house fac ing Regent's Park for sonic minute; before she replied. Then sit' 1 tuni.'t to her brother and took both hi.« hands within her own. "Docs it mean so much lo yoji Keith?" "It m 'uns —everything," he answer ~d simply. Sh • Icon (1 forward and kissed hif brow. "I.addie." sha said, softly, "moth•r thought I spoilt you from lh< time you wore fir.st big enough tc wear a kilt. Am I to spoil you now —now that you arc a man. and T air growing an old, white-haired woman?"

"Yon will never grow old," ho an ■swi-n d with kindling eyes. "Yo<n hi*arl keeps yoi:ng, and the whiU lair is becoming. Yes, spoil- < iik igain. Maud. Have 1 ever prover i h • worse for yo'ir indulgence ?"

"No. no." she cried. "You were a go- d lad. I have always been iroud of my brother." '"ill n trnsl me now," h:> said, ne-tinr her eyes wiih a steadfast saste. "Believe -me wlv n I promise cou !-ha'l n -ver be of vmn 'irothcr —never l>e ashamed of your orolher's wife. You will come tlivi:, Maud. to-morrow*" "To-morrow," replied Lady It'air.

And once more Barbara lav in a -now-white l*d, with other b-ds ir '.h; same room, and soft-footed, :-ort voiced ntirs-.-s flitting about ill-it Juties, But this time th«; room ua> smaller, the beds few in number; fo: tastily s.ummcned by the alarmed andlady. who had discovered l'.ai'lara the shock consequent oil rca of aer father's death. Keith, percei\ing 'ever to l>e imminent, nia'li? h.isly irrangniients for her removal to a lursing home, anil again poor Barbara lay for many days hovering aetween life and death. Hermann was communicated with, and made a long and tedious night journey from the north that he might spend an hour or two only, by the bedside of th" "little cousin " with whom fate delighted in dealing so lardly. His professional engagements rendered his return the next lay imperii liv e. but he expressed •wry confidence in Dr. Heriot, and Vlt deeply grateful for the young •urgeon's noble devotion. The two in n pu/jded over the probable causes >f this last seizure, and save that h- often harrowing anna!s of everylays news had proved the last straw to a sensitive ami highly-strung teni|H"raiii"iit. already overwrought, the copi«*s of the "Weekly Budget " aroused no suspicion.

"Though, froiif all one hears of American journalism, our matter-of-fact reports would hardly startle a New Yorker." suggested Keith. "You're right there, doctor," implied Hermann. "But I lake it. little Alison's lived a good deal outside 4hc Stales of late years. I'm expecting it will come back to h -r onday. but 'tis a f &ct she's more usvd to old-country ways than either Selina or nic will ever be." "Is she English on one .sld \ or Scotch? I have sometimes thought I caught a northern inflection in her voice."

"No. . doctor. The Stannifori lis nave lxi*n New Knglanders since the Jays of the early settlers. I can't iay where Ihev migrated from originally. but as far as I know I'm the first of them to return to th-j old country."

"Strange. It has never occurred to me until rec< ntly, but your cousin Has no American accent, no—if you will pardon me—mannerisms in speech." Hermann smiled.

"I reckon she's been living in Canada, doctor, and there it is said tho Canucks aim at being more British than the old country people themselves. But little Alison's a true .-hi Id of I'ncle Sam, doctor; you can't get away from that;" and in Keith's eyes, were they so blind, "little Alison " was so perfect that whether King Edward or Uncle Sam .-laimtd her allegiance mattered not the slightest to And "little Alison's" magnificent, con -Ii tut ion had proclaimed her of pure ancestry, of whatever stork they might have descended. It had beatm down the fever, anil she was now on the high road to complete recovery. And as from his childhood Keith had been accustom-d to carry all his boyish griefs to his "big sister," Maud, and to fir.d in her a wise councellor, and a tower of strength in time of tribulation, so now his hopes lifted themselves from out of th" slough <•' despond and he felt that Maud might solve th" problem which seemed bevond his solution.

For ho realized that, bound as he was in honour to the juggler, his deliverance could only come from Alison herself, and he hoped and prayed that his sister's womanly sympathy would evoke the girl's confidence. Hut llarbara!

What -"•he suffered mentally, could i n'y b* realized by herself. Her fa'h-r —lh- loving, indulgent father, her playmate, her companion, her instructor in the old-world lore relating to the past in which he lived — lead! I>ead. because of his love for her. his grief at her untimely end! She would never see him again, tvver hear his voice blessing her as -he bade him "good-night:" n.-vee feel his hand lingering on her ruddy curls, his lips upon her cheek. Man. and heart felt were tlv learn .sili nt !y shed by Barbara. win 11. at ter ihe lever had passed, recollection came back to her, and she re u :i zed Ivr loss—realized thai sh • si on'! alone ill the world—worse than aloiv —for if Dr. Ileriot spoke truly. > h COllltl Ik" culll[«'lled to live wiill a husband whom she loath'd and lia'-'i and Jo whose care her aunt compel her to return, were Mr.-. (Jore-Ilitchie made acquainted .\i?h her niece's position. Truly a pitiab 1 " piiirh'' 1! • extricate herself? She v.as !r. ;:,l_ ■ n charity, on the bounty of 11--: mair--Slanniforth, and Dr. Ii• ■s : ' All the proud blond nit >:•■ Moray* rose ir. iH»v»)lt. 'ihat v.*.-' ;>■' She would declare Ivr y. sh>j would thank th-in for th-ir n. ' <3:.e.-s and return to Ivr father's hA: least that would be Ivr*. nr:d there might be a little money. To Ik Continued