CHAPTER L.

Te Aroha News, Volume V, Issue 259, 28 April 1888, Page 3

CHAPTER L.

iv tiii: Krxi;no:\i 01 fallow a^. Jamk whs not long left in doubt. 'Jf you think iio would like it,' .Sabina wrote instantly, 'if you think it would be <i little break in the monotony of hi.s life, or would .serve to convince- him how much we sympathise with him in his dreadful misfortune, I will go with you, and gladly. How can 1 ever forget his kindness to me in my darkest hoiu>> V And if that can ne\er be lepaid, surely the least 1 can do is to show him that [ remember, and .im grateful.' Then there was a bustle of preparation in the hou.se : for Janie's ideas about Scotland and about what was necessary for such a journey were of a vague description: for perhaps she would hardly have been surprised if warned to take tinned meats with her in case of their being snowed yip in .June, or if Philip had been advised to purchase a ride, on the chance of his getting a shot at a bear. However, Philip's first care was 1o ascertain that this visit would be agreeable to Walter Lindsay ; and accordingly he wrote, saying they wore coming round that way, and would like to see him, and might perhaps if there was- an hotel in the neighbourhood, stay fora few days, anil give him the pleasure of their company if ho cured for it. He added that Sabina |jwas coming with them. The answer showed how gratefully this proposal had been received. '' I have made my young friend here read ■ your letter over several times, for it sounded too good to be true ; but 1 am convinced at labt : and you may bo sure I understand why you think of coming to this oul-of-the-way place And we'll say' 4 notliing aboiqan

I* hotel, if you will put up with such accommodation'us my poor houses aflbrds ; anil wo will Ivy to givo you a Hootch welcome. It i.s an in tores hi nyf neighbourhood ; you will bo able to plan plenty ot exclusions; and jou needn't bo a fro id that I f«hall be a drag on you — i .-shall be glad enough when you come homo in the evening, hi the meantime it wilb bo quite an occupation for mo to make preparations for your coming ; it' 1 leant see what it- going on, I shall be tin wor«e oil than the modern general who sits in his tenb and conducts a battle from ' the ioport« sent into him. I w'btild tolegiaph for jNlffc. Reid, to gnu us her additional assistance ; but her taee would remind .Sabina of that sul time: ,so poihaj>s we be better without. Bv the way, 1 ha\e once ov twice been thinking ot i. writing to you about my house and studio in London. Oni'o upon* a time I made a .solemn \ow novel to sell thorn— because of cci laiti association*. Hub then f was earning a nood income ; now thai [ am earning nothiuu. it seems a useless piece of e\-l-ravag nice. Piobably I slrdl ne\ei bo in London iiy.ni) : and, considering (his that has happened '.o me, I think I am entitled L) absolution irom that \o\\ ; so that if you should chance to lieai or a likely tenant or purchaser, you mufht let me know.' ' No\or to lie in London again ':' repeated .Jauie, when .she read fclio leftei. ' Uoo^ lie think he would be such a double to- his friends -a din" 1 on their., he says ? But he is hopeless because he i.s alone. When Sab c ,in(] you and' J aie nil with him, wo will ti\ io cheer him up a little And---ami I hope Snbie will be kind '" Then Sabina was summoned up liom the '-oiintis, to join in the general and joyful ln'riy ot pieparation for dopaituie But \i ben she ,m« what Juniu considered needful in the wa\ ot in^, ulsteis, uatei piooff, and the like- -and when she di~eo\eied (hat these good people, Ihouyh tar from being abundanbh rich, were making no .scruple about pioviding hei witli all of i hose -hei conscience .smote hei The cost ot travelling, too, would be ureat ; why should she become such a bnulen upon them " ; The altematho w.i- th<\t the should go ami a^k her father tor a icnewal of the allowance winch, he had formally intimated lo her, still lemaiucd at her disposal. I'oth.ips, in otlu-i circuin.stanees, she would even now h;t\ c backed out of this piop<}s L d holiday, and contentedh gone dow n home again to Buckinghamshire. But sho wanted to go to Scotland it hei uoing would be taken as a kindness, by one who Mas once kind to hei, iiiul u,ih now soieh, stricken- and so she put her pucle in hei pocket, wrote ""o hei tathei, got an appointment to meet him at the Waldegia\e Club, anil went theicandi found him. There weic two wcll-kuoun politicians passing through the hall while Sabiua was standing fchoie, talking to her father, and explaining her position When they had swung the glass door behind them. Ihe one said to the other : — ' What a lemarkablj handsome gill that i.s talking to Anthony Zembra -did \ou notice hei '" • Why, don'l you know v. ho -h i- '' said the othci ' No ' His duughtei, lH.it - all "How (.in that be' 1 ii.m iil\c) .seen hei at the lioiisu .'' 'Oh, fhe's mai ' ic.l -oi was ni.uiied oi >ome( hintr." his companion ~-<\'v\, inihncrentl.N ' She doc-n'r h\e with family number tw o. ' Meanwhile, .Sabina wa- being lectuicd in a cold fashion about the consequences of herexilwa^s. Hut when it came to the question of mone\ , (hei c nat no dilhcidby. Sii Anthony pointed otit^to hei th.it it was no wish of his that one of hLs dauyhtcis should bo dej)endent on the !)ounty ol amone: that her allowance was being pnnetu.illy paid her when she chose to iclinquish it, from mot i\es l){«-b known to hei .self ; that it was still at hei di.spo-al : and that pel sonally he should much piefer fch.it no lelafcion ot his was in ieceipt of cliarity fiom any somcc whate\ei Foi Sir Anthoin liked lo^peakof his own motnes, aims, cncumstanu s, and position ; ,md he t-eldom failed to oim\oj to his intei locntoi a -enso of how fai, tar ,in r ii) tiom that high standaid of integrity and nnidouee and consoiontiousnes.s he ov she wa.s. Sabina lclt the \Valdugra\e Club ju&b a little bit humblerl ; but at all events she knew that now those kind people who were befiiending hei would not have to pay foi hei | tia\elhng equipment Then there came tlie joyous moining on which the.su tin ee found themselves walk- j ing up and down the wide, sounding platfoim or lOuston Station. A canhige haii been i osoi \cd foi them ; IMiilip had stulled it full of newspapers and maga/.ines. And now Sabina (having yielded to Jauio .s m-i^-tencc) was cla<liii an ult-lci ot gn y home &pun with a Tarn o Shantci ot .simil.u colour, and looked more like a Highland chieftaint'ss. than a Ivensington-boi n w oman. "Take youi^-ea^ foi (he North '.' To some folk Mieic is moie in these simple w ords than c\ei was put into any -ong or balla 1. Hut these thiee tia\elleis were, as a tnst stage, going no iaifher than Cailisle: and, indeed, knew lit tie of what was before them. ' Look here,' said Mr Philip, taking out his pocket-book as poo:*, as they were through the tunnels and into the clear daylight again, ' I was talking some little w hile ago to an American, o^cl here foi bhc fiisl time, and he told me that what struck him most in England was the number of inteiestmg things, historical and otherwise, that you find everywhere, within a small oompa.ss. Co anything you like, he said for a morning sti oil — and theie's always something. Now [ wonder what he w ould say ( o thislittlo run between Carlisle and Strnuaer. 1 have boon jotting down some ot bhe points while 1 was ran&ackir.g the guide-book.s ; and really we shall have our work cut out before we reach (Jarn-ryan Tower. Listen. They begin the minut" you cross fclic Bolder. ( irctna( !rccn— -well, that's nothing. Kiitlc Water — that is -w hero Helen of Kirkcon- ! noil was shot in sa\ing the lite ol her lover — ' ' Oh, if you take account of all the imaginary s'toiieb— ' his wife objected. 'My deal," said lie, 'it i^n't an imaginary story. It was a very act ual occurrence — as the gentleman who iiied the shotfound out. The slaying of Burd Helen wasn't ab all the end of the incident— a little interview had to take place between the lover and the murderei — don't you iem ember 1 ' My sword dirt draw. Stern was our right on Kivllclinw, 1 hewed him down in pieces siiia", For her sake that died for me.' Then what comes next ? Dumfries. 1 don't know how we arc ever to get aw r ay horn Dumfries and its neighbourhood. Of courtio we must drive out and see Ellislund, Bump's farm ; and Friar's Cavso, too : then there's Lincludcn Abbey ; Drumlanrig Castle ; Maxwellton Braes — we'll maybe find another Bonnie Annie Laurie tripping over the dew ; Craigenpnttook, where Thomas the Thunderer prepared his bolts before coming up to London ; .Sweetheart" Abbey, that Devorgilla built in memory ot her husband— -thirteenth century work that must be; Caerla\ erock Castle; Threavo Castile; "Dundrennan Abbey, wbcio ( v )ueon Mary Kpent her last night in Scotland, after the battle o I Langsido '' ' Phil,' Kud lib, wife to him, 'if you arc

going to give so much time to these old abbeys and monasteries, what do you bay to SabicMincl mo going 1 on to Carn-ryan and waiting foi you there ? Indeed, if you are going to spend so much time on this little bit ol Scotland, how arc- avc to know anything of the country generally? 1 thought we should &cc something- of the lonely I islituds in the west; and the mountain*; j and ccrtai-ly Edinburgh, and Melro,«e : and you wanted to go back by Yairow --that's •i way somewhere else ' < 'Hero's gratitude, 'said lie, 'for my having crushed twenty pages of guide book into ten lines. However, we'll make this compact You bear with as much arclutectuio as you can ; and, on my side, when you think ji placo is nob likely to' be inteiesting I'll cut it out : Sabina to be umpiie.' ■So that was settled ; but both Sabina and Phih'u knew very well that it was no ignorant lack of interest in historical or poetical associations that had prompted •lanieV little pro.test ; it wii«i that she wa.anxious to show Wa tei Lindsay thai. I lib tiiend.s had not forgotten him in hit- trouble, but wore quick -with their sympathy. That uight they stopped at ' .Meirv (Jailislo ;' and no\t morning were up betimes and on the lampaits of the reel Castle, looking away acioss the gieon meadows, and the winding Cden towards the 'pale blue line of the .Scotch hills at the horizon. Thou they crossed the Bolder, and gues-ed at the place avlicio ' Fn in,\ arms Hurt! Helen dioppod. And died tor love of inc.' They spent two days in and around Dumfries. They went on t"> castle Douglas.. They made their way in the lamons Kingdom ot (ialloway that is ' hlc-t with the smell of bog-niyi tic and peat.' Finally, in this slow fashion, they iet>ted .' night .it N"ewton Stewart, t-o a- to take the iiioining train to Stianiaor; and there they found awaiting them at the station a waggonuctte, to convey them to C'arn-ryan. It was a beautiful sott-aired -lune morning, and the country through which they dro\c was picturesque enough — with occasional glimpses ot the sea ; but thine- is 1.0 doubt that, the two women folk were very much pro-occupied, not to say anxious and nervous,. ' You'd better sa\, nothing at all," Philip DreKel had ad\i.sed them. 'It would only be an cmbairassmcnt. Cleaily he is dote) - mined to put a brave face on it ; just you talk to him as ii nothing had happened.' 'It boom- h.ttd, though.' Janio said, wistfully, 'that— that lie couidn t know how sorry we are.' ' You can't -ay anything well," remaiked Mi Philip, who had a little common &en^c, L 'and what is the use of saying it badh. And don't, you think he will undei stand ''.' When at length they arrived at Carnr\an they found it quite a modern place (the old tower, as they aftciwaids- di— co\ored,was on a piomontory lacing the sea.) The hou<-c was two-stoi ied, wide and straggling, sunounded by fair meadows anil wood-, and with a high-walled fruit garden at some distance away. The Ficnch windows, the trimly-kept lawn, and lloweipots, wereall\er\ cheeifuland pleasant: and if they had been expecting anything of the giim aiv] grey dignity ol .m ancient Scottish keep, "the,\ wei c speedily di&illusioni-cd. They alighted from the waggonette, and weio reeei\od by an elderly maii-sci \ant and a smart young maid, who inhumed them that Mi Lmdsa\ wa* down in the fiutL gaiden, but would be r-n thcoming diicctl), as hi would heai the carnage w heel-* So they did not go into the house . they loitered about the front dooi, looking at cho shrul)berics, and the larch-trees, and the l»ed* ol t'oiget-me-not-^ «md at ceit<iin small round ])ull-b«dls under .1 dusbnit hedge which they tound out to be white rabbits. Then Lind-ay made his appeal ance. at sonic way oil, walking 1 it her Mow ly. w it h his hand lesting on thoshouldci ota younti lad. 1 lib tall foi in was as eiect a^ cscr, but his head was bent a little lorward, as if he had fallen into a Irttbit of li-tening intently. When he came still ne.ner they could see that tlieie wa v no appearance whateNer of hi.s being blind ; there was not e\en a shade oxer his eye-. But thej heard the- bo^ -<i\ to him, in an nuclei tone 'There's a gentleman, su : and a tall young leddj ; and anithcr anc not so tall.' He catne forwaid, holding out both his hands. ' L beg \our ])aidou .1 hundied tune-,' ho said. ' Tni* h hardly a Scotch welcome. I should Iki\c been at the dooi to leceive you, but 1 lancy Sand,\ has come a good pace, or else I've mistaken the time And this is you, Philip--. uid bhi" is you, .lanie — then this must be you ' 'Sabina ' e.iid. with .» touch ot enlieat> : could not be let { out of the little fi icndl\ oncle 'J .im glad \ou ha\c bi ought such Hue wcathei *\\ith \ou." he s,nd. eheeitullv. ' Didn't you think the counti.s looking nietty <is >ou came along "' 'Oil, beautiful— beMiitiful 1 ' .l.uiic's husband "aid The two women could h.vdl\ speak. It was so piteous to hear him talk approvingly of all the&c thing- around them, and btill to be so far away from them: it seemed almost as lfhcwcieim-puf-oned within Mime living tomb. ' Come into the house, then, he -aid, alt he would himself lead the way. And then he hesitated — and put forwaid his foot a little, to find wheic the stone step was: foi the. ,\oung lad had w ithdiaw n a space, to lea\e his ma&tei lrec to talk to bio guc*t-\ At this moment it happened that Sabina was next to Lindsay, and could not but his helplessness. c ill you take my hand 'C she ?aid. and she gently put her lingers on his arm, and guided him into the hall. It was, her right hand that she put on his arm ; w ith the left she was bi ushii.g aside , the team that, in spite of hei-ell, lamed down her face. (To be Comiinh (l )