The Ironmaster's Daughter.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXIX, Issue 8298, 29 November 1906, Page 2

The Ironmaster's Daughter.

Bv OWEN MASTERS. Aviltr of "Clj/da's Love Dream," "Nina's Repentance," "Her Soldier Lover,'' "The Mystery of Woodcroft," "For Love ofMarjorie," etc.

{""The Ironmaster's Daughter" was commenced on October 17th.]

CHAPTER XXVL—Continued. "My Dear Tressidy: I have received the enclosure of Miss Reitz, but I shall not answer it direct. Since you have betrayed the confidence I imposed, I leave it to you to tell Miss Reitz just what you like. In a friendly spirit I warned you that to the marriage between the lady and yourself there is an insuperable bar. You have made mischief out of this; using my name, and beha,ving generally as no man of honour should. At least, I gather that much from Miss Reitz's letter. She insists upon knowing my meaning—she insists upon an expnnaticn. 1 leave you to • explain—if you can face the opposition. "Now, my dear Tressidy, 1 am again risking a confidence, but if you betray it this time, and it gets to the ears of my father, it may i mean a family rupture. My father is extremely foad of his adopted daughter.and it is my belief that the five million dollars inherited by her from her natural father is the flimsiest of myths. These dollars are my father's money, and : in the natural order of things, the money should have been) mine. You will agree, then, that I have a right to be sore about it. You arc using my money to build up a business in opposition to me. 'lt's no use denying the fact that we are keenly feeling the effects of your competitive prices, and I regard my father almost as a personal enemy. I hope you won't tell him what I say. "As for Miss Reitz, I don't know exactly what claim she has on my father, but I, do know that her people came from one of the Southern States, and that the old negro woman she keeps is her grandmother. I mean Aunt Nelly. Consequently, Peter is her uncle. They are very decent sort of niggers, with enough white blood to make them good-looking. I'm not quite sure how you Britishers regard negroes. Over h£re they are of no account". "We class them a few degrees below our dogs. This is the insuperable bar from our point of view, and my father ought to have . told you from the first. Miss Reitz has had several offers of marriage from Americans, but, to avoid a divorce later, the" truth has been made known to them. In a way you have been badly treated, though your hurt has been salved through dollars.

"In conclusion, I would say that Miss Reitz has only a quarter of negro blood in her veins, and that she might go through England without the truth being detected. I have seen black women with white children, and visa versa. The mixture plays strange pranks. If you look at Miss Reitz's finger-nails, you will see evidence of her negro blood. I think that's about all I need say, and now you will have nobody but yourself*to blame if later developments a*3 not satisfactory. In your shoes, 'I should break away, gently—very gently, mind you; for she has the temper of a foul fiend, and may knife you. Then you must return her money—or hand over the iron works to us. This is a suggestion =thatlam prepared to negotiate, if you entertain it. "Read this in the anxious and friendly spirit in which it is written. Weigh it well, and I venture to say that, though it may vex you now, you will one day thank your

"Sincere well-wisher, " FRANK STARK." Dick gripped the letter, and stared straight before him, seeing nothing. There was a fierce, throbbing pajn in his head, and he jumped up, half maddened. "The liar! —the coward !" He dashed the letter to the floor, and danced upon it in a frenzy of rage. He almost raced round the great centre table, beating the air with his fists. . There was a knock on the door, but he heard it not; a man rushed into the room, but be saw him not. He raved up and down, and the man grasped him. He might as well have attempted to wrestle with a Samson. "Gome ! Ha! ha! This is good —glorious ! We will settle it now ! You shall never come between me and my beloved Pauline ! Say your prayers. Call upon your God if you have one, for I will kill you—kill you!" "Let go, you idiot!" cried the voice of Charlie Mostyn. "You are mad ! " ■ ' Dick dropped his hands—ashamed and amazed. His eye fell upon the letter, and he secured it with jealous hands. Then he sat down, limp and trembling. '•See hero, old chap," Charlie said. ' I'm going to put you to bed. You're off your rock ' A pretty mess you've made of my shirt and collar. Ripped all to rags. Let me have a good look at you. No more of your prancing lunatic tricks., . If you don't obey your doctor, it's a straight jacket—sure !" ,Dick motioned for some "brandy, but Charlie shook his head. •'Not a drop, sir. Your brain's heated enough already." He walked to the push-bell, but Dick shook his head fiercely. "Don't I know wh it I'm doing ? If you get too officious|l shall chuck you out! Heaven, how my brains reel! Charlie, I've had bad news—-

nothing but the blackest and most damnable lies that were ever committed to paper! I don't care —I don't care. I'll marry Pauline in spite of it all—l'll marry her if she's a full-blooded Zulu. Hush! Not a word, Charlie. What, I say is sacred between us. Now send Pauline to me, and then I will obey orders. I know that I'm ill;; the fevers raging in my veins, burning in my head—suffocating me. I must see my Pauline —I must talk to her; then I am ready for bed, and for physic. Humour me, Charlie, I know just what I'm doing." Charlie stared at him doubtfully. "I'l telegraph to Benson to keep back all letters," he thought "He's safe for a spell upstairs." He turned to Dick. "I'll send Miss Reitz to you. Don't you touch brandy. Let me mix you some iced lemonade and claret, if you're thirsty." "When Pauline came in Dick was comparatively calm. He was trying his best to appear So, although" a fierce hatred of Frank Stark was ragin within him. He had thrust the insulting and lying letter into the safe, and the keys were in his pocket. But in his semi-delirium he had forgotten the envelope, and there it lay on the table, face upward, for Pauline to see. . [to ee continued.]