THE STORY-TELLER.
WIFE IN NAME ONLY. (Continued from Saturday's issue). CIIAi;-JIER XXXVII. All the priiV, of his natuie rose in rebellion this coarse speech. He, an of Beech,-
grove, to hear this reprobate sneering at bis love ! His first impulse was an angry one, but he controlled himself. After all, it was MidaIme's father; for Madaline's sake, ho would be patient. / fi 'Am I right?' repeitdMhe prisoner, with the same Tiiotj&ing smile. H£
' No,' replied Lord ArleighjfSyou are not right. There is no need for me to offer any explanation, and, as .?,.teP„failed.,ia my object, I will go.'
_ 'You might just as well tell me ■if you -aro in -love with my little Madaliue. 1 mighMmake jfc wor t n your while tqjet me know.'. [fc . 7 Lord Arleigh controlled his indignation;; but jhe replied, ?• '1 have.npthing to fell you.' 1 A look of disappointment came over the dark, handsome face. ■ ','.[ &&& . Keep iyoui.' secrets,' r be .qan. I. .;','# you'will tell nothing,., ; neither shall I:.! but I might:have* made it worth your While'to' trust me.' !
:o %:;Mi£ ?w.tumg; to confide,' returnedj^ord,;Arleigh ; .'all I can say-to you on leaving'fc tliac J hope 11 come to y°*r sensesf,oncl wickedness.' ~ v.ifa.iShall; begin to think that you area missionary in disguise/ said Heriry T)oTnham. / 'So you will not offer me any thing for my secret ?' he interrogated. ' '''■'■'■ ,;c secret of yours could interest ■&s rejoined Lord AHeig'j, abiuptly, as he went,uway. , •vSq} for the second time in his life, he, was: at: the door of the mystery ; yet, it renVaincd unopened. ; The first time was when he was.listening to.. Lord Rlountdean's story, , when the mention of. the name of Dornham rsbonld ;haye le;d jtq a,tf explanation of the whole affair; the second was ridw, when, if he had listened to the convict, he would have heard that Madaliue was not.his child. He left Chatham sick at heart. There was no help for him - his fate was sealed. Never, while ihe 'lived co.uld : he- make his.beautiful wife his own truly—they were .indeed parted for evermore. There remained to him'to wiite that letter y Should he consent to Madaline's mother living with herj ov should he not ? r '"'■ . He reflected long' and \anxl6usly, and then, haying well weighed the matter; he,decided that ; he-would not refuse his .w, ife her request. He mist run .the; risk, but be would caut'dn her. . He wrote; to Madaliue, and told her that he, would be pleased if she were pleased, add that he hoped she would be happy with her mother, adding the ;caution that lib trusted she would impress upon her mother the need, of great reticence, and that she must not mention tli9 tinfortu.nate circumstances pt the family to any creature living. Madaline's answer touched him. She assured him that there was no fear—that her mother was to be implicitly trusted. She told him, also, how entirely she had kept the secret of his separation from her, lest it should add to her mother's trouble. ' She will know now that I do not live with you, that I never see you, that we are as strangers; but she will never know the reason.' So wrote Madaline, and Lord Arleigh was deeply moved. What a noble; girl she was, beariug her troubles so patiently and confiding them to no one! Then he was compelled to g) to Beechgrove ; it was so long since he had .been there, and so much required attention, that he;was obliged to go, sorely against his will, for he dreaded the sight;"_"df tlie : place, haunted as it was by the remembrance of the love and sorrow of his young wife. He avoided going as long as possible, but the plact; needed the attention of a master. It was June when he went—bright, smiling, perfumed, sunny June, —nnd Beechgrove was at its best. The trees were in full foliage, the green woods resounded with the soug of birds, the gardens were filled with flowers, the whole estate was blooming and fair. He took dp his abode there. It was soon noticed in the house that he avoided the picture-gallery— nothing ever induced him to enterltV .Move than once, as he was walking through the woods, his. heart beat and his face flushed,; . there beypnd the ; trees lived his wife, his darling, ;. from whom a fate more cruel than death had parted' : him. His : wife! The longing to see her grew on him from day to day. She was so near to him, yet so' far was so fair, yet her beauty must all fade and die ;• it was not for him. In time, he began to think it strange that he had heard nothing of her.- He went.about in the neighborhood, yet no one spoke of having seen her. He never heard of her being at Church, nor did he ever meet her on the high-road. It was strauge how completely a veil of silenoe and mystery had fallen over her.
When he had been some time at Bee<?hgrove, he received one raorniD o, a letter from the Earl of Mountdean, saying that he was in the neighbourhood and would like to call. Lord Arleigh was pleased at the prospect. There was deep and Qordiality between the two men they thoroughly understood and liked each other j it Ay a s true that the Earl was older by many years than Lord Arleigh, but that dil not affect thbii' friendship. They enjoyed a few days together very much. One morning tlioy roelp tliroug the woods the sweet, fragrant June woods—whon, helween the tees, they mx? thu square tuyretg oi
the Dower House. Lord Mountdean stopped to admire the vie*?. " W tl r £ & t n ß d JjJta<&P m Beech--Bf°J«-J^: Ba^gPW^^ttpretty Jhfyfef iffh %^ d hotly Wml ,le ve rm ," Dower my d^'lively K h ®i| rl l l ? o , k ? d ® t J l K$p 'interest JffiLad^rle t igh;s mjlinjgjjflace. for % young girl. You said she was young, did you not ?*' - "Yea; she is years younger than I am, replied Lord Arleigh. «' Poor girl,' said the Earl, pityingly : "■it mast be, rather a S J ftUe-so young and beautiful, yet condemned all her life to hve alone. Tell me, Arleigh, did you take advice before you separated yourself so abruptly from
" No," replied Lord Arleigh, " I did not seek it-the matte? appeared plain enough to me."
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