Novelist. [ ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.]

Waikato Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 2704, 9 November 1889, Page 5 (Supplement)

Novelist. [ ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.]

B Y JAM E S GRA KT. Author of "Tim 'Itnmanca of AVar," " Tlio 'Cluck " AVatcb," " Fairer than a Fairy," * c '> &- c -

Love's Labour Won: AX KVKNTFUL STORY.

CHAPTER Llll.—LoxsDAT,;i's Hope. Loxhdalk had barely time givou him to consider the alarming nature of the intelligence ho received aud to think uver what he should do, ■whether to trust to the course of events where ho was, or seek safety elsewhero oro it Avould ho too lato to attempt anything, when, as a kind of crisis in his fate, the booming of the groat bell in the adjacent pa°-oda announced that the aged Poongyee had died, or returned, as the phraso is in Burmah—whore it is deemed undignified or impious to say that a priest ever dies—and immediately preparations began for tho disposal of his Temains, according to the rites of Buddha. Every moment "was of valno now. His chief protector in the monastery was gone, mid little doubt was entertained of its only gate boing closely watched, lest he should attempt to escapo thereby. L'jnsdalo thought of the days when for cramming and high-pros-•sure examinations ho had, till his head ached, studied Colonel Glory's '• Minor Tactics," and Captain Domau< r el's ' Question's and Answers' thereon, but thoso in his present peril gave him no more hint of how to escape it than Chaucer, Burns, and Sponsor, over whose absolutisms In; had been compelled to eat his heart. The .Rangoon Rahoau or Poonyyee informed him that he was about forty miles from tho eastern bank of tho IraAvaddy—or Airavati < lS he culled it—and that a rather Avilil and broken country lay botweon him ancUho monastery, iull

of forests, marshy paddy fields, and deep water cuts. On this ho ascended to tho summit of the pagoda—in which was nnshrined in gold a single hair of Buddha—a pyramidal edifice, some three hundred feet in height. Built of solid brick, it rose from a spacious platform, and was surmounted by an umbrella spire of iron tracery, so elaborately gilded that it shone like a mass of firo in the sunlight, and at times was tho eagerly greeted object of devout pilgrims from Indo-China, Siam and Cambodia, in the far peninsular beyond the Ganges. From this lofty spiro lie had an extensive view of tho surrounding , country, but lie chiefly bout his g-azo in the direction where he knew the great river lay. The country seemed silent and deserted as far as he could judge, save for a few flimsy huts, the dwellings of pagoda slaves, and those who wore professional beggars, if not Avorsc. Then too, lie Avas awaro that in tlio dense jungle aud primeval teak forests were Avild elephants, which found their way thither from Pegu, the tiger, tho leopard and the savage boar, while in tho marshes aud doop grass lurked poisonous snake?. Thus ho had no ordinary risks to run ere ho could roach the river, if oven then he could get on board any of the flotilla or see a vestige of it, as the Expedition must now be far up the irawaddy, Bhamo alone being more than one hundred and sixty miles above Ava. These thoughts filled him almost Avitli despair. His mind Avas a species of chaos when lie descondod from tho summit of the groat shrine and returned to the placo or room set apart for him within a corner of tho great brick Avails that surrounded the monastory, in Avhicli arrangements for the solemn cremation ot his late friend wore in full progress—preparations that occupied several days, and Avhich, as he was not present, fortunately for himself, bear no part in our story, though Ave may add th at they vrero quite as repollant as those used by the Egyptians of old, prior to the interment of their dead. About this time an alarm sounded one night throughout the Avholo edifice. Dacoits in no small force wore menacing the great gato in one quarter, demanding that the European barbarian should be delivered up to them, Avhile a numerous band in another woro discovered to bo secretly at Avork. digging under tho Avails, "with the intention of capturing whatever treasure they could lay hands on, as they know well, of course, that many of tho offerings of rich devotees consisted of white umbrellas of precious stuffs, with ornaments of gold and silver, slippers and pillows covered with embroidery and precious stones, together Avitli vessels of several precious metals.

Rumours of the vast wealth of this monastery had spread far and wide, and many of its chief devotees came from Pegu, where gold is found in the sands of the rivers, so that it is supposed to be the Golden Chersonesus of the Ancients, and there is a mountain near the stream named KhyerTwen, where there are mines in which gold and silver, rubies and sapphires arc all wrought at the same time. With his heart beating wildlyall the more so that he was without the smallest weapon by which he could sell his life dearly, or revenge its loss by the death of another, Montague Lonsdale looked over the wall near the gate at the furious assassins whom he knew were clamouring for him, and thought that his fate had come at last. It was an awful and bitter conviction for a brave young fellow, full of spirits, life and energy, to j feel that he was being thus en-

trapped, surrounded, run to earth like a wild animal, and would inevitably be done to a terrible death without hope of mercy. The most active and conspicuous among them was a Burmese of gigantic stature, deeply tattooed and wearing a white frock, well quilted, as the season was a cool one. In the light of a torch, held by one of the assailants, he could see their tawny visages and floating dresses, their gleaming eyes and bright weapons flashing like mirrors, their long black hair unbound and floating, when, with the energy of the action, their top-knots became loose. One or two caught a sight of his fair European face, and with frantic yells fired their pistols at it, ;heir visages seeming to become transfigured, as he saw them for a moment, contracted with fiendish malignity, and the almond-shaped black eyes flashing as if with flame, their white teeth glistening and set; and then he shrank down behind the wall, over which the bullets were whistling, in utter doubt what to do, when suddenly a volley of musketry shook tho darkened air, and tho yells of the Dacoits seemed to pierce the starry welkin. For a moment a glow of hope rose in Lonsdale's heart—the hope that a party of our own troops had come uoon them ; but it was not so. The tolling of the great alarm bell of the pagoda, booming out sonorously on the night afar over wild forests and rice-fields, scared those who were at work with their shovels beneath the walls : while a rattling but ragged volley, Hashing through the gloom, was poured into the others, announcing that they had been attacked by the armed followers

of a Woongyee, or great lord, who was a muniticont patron of the monastery, just us n, great French baron of tho middle ages might have saved a convent from being the prey of a Jacquerie. The Dacoits were put to rout, and fled with yells of rage and fear into the recesses of the woods, Icoving several killed and wounded behind them. By dawn next morning Lonsdale went forth a few yards from the gate to see the scene of the late conflict, and there picked up, to his joy, a sharp and deadly tluli or Burmese dagger, and that which was better, a six-chambered revolver, with six unexploded cartridges in it. " Six Burmese lives to go ere mine is lost, I hope !" he muttered, sternly, yet with a laugh. lie saw that the revolver was a British Government one, and thus serious doubts of its being serviceable occurred to him—-these weapons and their anumition, like our machine gun?, so often failed in action ; but the charges seemed all right, and with a sigh of genuine gratitude, he concealed it and the dagger beneath his tunic. But ere he turned to re-enter the gate, he saw in its immediate vicinity a very appalling sight, but one that was thoroughly Burmese in character. Eight of those wretches who had been assailants over night had been taken, and, by order of the Woongyee, were fastened to a lofty bamboo fence, first by the hair of the head, the long coiled top-knot being unbound for that purpose, and then by the throat, with their bare limbs stretched out as far as they could be without dislocation, and thus, with underjaw fallen, their eyes open and glazed, and nude, all save a linen scarf, they hung in the blaze of the morning sun, ripped open, with the viscera dropping out, as a punishment for sacrilege. Lonsdale had scon men too often battered, gashed, and torn in many ways by shot and shell in action ; but this appalling spectacle proved too much for him, and lie turned away in horror. However, an emotion of confidence came back to him now with the knowledge that he was secretly armed, and escape did not seem quite so hopeless. He calculated that once safely free from the vicinity of the monastery, wherein he was known to be lurking, by travelling westward at the moderate rate of fifteen miles a day, in less than three days lie might reach the river, feeding himself as best he might on the way.

Tlie obsequies of his late protector gave him additional hope of escape, if lie could only get forth into the open country among those who were to drag and escort the funeral car, thus eluding the watchful and sanguinary Dacoits. The Rangoon Rahoan favoured, even suggested this idea, and gave him a blue cotton Burmese frock, reaching to the knees, a sort of caniise, with loose sleeves to cover his uniform, and an ample handkerchief of what the British call bookmuslin, to envelope his head and face partially in turban fashion. He also gave him some food in a species of wallet made of matting, to be ready for any emergency. So tho eventful evening of the old Pooncyee's cremation came at last, for the bodies of all priests and persons of rank are burned in that region, while those of the lower classes and all who die under the age of fifteen are buried or flung into the river.

A stage: twelve feet high was erected on a four-wheeled carriage ornamented with paintings and mirrors, and on the summit of this lay the cotlin, wherein the body was ha'lf visible, but covered with goldleaf umbrellas; red banneroles on bamboo staves were stuck all about it, and high over all rose an acute spiral pyramid of split bamboo. With several priests upon it chaunting a monotonous dirge for the dead, the whole of the curious structure was drawn from the monastery for a mile or more, chiefly by women and boys, all shouting and laughing, followed by a great band of spectators, of whom Lonsdale — ; distinguished as we have described - was one ; and tho brief twilight was closing into night when the place for cremation was reached, the tributary of the Irawaddy, which was covered with gigantic lotus flowers floating on its glassy surface. There was no weeping or wailing, but there was an exhibition of female dancing, which, to say the least of it, was rather strange, for the costume of the Burmese dancers, while descending to theankles, is not closed by a front seam, so that like the Spartan girls, if Euripides belie them not, a great part of the limb is alvvavs exposed ; and while the dance was in progress the resinuous, oiled and perfumed wood was healed up in piles to form tho funeral pyre. At that juncture of the ceremony, when a whimsical contest ensues by an adverse pulling at the rear of the car, by a party who profess reluctance to leave the precious remains, till those in front prevail, Lonsdale, almost holding his breath in the keenness of his excitement, cjiiietly drew aside and took his way into an adjacent wood, heedless, or jusc then oblivious, of what wild animals it might contain. As he proceeded with quickening steps he could hear upon the evening wind the booming of barbaric drums, the tinkling of bells, and the

wailing of wind instruments mingling Avith the chaunting and shouting of tho people. Anon, a great and lurid glare shot athwart tho sky and flashed through the vistas of the wood as if it came from a solid mountain of fire. The night was clear, and the peculiarly rarefied and transparent atmosphere rendered objects distinct at a great distance ; far into the recesses of the leafy wilderness through which Lonsdale took his way went the lurid glare of the flames, and the grotesque shadows they formed out of the strange trees and gigantic plants, till silence and darkness began to close together around him and he found himself alone and out in the night. CHAPTER LIV. -- The Dead Past. Despite the sniffs and sneeis of Uncle Grimshaw and of her fashionable aunt, Mrs Chillington, Melanie had adopted a dark—all but black —dress and jet ornaments, as the only tribute her limited means would allow her to pay to the memorv of her dead love, as she naturally deemed him to be. And now she seemed to leave the days of her girlhood—neither careless nor quite happy days, certainly —behind her, and endeavoured in vain to probe her future. "My poor Montague is lost to me," she said once, in an irresistible burst of grief; '■ but thank heaven, not for ever !" "Ah !" said Uncle Grimshaw, in perplexity, and not without anger. "He has been faithful in his love to me, despite the duplicity of others ; aud I doubt not that when we meet in the next world nothing shall part us. :, "Ah!" said Uncle Grimshaw again, with a shrug of his shoulders and a rasp up of his side-tufts Avith both hands. " But all that won't pay day and Avay in this.' , " Ever one sordid idea," thought Melanie, drying her tears, in very shame that he should see them. The visits of her aunt, who came more frequently now than before, were ever a source of annoyance to her; sho was so cold and hard, so worldly and matter-of-fact, having not one iota of womanly sympathy about her.

" So, so; this Captain Lonsdale is gone," she said. " Can't you forget all about him now—as if he had never existed—as if all this episode had never happened in your life ? It is easy enough, if you will only n>akc the effort." " Oli, heaven, aunt! Let me die— let me die—if I. cannot forget!" wailed the girl. " Stuff! People don't die of your illusory ailment," was the harsh response of the old woman of the world, whose sentiments belied her venerable beauty, her mass of silky white hair and pretty little hands and feet. " What is done can't be undone, and tears are useless, as well as unbecoming, now. They spoil the eyes and redden the nose.'' " Just what I often say," added Mr Grimshaw. " There is no use in crying over spilled milk." " A vulgar aphorism, but a very true one. Do try to forget him, it is getting quite a long time ago now ; and then, Burmah is such a long way off," said Mrs Chillington, a little irrelevantly, but with a wellbred smile. " I am glad we have licked the Burmese. As an Englishman lam proud of that. My conscience, I am !'' " The next best thing for one's peace of mind, to having a good conscience, is to have none at all," said Reggie, who, reclined in his usual corner, felt deeply for his sister. This remark made Uncle Grimshaw wince. He thought of the missing trust-money of his dead brother-in-law ; but of that his uiece and nephew knew nothing. "It is said that we shall now have rubies and sapphires for a song," said Mrs Chillington, slowly fanning herself, despite the season, loy mere force of habit ; " but that will render them too common for ordinary wear, and prisoners have reported. •" "The 3rsurnie.su don't keep prisoners ; ain't they cannibals V interrupted Mr Grimshaw, who, if he was, as he boasted, intensely English, was also intensely ignorant of the world at large, and hoped by this time that the subjects of King Theebaw had made a pleasant meal of Montague Lonsdale. "In all this affair there is one comfort for you, Melanio," he said, after a pause. " One comfort—in. what—how ?" she asked. " Well, that as your engagement to him was little known, if at all, save to ourselves, you will be spared all impertinent pity and speculation of the subject, unless this rediculous assumption of a sombre dress and black ornaments induces them.' , " Exactly so. I have said this till I am weaiy of it," added Mrs Ohillington, who, as if weary of the subject, summoned her carriage and drove over to Ilavcnsbourne Hall to report progress, as Melanie's heart foreboded. " Uncle, you do not, and never will understand mo," she said, in a low voice, after a long pause. ' ; Why T he asked, sharply.'; ' ; Because I think when people grow old—pardon me—to your years, at least, they seem to become often benumbed and, 1 fear, incapable of suffering;'

"Do they rhe snarled. " I wish you had a tinge of my gout, that's all." " I shall never be happy again,' , said Melanie, almost to herself, as her chin droppecl'on her breast. " That remains to be proved. Do you think, now, that if you learned to love another man you fAvould be wronging Captain Lonsdale 1" " Yes ; as much as if he had been my husband—in memory, I mean." " Had been—yes—that is in the past tense; but he never was your husband." " He would have been—but for fate." " Anyhow, you arc not, and never were his wife; so you can't aflect to be his widow." " Save in heart—in sentiment.' , " Bosh. And this black dress is utter bosh, too,' , exclaimed Uncle Grimshaw, departing in anger. And so ended one of the many bitter conversations to which she was now subjected. Oh, how could they be so blunt, so coarse, so utterly unfeeling to her at this lamentable juncture of her life? She Avrung her slender hands in anguish and impatience, but Avas thankful to be left for a littlo time in peace. Never again should she see him —never again. There could be no more stolen walks now in tho ltavensbourne woods, no more meetings at tho trysting-place beside the river, where tho old trees cast a shadow on tho floating Avator-lilics, with him sho loved, with him who heard all her troubles, and in tho sense of Avhose strong presence she had felt so confident and safe. Sho sat gazmg out ou the sombre evening landscape and wide-open tearless eyes, thinking, thinking, over and always thinking, till her brain seemed to reel Avitli the monotonous iteration of her own awful and miserable thoughts. In the sky without, the lark looked looked like a dark speck and the thrush made its last evening music amid the opening blossom of the blackthorn hedge that wouldsoon be green? Already the rooks were cawing in the tall elm trees that overshadowed Rose Cottage, and in some places the snow still lingered where the early violets grew, while the raven, with hungry eye. looked down on the affrighted lambs in Held and meadow.

How futile now seemed all Mclanie's dreams in the past —dreams of love and joy that could never be realised.

What.w&s'the helpless creature to do now-? ""This was about the very time when she had expected him home, promoted, or that sho was about to go to him in the distant East and be married. Uncle Grimshaw, though far from ill-pleased at the. turn her affairs had taken, still looked grim indeed; yet she had no other future, it would seem, than he could give—no other home than he chose to accord her, unless she left her equally helpless brother to his mercy and went forth into the world to earn her bread. She looked at Reggie, and her heart felt ready to burst when she thought of all the handsome young sailor had been and what he was now. Declining on his couch near the window, he seemed more listless ever, with a crimson coiwre-pied her industrious lingers had made, spread over him. He looked as if all that remained of his youth and manhood was gone, his hollow cheeks were pale,'his large brown handsome eyes were more "dilated than ever, more sad and weary, his hands were thinner and hia voice more weak. His future appalled her, more than that of the heedless healthy Dick—far more than her own. "Where had Montague died—in city, in forest, or the river 1 How had he met his death 1 Like a soldier like a gentleman, she could not doubt. Where.was his grave, if he got one , ? His last thoughtsdoubtless, they were of her. Hope had gone, so strength of mind began to fail her. (Spring would come and go—summer with all its bright loveliness would follow—brown autumn next so days and weeks and months would follow each other; but he could come no more. He had dropped out of her life—or rather the latter seemed ended, so far as object was concerned. Where Montague lay there was a heart—and there her hopes were buried. But Melanio forgot she was young, and that ere long the realities of the world would press themselves upon her. Just yet, however, she felt crushed, giddy, bewildered, till a kind of cold despair took the place of her more passionate grief. And when once again the cold pressure and the threats of her two relatives were put upon her, she clasped her interlaced lingers and exclaimed:

" What shall I do—oh, what shall I do V Often did tlio words come to her white lips at tins crisis, Oα one hand she knew that by her sacrifice of self, Reggie would be free from her uncle's uncomfortable home, and Dick have all his fondest aspirations of being sent to Sandhurst fulfilled. If not, she knew what was before them—her "boys'' , especially, as she called them. The gloom—the weary disgust— the longing to have done for ever with memory and thought, past and present, even with existence itself the great longing for rest, were all strong in the mind of Melanie now,

Would a time ever come, she asked herself, when again she would smile, or laugh or sing—or ever work as of old, and take an interest in anything 1 To Melanie, as yet, " the ghost of a dead past was a reality—an undefinable and even mysterious present.'' (To be cuit/imwd.)