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JJ»>«>«+«>-»>0.+«+«>«+«-f«+O.-f«+«-f«*«*«i«4«f«H«i«> i ll THE STEWARD'S SON ^e+^f^^-v^-ttiio-fio+o-fo^^^ia+o^Jc+^fio+ia+o+ci^+^^-o-fa* CJIAl'TKJi XXXI. I Bead! | In the first nioim-nt of the tlisco>'- «ry tlio Kcnsution o( horror KoenKjil i> turn Ctuildfoitl Ilorioii to 8i<;iic, ami as ho kiu'lt, leaning-, shiln'iiuK us far back as hu coulcl (rum llu' slill body, it almost lunkiKl as if the iiaiiU of (It'utii liucJ touched him ti;o. '1 ho Kiloiico was tcirilili!; the very iliirijK'ss i)f the rouiii, in which Itiu only liglit uuM that of Dm rnurxy lantern, Uiit un additiotiul Vorror to tho nionient. Hv had not intrnded to m:ii'dor hor; ho loUl hiirusoli so over and ov.-r a(;uin in those nrsL dreadful ininiitirH. lli> had intendeil HluptfyinK h. r only, anil KO preventinjj I.cr ha\ing the house nntil lie liad liit upon soi-io plan for Ktopping licr from rarryiiitj out her threat of c'cnountiuK iilni. At coUcfo he had dabbled in chcniib- Iry, and tlie iiii>>ncc, espoiially in ita rclationii to subi lo poisons, hud u BtTungc faKcinutidii fur i iai. 'le lovod jiowcr, and to possess a drug tho very ofllu\iu of which should b.; sulfliieiit to overjiowur un ad.ei.snry had a strange, weird cliiuiii for liiiii. Ho was proiid of the <lisco\e.-y of |li- driij; which could do its "hoiriblv work so swiftl.\-, silently, and surc-ly. lie had not niuunt to kill her, and now nho lay dead at his io;t! (irudually the benuinbed fecliiii; passed away, and ho betjan to Blia^ e ill every linili, and a teiiible craving to look ot her face possessed hull. CrawlinR on his hands and knees, he li/tml her head â€" .sliudderini; as h.s hands touched herâ€" and looked at her. Ilcr faceâ€" the face which he had once thought so jir^tly, which he ha.l onco, and so short a lin.o uk". al- most persuaded liiiii.^elt that he lo-pd â€" seenivd to look up at hiiii reproacn- lully. it was white v.ith the white- nes.s of death, hiit so plui'iil, so peno- ful that it nii;',ht have bccui the lace of H jierson asleep. With n cry that was soarctly a cry eo much ns a wail, he put the heal down and Ktafigercd to his feet. Ni) man is Ijirn bail, no man Is wholly wickefl. At that awful nij- inent tiuildford Ilerton v.ould ha.o rclinrjui.'-hcd nil his aiuMlions, if ly doing so lici could hriiiK liucca to lii.j again. He threw himself into a chair nnd, fliiiniiig Ins arms dut up> n r?io table, let his bead full ujioii them, and surrendered himself to the dcmjii of remorse, not penitence, ubieli is a very difTeieiit tiling. I'resently the dead, heavy silence begun to weigh upon him li o a heavy weight; u ghastly <ic-.ii'c to leap to his fret and lireal< the sli.l- nesH Willi a yell as.'-ailed him; and, feeling that his reason whs going, he Btuggored clumsily to the f!e<-anlir, and, lifting it to his lips with his shaking hands, drained it to the last diop. Tho wine steadied him a little, an I ho triefl to think. Tor some time ''is brain sinni round to the dull, sici I'li- ing tune of "Hhe's dead, she's dead!" hut presently his mind g.ew c'.earer. How long she had been lying thoin ho did not kmnv â€" it sci'meil hours to him: l"'t he know that the daylight would be peering tliroiij^h thi- hi.les in (ho window shtitter.>i dire tly, and that tho old woman who waited ui>- uii hiiu would l.p ruining down. Tho deed was dono I.e.vond all un- doinft> and if he did not want to to caught like a rat in ntrap, he must gel lid of tho body. He got to thi! further itnd of tho room, ns far away fruui -t as possi- hli>, and, clasping his toi'i'head, whioh Was ri>ld as ice, with his hands ihul burned with fevci' heat, ho ti iod U) think. What should he do? Fer one mo- ment a wild idea oceiincd to him o.' sounding an ulariii, nnd niroMiling for the piesenre of the (lead girl I y Raying thut sho had falln down in a fit. Hut (ho strnngo odor still clim^ about the room, and ovrii the villa fe •loetor would ho possessed of siilii- ••ieiil know lodge to contradict such «ii njwertion. Ho tried to recall all the stories lie had n ad of men who hail been placed in a siiiilarly ihiMclful jiomI- tion, bill lu) could think of no o.rio parallel with his own. At last ho sei/eil the lantern nnd, rarctully avoiding the slill form, he wont out of the house by tin- 1 ac'i way ami crossed the garden, lie fe't better, more conijxised, in Mm opoa nir and away frimi the silent n- pioacli of his dread haii'liwor», aiil he could think. At tile end uf tho garden was a hcai> of leave-i which had been swciil U|i ill the preceding autumn and al- lowed to remain. Ho gut a spu.lo fnim the toolhousc and, screoning tho lantern behind soino biishfs, he car.i- fiilly scraped Ihp leaves naidu aud Lo- gan to <lig. And all tho while he was ot work- end ho workorl with the furiois frenry of a man digging for goldâ€" he planned out his inv cam inns against detection. All sort.-; of pos-slbllilles tortured him and t nrnod tho swont that roUed e.-iwn his face into drors of icu Home one might have seen her utun'ling outside thu gate, and wbwi she was missed that some ono 1 would como forward with the clew. I She iui.i{ht have told some one whore she was goi::g; she had been tal'.ing evidently ccnlitkntially, with Cyiil Hume, and might have tnid him. ll^r fciotstojiH might bo tri;ck..d in the ' dusty road. These and a hundreil I other ,su(;gi stions tortured him, and I drove him almost mud, so tl at wh' n his task was ilone he sla- gored out onto the blink of the grave ami shook l,ke a lean in pftlsy. I Then h.o went buck to the ho'iso â€" slowly, as if every step weix leading iiiin to his own grave. I In an inrredibly short time ho had ' accomidi^hed his rlf.jad task, and he ' stood once again in t^o silo t noin, with sdin/ thing clinched in the patin of his hand. It was (lyril's rin;.;' which he had ' taken from Mecca's linger. , Ho held it so tightly that Its pros- sure liiirt him and rejninded him th.it he was holding it. He oiened h.r< hand us ii the ring had turned to an I usp and stung him, and let it fall ujxin I he tabli". I And there! he stood and sturcd n' it, at li|7;l dully and vacantly, but pri'sently with a more conscious ga/e. Hi! had hidden his vhtini from mcrlal eyes, but more, much more, was requirid ol him. In a tew hours Pcvca would Ic mia.sed and inijuiii s would be made. The lirst qui'stion that would b.e as - ed would bo: With whom was she Been last? Ho coV.red his C',c"S with his hiinils and thought keenl; , acutely. Could I ho not inveiit some story based n[ion facts which would account for her ao- 8ei:ce? If any one had seen her stonding at tho riali!, ho was lost, ll.it he re- membered (hi t as ho stood tal^^ing to her with tho key in his hand, he had looked ii;> and down the l.m^, and had leeii no one. The lane lei diicctly to no other house than tho cottage: it w;,s unlikely thut any ono shoubl have le.n passing. The pei-- sons who w.ri! making the le.st ol their way to the villatje. it was un- likoly, too, that she should huvi: told any one of her inlende<l visit to him niid its puri>ort. If she had tidd Cyril r.urtie, for instance, she woil 1 httve been almost sure to tell him, (iuildford llciton, that sho had doeo so I'robably no ono had seen lier aft u- slie left the park. In that care al- most (he last iiei>on with whom si: i wc-uld havo bi en seen wos Cyril Hiirno hiniNelf. I If he couldâ€" his dark eyes began 'o flashâ€" if he coiilil only routii»e to saddle Cyi i: Huino with the m rder! I Hut an instant's reiloction showtid him the tiitil.ty of the ide.i. Cyiil lliirne would be traced, and be ab'e to clear himself, and Suildru'iy I tho iilea ho had been seuiching for ! (lusheil upen him. I Why should the murder bo discovei- j ed? Why should sho not have ilisau- I poured? Why hhoiild sho not have , gone off with Cyril Ibirne himsoU.' I Tlio blood rose to his face, and hi! raised his head and drew a lon^{ breath. As a child puts into its place a pic- ture puy./le, bis acute brain set <o work at once nt lllllng tho incident:) of the iiiLiht into u couseculivo sh.i'ie to correspond with his hypothesis He took Cyril's lettiT from his pocket, nnd, K|ireading it out on the table, iiored over it word for word. Ho would ho absent for months: h,> had gone without a wordâ€" other than this letter â€" of nxplanation to Norah. They were virtually sc!parateil, with this 1,-tterâ€" while ho held it!â€" ns thu only link betwoi^n thein. 1 I,et Norah be convinced that Her ;a ! hail llown with Cyril Ibirne, oud tho ifiepnrntion would be compioto. i Kho would bo too proud to write to Cyril for an i-xi liimtion, and he, liirtUlford Hcrion, must by hook or by crook intercept any letter from Cyril to her. I The mental exertion served to dis- pel something of the horror that p.is- ' sessc<l him He was I ghting now, I not only for 'Norah and the Arrow- ; dale wealth, but for his own lii'c 1<e j must guard every look, every word of bis own, must watch and wiigh every look, every word of olhoi:s. . Was he C(|iial to thu task, or should ho seek safety in llight? As ho asked himself tho question, ! tho lif.vt one, "Wbero shuul.l ho f»y?" : arose to aiis.vor tho (list. I There was no jilaco now whtre n I murderer could bo lieyond the rcnth I of tho dread arm of the law. j No, ho must roniain and light tho battle to the end. If ho could divert suspicion for two nxmths, much j might happen to render discovei'.v im- possible. In two months In migiil even bi'.cc'd in winning Norah. In , two months Cyril himself might bo ] dea<l. He sliudderid ns ho remembor- j ed how the longing to kill Cyril had 1 como over him the last tinio Cyril ' was in tho cottage. Was ho u hojnj- ' cido by instinct'.' i I The nours crept by as ho sot in the i silent room in (he tomb-il' o hous.>, . fcheiiii'K? and plolllug, ar.d at Pist, I unable la Uiink ury longer, ho took the lantern and went upstairs to his bedroom. The room was at the back of the house and instinctively ho walked to the window nnd peered down into the garden. How long he looked at the heap of leaves which hid its awlul secret h- ilid not know, but prer-iently ho fo.t tho room spin round, and, slagger- iug, he (ell full length across the be t. CHAITKK XXni. Norah woko with a bad headache and a worse heartache; and, as is tlie way with women, she begun to make excuses for the lover whom she hai tieated so coldly the night before. Tliere may have been some reason for his long absence and silence. Sh. had trea(e<l him so coldly that it was liltle wonder ho had avoided her; and js to the scene between him nn'l llccca â€" well, Norah found it impossi- ble to e.vplain that awny, but es Lady Korndalc's maid brushed tlie Icng red-;;old tre.sses, Norah tried » > (ind somo oxcusi! oven for what sh • had seen pass between Bccca and Cyril. liecca she knew was a firt, nnd the love-making, if lovo making it w.,s, must havo been altogolher on her side. Id short, her love, strong and pas- sionate, overcame her jeal usy an J resentment as all true love must, and by tho time the breaklust bell ran_4 she had gone a Ion.; way to forgiv-- ing Cyril, and was simply lunging to .see or hear from hi:n. The house was full of visitors, an 1 I heir talking and laughing seemed to (ill the pla'c. "My dear," said L-idy Ferndale, -.s sho put her arm ;o md Norah and kissed her ahcc; innately, "no nee I to ask how you are. You Ii!o'; as bri.;ht and fresh us ono of tho roses. Arc you c|Uito ristcd? Come and sit near me." Exchanging salutations, Norih went to her place, and, amid tho chatter nnd laue.ht<r of tho \oung people, breakfast commenced. Norah lookc^l toward Lord Fcrn- dnlo's place to .SvO if there were any letter l)(!<-i<le his idato, thinl-in..', hop- ing that Cyril luigl t have .sent iii:r a line; but Lord Ferndale did not hand her n letter, and h' r spirits l>j. gtin to droop, iiotwithstan i g that she assured he.-si'lf that Cyiil would ho certain to call early in the morn- ing. Hut tho morning ra'sinl, nnd no letter and no Cyril aPPcaro I, end long beforj noon the roses had i!i.!'l out of I.er faro and she Ijecame do- vouroil by an nn.\ious leu-^ing t > reach home. It was just [lo.ssiMe thiil he h.id written to tho Court, sho thought. Tho young people had bro! en uu into groups, some to play temiis ai.d otheis to ridi> or drive, on. I Lady I'erndnlo [iressed Ni rah to join one of them, and was lilled with dismay when she dcclareil that she must go buck to tho llourt before luncheon. "Hut why should you go so soon, dear?" sl;e remonstrated. "Sla.v with us for a day or two; I'm sure Lord Arrow dale will not mind." Norah dccline<l: and I.udy Fenidalc, Rw'iiig that there was some reason for her persistence, at last yieldol and ordered tho carriage, and Kurah started. "(lood-by, denr," said T.ady Fer.i- dnle. "I don't know what your host of admirers will say when they call this iiflei'iioon nnd find you ha^o down. What shall I i-ay (o th.m? Oh, by the way, Norah, we havo de- cidrtl to u.sk Mr. Cyril Hurnc to paint a picture for us. 1 wonder whether ho will call to-day." It was «in innocent remark, but Norah had bard work to keep the color from coming into her face, and it was Itieky for her that thi! car- riage startoti OS sho nmrmurod h hulf-aiidilde retponse' and all tho way homo she tormented herself with the thought that after all. perhaps, she had better have remo r.ed a*- Ferndale, as Cyril might cull in iha uf(eriioon. When sho had reached hom^!, her first question was whelluT any let- ters ha<l come for her. There were no letters for her lady- ship, the butler replied, nnd Norah was going up to her room with a deeper sinking of the heart, when tho earl came out of the library. "Well, Ni-rah," ho said, making her o little bow, "you have got back. I am afraid you h:i\o tind .\0'rs.>lf with your oxcrtioes," ho added, nu ho noted her paleness and lassitud?. "It must have been a terribly trying day. 'I'hi! few hours I was there ex- hausted IIU!." "I thini; 1 am a little tired, papa." she said. Ho looked at her with son;othtiig almost liko pride in l.i.s eyes, for hor poiiulurity, and tho ndmirntion she had received, hod flattered Uih vanity. "You had better go nnd Mo down for a few hours." ho said, in a more kindly ton'> than usual. "1 will s;;ml you a glass of wine. " Norah was in tho condition to 'le .uoved by any show of tenderness, o»- pcriully from him, and her eyes (illod with tears us sho wo.it up the stairs. While she was takint; off her out- door things Haruian entered, and in her (pii(!l way came to her assUtanro. Norah did not notice that Harm.-vn had not sjiokeii to her as she cuter .-d or that sho was more silent ev.m than visual, and, happening to glance at her, she was start leil by tho ex- pression of the woman's face. Sho lookcil ns if sho were in sonio trou- ble, and had been crying, nnd Norah turned to her with ready sympathy. "What is tho iiinlter, Harman?" she asked. 'I'he woman's l.ic (juivercd, and sh > The Crar, who recently signed Tf u.ssia's Magna Charta, as ho appears in his Cor onation Hobes. dropped her c.ves, but she replied in a low voice: "Nothing, my lady." Norah did not liko to seem obtru- sive, and she waited until Hanuaii Was on the jioint of leaving the room before she spoke again. "I'm afraid you have one of .your bad heailachcs," she said. "No.er mind about my things," for Harman had some dre.sses on her arm. "t!o and lie down in your own room, nnd if I v^'nnt any one I will send for llccca." The name left her lips reluctantlv, nnd her color rose as she prunouiici-d it, for ever since lust night sho had bp*!n regretting tho impulse whivh led her to havu anything to do with the girl. "Becca, my lady " began liar man, and Norah Siiw that sho turned cvcii paler than before, and had some (lifTculty in repressing her toar.s. "Hccca is not hero this morning, ray ludy." "Not here?" sold Xornh, coldly; "I suppose she is tired after last night's ga.vety. It iloes not matter, I .shall not want her; and please do not send for her." "No, my lady," said Harman. al- most inaiidibly; then she seemed to linger nnd hesitate, and ut last sho BMid, ireinulously, "your lud;.b!p hasn't heard, then?" •'Heard what?" asked Norah. "1â€" I beg your lad.\sbi|)'s pardon; 1 thought you hud heard." "1 have heard nothing," s-iid Nor^h tho indoiinable dread growing more distinct. "Is it anything about llccca, Harman?" "Yes, my lady: Uecca is lost." Noraii stared nt her in silent ns- tonishment (or a second or two; then sho echoed tho words in ama/eineiit. "Hecc.a lost! What do you mean, Hariiiftii?" "Iâ€" I bog your ladyship's pardon for trouliling you," fold poor Har- man, humlily. " 1 shouldn't ,1 nvo mentioned it just yet a whi'o ifâ€" if your ladyship hadn't siioken about her; hut Hecoo hos disappeared, my Indy." "Ho you mean to say that Tecca is not to bo found?" "Yes, .ny lady." ";,ho is not in the Court, nnd sho is not at home with h?r grandfather, nnd I have sent to look for her oil over the village; but she cannot he found." "Oh. hut you .'ho'dd not worry yourself nec<'lo8sly, Harman. rcrhnim she slay en ta:i,;i suiuu itiuauo u:^ Ji'u>'>i- dale." 'â- Thcro isn't any (Hiq in Ferndot* sho knows well enough to stsy with, my laci,y, and if sho hod slept the nit'it at Fermiaio. >jUh wo .li i.H. u -b^»i- y.-ro to cg iiiC h oi M i > » i t Uiorninj!\^ "Then what lias liecome of her?*' sail! Norpli. "f can't (hi:iU, fny lady, ila^fci ia giddy nnd f!i hty. lint; I iJon't t" 'bH she'd rtai^ o"t all niglit ^way from her grandfather unle.eK '" "Inio.ss wiiat, Irc.rman?'' asl^od Norah, as the woman hesitated, "I'nless she'd been forcod to, tuy lady." ^ Norah .";at and thought, \*'lth Imlt brows. All night ilecca iiad hhunted her, and she had dreaded to moot her anil to sprak to her, and now tho girl hod (IJsappeurodI (To be Continued.) KILLED THE PAKROT. Enraged E'ephant Charged a Ees- . taur.iut After a Boy. To take part in the performance ab the l.ls-bon (Portugal) circus threo elerhints arrived from France at tho railway station r.K-ently, but tho jjouiniey had upset their tempers, and I they became trouble-some after they left the train. There was a largo 'ctowU waiting to sec the hugo hi aits pass, and thu u.sual colloetlon of small boys surroumlp<:l the ani- mals. .Suddenly one of thn loading I elephants ru.slicd at one of tho boys, I who lied streaming into a restaur- ant. The angry aninial followed, and caused much nlariii among tho custemers who were at lunch. Table« , were overturiie<I and dishes nii'I plates smashed, while the customers jumped oxer the counter and niad» hasty Iwirricades of chairs. Tho only victim was a v'arrot, whoso terrified screams so cxasihT- nted thv ehphnnt (hat he enciielo<l jit with hi.s trunk an<l silen-.fd It f^^r- pver. AfU'r mirch nersuasion on tho I part of Its ke<'|)ers tho eh?>hevt r«»- !tuiTX<l to the street, and with its companions was safely put in cus- ; tody at tlie circus. LIkn either trec.'^. there Is uattaby something shady about thu family tree