The Shuttle

f heaven. The girl had been born in the midst of the rattling, rumbling bustle, and it had never struck her as assuming the character of noise; she had only thought of it as being the cheer

cold there, but there was usually plenty of bright glaring sun, and the extremes of the weather had at least something rather dramatic about them. There were dramatic incidents connected with them,

h of trees and sward she thought she always saw the rain falling either in hopeless sheets or more hopeless drizzle. The occasions upon which this was a dreary truth blotted ou

mateur theatricals. There were, however, no visitors at Stornham, and there were in fact, no accommodations for any. There were numberless bedrooms, but none really fit for guests to occupy. Carpets and curtains were ancient and ragged, furniture was dilapidated, chimneys w

es, which made Rosalie very nervous and caused her hastily to array herself to receive them in toilettes much too pretty an

oons and until midnight and later. Someone was always going out or coming in. There had been in the big handsome house not much more of an air of repose than one might expect to find at a railway station; but the flurry, the coming and going, the calling and chatting had all been cheery, amiable. At Stornham, Rosalie sat at breakfast before unchanging boiled eggs, unfailing toast and unalterable broiled bacon, morning after morning. Sir Nigel sat and munched over the newspapers, his

e to her son must relinquish her position to the person he chooses to marry. If you should have a son you will give up your position to his wife. Since Nigel

d rubbish, mother, about devoting your life to your son. We have seen about as little of each other as we could help. We never agreed." They were both bullies

ble material. Her sympathies were easily awakened and her purse was well filled and readily opened. Small families or large ones, newly born infants or newly buried ones, old women with "bad legs" and old men who needed comforts, equally touched her heart. She innocently bestowed sovereigns where an Englishwoman woul

merican she was a detriment. That seemed to go without saying. She tried to do everything she was told, and learn something from each cold insinuation. She did not know that her very amenability and timidity were her undoing. Sir Nigel and his mother thoroughly enjoyed themselves at her expense. They knew they could say anything they chose, and that at the most she would only break down into cr

or Broadway or Fifth Avenue or Central Park-I never-never-never shall!" And she would grovel among her pillows, burying her face and half stifling herself lest her sobs shoul

el vaguely-without knowing why-as if sh

a wife to be entirely satisfied with his society, and to be completely happy in the pleasure it afforded her. It was her wifely duty not to talk about her own f

Englishwoman, and the least consideration you can show is to let New York and Nine-hundredth stre

e and Sir Nigel were infuriated by the simplicity which made Rosalie slow in comprehending that it was proper that the money her father allowed her should be placed in her husband's hands, and left there with no indelicate questioning. If she had been an English girl matters w

he point, and in a measure it was the vicare

rather awkward at first. Then she began to realise that the son was part of her wifely duty also; that she was expected to provide one, and that he was in some way expected to provide for the estate-to rehabilitate it-and that this was because her father, being a rich man, would provide for him. It had also struck her that in England there was a tendency to expectation that someone would "provide" for someone else, that relatives even by marr

had remarked severely, "I suppose somethi

was not the luxurious affair it was in the house in Fifth Avenue. Things were shabby and queer and not at all comfortable. Fires were not lighted because a day was

f-indulgence! That is why Americans are old women at twenty. They are shrivelled and withered by the unh

withered and shrivelled old women of twen

e answered, "but we-we never think fires extrav

adyship. "When you have a daughter, I hope you do not ex

urally went into her room and cried again, wondering what her father and mother would say if they knew th

ate that there were days when she used to go to the vicarage for companionship. On such days the vicar's wife would entertain her with stories of the v

Lady Bountiful," Sir Nigel sneered one evening

g," she stammered feebly. "Mrs.

," said her mother-in-law. "It is a pity it is not

ly large sums as though they were the mere right of the recipients. She was taught to understand this later. In the meantime, however, ready as she would have been to give large sums if she had known how, she was terrified by the thought that it might be possible that she could be deprived of her bank account and reduced to the condition of a sort of dependent upon the humours of her lately acquired relations. She thought over this a good deal, and would have found immense relief if she dared have consulted anyone. But she could not make up her mind to reveal her unhappiness to her people. She had been married so recently, everybody had thought her marriage so delightful, she could not bear that her father and mother should be distressed by knowing that she was wretched. She also reflected with misery that New York would talk the matter over excitedly and that finally the newspapers would get hold of the gossip. She could even imagine interviewers calling at the house in Fifth Avenue and endeavouring to obtain particulars of the situation. Her father would be angry and refuse to give them, but that would make no difference; the newspapers would give them and everybody would read what they said, whether i

us at all, Betty," she said. "I couldn't have believe

arply. "Rosy couldn't grow hateful and stu

t steps to prevent any accident of the sort. He wrote to America occasionally himself, and knowing well how to make himself civilly repellent, so subtly chilled his parents-in-law as to discourage in them more than once their half-formed plan of paying a visit to their child in her new home. He op

of coming over," she said plaintively one

Dowager Lady Anstruther

r and Betty and s

ut up her eye-glass

family?" sh

o many of them,"

g woman when she is married," observed her ladyship

ou that it would not

" exclaimed R

do in English soc

o much. They like London so

lush until the tears started to her eyes. "I

her word, and she realised that of late she seemed always to be bursting out crying before one or the other of those two. She could not hel

avenue and turned into a coppice. There, among the wet bracken, she sank down on the mossy tru

mother; I'm so ill! I can't bear it! It seems as if you'd forgotten all about me! You're all s

to a man in his position. His house had caught fire during a gale of wind and the fire had spread to the outbuildings and rickyard and swept away all his belongings, his house, his furniture, his hayricks, and stored grain, and even

s his companion in calamity sobbing in the hall. A child of a few week

arly an' late. P'r'aps it's the Lord's 'and, as you say, ma'am, but we've been decent peo

a humble creature like herself. The villagers found the new Lady Anstruthers' interviews with them curiously simple and suggestive of an equality they could not understand. Stornham was a conse

been burned to the ground. He had lost one of his children in the fire, and the details had been heartrending. The entire Vanderpoel household had wept on hearing them, and Mr. Vanderpoel had drawn a cheque which had

ht my cheque book with me because I meant to help you. A man worked for my father had his house burned, just as yours was, and my father made everything all right

. It really seemed as if her ladyship must have lost her wits a

id, "Lady Anstruthers, it-

rything, you know; their hayricks and cattle as we

y were quite natural things, such as any human person might do. When Rosalie cried: "But why not-why not? They ought to be." Mrs. Brent could not seem to make herself quite clear. Rosalie only gathered in a bewildered way that

you will do any

they are in such awful trouble. Suppose we lost everything in the

am afraid that if you do not discuss the matter and ask advice fr

be," replied Rosalie, with entire ingenuousness. "I wouldn't presu

d to see nothing in the right light, frequently made her feel awkward. Mrs. Brent told her h

th amazement and turned rather faint with excitement, bewilderment and her sense of relief. She ha

vice when she returned to the Court. Just as she left the hou

postboy's. He left a letter of yours among mine when he came this morning. It was most careless. I

ttered an exclamation. It was add

father! And the postmark i

heart leaped up in her throat. Could they have come over from Ameri

n the envelope; she tore a corner of the letter, and when the sheet was spread open her eyes were full of wild, d

DAU

t to refer to things. We came over to leave Betty at a French school and we had expected to visit you later. But your mother fell ill of diphtheria and not hearing from you seemed to make her homesick, so we decided to return to New York by the next steamer. I ran over to London, however, to make some inquiries about you, and on the first day I arrived I met your husband in Bond Street. He at once explained to me that you had gone to a house party at some castle in Scotland, and sai

ectionat

L. VAND

ing from side to side. Now and then she uttered horrible little short cries, like an animal's. She ran and ran, seein

er knees and scrambled up again, gasping; she dashed across the huge dark hall, and, hurling herself against the door of the morning room,

ere is Nigel?" she

an by such manners?" demanded he

!" the girl raved. "I will se

ing and doing; she only realised in an agony of despair that she was a thing caught in a trap; that these people had her in their power, and that they had tricked and lied to her

ure!" cried the Dowager furiously. "You ought to be

o confront a wife on the verge of screaming hysterics. After a bad half hour with his steward, who had been talking of impending disast

e raving mad," cr

to him. She held up her hand clenc

t from me. You told my father lies-lies-hideous lies! You said I was away in Scotland-enjoying myself-when I was here and dying wit

wife to death, as costermongers do, he was in that mood. He had lost control over himself as c

o have them here," he said. "I did

wildness. "They shall come to see me. They are

e must have thought he would break it, i

er you and learn to behave yourself as a decent married woman should. You will learn t

osalie. "You sent them away! My

ir Nigel, shaking her. "I will not subm

Nigel," cried his mother. "The

civilised human beings in the state of uncontrolled vio

verything-I was quite happy. Everybody was kind to me. I loved p

ok her with absolute violence. Her hair broke loose an

ation by throwing away hundred-pound cheques to villagers," he said. "I didn

t of his power to marry an Englishwoman who would have known it wa

American marriage and had not the decency to pay for what they had got. If she had been an Englishwoman, well born, and of decent breeding, all her fortune would have been properly transferred to her husband and he would have had the dispensing of it. Her husban

terpolations. They had so far lost themselves that they did not know they became grotesque in the violence of their fury. Rosalie's brain whirled. Her h

w you were angry about money." She laughed tremulously and wildly. "I would have given it to you-father would have given you some-if you had been good to me." T

a thing. I thought an English gentleman-an English gentleman-oh! oh! to think it was all because I did not give y

upon the cheek, and as she reeled she held up her small,

't! You don't know how valuable I am. Perhaps--" wit

vily against the protruding end of an oak chest and lay upon the