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' dale’s goodness of heart.” '. he said. 3a+n+n+u+mm+nmmm n+nm+n+m+n+n+mnmt a -. ~ as +. + gr 11‘ - +z a a ‘ + f m 2. $2: + 01? .. é THE STEVVARD’S SON 3 a CHA PTER X . j l Norah ran down stairs, leaving the inquisitive Becca, to ask the earl if she might take that young person into her service. She knocked at the library door, but a footman inform- ed her that the earl was in the draw- ing-room, and Norah, entering the room, found him Seated with a lady of rather more than middle age, but still remarkably pretty. She was dressed in exquisite taste, and Norah as she stood still, was instantly atâ€"l tracted towards her, as the elder lady regarded her with a pleasant, welcoming kind of smile. i The earl rose and assumed his! most graceful attitude. “This is my daughter Norah, Lady Ferndale,” he said. Nora‘h approached the pleasantâ€" looking lady, and Lady Ferndale held - out her hand; then she drew Noralr toward her and kissed her very pret~ 1 “My dear, I am Very glad to see, you!" she said, and Norah thought how well her voice matched her gen- ,tle face and kindly eyes. “You have seen my husband/L she smiled, “and have made a great conquest of him: '1 800111 to have known you for years, he has talked so much 'of you.” “I hope we shall be great friends! I haven’t any daughters of my own; left," with a plaintive little cadence,| “they. have gone from me now; andi I am so fond of young people, as‘ your father knows.” “All the world knows Lady Fern- “It is neVer safe to give your fath- er an opportunity ol' paying a compli- ment, my dear, .but I mean what Ii said." i “And always, with charming sinâ€"; cerity, say what you mean, deari mean, dear lady," observed the ear1,i with another bow. “Yes, that’s the worst of me! Fel‘n-_ dale often says that my excessive: candor will be my ruin, and that he is continually getting me out of scrapes into which my plain speal-w ing has hurried me." She held Norah’s hand while she! was talking, and looked at her now and again with the deepest interest. and admiration. ' I “We must tell each other all about: ourselves, dear," said she. "Suppose: we begin at once?" ' “But we can't, while the earl sits‘ there listening, can we?" “I take my dismissal.” “No, don’t go; I've thought of an- other way, as the cookery books' say; I wonder _whether you would‘ care to come back with me to din- ner. Will you, Lord 'Arrowdale‘?" The earl conveyed a courteous neg-l ativc by a wave of his hand. i "I am sure you do not want me,"E he said. “But if you will confine. your invitation to Norahâ€"" “That's just what I want!" r : marked Lady Ferndale, with her re-‘ freshing candor. “I want to have her all to myself. Will you come, my dear? My ponies are at the door, and we. will neither of us dress," she glanced at Norah’s dress approving- ly, “and, indeed, I don’t think you i have anything prettier than that frock!" “I shall be very glad to 001110,, Lady Ferndale.” - "Then run away and put on your hat, and we'll start at once," said La'dy Ferndale. Then, as Norah left- the room, she turned to the earl with an exclamation of surprise and adâ€" "Grncious, what a beauti- ful girl! I don’t Wonder at Fern- dale's ruptures! What a happy man you must be to have such a sweetl creature for a daughter!” ' "I am gratified by your approval of her, Lady Ferndale." “Approval!” she exclaimed; “thatl isn't the word. I'm in love with hcri at first sight. Why, she will be a: tremendous success and set the coon-l miration. ty agape. How you can possiblyl haveâ€"have kept her from you so long, I can't think." The earl’s face grew momentarily‘ hard and cold, and Lady Ferndalc hastened to add: “However, wherever she has been, she has been well trained and cared for. That little air of repose and dignity she has is simply fascinatâ€" ing. I suppose she gets her manner from you?" I The earl smiled, and waved the compliment aside gracefully. "I have not yet had time to crit- icise her," he said, “but I am de- lighted that you should see anything to admire in her. For my part, I thought her " he paused a mom- ent, “unlike any member of my famâ€" ily.lfl ' Lady Ferndale reflected for a moâ€" ment, her head on one side; then she. responded with startling candor: l “Yes, so she is, quite unlike, when! ‘I come to think of it; she is so much' more beautiful than any of the Ar- row'dales." ‘ "Thank you for us and for her." “Well, that hair of hers, and her; eyes are simply wonderful, and I’mI sure you have nothing in the picture gallery to equal them." about. ,asked Lady Ferndale, as she .ing against her. NH}? fi+£€+§$€+£€+fi+3§+£€+fi+fi +fi+fi+fi+fi+fi+3fim+fi+fi+fi+fi3 "You are quite right," he assented, coldly; “we have not." “Very well, then!” she exclaimed, triumphantly. As she spoke, Norah reâ€"entered the room, and Lady Ferndale rose with the alacrity of a young woman. “Come along, my dear," she said. “You have just come in time to preâ€" vent your father and me from quar- reling. Never mind what it wasi We generally manage to» quarrel over something, don’t we, Lord Arrowdale?” The earl smiled as if the idea were too absurd. “To quarrel with Lady Ferndale one must be an utter barbarian!” he responded, readily. Lady Ferndale drew Norah's arm within hers, and they went into the ball. A carriage of an old fashioned and remarkably comfortable appear- ance, stood at the step, and the sight of it seemed to remind Lady Ferndale of Norah's return. 7 “I’ll send her back in a closed car- riage,” she said. “By the way, my child, I think you ought. to have something warmer on, the nights are chilly." Harman, was standing at a little distance waiting to attend the ladies to the carriage, turned and spoke quietly to some one on the stairs above her, and presently Becca came down with a Soft Highland shawl. “The very thing," said Lady Fern- dale, and she looked hard at Becca as she followed with lâ€"larman and ar- ranged the light run over the ladies" knees. “I haVe not asked my father yet, Becca, but I am sure you may stay." Becca, with the photograph in her pocket, dropped a half courtesy, and with a wave of the hand and a bow from the earl, the pair of ponies started. “Wasn’t that Rebecca South who came with your shawl, my dear?" skilâ€" fully kept the high-mettled ponies in hand. “Yes,” said Norah. “I didn‘t know she was in service with you." “Well, she.searcely is,” said Norah, and she explained the circumstances. “I hope she will be a good girl. I know she is very clever and quick, butâ€"â€"â€"â€"-â€"" she hesitated, "I’m afraid you'll find her rather gidrlly and willful." “()h, I think she will be good. She seems reserved and shy at present.” “I shouldn't call that a fault, and it is not the character she generally bears; but don’t think I am speak- Girls will be girls, and you can’t put old heads on young shoulders, especially when the heads are so pretty as Becca's. But don’t let us waste time talking about her; I want to hear all about yourselfâ€"that. is, all you care to tell me," and she slid her hand onto iNorah's. “I will tell you everything, but there is very little to tell," said Norah, and she began, shyly at first, to describe her past life and the lit- tle cottage on the cliff. Lady Fern- dalo drew her on, now and again bestowing a gentle pressure on the small hand, and before they had his arms resting on She tried not to blush, but she felt the hot blood rising to her face, and she knew that Lady Ferndale’s quick eyes had noticed it. “Who is that, dear?” she asked. “His name is Cyril Burne. He is ’an artist." "Evidently," said Lady Ferndale. “What a handsome young fellow? Is he. a friend of yours, dear?" “Scarcely a friendâ€"I have only met him once-â€"-â€".” She paused, reâ€" membering the voice on the terrace. "He is painting bits of the park." “Of course; I had forgotten that you only came the other day. Yes, he is remarkably handsome, and it’s a nice face, too," said Lady Fernâ€" dale, dropping her voice as they came within Cyril’s hearing. He looked up, saw Norah, and dropping the gate, took his pipe from his mouth and raised his hat. his knees. andi smoking, in deep thought. cause Mr. wheneVer I' see him, I always wonder why on earth your father makes so intimate a friend of him. And yet it seems so unjust to express any opinion that’s at all adverse, be~ ‘ruildford Berton never does anything that one can com- plain of. And, really I ought not to prejudice you against him, for you will be sure to see a great deal of him." So they talked, the elder lady as delighted with Norah as Norah Was with her, and after a time they reached a rambling Queen Anne man- sion in red, looking, as Norah thought, like a picture of Millais’ rather than real brick and stone;| with the ivy climbing over it, and setting every glistening window in a deep green frame. “Yes, it’s very pretty,” said Lady Ferndale, in response. to Norah’s ex- clamation of delight; “and of course I'm very fond and proud of it, “Shall I stop?" asked Lady Fern- though it is not nearly so grand a dale, in a whisper. “Oh, no," replied Norah. “Very well," said Lady Ferndule, [a little sigh and blush. and the ponies walked on. “I’m rather disappointed,” she said, with a. little laugh, “for I wanted to hear him speak.” Lady Forndale's disappointment was short lived, for they heard some- one running behind, and looking back, she saw Cyril with a hand- kerchief in his hand. “l'vc dropped my handkerchief," said Lady Ferndale, and .she laughâ€" ed. “It is a fortunate thing it is mine, instead of yours, or he would have thOughtâ€"" ' ‘Cyril was up to them by this‘ time, and stood barcheaded, the handkerchief extended. “Yes, it is mine,” said Lady Fernâ€" dale. “Oh, thank you so much. I am sorry you should have had so much trouble.” “It was no trouble," he said, in his frank, musical voice, which eviâ€" dently pleased her ladyship, for she smiled upon him graciously. “Introduce him, dear,” she said, in a low voice, as she put the hand- kerchief in the carriage basket. Norah bent forward and made the introduction, not blushing now, but with that sweet gravity which Lady Ferndale had noticed and been so quick to admire. Cyril bowed, and waited to be ad- dressed. “Lady Norah tells me you are painting some vieWs in Santleigh, Mr. Burne,” said Lady Ferndale. “I hope you will not be too exclusive, and that you will not altogether negâ€" lect the rest of the locality. Santâ€" leigh doesn’t monopolize all. the pic- turesquc; we have got some of it at Ferndale. ’ ' He looked at her, with the pleasâ€" ant smile in his handsome eyes. “Dare I take that as a permis- sion?” he said. ' ' “Oh, yes,” replied Lady Fcrndalo, in her open-hearted way. “Lord Ferndale will be delighted if you will paint where you please. He is 211-. most an artist himself." "I am very fortunate," he said. It was just the kind of response to gain Lady Ferndalc’s heart, and she gave a little nod of approval, “Well, I think you are, to have such a lovely profession, and such lovely places for,it," she said. “Good evening.” Cyril paused a moment to set a rein straight that had got crooked, then lifted his hat and stood back. As he did so, he raised his eyes and looked at Norah for a momentâ€"not with the bold stare of the. illâ€"bred, but with a respectful glanceâ€"which she responded to with a slight bow, and the carriage drove on. “I dart-say you think me a very ec- centric person, to ask you to intro- duce me to a man who is almost a stranger to you, my dear," she said, with a smile. ' “Was it strange?" “Well, it was a little; but then, gone a couple of miles, Norah found.y0u see, I knew that he was a gem herself taking to this new friend as “email.” if she had known her for years. “Why, yes!” said Norah, below her As Lord Ferndale often said, his breath wife would draw the heart out‘of a stone, if it possessed one. “Yes; at.';y age, one is never de« ceived. (‘ e look is enough; and if “And you lived alone with this oldlhis face had not proclaimed him, his servant with a strange name? must have felt very solitary some- times, dear. And what a change all this must seem to you!” “Yes, it was lonely Sonictin‘ies; but Catherine was not like a servant; she was 9. second mother to me," said Norah, in a low voice, her head averted. “The change!" she smil- ed. “It is like a fairy story. It is all so beautiful that it is like a dream. I only wishâ€"â€"â€"” “Well?” asked Lady Ferndale, with a smile. "on, sometimes, I wish that it was not all quite soâ€"grand. I am al- ways afraid that I shall make some mistake." “I am quite sure you haven't,” retorted Lady Ferndale, shrewdly. “My dear, you behave as if you were born in the purple. 'As I told your father, you must have got your man- ner from him, the best of his. But it is a. change! And it will be. greatâ€" er and more striking presently, for mhces?" she asked_ we mean to make a great deal of you. you know, and must expect to be treated to a little lionizing.” As she spoke, they entered a lane up a steep hill, and she pulled up the “I shall be such a very poor kind of a lion, I’m afraiqu don’t even know how to roar. Iâ€"" She stopâ€" ped suddenly, and Lady li‘erndale glanced at her totsee the cause. Norah had happened to glance to- ward the left side of the lane just a little ahead of them, and saw a young man seated on a gate. 'An easel stood below him, but he was You voice would have ( l ponies into a walk. ‘ I done- so. But I suppose it was wrong. My husband is always scolding me for what he calls my precipitancy. You mustn't follow my example, but rather take warning by me.” “Very well,” laughingly. “No!” “No?” asked Norah, “I beg your pardon, my 'dear; I was thinking aloud,” explained Lady Ferndale. “I had an idea that I had met your Mr. Cyril Borne beforeâ€"-” “ ‘My’ Mr. Cyril Burne!” “Well, he's more yours than mine," retorted Lady Ferndalc, naively. "But it was a mistake. I don't rc- member him, and I’m good at rcâ€" membering faces; and yet his seemed familiar to me." “Perhaps you met him in London,” suggested Norah. “Perhaps, but I lrlaVe you made assented Norah, don‘t think so. any other acquainâ€" Norah told her of the bachelor clin- Xou are our latest acquisitionnner party on the night of her ar- rival. “And I have seen Mr. Berton since," she said. She said nothing of the scene be- tween him and Cyril Burne. Some- Guildford I have spent many ' she added, with “Mine was a love match, my dear, and, un-: like some love matches, it has turn- ed out very well. with my husband, and I think he likes me a little,” and she laughed. They drove up to the house through a quaint garden in the Dutch style place as yours. happy years there,’ *â€" ABOUT PEOPLE. Notes on all Sorts and Conditions of Men and Women. The first foreign language taught to the King of Italy was English. Sir Edward Clarke Was at one time regarded as an excellent comic singer. .. Mr. Selous, the hunter, deciares that pies made of lion's flesh are as palatable as veal pics. The Countess of Dudley is acknow- ledged to be one of the best amateur vocalists in the United Kingdom. A diamond buckle, worn by the German Empress, belonged to Napoâ€" leon 1., and was found among his baggae captured at Waterloo. Few people remember that Lord Curzon is the eldest son of a poor, as well as being a poor in his own right. His father is Lord Scarsdale. The Duke and Duchess of Bedford might claim to be zoological experts. They have the finest private collec- tion of animals in the world. One of the curiosities in the posses- sion of Queen "Alexandra is a tea. service, every piece of which bears a. I am Still in love view photographed by Her Majesty. leneral Kuropatkln is so short that it, is questionable whether he would have been able. to enter the British 'Army had he been a native and Lord Ferndale came down the!or that COUNTY. steps. He was dressed in a white linen suit, King Edward makes it a rule to with a, Straw hat” and a 'have the contents of his wasteâ€"paper smile beamed over his handsome face lJU-Skt‘t burnt CVOI‘Y (la-y, 50 that none when he saw who it was his wife had or his brought home. “Behold the captive of my and spear, Edward." "This is a delightful surprise, Lady Norah," he said, taking her and holding it with a gentle presâ€" sure. “I'm awfully glad to see you.” how hand lto' be a. member of Parliament, papers shall get into the hands of outsiders. Mr. Justin M’Carthy says that his three objects in life have been at- tained. They were: To write books, and to live in London. One of the treasures of the Winter The Earl of Arrowdale would have Palace at St‘. I’etersburg, is a colâ€" gone to the stake rather than utterilection of china which comprises all such a word in his welcome to aithe sets used by Russian Royalties lady, but to Norah it sounded deliâ€"[since the time of Catherine II. ciously hearty. and she looked at Eastern Royalties on cycles in their Lord Fol‘ndale with a shy gratitudeioWn dominions must indeed seem a. in her dark eyes. strange sight to the staid Orientals, Lady Ferndale took her to her OWn Iyet the Queen of 'Siam may often be room, and began at once to make alseen cycling, attended by the ladies daughter of her, insisting upon un- fastening the long coils of redâ€"brown hair with her own hands, and petting her to her heart's content. Iof her suite. The Poet Laureate, 'Alfred Austin, has followod several ceilings. He was a barrister, although he never prac- The earl and countess were aloneltised; he became a journalist and a. and all through dinnerâ€"which less stately than the meal at Santâ€" leigh Court, and not in the least forâ€" malâ€"they vied with each other in making her feel at home. Lord Ferndalc had seen a deal of the world, both the great and the small, and he had set himself to amuse the beautiful girl with whom he and his wife had fallen in love at first sight, and presently Norah for- got that she had known them for only so short a. time, and talked, too. Lord twice at hils‘ said plainly: “We have _ found a treasure; a young woman who is not only pret- ty, but clever and sensible." “Now, while you are drinking your clarcti Edward, Norah and I will have a quiet ramble; and if you are good, very good, we will give you some music when you come into the drawing-room." “I will be virtue personified,” he responded, as he opened the door for Ii‘erndale glanced once or wife, and the glance them, “and mind, I give you half an hour." Lady Ferndale took Norah into some of the old, time-honored rooms, her arm round Norah's waist, and they sauntered among the flower beds in the delicious evening until Lord Ferndale came out of the drawingâ€" room window and called to them. “Time's up,” he said, "and tea’s waiting.” 2 Just as if Norah were, indeed, a daughter of the house, Lady Ferndale drew her gently to the chair in front of the little table and intimated that she was to preside over the. delicate service of -antique silver and Sevres; and Norah, filled with happiness and gratitude for the affection they were .lavisbing upon her, poured our Lord Ferndale's 'cup of tea and gave it him with a. smile and a. blush. (To be Continued.) .__'+_...._â€"- THE STRAWBERRY. Despite the Tradition, Some Say That They are Curative. That strawberries are injurious 'to rheumatic persons is as old a tradiâ€" tion as that tomatoes (love apples) are conducive to love. But against science no tradition is safe. It is now asserted that the straw )erry is the “real thing" in food for rheuma- tics. Linnaeus, it is said, kept him- self free from rheumatism by eating strawberries. Fontenelli, another naturalist, attributed his longevity to strawberries. Iâ€"Ie resorted to them as a medicine and would frequently say: “If I can but reach the season of strawberries!” Borheavo is said to have classed the strawberry with the principal red fruit remedies containing ,iron as Well as phosphorous, salt, sulphur and sugar. It has long been a tradition that the chief demand for horse chestnuts has come from persons who believe in their efficacy as a cure. fir" rheumaâ€" tism, or at least a palliative in rheumatic affections. Strawberries how it seemed to her as if she hadlhave heretofore been barred, but if had no right to witness it, therefore to speak of it. “Hem! Mr. Guildford Berton,” saidlits. the bars will be down .and Lady Ferndalc, pursing her lips; “and how did he strike you, dear?" "I was not very favorably impresâ€"I sed with him. "Thanks," I agree with you. Mr. laughed Lady Ferndale: gthan he knows Cuildford 'Shcâ€"“llas he really! Such ignorance-ground. The crab eventually let the and lthey have all the merits now claimed for them, or indeed any of the. mer-' ‘ will I stay down permanently. ___.___+.¢ Heâ€"“I am told he has more money what to do with." GViantly taking a rest. and sat with. Berton is not a favorite of mine. and must be bliss." V. was lwar correspondent; then a poet and playwright. When Mr. Isaac Zang'will has, fin- ‘ished one sheet of manuscript he ‘throws it on the floor and goes on Iwith the next. At the end of the time allotted for writing he has to gather them up and put them in or- lder. Adelina Patti's explanation of keeping youthful is that she neVer xloses her temper. Another fact in connection with this great singer is that she. owns a parrot. which amuses her by trying to imitate her singing. Queen Wilhelmina has so fine an ear for music that on one. occasion, as a igirl, she rushed from the room when a violinist was playing. before the Queen Mother and herself by com- mand because she said she could not lendure the discord. Miss Balfour, Britain's Prime Min- iister’s sister, can giVe him all 'the ggeneral information about South Africa that he is likely to want. ,She knows the country well; she has 'travelled 1,200 miles in a waggon, and has chatted with every tribe in that vast region. The Emptess Eugenie has been en- gaged on a diary for many years, land every line of it has been written iwith the diamond pen used for signâ€" 1 ing the Treaty of Parl; in 1856. It is a quill from a. golden eagle, richly mounted in gold and studded with numerous brilliants. Lord llosebery in his youthful days was an amateur actor, but he ad- mits that he was not a shining star. He. lost his red wig while playing a character in Rob Boy on one occa- sion, and when he managed to re- cover it he convulsed his audience by putting it on the reverse way. Earl Percy, eldest son of the Duke of Nortliuxnberland, is one of the younger aristocrats who has earned Idistinctimi. He. is an authority on matters connected with Asia Minor, where he has travelled extensively, and he has had the honor of lecturâ€" ing 'to a. learned audience at the Royal Institution on that subject. Baron Brampton, when plain lIenry Hawkins, (2.0., declined the. biggest fee ever offered to a. barrister. lie Iwas asked to go to India, and the 'brief was “marked” with 20,000 guineas; he declined, and the fee was ‘raised to 50,000 guineas, but he Eagain refused, because he. did not lwish to interrupt his lucrative pracâ€" tice at home. +____.... THE POPE’S INCOME. It is impossible to fix the. exact income of the, Pope, because the sources by which his settled income is largely augmented are subject to great fluctuation. Such is the an- nual subsidy called‘ "Peter’s Pence,” and the innumerable thankâ€"offerings [which he receives every year from all parts of“ the world. It is thought probable bv authorities who have the best means of judging that. taking one year with another, the average lannual income of the Pope cannot fall short of 33.000000. “,4â€" - CRAB AND SPARROW, On the. sands near Marksc-by-tha Sea, Yorkshire, England, the other day, a crab was seen running along the beach with a sparrow in its claws. The crab had caught the bird by the leg. and so much was it struggling to get free that once it “lifted the crab several inches off the 'bird g0 and ran off. ‘1? . .. ._-‘ fl..vw..w..-.. u, l. «wru‘ v «‘1‘.- THAH'IVH'h‘. 2: ;.: arru“ ~ 1wm5m~rxwzwn1xvmr ..<. s . A, .l A . . .. . 1' I .< p.13!“ n' l‘ ' s L ‘ V V, -‘ . ‘ ’stmeahwm “52‘ ‘- .