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The Herald, 1914-10-02, Page 2A Fooiish Or, the Belle of the Season., CHAPTER,1LVTIh When Ida went upstairs for the wash, the need for which. Miss Isabel had so kindly informed her of, she found that her room was clean and fairly comfort- able, though its appearance seemed strange after the huge and old-fashioned one at the Hall. The furniture was cheap and unsubstantial; the towels were small and thin; in place of pictures, aggressive- lw illuminated texts scarred the walls like freshly made wounds, and the place, had a bare, homely s look which made Ida shudder. The dining -room, when she went down to it, did not imprese her any more fa. vorably; for here, too, the furniture was new and shiny with a sticky kind of shini- ness, as if the treacly varnish had not yet dried; there was not comfortable chair In the room; the pictures were the most gruesome ones of Dore'e, and there was a text over the mantelpiece as aggres- ;+ive and as hideous in• eolorang as those In her room. A lukewarm leg of mutton, very underdone, was on the table, the sloth of which was by no means clean; the dishes, which contained quite cold vegetables, were cracked and did not match; the bread. was of the commonest kind, that •whioh id palled 'household;" the knives were badly cleaned, and the Plate was worn off the forks and spoons. It was considered inelegant to have gas in the dining -room, therefore a cheap paraffin lamp was in the centre of the table, and was more liberal of scent than light: The curtains to the window were of that annoying red which shrieks down any other color near it; they made Ida's tired eyes ache. While she was trying to eat the slice of gory mutton, Mrs. Heron and Isabel watched her, lie if she were some aborig- inal from a wild and distant country, and they shot glances as each other, un• easy, half -jealous, half -envious glances, as they noted the beauty of the face, and the grape of the figure in its black dress, which .plain as it was, seemed to make theirs still more dowdy and vulgar. In the ipidet of his lugubrious account of the annoyancee and worries of the jour- ney. Mr. Heron broke off to ask: "Where is Jcaeph? Ile is late to- night He is kept at the office," replied his mother. "Poor boy! I hope he is not working too hard; he has been kept work- ing nearly every -night this week." Isabel smiled slily at Ida, for what reason Ida could not guess; and while she was wondering. there came a knock at the outer door, and presently Joseph entered. He was an unprepossessing young man with small eye; and thick lips, over Which itwould have been wise of him to wear a big moustache; but it was the fashion .in the City to be clean-shaven, and Ma: Joseph considered himself the pink of fashion. His clothes fitted him too tight- ly, he wore cheap neckties, and ready- made boots, of course, of patent leather. His dark hair was plastered on the low. retreating forehead; his face was flushed instead of being, as one would expect, pale from overwork. Ida disliked him at the first glance, and disliked him still more at the second, as she caught his shifty eyes fixed on her with a curious and halfineo I n tly al mir- ing expression. He came round and shook hands—his -were ;damp and cold like his tether's—as Mr- Heron introduced: them -send in a voice whioh unpleasantly matehed his face, said that he was glad to see her. "Tired, Impale dear?" murmured his mother, regarding hi++ ivitii a mixture of pride and commiseration. - • "Oh, I'm w rn out, that's what I ^ m,"" be said, as he sank into a chair and re- garded the certainly untemp.ting food with an eye of disfavor. 'Been hard at it all the evening"—he spoke with a Cock- ney accent, City accent, and was rather uncertain about his aspirates—"I work likenigger." . "Labor is prayer," remarked his father, as if he were enunciating something strikiugly original. "Nothing is accom- plished without toil, my dear Joseph. My dear Joseph regarded his father with very much the same expression he had bestowed upon the mutton. "And how do you like London, Cousin Ida?" he asked. He hesitated before the "Cousin Ida," and got it out rather defiantly, for there was something in the dignity of this pale, refined face which awed him. It was per- haps the first time in his life Mr. Joseph had sat at, the same table with a lady; for Mr. John Heron had married beneath him, and for money; end in retiring from the Bar, at which he had been an obvious failure, had sunk down to the society of his wife's class. I have seen so little of it," replied Ida. "I have only passed through London twice on .my way from France to Herondale, and from Iierondale hero." Mr. Joseph was duly impressed be the sound of Herondale. "Oh, you must tell me all about your old home," lie said, with an air of over- confidence to conceal hie nervousness; "and we .must show you about London a bit; it's a tidy little place." He grinned with an air of knowingness, and seemed rather disconcerted that Ida did not return his smile. "Shall I give you some water, Ida?" said Mr, Heron. "I regret tbat I cannot offer you any wine. We have no intoxicants in the house, We are all total abstain• ere, me principle." The other members of the family look- ed down uncomfortably, and to Ida's sur - 'prise as if they were ashamed: "Thank you," she said; 'I do not care ter wine," I am afraid there. are a greatmany things You will mics here,' said Mr. He - hoe. "We are a plain, but I trust God- fearing family. and we aro content with the interest which springs from the daily round, the common task. e,You 'will find no excitements at Laburnu1si Villa." Id's es she glanced at the family,;could not help feeling tbat they were indeed plain, but she made haste to say that she did not need any oxeitements and that her life had hitherto been devoid of them. They seemed to think ,that it was the proper thing to it round the table while,'ahe was making her pretence of a meal; but when it was finished, Mr. Jo• seph stretched, himself out in what :was eirroneously called an easy -chair, and proceeded to inotio'polise the conversation. "Regular busy. time in, the City," . he t'emarlled to his father. "Never saw such a hum.. It',5 all over this boom in South Africa. 'They're floating that new coins, Pane. i was telling you about, and the Stock l'Ixchenge is half wild about it. They say the shared 'will run to ',a hun- dred per eent. premium before the week's out; and if'.you've got any money to al>ara, gueenor, I sliozild recommend .you to hare a little Sutter; for it`s a ser. tainty." Mi. heron 'seemad to prick up his ears with an amount if 'worldly interest which soarcoly, harmonized' with bis saintly' character: What eomnany le that?" he asked' aset>h, 'The company started to 'work Sir Ste - ellen Orme is eencestdion," replied Joseph, thrusting his hands deep into his pas. Note anal atretclintg out his legs still farther so that he could admire his large, patty it °asShe lac lad feet. "Its about the biggest thing on record, andis going to sweep the market. All the big 'uns are in it, Grifferberg and Wireoh and the Beltons. They say Sir Stephoa,liat made half a million of money out of it already, and that he 'will make a couple of mil- lions before he has done with it. There was a rumor in the City to -day that ho was to get a peerage; for it's a kind of national affair, you See. ' Ida was sitting beyond the radius of the light from the evil -smelling lamp, so that the others did not perceive the sud- den pallor of her face. It seemed to her a cruel fate that she could not escape, even here, so many miles away from He. rondale, from the reminder of the man ons her heart like a stroke causing struck Physical pain. She sat perfectly still, her hands clasped tightly in her lap, as wave of misery ewept over her. "Here is an instance of toil rewarded," said Mr. heron, promptly improving the occasion. 'The laborer is worthy of his hire; and no doubt Sir Stephen Orme, by bringing vast tracts under the beneiiceut influence of civilization, merits the ale tial ieward l of tat Sovereign hands of his ellow- subjeete. Let us trust that he will use his wealth and high position for the welfare of the heathen who rage in the land which he has--er—" "Collared," put in Mr. Joseph, in an un- dertone and with a grin. —"Added to the Ring's dominions," said Mr. Heron. 'I will consider about the shares. I do not approve of specula- tion—the pursuit of Mammon but as I should use the money for charitable pur- poses, I may on this occasion—" "Better make up your mind pretty soon," remarked Joseph, with a yawn. "There's a rush for them already." "Now that the gentlemen have got on to business, my dear, I think we had bet- ter retire to the drawing -room," said Mrs. Heron, with an attempt at the "grand lady" They returned to -that apartment—Mr. Joseph del not open the door for them— and Mrs. Heron and Isabel et once start- ed on re series of questions calculated to elicit all the details of Ida's pat life, her father's death and her present de- plorable condition. Women ran be much more merciless than men in this kind of inquisition; and Ida, weary in mind and body •and spirit, suffered acutely under the ordeal. The two women did not in- tend to be unkind; they were may sorry for the homeless orphan;, they were 'pre- -Pared to like her; they reluctantly and grudgingly admired her beauty and her grace, and had a sneaking kind of awe of. her higher social position, of whioh they were reminded by every word she spoke, the high -bred accent, and that in. ldeeribable air of delicacy and refinement whiaheindicate geod birth; but they were devoured by curiosity as to her mode of life and her friends, a curiosity which they were too vulgar, too iueousiderato to restrain. So poor Ida had to describe the Hall, and the servants, and the way alae managed the farm, and the -way ill which she rode about Herondale. They were very much impressed; specially so when' she mentioned Lord and Lady Ban- nerdale's kind offer, and they exchanged glances as the titles left Ida's lips "quite ito aswturall H theywere common u y as names, as Mrs, Heron afterwards re• marked to Iezebel_ . "I'm afraid you ll fins it very dull Lore, Ida," said Mr.Heron, ,w itch a sniff. "You won't find any society in Wood Green; they're nearly all .City people, and there aren't many large houses—this is, as large as meet—and John is very street." She sighed; and ,it was evident to Ida that though her cousin John's "religion" might be spine amusement to frim, it was rather a bbugbear and nuisance to la`s family. "But we 'must get Joseph to take you about; and perhaps you and Isabel might go to a matinee or two; but John mustn't know anything about it." Ida made haste to assure them that she did not need any amusement, that elle preferred to be quiet, and that she hoped her cousin Joseph would not take any trouble on her account. At this point lir. Heron and his elegant son came in, a bell was rung, and the two servants came up for family prayers. Ida noticed that both the maids looked bored and disconted, and that the "parlor maid," a mere bit of a girl, appeared to be tired out. Mr. Heron read a portion of Scripture and offered up a long prayer in a harsh and rasping voice, with the man- ner of a judge pronouncing a rentence of seven yenre; and as the servants were leaving the room, galled ebem back, and remarked sternly; ' "I notice in the housekeeping book that a larger quantity of candles than usual !las been weld during' the past week, and I fear that there has been grievous waste of this useful article. Do not let it occur again," The servants went out suddenly, and Mrs. Heron suggested, much to Ida's re- lief, that Ida would no doubt like to go to bed. While Ida was brushing her hair and fighting against the natural fit of depression caused by her introduction to this cheerful household, there Dame a knack at the door, and ' ho admitted Mrs. Heron. That lady was In a soiled dress- ing -gown, bought at a sale and quite two sizes too large for her, and with a neva due flush, elm took from under this cepa- cions garment a small decanter of wine. "I thought ypu might like a little, my dear," she said, as Ida eyed it with Baton. ishment, "0f course we are all total ab- stainers here, btet we keep a little in the house for ;medicinal purposes, unknown to John; and it's a great comfort some- times when you're tired and iri low spirits. Let me give you a glass." Ida would have liked to have accepted it, and was lorry that her refusal seem- ed to ,disappoint Mrs. Heron, who retired as nervously as elm had entered. A few minutes afterwards. before Ida had got over her astonishment at the ineidont, there came another knoek at the door, and Isabel entered in a dressing -gown which was own sister to Mrs. Heron's. "I thought -there might be something you wanted," she said, her, bold•, eyes wandering over Ida curfousty, and then roaming to the contents of Ida'a dressing - bag 'which glittered and shone on the dressing -table. "What long hair you hare! Do you, brush it overyan.ight?. I don't mine, not every night; it's too much trouble. Are the tops of all .those things real geld? What e lot of money they must laevo cost! What a pretty peignoir you have on: is it real lace? Tee, I see it is, You have nice things!" with an envious • sigh. "Deni you ever have more oolor than you've got now? . Or perhaps it's because you're tired. You must bo tired, 'when I come to think of. it." She .dropped • her voice end glanced round cautiously. "Would you like to. have a little brand d-wy- anater? I've got some in my room— of course, the rest don't' know anything about it, father's teetotal road—,but. I keep a little for when I'm tired and down in the mouth; and when I run nut I get some front. Joseph's room. Of course, he isn't a total abstainer. I daresay you guessed that diredtly you: saw' him to night, an'rl weren ,t taken in by his ".late at the office' business?". Ida looked at her in alnazoment, a and Isabel laughed knowingly. "Joseph goes to the theatre and plays Germans )halting for their Middeity Meal, Members of the 2nd Infantry, German Army; receiving. their ration of ham, which, with bread, consti- tutes the mid-day lunch of the fighting men of the Kaiser. Note the soldier at left ready with knife in hand to attack his share of the- rations, billiards," she said, with sisterly can- dor. "He works it very cleverly; he's artful, Joseph is, and he takes father and mother in nicely; but sometimes I find a theatre programme in his pocket, and marks of chalk on his coat. Oh. I don't blame him! The life we lend in this house would make a cat stele It'd like being on a treadmill; nothing happens; it's just one 'dreary round, with mother always whining and father always preach- ing. You heard what he said to the 'er- vants' to-uight? I wonder they standsat. I should go out of mind myself if I didn't get a little amusement going up to the shope and sneaking into a matinee on the sly. I'm sure I don't know how you'll stand it, after the life you've Ied. What do you use for your hair? It's so soft and silky. I wish 1 had black hair like yours. Do you pat anything on your hands? They're rather brown; but that's; because you've lived in the open-air so much, I suppose. I'll lend you some stuff I use, if you like." Ida declined the brandy and the infal- lible preparation for whitening hands: and not at all discourages "wept t alVereeatere any young mon , didn't say anything a o dale? lou di ; them down -stairs, but I thought aehaps you would like to tell me whop ,re were alone. I suppose there was someone you wore sorry to part from?" she awl led, with, an inviting smile. Ida repressed a shudder and plied her brush vigorously, so that her hair 'hid the scarlet 'which suffused her face. "I knew so few of the people," she said: "As I told you downstairs, my tether and I led the meet secluded of lives, and saw scarcely anyone." Isabel eyed Ida sharply and suspi- eiously. "Oh. well, sof course, if you don't like to tell me, she said, with a little toss of her head; "but perhaps it's to soon; when we know each ether better you'll be more neon. I'm sure I shall be glad of someone to tell things to." Site sighed, and looked down with a sontinienaal ale; but Ida did not rise to the occasion; and with a sigh of disap- pointment, and a last look round so that nothing should escape her, Isabel took her departure, and Ida was left in peace. Tired as she -was, it was some time be. fore she could get to sleep. The cbange in her life had come so suddenly that she felt confused and bewildered. It had not needed Joseph Heron's mention of Sur.. Stephen Orme'e vanes to bring Stafford to her mind; for he was always present there; and she lay, with wide-open eyes and aching heart, repeating to herself the letter he bad sent her, and wonder• ing why he who, she bad thought, loved her so passionately, had left her. Com- pared with this sorrow, and that of her father's death, the smaller miseries of her present condition counted as naught. C'IIAPTEE XXIX. As Israel had intimated, life et Labur- num Villa, was not altogether hilarious. The environs of London are undeniably pretty. prettier than those of any other capital in Europe: but there is no shirk- ing the fact that the Northern suburbs of our great metropolis are somewhat grim and soul -depressing. Laburnum. Villa was in a long street, which re eembled the other streets as one tree resembles another; and you had to tra- verse a great many of these streets before your got Into the open country, that is, away from the red -bricked and stucco villas, and still smaller and uglier houses which had been run up by the onterpria. ing jerry-builder, But Ida would have been glad enough to have gond through this purgatory to. the paradise of country tenets which lay beyond if she could•only have gone alone. But Mrs. heron and Isabel never left her alone; they seemed to consider it their duty to 'keep )ter company,' end they could not understand her desire for the open hair, much less her craving for soli. tune. 'Un•ti1 Ida's ..arrival, Idabel had never taken a walk for a walk's sake, and for the life of her 'she could Mot eompie- hend Ida's love of "trapstng" about the dusty lanes, and over the commons -where, there was aiwiays a wind, Isabel dealer - ea, to blow her hair about.. If she went out, she liked to go up to London, and saunter about the hot streets, gazing en- viously at the "carriage people" as they drove by. Ida didn't care for London, tool€ very *little interest in the shops, and none whatever in the carriage folks, She 'Was always pining for the fresh air, the. breezy common, the. 'green trees; and oil' the oceasioes 'when she eould persuade Isabel to a country mettle, slid "walked wit'll dreamy eyes that saw not the?cua raid -dry, xuetieley of Wood Green land Whetstone, but the wild dates acid the broad extent of the Cumberland lu'ille. She w,as, indeed, living in the past; and it w'as the present that 'seemed a dream 'to her. .01 coarse slie missed the groat house, where she had ruled as mistrese, her, horses and her eowt and dogs; 'but what she missed more than. all else was, her freedom of action, It was the routine, the dull, common routine, of Laburnum Villa which irked so Badly. Neither Mrs. Heron nor Isabel had any resourced in themselves; they had few friends, and they were of the most commonplace, not to say vulgar, type; and a Tea" at Laburnum villa tried Ida almost beyond endurance; for the vieitore talked little else but scandal, and talked it clumsily. Most of Isaisel's time was spent in constructing garments by the aid of paper -patterns which were given away by some periodical; admir- able patterns, which, in skilful hands, no doubt, produced the most useful re• sults; but Isabel was too stupid to avail herself of their valuable aid, and must al - 'ways add something which rendered the garment eutre and vulgar. (To be continued.) Is t SOME PAIII S SIEGES. Gallant Defence of Liege Against • �.. Three' 19 GCamau ax Thee defence of Liege .by 30,000 Belgians against three 'German army corps numbering 125,000 will go down to history as one of the most brilliant 'feats of arms in. the annals of war. The Franco-Prussian war of 1870- 71 was remarkable for its sieges. Bazaine held out at Metz against the Germans for nearly two months and finally • surrendered with 6,000 officers and 173,000 men. For this he had to submit to court-martial and was sentenced to twenty years' imprisonment. Afterwards came the siege of Paris, which lasted six months• Thousands of shells were rained on the city every day by the Germans, and no fewer than 40,000 of the inhabitants suo'cumb- ed to disease and hunger. That lengthy sieges are quite pos- sible even in these days of huge guns is illustrated by Ohukri Pasha's gallant defence of Adrian- ople last year 'for 155 days. Then there was the comparatively recent great siege of Port Arthur in the Russo-Japanese war in 1904-5, which finally capitulated after be- ing blockaded by Admiral Togo for 210 days. The name of General Stoessel will rank with those of the greatest soldiers of modern times. In Ottoman and Russian military history there has never been a siege like that of Plevna in 1877, when Osman Pasha defied the Rus- sians for 144 days and finally sur- rundered on December 10th, with 30,000 men and 100 guns, owing to provisions and ammunition running short. In the same years Kars, long the bulwark of the Ottoman Empire in Asia, was stormed by the Russians after a siege of five months. Twenty-two yearn earlier the fortress had been brilliantly de- fended for eight months against the Russians by the Turks under .General Williams, who had put. 15,000 men .against 50,000. ' Even these sieges, however, are somewhat insignificant when com- pared with some others.`Tb elol m _ est siege occurred in the American Civil war, 'when the Confederates defended the town of Richmond for 1,485 days, or just over four years. Sebastapol, in- the Crimean war, held out for eleven months, while General Goi .ion defended Khar- toum a; a-nst the Soudanese for 300 days. The sieges of Ladysmith, Kimberley, and Mafeking, in the South African war, lasted 120, 123, and 261 days respectively. There is probably, however, no siege 'which Britishers like to read about so much as that carried out by France and Spain -in their en- deavors to carry the Rock of Gib- raltar, 1779-83. Altogether the siege lasted nearly four years, and as the world knows, resulted in a com- plete triumph of British arms, in spite of the fact that the enemy numbered 30,000 to 40,000 men, while the defenders could only mus- ter 7,000. .Xi Madge—You shouldn't say he's a confirmed bachelor unless you know, Marjorie—But I' do know; I confirmed him. Willie -Uncle, did you ever play Indian inyour life? Uncle—In- deed, no! Why do ,you ask? Willie —Because I saw a scalp on your bedroom table. These Honest, Tare.Tri d Ingredients— A. ngred.aents— are the bulwark of RAMSAY QUALITY In RAMSAY PAINT you get the most accurate and thorough combination of approved raw materials. Master painters will tell yob no better materials exist. 'Your own good judgment will tell you that selentifie machine Mixing is superior to guess -work and `hand paddling,", Specify Ramsay for your next big-job—and for the 'ode jobs made, yourself get the right Ramsay finish. Splendid service from the local gainsay dealer orwrite the manufecturers, (2) A. RAMSAY & SON CO. (Established 3:842) MONTREAL, Que. mileiresemieviesses •... On the Farm Far* :Notes. . Be not anxious about to -morrow. Do 'to -day's duty, fight to -day's temptations and do not'weaken 'and distract yourself by looking for- ward to things which -you cannot sseaeAw at1n1hodeg mcok-epdCt hnaortleusndKentalnedy. if you in dry quarters will thrive much better on less feed than he 'will if exposed to the rain and fed an abundance in the mud. Regularity in regard to meals is an -important matter. The person who eats alt irregular times, piecing between meals, or one' who is con- tinually tasting while cooking will never have a healthy stomach for the digestive organs, like any other part of the body must have time for rest. You are pretty busy, of ,course, bunt not too busy 'to read your fa- vorite farm paper. You might find something in it that would save a dollar or a back ache. Some men complain that they do not raise sheep because they are hard to confine within bounds. That is entirely the fault -of 61l fence builder, not of the sheep. lithe cwbb ges are 'slow about' heading or the heads lack firmness, sprinkle with salt :and water. This will also tend to keep the worms down. You cannot get a separator ab- solutely clean without using a brush; and it ought to be a pretty stiff one and the bristles must reach every corner and curve. Do not tolerate loud words or rough treatment in the dairy 'barn or around the cows. A cow is a highly organized, complex machine easily put out of order. .Alfalfa is on the job from the be- ginning of spring until the autumn freezes with a ton of hay for the mow about every 30 days. Keep a can of vaseline handy! about the milking place. Dip the fingers in this and thus soften the teats and prevent cracking. Douche the roosts with boilinn water and then spray with kerosene to discourage mites. You can spoil a, child by petting it, but the more you pet a cow the profitable more p blshe becomes. sh Ideas .are the fragrant flowers that we pluck from experience. Real fruit knowledge is an after growth. A man who !believes in himself and his capacity to do things will in most cases succeed. Clogged up roof drains and rain barrels are splendid mosquito - breeding places. Weeds are scattered by natural agencies such as wind, water and snow. Beware of the swayback pig, no matter if all the other points are good. Many weeds get a start on the farm by the scattering of manure on the land. While alfalfa is an easy crop, it is not the crop for it lazy man. Save all the windfalls by making the apples into cider. The pessimist has a chronic case of indigestion. GER IAiERI CA1' SP +'AKS. linable to .Understand Espousal of Kaiser's Callse. Mr. Otto Stuntz, Wilkesbarre, Penn., writing to The New York Evening Poet, says: "Being of German parentage, I sympathize :with the Germans in the great strliggile now in progress in Europe. But why so 'many Ger- mans in America so rabidly espouse the German . cause when it repro- Quic sents all that most Germans left y se Germany to escape from, is more il%ti than I can see. ornil "Moreover, as a consistent mem-' cad • her of the German Reformed ethE Church, it seems to ins but a .shade hool; better than sacrilege for the Kaiser chool to continually refer to God as being, . nem with him in this crusade of murder°! g Sit and pillage. If the Kaiser is ,le ,'; an l responsible for this war, he ser ;.•-.an, tainly did nothing to prevent, it •'lntari One pan bar:clly believe that ill-' ,usky venerable Franz Josef would hay ": keer attacked Servia without the ,sanc';;;snits a tion' of the German Emperor, T 4i',o m,as nye it' deems as ;absurd -to call upo 1ti ;! Acca Gad,' the Prince cs1 Peace, for a: l'•Haodo' in an avoidable war ,as it would _b•, 1 for a: bank burglar to pray to tl Lord for'power to -mit -oder the nig w•atehnxan,.. blow open the safe, an •make good his .escaper" 1 er A. d ✓ Ja io; erg nt ise ugl: r arl, hi abo S Si ne .den rot roe his s ra pare With e, itnt r, tetee es mh k, a tion Oen e A C irth, ntixr me at g ionee is al ne O; e tab): n 00 ose t Wi , the Ooi .ars tive s br tens, et w raigl ind hiev Iden en .1 gher When members of a fatniln qua rel a lot oft truth leaks out. Even If. a mandoes lift b s 1 when he meets a women lee may be her inferior., il dE ;With eoYttes Mr Jo their c