The Argosy — page 221: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

How it Happened. 207 ‘She is,” I answered, laconically. I did not wish to talk of her, but unhappily he did. “You believe that this money will be found,” he said. ‘If it is, and if my character is thereby cleared from reproach, do you think I may try and explain matters to Miss Perrin? Is there hope for me with her?” I could not think there was, but I have many times since regretted that I did not at the moment endeavour to persuade myself and him that all might yet come right. My heart being full of hopelessness, however, I made no reply, but pulled down my veil to hide from my questioner the tears that were streaming from my eyes. A sudden overwhelming sadness had fallen upon me. “TI understand,” he said, speaking with a weary, unsteady voice. “I hate this place. I have always felt that some dreadful fate was await- ing me here.” With that he turned and left me, giving me no farewell greeting of any kind. I took Frances to the upper part of the town next day, where we listened to the band playing for a while ; but the sun was hot, and she was ailing and confined to the house for nearly two days after this. On the evening of the second day we went out boating. We landed, after our excursion, underneath the old bridge. We saw Louis Carter up above us, leaning upon the wall as I had been doing when I met him, and looking out into the far distance. By the time we had climbed the ascent he had entirely disappeared. Frances became very ill that evening. The doctor said she was suffering from a low fever, which must have been hanging about her for a long time. She grew worse as the days went by, and she was at times delirious. Iwas obliged to get a nurse to assist me in caring for . her. She was very weak, and as there was much cause for alarm, I wrote to summon Fenella back when she had been three weeks absent. On the evening before I expected her return I went out for a lonely walk, feeling sadly in need of some refreshing air. I went up the hill by the most unfrequented way, and then turned into a road leading down again to the sea behind the monastery, mentioned before. A sweet-toned bell began to ring out when I had passed the grounds attached to this great building. I paused a moment to listen, and began to picture to myself the scene within the chapel, such as I imagined it to be when the strangely-dressed worshippers gathered for vespers. A lane ran at right angles with the road upon which I was. One of the grey monks suddenly turned out of this and approached me. I moved to the inner part of the path to allow him room to pass, but, to my very great amazement, he paused at my side. He was a young man ; he wore a lony, soft, fair beard, and had gentle, compassionate eyes. I should as soon have expected to hear words from our- old church ail comicbooks.com