The Argosy — page 281: what you’re looking at

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

262 The Mystery of Allan Grale. The paper fell from Maria’s hand. By instinct, as it seemed, the truth flashed on her mind—that the ‘‘ scion” pointed at was Edgar Vivian. That some trivial surmises and doubts had been whispered by the foolish village gossips, as to the appointed meeting (or non-meeting) of Edgar and Allan at the Black Pool, Maria knew. But that sus- picion could seriously attach itself to her brother, she had never dreamed. ‘Tt is not true,” she said to herself aloud, in the empty carriage. ‘‘ These newspaper men make paragraphs of what they know nothing ! Our Dering people really suspect Edgar? Never! I don’t think they could even believe it of him if he were found guilty : for they know he never could be guilty.” So lost in thought was Maria, that when the train began to draw wp in the Dering station, she scarcely noticed it, until a porter’s voice, speaking the family name, caught her ear. He was repeating sundry instructions to a fellow porter concerning some boxes of choice fruit. “T tell you itis. Mr. Vivian gave the order when he was down here this morning.” “Mr. Vivian?” echoed the other. “I didn’t think he was well enough to be going about.” . ‘T don’t mean Mr. George,” said the porter, testily; ‘‘I mean Cain.” Maria stepped, white and breathless upon the platform. ‘The newspaper men were right then ! Was this all the faith which her race had earned by generations of honourable men and women ?—by years. of genial kindliness ? Oh, how base people could be! What a cruel world it was ! She stood still one moment, and then her mind was made up. She started off, at a rate which seemed strangely inconsistent with her fragile figure and worn face. As she went, she muttered to herself mechanically : “The plain truth !—the plain truth ! ” She never paused, even to take breath, till she stood before the Grale Works. She had hardly voice to ask for the master, and ‘the startled office boy, astonished at seeing Miss Vivian, ushered her into the counting-house. The clerks were gone, and Mr. Grale was there alone. But Maria would scarcely have noticed whether that was so or not. A strange, stony hardness settled on the manufacturer’s face when he saw who it was that had invaded his privacy. He rose ; but he did not offer her a seat, nor did she take one; though she>put her hands on the back of a chair as if for support. » ‘Mr. Grale!” she gasped, ‘ Mr. Grale! They are saying in the place, that Edgar killed your son Allan !” “Well,” said Mr. Grale, slowly and heavily, ‘ I cannot help that.” But it cannot be true. It is not true!” CORMICLIOO KS. (EC)