. imiftiinmiii' iiiiiiinwiiniwiiinm CRiPPS, THE CARRIER D Y R. D. BLACKMORE I Author of -LORNA DOONB," "ALICE LORR At N B' ETC., ETC. ' CIIAI'TKIt VI. (Continued.) "1 knows where Miss Grnclo be," he pffnn with n llttlo defiance. "I known h-hfro our Miss Grncle Ilea dead and It.hl dond nntl cold without no coflln. i :- it winding Hhcet tho party craturc, !) i purty crnture there, what I fool t Iip!" Mnnter Crlnnn, nt the picture himself J. id drawn, was taken with n Bliort fit of t,w, Had turned nwny. Mr. Oglander Cuvly laid down tho pon, which ho had '.liken for iiotM of n wise, nnd Btandlim ta firm n IiIh own (rent onk tree, gnve bo nisu 6f the shock, except In the color tf his face, and the brightmH of hi ra ;:. ' (In on, Crlpps, as oon tin you can," b" i.-iil In a calm and Rontlo voice. "Try h t t keep mo waiting, Crlpps." "f be trylnir; T bo trylnj? all I knowtt. 1 no blessed ungol bo dead and burled. tJuso to TiokHSB' tatle crop, in tlio Cor It of Uramble Quarry. At leafit, I moan JVkuss's tntlen wrm there; but ho dug them a fortnight, come Monday, ho did. "Tho corner of tho 'Gipsy Oravo,''as they call It. Who found It? How do rou know It?" "Esther was there. Sho seed tho whole It. Boforo tho snow coiul last Tues flay night." "Tuesday night! Ah, Tuesday night!" for tho moment, tho old man had lost hla clearness. "It can't havo boon Tucs Any night It was Wednesday, when I todo down to my sister's. Cripps, your llstor must havo dreamed It. My darling eras then at her aunt's, quito safe. You havo frightened mo for nothing, Cripps." "I am glad with all my heart," cried Eucchary; "1 nm quito sure It wore Tues day night, because of Mrs. Exlo. And rour Worship knows best of the days, 10 doubt. Thank the Lord for nil Ills ncreios! Well, seeing now, it were some jody else, in no ways particular, and perhaps one of them gipsy girls, as took tho fovcr to Cowley, if your Worship will take your pen again, I will tell you all as Esther seed. Two men with a pickax working, where the stouo over haugcth so, and tho corpse of a nice young woman laid for tho stone to bury It natural. No harm at all In tho world, when you conio to think, being nought of a Christian body. And they lot go the rock, nnd it come down over, to savo all infection. What a turn that Etty gived mo, all about a trllle!" Tho carrier wiped his forehead, and smiled. "And won't 1 glvo it well to her?" "Poor girl! It is no trifle, Cripps, Whoovcr It may havo been. But stop I am all abroad. It was Tuesday after noon when my poor darling left Mrs. Fcrmltago. And to the Quarry, across the Holds, from the wny she would come, Is not half a mile half a milo of fields rind hedgerows Oh, Crlpps, It was my daughter!" "Her might a boon, suro enough," said Crlpps, in whom tho reflective vein, for tho moment, had crossed tho sentimental "surij enough, her malght a' been. A pnaturo meadow, and a Held, and Gibbs turnips, and then a fallow, and then Into ilekuss' tatles half nn hour malght a done tho carrying and consarning of tile rest your Worship, now when did uho leave tho lnty ? Can you count the timo of it?" , , "Zflcohury, now tho will of tho Lord bo done, without calculation! My grave Ik all I earo to count on, if my Grace ,licrt buried so. Hut before I go to it, .please God, I will find out who has dono it." "Now, do 'o put on a-muffler, sir," cilod Mary, running out with her arms full, us Mr. Oglander set forth in the bitter ah', without overcoat, but ready to moot everything. At tho door was hi old Whiteehapel cart, with a fresh young coit between tho shafts, pawing tho nw, and snorting. The floor of tho cart was jingling with Iron tools as the fating horsu shook himself; and iho bqnii'e n ffrooin, and two gardeners, were ready to jump in. when called for. "So piaizo your Worship,' let mo drive,' said Cripps, who was going to sit in front. "A young horse, and you at your timo of life, and all this trouble over you!" "Give mo the reins, my friend," cried his Worship; nnd Crlpps, in somo dread for his ncck obeyed. The men jumped In, nnd tho young horse started at a rather dangerous pace, Many a timo had Miss Grace fed him mil ho usod to follow her liko a lamb. "He will take us safe enough," said 'lio Squire; "ho seems to know what he r going for." Not another word was spoken until liey enmo to tho gap nt the verge of the Juarry, where tho frosty moon shone lirough it. "Tie him here," snid tho nasier shortly, as the groom produced lis ring ropo; "and throw tho big cloth Ivor him. Now all of you come; and Crlppn go first." . Seared as they wero, they could not in (innie decline tho old man's orders; and iq1 sturdy Cripps, with a spado on his Bioulfler, led through the united thlcuet Behind him plodded the Squire, with an lullt lantern in one hand, nnd a stout Ink staff in the other; tho moonlight fllstening In his long white hair, nnd arl?ling frost In his hoary beard, The how. before them showed no print larger linn the pari of an old dog fox pursuing lie Hphmerlng track of a pheasant's tpurs; iu'd m crunched beneath their tiots with tho crusty impact of crisp levenuire. All around was white am frame wiih depth of unknown loneliness kid M t'riin n, f. r the rest of After many floundorlngs In nnd out of hollow places, they came to the corner of tho auarry dingle, nnd found It entirely choked with snow. Tho driving of the northeast wind had gathered as Into a funnel there, and had stacked the snow of many acres In a hollow of less than half a rood. Over tho wholo, tho cold moon nhono, and inado tho depth look leupor. The men stopped short, nnd ooked at their shovels, and looked at one another. All powers of evil were bandod against them, and they Baw no turn to take; still It wns not their own wish to go bnck, without having struck ii blow for It. "You can do nothing," said the Squire. with porhnps tho first bitter fooling he had yot displayed. "Ail tilings aro dead ignlnst mo; I must grin, as you say, and henr It. It would take a wholo corps of sappora and miners a week to clear this place out. Wo cannot oven be Bitre of tho spot; wo cannot tell whore the orncr Is; all Is smothered up so. Ill luck always rides ill luck. This proves beyond doubt thnt my child lies here." Tho men wero good men, ns mon go, nnd they all felt lovo and pity for tho lost young lady, nnd tho poor old master. Still their fingers wero so blue, and their froz en feet so hard to feel, nnd tho deep, whlto gulf before them surged so palpa bly invincibio, that they could not repine at a dispensation which sent them home to their suppers. "Nort to bo dono till change of weath er," Bald Crlpps, as thoy sat In tho cart again; "I reckon thoy villains know what was coining, better nor I, who have kept tho road, man and boy, for thirty year. The Lord knoweth best, ns He alwnys do. But to my mind Ho mnnoth to knpc on snowing nnd freezing for a month at lastc. Moon hnvo chnnged last night; and a bitter moon we shall havo of it." And so thoy did; tho blttercta moon, save one, of tho present century. And old men said tjint there had not been such a winter, and such a sight of snow, since the ono which had been scut on purpose to discomfit Bony. Mr. Oglander, in his lonely home, strove bravely to make tho best of It. Ho had nono of thnt grand religious con solation which somo people havo (cspc, clally for others), and ho grounded his inppmcss porhaps too much upon his own old hearthstone. His mind was not an extraordinary one, and his soul was old-fashioned. Moreover, his sister Joan came up a truly pious and devoted woman, the. widow of an Oxford wluo merchnnt. Mrs. hVrmltngc loved her niece so deeply that she had no patience with any selfish pin ings after her. "Sho Is gone to the better land," sho Bald; "tho shores of bliss unspeakable unless Itusscl Over- Rhuto knows about her a great deal more than he will tell. I havo llttlo confidence In that young man. But to wish hor bnck Is a very sinful nnd un christian act, I fear. "Now, Joan, you know thnt you wish her bnck, every timo that you sit down, or get up, or go to tea without her." "Yes, 1 know, I know I do. And most of all when I pour it out sho used to do it for mo. But, Worth, you can wres tle more than I can. Tho Lord expects so much more of a man." Being exhorted thus, tho Squire did his best to wrestle. Not that any words of hers could carry now their former weight; for If ho had no daughter left, what good was money left to her? The Squire did not wnnt his sister's money for himself at all. Indeed, ho would rather bo without it. Dirty money, won by trade but still It had been his duty alwnys to try to get it for his daughter. And this is worth a word or two. At the Oxford Bank, and among the lawyers, It had been a woll-known thing that old Kerniitage had not died with less than jElfiO.000 behind him. Ever in Oxford there never had been a man so Illustrious for port wino. "Fortiter occupa portuin" was the motto over the door to his vaults, and he fortified port Impregnably. Therefore he supplied nil tho common room cellars, and among the undergraduates his nanio was surety for nnother glass. And thoro roally was a port wine basis; so that nobody died of him. Mr. Formltago went on, nnd hit his mark continually; and his mark was that bull's cyo of this goldon age, a yellow Imprint of a dragon. So many of these enmo pouring In, that ho kept them In bottles sealed, and left to mature, and ac quire "tho genuine bottle flnvor." When ho had bottled half a pipe of these, and was thinking of beginning now to storo them in the wood, a man coming down with a tap found him ucad; and was too much scared to steal anything. This man reproached himself, ever af terwards, for his Irresolute conscience; and tho two executors gave hltu nothing but blamo for his behavior. Peoplo In Ilollwell said that these two took a dozen battles of guineas between them, to drink their testator's health. Enough thnt ho was dead, and every mau seelug his funeral, prnlsud him. CHAPTER VII. There was'a street In Oxford, nenr tho ruins of the ancient castle, and behind the now county jail, where one of tho many off-sets of tho Isls filters Its artifi cial way beneath low arches and betwixt dead walls; and this street was known to tho eldor generation by tho name of "Crossduck Lane." Here, In a highly respectable house, a truly renp' i-t !! r in w i Mlnu, with I ! " 'lrr" n.ld h's f i,, ' " , enptfon, style and title; and he waa not by any mans a bad man, so as to b an a ttorney. Thin man possessed a great deal of in fluence, having much houso-property; and he novcr in the least disguised his sentl nlenta, or played fast and looso with thorn. Being of a commanding figure, and fino straightforward nspoct, ho left on impression, wherevur ho went, of hon esty, vigor and manliness. And he went into very good society, as often as h cared to do so; for although not a native of Oxford, but of unknown origin, h now was the head, nnd indeed tho en tirety, of a loug-oatnbllshcd legal firm. Ho had married the daughter of tin senior partner, nnd bought or ousted away the rest; and although tho legend on his plato waa still "Piper, Pepper, Sharp, and Co.," every one know that tho learning, wonlth, and honor of the whole concern were now embodied In Mr. Luko Sharp. His wlfo, a fat nnd goodly person, Mlrnndn Piper of former days, happened to bo the first cousin and nearest relatlvi of a famous mnn "Port-wine Fermir nge" himself; and his death had affected her very sadly. For she found thnt he had provided a most unjust disposal oi his Avorldy goods. To his godson, her only child and her idol, Christopher Fer mltago Sharp, lie had left a copy of Dr, Doddrldgo's "Expositor," and nothlnq else. Mrs. Luke Sharp, though ft ver good Christian, repacked and sent bad tho "Expositor." If Mr. Sharp had boon at homo, lu would not havo let her do so. no wn full at all tltnca of large, generous Im pulse, but nover ypt guilty of lmpulslv acts. It had always been said that hi son was to havo tho bottled half-pipe o( gold, or tho chief body of it, after th widow's llfo-Intercst. Whereas now. Mrs. Fermltnge, If phe liked, might roll nil tho bottles down the High streot She,' how over, was a careful woman; nnd 11 was manifest where tho whole of thi vintage would bo binned away to wlti in tho cellars of Bcckley Barton, with i tho key nt Grace Oglnuder's very protty walBt Mr. Sharp at tho moment could dobcry no euro; but still to show tempec was a vulgar tiling. I Now upon the Now Year's day o 1838, tho bitter weather continuing BtilL and doing its best to grow moro bitter! Mr. Sharp had closed his otllco early) He had ordered his turkey to bo kopt back, and begged his wife to sco to it until he could mako out nnd settlo tho import of a letter which reached hlra about ono o'clock. It had been delivered by a groom on horsebnek. Tho lottex was short, and expounded little. "Sir "I shall do myself the honor of calling upon you at four o'clock this afternoon, upon somo Important business. Obedient ly yours, . "RUSSEL OVERSHUTE." It is not altogether an agreeable thing, oven for a man with tho finest consclencd to receive n challenge upon nn unknown point, curtly worded in this wise. Luk Sharp hnd lod nn unblemished life, sine the follies of his youth subsided; ho sub scribed to inevitable charities; and h waited for his rents when sure of them. Still he did not like thnt letter. Now ho took off tho coat which he woro at his desk and wnshed his nice whlto hands, and clothed himself in ex pensive dignity, then he opened his book of daily entries, and folded blotting-paper, and prepared to receive instructions, or glvo advice, or be wiso abstractedly. But ho thought It a, sound precaution to have hh son Christopher within earshot; for young Overshute was reputed to be of a rather excitable naturo; therefore Kit Sharp was comma n ted to finish tho cleaning of his gun which was his chief delight iu his father's closet adjoining tho otllce, and to keep the door shut, uu less called for. Tho lawyer was not kept waiting loud. As the clock of St. Thomas struck. four, iho shoes of n homo rang sharply on the ley road, .and tho otllco bell kicked up its tongue, with a jerk showing great en ergy. "Let him ring ngaiu," said Mr. Sharp; "I defy him to ring much hard- ' er." ! Tho defiance was soon proved to bo un sound; for in less than ten seconds, tho bell which hnd stood many years of strong emotion was visited with such a violent spasm thnt nothing short of tho melting-pot restored Its constitution. A piece clinked on the passage floor, and the lawyer was filled with unfeigned wrath. That bell had been ringing for three generations, nnd was the Palladium of tho firm. "What clumsy clodhopper," cried Mr. Sharp, rushing out, ns if lie saw nobody "what beggardly bumpkin hus brokun my bell? Mr. Overshute oh I I beg par don, I am suro." "We must mako allowance." said Rus sel calmly, "for fidgety animals, Mr. Sharp; and for thick gloves In this frosty weather. John,' tako my horso on the Seven Bridges rond, and be bnck in ex actly fifteen minutes, now kind of you to bo nt home, Mr. Shnrp!" With tho words, tho young mnn be stowed on the lawyer a short, Bbarp glance, which entirely failod to penetrate the latter. "Shut out tills cold wind," he cxeln lin ed as ho shut In jiis visitor. "You young folk never soom to feel the cold. Now take this chair. Never mind your boot; let them hiss as they will on the fender. I havo had men hore come fifty mile across country, as tho crow files, to 6o me, when the floods wero out; and away with mlnda comforted." "I have heard of your skill In oil legni points. But I nm not como on that ao count. Quibbles and shuffles I dotesu" (To bo coutinucd.) Now Th. y Don't tJponk. Nell Do you think I look uu M 1 needed a doctor? Belle M'ni well, a beauty dootcs wouldn't do you any harm. Philadel phia Bulletin. There ro octae widows wiio '."111 I HE BROUGHT A FRIEND. "Hero's little Brtght-Eyos," said, the J sallow young man with the corduroy waistcoat an the waitress approached. "Hello, sweetness!" ho continued, ad drcsfllng the yow-.g woman. "I haven't seen you for a long while." "Not sonco yest'd'y," Bald tho wait ress, without n patiBO In hor gum chew ing. "I don't Bee how you've bore up." "I ain't not very well," said Hip young man. "1'vo lost flesh. Every body notices it. Blllj this Is the queen of tho quick lunchers the sassiest evor. Get on to that pompadour bang and tell ruo if you evor seen anything like It In town. Gladys, darling, thl. is my friend." "Ho looks liko an Improvement on you," retorted the waitress. "Now will you be good?" said Billy. "I guess that ought to hold you for a while." "Takes more'n that to hold him," said tho waitress. "He's a great jol lier, ain't he?" "YoU know you don't mean that," said tho young mnn in the cordurop waistcoat. "I never gave you nny Jol ly. Ain't sho n peach, though, Billy? Didn't I toll you?" "I guess you told him a lot about me," said the waitress. "Haven't talked about anything else, hnvo I, Billy?" "I don't wonder at it," said Billy. "You're something of a jollier your self," said the waitress. "No, that's straight," protested Bil ly. "Cut it out," said the sallow young man. "He's Jealous, ain't he?" smiled tho waitress. "We don't care, do we?" said Billy. "Sure wo don't" "What you going to have?" asked the sallow young mnn. "What you going to have?" "Sparerlbs and sauerkraut" "Guess I'll take the same." "Two sparerlbs and sauerkraut, said the waitress, supplying them with paper napkins. "Say," she mur mured, leaning over Billy, "if he tells you any more about mo don't you lis ten to him, will you?" She smiled with impartial coquettishness on them both nnd sailed off. "Ain't she a corker?" domnnded the sallow young man. "Sure," snid Billy, emphatically. "Thoy all like a little Jolly," Bald the sallow young man. "I've got myself solid with her, all right" Chicago Dally News. UNWRiTTEN LAW RIGID. Prcuidcut Restricted from Leaving Country liven for a Day. The President must not leave the United States even for a day. This is nn old, unwritten law which has been respected by all successors of George Washington, with perhaps one or two exceptions. This restriction Is not im posed by statute. President McKlnley emphasized his respect for this rule on his tour to the South and West It was unofficially announced that 4u would meet President Diaz of Mexico somewhere near the boundary of that sister republic. A controversey as to whether Mr. McKlnley might properly cross the Mexican line, even for a few hours, arose. Early in May, when ho visited El Paso, Tex., where he was greeted by President Diaz's persona! representative, hu expressed a desir to take a look Into Mexico. From El Paso there extends intr Mexico the International Bridge span ning the Rio Grande. Whether the President would dare to cross tbl.s structure or not was the question whteh members of his party naked ono another. He did not. He went to th bridge nnd caught a view of the Slerro Madre. Half way across the bridge was a line. Stopping over this was putting foot upon Mexicnn territory. President Harrison had ventured as far as this line ten years before. But President McKlnley did not so much as place his foot upon tho bridge. President Arthur was nceused of vio- ' Iating this unwritten law In October, ! IRft'J nnnn n nlnn surf, trln in Aloxmi. drla Bay, Thousand Islands. Ills poli tical enemies, accused him thou of ven turing across tho Canadian line on a 1 Ashing excursion. The boundary ho- I tween Canada and New York extends I to Uie middle of the St. Lawrenc river. ! President Cleveland was similarly accused. ' On ono of his hunting trips I to North Carolina he sailed by the ocean route past Cape llntterus. His enemies contended that ho ventured outside the three-mile limit Accord ing to international law, a country's possessions extend for throe mllrs out- , side Its coast lino. Plying tho seas I farther than this Is leaving home tcr- ; rltory. j The President must not nccept irlfts if gront value from Infouors In tho i federal service, but ho may accept u'lfts from foreigners. Grant, McKin ley nnd -'Mr. Room-volt hnvo received .sifts from foro'irn rulers. Several ' jflfts have been sent to Mr. Roosevelt 'rotn th West Kmiwis City S nr. wum ITS MERIT IS PROVE! RECORD OF GREAT MEDIUM A Prominent Cincinnati Woman TaHj How Lydla E. Plnkham'a Vesretaktt Compound Completely Cured Her. Tho great good Lydia E. Pinkhsmt Vegetable Compound is doing among tho women of America is attracting tho attention of many of our leading scientists, and thinking peoplo genvt ally. jtiiii' iM-inwHwiax wHomiKaawy f Mrs. Sara Mson The following letter is only ono of many thousands which are on file la tho Pinkliam office, and xo to prove beyond question that Lydia iJ. PInk hum's Vegetable Compound must be A remedy of great merit, otherwise ill could not produce such marvelous re suits umong sick and ailing women. Dear Sirs. Pinkhnm: " About nino months ngo I was a great suf foror with womb troublo, which caused nrt sovoro pain extreme nervousness and fr ?iuent headaches, from which the docto allod to relievo mo. I tried Lydia E. Pink ham's Vegetable Compound, nnd within short time felt bettor, and after taking flv bottles of it I wns entirely cured. I therefor heartily recommend your Compound as a splendid uterlno tonic. It makes tho monthly periods regular and without pnln ; nnd what a blessing it Is to Hnd such a remedy after sa many doctois fall to help you. I am pleased to recommend it to nil suffering women." Mrs. Sara Wilson, 31 East 3d Street, Cinch, nati, Ohio. If you havo suppressed or painful menstruation, wenknos of the stom ach, indigestion, bloating, leucorrhcea, flooding, nervous prostration, dizzi ness, faintness, "don't-care" and " wnni-to-be-loft-alone " feeling, ex citability, backncho or the blues, thes are sure indications of female weak ness, some derangement of the uterus or ovarian trouble. In such cases there is one tried and true remedy Lydia E. Pinkham'3 Vegotablo Compound. Wo miKnt cut out tne music, sortlj suggested u bad young man iu th rear of the auditorium. Evansvllli Courier. Mother Gray's Swoot Powtlora fbi Children. ..- Successfully used by Mother dray, nurso the Children's Home fn New York, ouro Oon' -stlpatlon, l-'everlshness. Had Stomuoh, Teeth J lng Disorders, move and rcsrulate tho BoweW and Destroy Worms. Over 30.000 testimonial At all Druindsts, S5o. Sample F1UIIC A dress A. S. Olaistku, Leltoj, N. Y. Two Questions. She Are you sun you love me for myseK alone? lie Did you think I loved you foi your mother? Somervillo Journal. A GTIA ItANTKET) CUKE FOI? PIIKS, Itohlnif. nitnd, Hleedtnr or Protruding Pile Yourdruu'idst will refund money If PAZU OINT MRN'T tn too In to 14 ?- SO. The n tir. wlo m ver takes ena risks makes az mermy blunders a nnnv'io.idv. 11 w liixh can that, soprano sln) As hin as $5,000 a night, answered the manMftv, absent-mindedly. Now York Sun. f Western mm Parlnu thn monthn of Murrh nnd April, thi'io will b EicunjIoiiN on tli Tnrloti linn of rnllmijr to thl O nmllun fit. HumlrmU of UiotinmU of ttlH host li(int nl Uniting UnilK on thn (tontliiHiit frt to lli( icttlnr. Ailjoinliiu In lulu mnjr uh iiiircluinoil from rullwai li U mlronirmiiIii rniionnnli'n nrlr. iik oiout".tq ApIr for Information to Suporint mlentof Immlgra Hxu.OttHwa, iiiiHila.oi to , V. Iluiiu,biil Nhw Vorl Lift lluildmu, Uuiuhii, Nab , AutU. riiud (ioTorummj Ajmitt. I'Uum u; whura jou Uf CxU adrartWamtut. 1 look upon most nouiii g, all fa)8, at best, mere sauce for theoli ones. The top round ov the la mr lz thi dancerous ono: come ard u nst, wir me, mi Iny, on the mi'ini ono. Mrs. WiP9lows SOOTHING SN ULT fur cht drun wthlnR. softens Die umiib.rtriucim i,ifli nation, allays pnln, curus collo irip -jfio bottle, "Kno thys if" iz the pin o. pnei'i siuuo; it naz nuwuss Ofen n S'krot, and pr balily allwiss win ... BEGGS' BLOOD PURIFIER CURES catarrh ot the .stomach. I never yet hid mi n n "way In cnntyhhiK bub what i hmv f o' ard how I could hav m-ir v ,mn it MBlfclinvi't it Hi si 4 i. jj uo uusun oil 'p TBV i. in tlinn. id by rt' -rfC TO THE i -i 1 ' VI what . t Ml 1... ' 7