k
o-
ohe Wings of
The Morning
By LOUIS TRACY
Copyright, lixXJ, by Edward J. Clodo
v O
3'
COJTTINUKD.J
And what wits It she cried to him
from the beach?
"Your own little girl given hack to
youi"
Given buck to him! Tor rhat to
marry that blade hearted scoundrel
whose pastime was the degradation of
women and the defaming of honest
men? That settled it. Instantly the
cloud was lifted from ids soul. A great
peace came upon him. The ruin of his
business lie might not be able to avert,
but he would save from the wreck
that which lie prized more than all
else, his daughter's love.
The engines dropped to half speed.
They were entering the harbor of Sin
gapore. In u few hours the worst
would be over. If Ventnor telegraphed
to London his withdrawal from the
board nothing short of a cabled draft
for 10.000 would prevent certain cred
itors from filing a bankruptcy petition.
In the local bunks the baronet had
about a thousand to his credit. Surely
among the rich merchants of the port,
men who knew the potentialities of his
scheme, lie would be able to raise the
money needed. He would try hard.
Already he felt braver. The old lire
had returned to his blood. The very
belief that lie was acting In the way
best calculated to secure his daugh
ter's happiness stimulated and encour
aged him. .
lie went on deck, to moot Iris skip
ping down the hatchway.
"Oh, there you are!" she cried. "I
was just coming to llnd out why you
were moping in your cabin. You are
missing the most beautiful view all
greens and blues and browns! Run,
iuick! I want you to boo every Inch
of it."
She hold out her hand and pulled
liini gleefully up the stops. Loaning
against the tatfrall, some distance
apart from each other, wore Anstruth
er nnd Lord Ventnor. Need it be
said to whom Iris drew her father?
"Here he Is, llohert," she laughed.
"I do believe ho was sulking because
Captain Fltzroy was so very attentive
to me. Yet you didn't mind it n bit!"
The two men looked into each other's
eyes. They smiled. How could they
resist the contagion of her sunny na
ture? "I have been thinking over what you
said to me Just now, Anstruther," said
the shipowner slowly.
"Oh!" cried Iris. "ITiivo you two
boon talking secrets behind my back?"
"It Is no secret to you, my little
girl" Her father's voice lingered on
the phrase. "When we are on shore,
Itobert, I will explain matters to you
more fully. .lust now I wish only to
toll you that where Iris has given her
heart, I will not refuse her hand."
She took his face between her hands
and kissed him. Lord Ventnor, won
dering at this effusiveness, strolled for
ward. "What has happened, Miss Deane?"
he inquired. "Have you Just discover
ed what an excellent parent you pos
sess?" The bnronet laughed almost hysteric
ally. " Ton my honor," he crlod, "you
could not have hit upon n happier ex
planation." Ills lordship was not quite satisfied.
"I supposo you will take Iris to
Smith's hotel?" he said, with cool Im
pudence. Iris answered him.
"Yes. My father has just asked Rob
ert to come with us by Inference, that
is. Where are you going?"
The adroit use of her lover's Christian
name goaded his lordship to sudden
heat
"Indeed!" ho snarled. "Sir Arthur
Doano has evidently decided a good
many things during the last hour."
"Yes," was the shipowner's quiet
retort. "I have decided that my daugh
ter's happiness should bo the chief con
sideration of my remaining years. All
else must give way to it."
The earl's swarthy face grew sallow
with fury. Ills eyes blazed, and there
was a tenso vibrato In his voice as he
said:
"Then I must congratulate you, Miss
Deane. You are fated to endure ad
ventures. Having escaped from the
melodramatic perils of Rainbow island
you are destined to experience another
variety of shipwreck here."
He left them. Not a word had Rob
ert spoken throughout tho unexpected
scone. Ills heart was trobblng with
a tremendous joy, and his lordship's
sneers were lost on him. Rut he could
not fall to note tho malignant purpose
of the parting sentence.
In his quietly masterful way he
placed his hand on tho baronet's shoul
der. "What did Lord Ventnor mean?" he
asked.
Sir Arthur Deane answered, with a
aim smile: "It Is diillcnlt to talk open
ly at this moment. Walt until wo
' t -h the hotel "
r . f .- r l 11 ', 1' - f.
i"it I'm t her majesty's ship Orient
. id returned from her long search for
'.;( Sirdar. The warship occupied her
c ual anrlurage, and a boat was low
"fed to takv off the passengers.
The boat swung olT Into the tideway.
Her progress shoreward was watched
by a small knot of people, mostly
loungers and coolies. Among them,
however, were two persons who had
driven rapidly to the landing place
when the arrival of the Orient was re
ported. One bore all the distinguishing
marks of the army olllcer of high rank,
but the other was unmistakably a
globe trotter. The older gentleman
made no pretense that he could "hear
the east a-callln'." Ho swore impar
tially at tho climate, the place and its
Inhabitants. At this Instant lie was
In a state of wild excitement. He was
voiy tall, very stout, exceedingly rod
faced.
Producing a tremendous telescope he
vainly endeavored to balance it on the
shoulder of a native servant.
"Can't you stand still, you blithering
Idiot," he shouted, after futile attempts
to focus the advancing boat, "or shall
1 steady you with a clout over the
ear?"
His companion, the army man, was
looking through a pair of Hold glasses.
"Ry .love," he cried. "1 can see Sir
Arthur Deane and'a girl who look- like
his daughter! There's that infernal
scamp, Ventnor, too."
Tho big man brushed the servant out
of ids way and brandished the tele
scope as though It were a bludgeon.
"The dirty beggar! lie drove my lad
to misery and death, yet, he has eoui"
back Mifo and sound. Walt till I meet
him. I'll"
"Now, Anstruther! Remember your
promise. I will deal with Lord Vent
nor. My vengeance has first claim.
What! Ry the jumping Moses, I do
believe Yes. it Is. Anstruther!
Your nephew is sitting next to the
girl!"
The telescope fell on tho stones with
n crash. The giant's rubicund face
suddenly blanched. lie loaned on his
friend for support
"You are not mistaken?" ho almost
whimpered. "Look again, for God's
sake, man! Make sure before you
speak. Tell mo! Tell mo!"
"Calm yourself, Anstruther. It is
Robert, as sure as I'm alive. Don't you
think I know him, my poor disgraced
friend, whom I, like the rest, cast off
in his hour of trouble1? Rut I had some
excuse. There! There! I didn't mean
that, old fellow. Robert himself will
bo tho last man to blame cither of us.
Who could have suspected that two
people one of them, God help me, my
wife would concoct such a hellish
plot!"
The boat glided gracefully alongside
the steps of tho quay, and Hnydon
sprang gracefully ashore to help Iris
to nlight. What happened immediate
ly afterward can best be told In his
own words, as he retailed tho story to
an appreciative audience In the ward
room. "We had Just landed," ho snld, "and
some of the crow were pushing tho
coolies out of the way when two men
jumped down the steps, and a most
fiendish row sprang up that is, there
was no dispute or wrangling, but one
chap, who, it turned out, was Colonel
Costobell, grabbed Ventnor by tho shirt
front and threatened to smash his face
in If ho didn't listen then nnd there to
what ho had to say. I really thought
about Interfering until I heard Colonel
Costobell's opening words. After that
I would gladly have seen the beggar
chucked Into the harbor. Wo never
liked him, did we?"
"Ask no questions, Pompoy, but go
ahead with the yarn," growled the first
lieutenant.
"Well, It scorns that Mrs. Costobell
Is dead. She got enteric a week after
tho Orient sailed and was n goner in
four dnys. Before she died she owned
up."
Ho paused, with n base eye to effect
Not a man moved a muscle.
"All right," ho crlod. "I will make
no moro false starts. Mrs. Costobell
begged her husband's forgiveness for
her treatment of him and confessed
thnt she and Lord Ventnor plnnncd tho
affair for which Anstruther was tried
by court martial. It must hnvo been
a beastly business, for Costobell wns
sweating with rage, though his words
were ley enough. And you ought to
have seen Ventnor's fnco when ho
heard of the depositions, sworn to and
signed by Mrs. Costobell and by sever
al Chinese servants whom ho bribed to
give false evidence. Ho promised to
marry Mrs. Costobell If her husband
died, or, In any event, to bring about a
dlvorco when tho Hongkong affair had
blown over. Then she learned that ho
was after Miss Iris, and there Is no
doubt her fury helped on tho fever.
Costobell said that, for his wife's sake,
ho would have kept tho wretched thing
secret, but ho wns compelled to clear
Anstruther's nnme, especially ns ho
came across tho other old Johnnie"
"Pompcy, you are Incoherent with ex
citement. Who Is 'the other old John
nie?' " asked tho first luff severely.
"Didn't I toll you? Why, Anstruther's
uncle, of course, a heavy old swell
with Ju3t a touch of Yorkshlro In his
tongue. I gathered thnt ho disinherit
ed his nephew when the news of tho
court martial reached him. Then ho
relented and cabled to him. Getting
no news, ho enme east to look for him.
II net Custibell the day after tho
1 J id. .'1 tl.e t. o vowed t bo re
venged on Ventnor and to dear A'
struther'H character, living or do id
Poor old chap! lie cried like a hah;
when ho asked the youngster to for
give him. It was quite touching.
"Well, Costobell shook Ventnor off at
last, with the final observation that
Anstruther's court martial has been
quashed. The next batch of general
orders will reinstate him in tho regl
ment, and it rests with him to decide
whether or not a criminal warrant
shall be Issued against his lordship for
conspiracy."
"What did Miss Doano do?"
"Clung to Anstnither like a weeping
angel nnd kissed everybody all round
when Ventnor got away. Well hands
off. I mean her father, Anstruther anil
the stout uncle. Unfortunately I was
not on In that scene. Hut for some rea
son they nil nearly wrung my arm off.
nnd the men were so excited that they
gave tho party a rousing cheer ns their
rickshaws went off In a bunch."
The next commotion arose in the ho
tol when Sir Arthur Deane seized the
first opportunity to explain the piedlc
nuicnt in which his company was
placed and the blow which Lord Vent
nor yet had it In his power to deal.
Mr. William Anstruther was an in
terested auditor. Robert would have
spoken, but his uncle restrained him.
"Leave this to me, lad," he ex
claimed. "When I was coming here In
the Sirdar there was a lot of talk
about Sir Arthur's scheme, and there
should not be much diilleulty In rais
ing all tho brass required If half wh.it
I heard be true. Sit y u down, Sir Ar
thur, and tell us all ab.mt It."
The shipowner required n, secou I
bidding. With the skill for which he
was noted ho described Ids oneratioui
In detail, telling how every f.trthlug of
the first Installments of 1':' two great
loans was paid up, how the earnings
of his licet would qulis';ly overtake the
deficit In capital value caused by the
loss of the three ships and how In six
months' time the leading financial
houses of Loudon, Paris and Rerliu
would bo offering liliu more money
than he would need.
To a shrewd man of business the
project could not fall to commend It
self, and the Yorkshire squire, though
n trlfie obstinate In temper, was singu
larly clear headed In other respects.
He brought his great fist down on tho
table with n whack.
"Send a cable to your company, Sir
Arthur," he cried, "and tell them that
your prospective son-in-law will pro
vide tho 10,000 you require. I will
see that his draft is honored. You can
add, if you like, that another ten will
be ready if wanted when this lot Is
spent. I did my lad one deuced bad
turn In my life. This time, I think, I
nm doing him a good one."
"You nre, indeed," said Iris' father
enthusiastically. "The unallotted capi
tal ho Is taking up will be worth four
times Its face value in two years."
"All the more reason to make his
holding twenty Instead of ten," roared
tho Yorkshlromnn. "Rut, look here.
You talk about dropping proceedings
against that precious earl whom I
saw today. Why not tell him not to
try any funny tricks until Robert's
money Is safely lodged to your ac
count? We have him In our power.
Dash It all, let us use him a bit."
Even Iris laughed at this naive sug
gestion. It was delightful to think
thnt their arch enemy was actually
helping tho baronet's affairs at that
very moment and would continue to
do so until ho was flung aside as being
of no further value. Although Ventnor
himself had enrofuly avoided any
formal commitment, tho cablegrams
awaiting tho shipowner nt Singapore
showed that confidence had already
been restored by tho uncontradicted
use of his lordship's name.
Robert at last obtained a hearing.
"You two nro quietly assuming the
attitude of the financial magnates of
this gathering," ho said. "I must ad
mit that you hnvo managed things
very well between you, and I do not
propose for ono moment to interfere
with your arrangements. Nevertheless,
Iris nnd I nre really tho chief moneyed
persons present. You spoko of finan
cial houses in England and on tho con
tinent backing up your loans six
months hence, Sir Arthur. You need
not go to them. Wo will bo your
bankers."
Tho bnronet Inughed with a whole
hearted guyety that revealed whonco
Iris got some pnrt nt least of her
bright disposition.
"Will you sell your Island, Robert?"
ho cried. "I am afraid that not even
Iris could wheedle any ono into buy
ing it."
"Rut, father, dear," interrupted tho
girl earnestly, "whnt Robert snys is
true. We have a gold mine there. It
is worth so much that you will hardly
believe It until there can no longer bo
any doubt in your mind. I suppose
that is why Robert asked mo not to
mention his discovery to you earlier."
"No, Iris, that was not tho reason,"
said her lover, and the elder men felt
that more thnn Idle fancy Inspired the
astounding Intelligence thnt they had
just heard. "Your love wns moro to
me than all tho gold In the world. I
had won you. I meant to keep you,
but I refused to buy you."
Ho turned to her father. Ills pent
up emotion mastered him, and ho
spoko as ono who could no longer re
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