"Home again, at last," gleefully exclaimed Mollie, as the double drag
brought the whole party from the depot to the executive mansion.
The President and Mrs. Craft met them at the private entrance, and gave
to each a cordial welcome. Marie Colchis was received by the old people
as a beloved niece, for Mollie had, in a letter written some weeks
before to her father, partially explained the situation of Marie, whom
she wished to be called Leona Bennett.
Once in the house, the several members, excepting Mollie, went directly
to their rooms to change their traveling clothes; but she, taking
her father by the hand, asked him and her mother to give her a few
moments of their time, as she had something of importance to relate.
Once in the library, she knelt at her father's feet, and related the
whole story concerning Marie Colchis. She told of finding the letter
in Cobb's room, and of her journey to Guadalupe Island, and the rescue
of the girl; she dwelt upon all the wonderful incidents of the finding
of the cavern and its contents; and then she told him of the letter
which was found with Marie, and the relations which had existed between
Marie and Junius Cobb, years ago; that Junius was ignorant of Marie's
identity, but was in love with her, and had asked her to marry him.
The iron box which was found in the cavern, and which was now in the
trunk, was next spoken of. Finally, she admitted to her parents her
love for Lester, and his adoration of her, and asked for their consent
to their union. "And this is not all, dear papa and mamma," she said:
"Marie Colchester is Marie Hathaway, Lester's sister; I brought her
here to win the love of Junius, but it was not to be, for"--and she
hesitated--"for she is engaged to Hugh."
It was several minutes ere Mr. and Mrs. Craft could grasp the whole
situation, the revelations had come so fast and free; but, finally, the
old man took his wife's hand in his, and slowly, but with a smile of
pleasure, said: "Mamma, we were young once."
Mollie accepted the words and expression of his face as evidence that a
happy termination would end the hide-and-seek courtship of herself and
Lester; she kissed them both, and ran to communicate the good news to
her lover.
It was evening of that day. A happy, jolly, bright party was
congregated in the private parlor of the executive mansion. In the
corner, by the great mirror, sat Junius Cobb and Marie Colchis, his
eyes drinking in the beauty of her being, and his thoughts wrapped in
a contemplation of her grace and loveliness. On the sofa, across from
them, sat Hugh and Marie Hathaway; Lester was alone in a big arm-chair
near the window, while Mollie stood in the center of the room under the
electric lights, bright, radiant and vivacious.
"Three spooney couples!" she cried. "No; I mean two and a half--and you
are the half, Lester," slyly turning her head toward him. "Six hearts
beating as one; all in unison, but none engaged. He is coming, papa is
coming; and I advise some young gentlemen whom I could name to step
boldly to the front and ask--well, I think I'll say no more, but I pity
you. Papa holds his daughters in an iron fist," and she clenched her
little hand to emphasize her words.
A moment later and the President and his wife entered the room, and all
arose to meet them.
"Be seated, my children," he kindly said. "For the first time in my
life I feel that I have three beautiful daughters and three noble sons.
I have asked you to meet me here that I might bring complete happiness
to three pairs of loving hearts. I know all your secrets, dear
children; everything is known to me."
He paused. An expression of surprise came over the face of Hugh, while
anxiety was depicted in Lester's countenance. Marie Colchis turned her
eyes upon the speaker, but said nothing. As for Cobb, he thought it all
quite natural, as, no doubt, Marie had told her uncle of his proposal.
"I will not keep you long in suspense. You, Lester," and he turned
toward him. "Love my daughter. You have asked for her hand more than
once. I know she returns that love; and as her happiness is next my
heart, I will not bring sorrow to her by refusing your request." He
stepped forward, and took the hand of Mollie, whose cheeks were red
with blushes, and led her to where Lester stood, having risen from his
chair. "Lester, take her; she is yours. Be a good, kind husband to her,
is all I ask."
Lester took the fair girl in his arms, and imprinted the first lawful
kiss upon her lips.
"And now," continued Mr. Craft, "as two hearts are thus made happy, let
me seek another pair. Hugh; stand up, my son."
Hugh arose, gently raising Marie Hathaway from the sofa, and moved
toward his father. "Father," he said, "here is another pair."
Marie hung her head in confusion, but Hugh was bold and fearless.
"I know all about you two also," said Mr. Craft, smiling. "I am more
than satisfied to receive such a daughter as you, Marie Hathaway." The
girl started as her name was pronounced, and a guilty blush mantled her
cheek at the thought of the deception she had practiced upon this good
old man. "Unto my son I give you, if it be your wish that he should
become your husband."
He paused. Marie made no reply, save to pass her hand through Hugh's
arm, and nestle closer to his heart.
"Hugh, take her, and bless God for the prize which you have received."
Hugh led the girl away with joy in his heart.
"Junius"--the President spoke the word low, and with more embarrassment
than he had used in addressing the others--"I know not how to commence.
She who stands by your side is not my niece, but my daughter," and he
took Marie Colchis' hand in his, and drew her toward him. "She is my
daughter; no blood makes the tie, but that of love has given her to me.
She stands before you alone in this life. No father or mother, brother
or sister, or relative has she in the wide world." The tears were now
falling from Marie's eyes, and she clung closer to her adopted father.
Hugh and Lester looked on in silence but wonder. "She has come," he
continued, "like a radiant star in our universe, and from a remote
period of time. She lived years ago--a hundred or more. Do not start,
Junius," as the other moved a step, and stood gazing on Marie's face
with a look of partial recognition. "Like you, she lived, and died, and
lived again. The same methods which were used to prolong your life were
used to give life again to this fair girl. The hand that assisted at
your interment prepared the casket wherein his daughter has lain for
over a century. She is--"
The wild excitement of Cobb's soul, paralyzed for a moment by the
words of the other, now broke forth in a hoarse, pathetic cry--"Marie
Colchis!" and he rushed forward, and almost crushed the fair form in
his strong arms. Regardless of all present, he kissed her face, her
lips--kissed her with all the depth and passion of a man receiving back
from death the being divine of his heart.
When Cobb's feelings had calmed sufficiently for him to realize the
situation, the President led him and Marie to their chairs. "Take her,
Junius; God has ordained it!" he said, with a choking sensation in his
throat. Without letting too long a pause ensue, he drew from his pocket
a paper, unfolded it, and said: "Listen, my children, to the last words
of that girl's father, Jean Colchis."
In a low tone he read:
"GUADALUPE ISLAND, December 15, 1897.
"JUNIUS: To you I leave these words! Dead though thou art, yet a
voice tells me that you will live again. In this chamber, with the
inanimate body of my darling daughter lying beside me, I write my
last words to mortal man.
"From the day you left us, and for years after, the heart of Marie
has lain like a stone in her bosom; no feeling but that of love for
you has gained entrance there.
"Wealth poured in upon me, and I endeavored by its aid to surround
her with life, luxury and change of scene, hoping thus to turn her
thoughts into other channels than of you. It was in vain! Sad and
sorrowful she passed the days and years in hope of your return.
"I did not tell her that you had entered into a state of
inanimation from which you would not awake until years had passed.
I could not crush her heart! The days came and went, and no change
took place. I felt that she was dying of a broken heart. As the
conviction forced itself upon me, I prayed to God for help. Long
and long I debated the situation. The knowledge was apparent
that she would die ere many days had passed unless means were
promptly taken to remove the sorrow in her heart on account of
your prolonged absence. What should I do? I had assisted in your
preparations for a future existence; I knew of the methods you had
taken to continue life in your body.
"'Junius can never return to my daughter,' I cried, in the agony
of my soul. 'Why not send that daughter to him?' If you lived, she
might again live, through the means I might employ. If you did not
survive the ordeal, then it were better that she, also, should die.
I argued with myself; I won. I sought for a spot where no human
being would find the resting place of my beloved daughter until
the time should arrive for her deliverance. I selected the island
of Guadalupe, far from the busy world. I prepared the chambers and
made them beautiful.
"My daughter came, and for nearly a year we lived in quiet but sad
community. But, alas! it was of no avail! I saw her dying before my
eyes. I resolved to subject her to a living death, in the hope that
she might live again and be happy.
"I have prepared her body, even as you had told me yours was to be
prepared. I inclose her fair form in a golden coffin, as a fitting
receptacle for one so true and noble. With immortelles for her
death, should she die, I surround the casket; with orange blossoms
at her head, in the hope of future life and of her marriage to you,
I lay her to rest.
"In an iron box at the foot of her coffin you will find my last
testament, and the dowry I bequeath my daughter. I have prepared
everything for this moment. That you might know this place, I put
the letter into the copper cylinder; I bored through the walls of
your tomb, and pushed in the case; and when I heard it fall on the
floor of your sepulchre, I sealed up the hole. I knew if you lived
again you would rescue your Marie. I felt, that if you died, it was
better that she died also.
"The time has come! I lay this letter upon the snowy bosom of her
who loved you as never woman loved a man. O God! can mortal know
the anguish that seizes my heart as I am about to seal the lid
which closes her sweet face in a living tomb!
"When these words are read by thee, O my daughter, if ever thine
eyes shall brighten again in life, my bones will lie bare and
naked at the foot of thy coffin. Good-bye, my darling daughter. I
close the lid! I seal thy fate!
"JEAN COLCHIS."
Without allowing the sadness of the moment to weigh upon their
feelings, the President stepped to the door, and soon returned,
followed by a servant bearing the little iron box which Dr. Town had
carried on his saddle from Guadulupe Island, and which Mollie had
surrendered to her father.
Soon it had been opened, and its contents exposed to view. A bundle of
papers was on top, and these the President took out and gave to Cobb.
He took them, and opened the first paper: it was the will of Jean
Colchis, giving to Junius Cobb, on the day of his marriage to Marie
Colchis, all money due from the government of the United States on
the contract of sale of the invention of the sympathetic telegraph.
The second paper examined was the original contract for the transfer
of this invention to the government in consideration of $5,000,000
paid down and a perpetuity of one-half of one per cent, on the gross
earnings derived from its use.
"Why!" exclaimed the President, as Cobb read the contract, "you will be
one of the richest men in the country. As near as I remember, there are
over a hundred millions of dollars lying unclaimed in the Treasury on
this contract."
[Illustration]
The third paper found was the formula for making the needles used in
the invention, sympathetic.
"Ah!" cried Cobb. "This is most important! Not but that the wealth
given Marie and me is most acceptable; but now," and he held up the
paper, "now the world will again know and make use of the secret of
sympathizing the needles."
"And you forget another thing, Junius," broke in Hugh. "You are five
millions of dollars richer by that paper, as that is the reward offered
by the government for the discovery of the lost secret."
The last paper in the box was then read:
"That the wealth which I possess may descend to my daughter
unimpaired by time and change, I have converted the $5,000,000
which the government paid me for my invention into the sack of
stones underneath this paper. J. C."
Cobb reached his hand into the box, and withdrew a silken bag. Opening
it, he poured the contents upon the table.
All started with exclamations of astonishment at the sight; and well
they might. The center of the table seemed ablaze with a million
sparkling, dancing rays of light. Five million dollar's worth of
precious stones lay before them--the dowry of Marie Colchis.
"Junius," said the President, laying his hand upon the young man's
shoulder, "wealth has rolled in upon you by millions, but above all
the wealth you have received is the fair prize you have won, your
future wife," and he kissed the blushing face of Marie. "One more gift
I can add to the many you have received," and he drew from his pocket
a folded paper bearing the great seal of the Navy Department upon it.
"Your commission as Admiral of the Aërial Navy of the United States,"
and he handed the paper to Junius Cobb. "Your discovery of meteorlene
has revolutionized warfare, and you soon will command a powerful fleet
of aërial war ships."
Cobb bowed low as he accepted the paper, and expressed his gratitude to
the President for this additional proof of his generosity.
"I was not far wrong," exclaimed Hugh, grasping his hand, "when I
saluted you as Admiral, on board of the Orion."
"No, Hugh," returned Cobb; "and I wish I had not been, when I returned
it to you as my Commodore."
"And you were not, Junius," laughed the President, as he drew another
paper from his pocket. "Your commission as Commodore in the Aërial
Navy, Hugh," handing him the paper.
"And what does my hubby get?" cried Mollie, pouting her pretty lips.
"A colonelcy in the army for distinguished service during the war," and
the President smiled as he took a third paper from his pocket and gave
it to Lester.
"And now," said Cobb, after a pause, "as wealth more than I can use
has been heaped upon me, I wish to add my mite to the happiness of the
moment. Hugh," and he took up the third paper from the bundle on the
table, "here is the secret of the sympathetic telegraph; it is worth
five million dollars. Take it, and divide it between yourself and
Lester, as a wedding gift from me."
Then Marie stepped forward, and filled her two hands with glittering
stones from the pile on the table. "Take these, my dear sisters," she
said, as she poured them into the laps of the two astonished girls;
"take these as a bridal gift from Marie Colchis."
THE END
A LITERARY GEM.
Mademoiselle de Maupin
A ROMANCE OF LOVE AND PASSION.
By THEOPHILE GAUTIER.
12mo, 413 pages. Paper covers. Illustrated with 16
Half-tones from the original etchings
by Toudouze.
"The golden book of spirit and sense, the Holy Writ of beauty."--_A. C.
Swinburne._
"Gautier is an inimitable model. His manner is so light and true, so
really creative, his fancy so alert, his taste so happy, his humor so
genial, that he makes illusion almost as contagious as laughter."--_Mr.
Henry James._
"=MADEMOISELLE DE MAUPIN=," the latest product of the pen of Theophile
Gautier, is considered by the best critics of this inimitable Frenchman
to be his most artistic, witty and audacious work. In writing this
charming novel, Gautier has displayed all the artistic coloring that
atmospheres the romantic school of literature this versatile author has
created.
"=MADEMOISELLE DE MAUPIN=" is alive with the characteristic vigor
shown in "ALBERTUS," "LES JEUNES--FRANCE," and "POESIES DE THEOPHILE
GAUTIER," his earlier works, but is more delicate, and abounds in the
subtle cynicism which contrasts so delightfully with the pungent wit
that sparkles on every page.
The book is a marvel of beauty, both from an artistic as well as a
typographical standpoint.
FOR SALE AT ALL BOOK STORES AND NEWS STANDS AND ON ALL
RAILROAD TRAINS.
LAIRD & LEE, PUBLISHERS
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.
Transcriber's note
Words in italics have been surround with _underscores_, and bold
with =signs=. Small capitals were replaced with all capitals. A
transcription of the handwritten note on page 388 was added. Some
lines in the note were struck out, this was represented with ~signs~.
A few punctuation errors were corrected, also the following changes
were made, on page
74 The words "completed our task" filled in
97 "a" changed to "as" (as they would not keep so long)
324 "I" changed to "If" (If no lipthalener came into port)
366 "hot" changed to "not" (I should say not.)
375 "quicky" changed to "quickly" (the compartment being quickly
emptied of its water)
383 "speed" changed to "sped" (the Orion sped northward)
394 "poinas" changed to "points" (it points somewhere south).
Otherwise the original was preserved, including possible errors in
Volapük, and inconsistencies in spelling and hyphenation.