o become one
of my family, if ever a man was--and I never break a promise. So I
refused your offer, and brought the young woman home, and married her
to Rothsay, who disappeared in a strange and mysterious manner, as you
may have heard, and was never heard of again until the massacre of
Terrepeur by the Comanche Indians--among whom, it seems, he was a
missionary--when the news came that he had been murdered by the savages
and his body burned in the fire of his own hut. But the horror is two
years old now, and I am at liberty to bestow the hand of my widowed
granddaughter on whomsoever I please. You'll do as well as another man,
and Heaven knows that I shall be glad to have any honest white man take
her off my hands, for she is giving me a deal of trouble."

"Trouble, sir? I thought your lovely granddaughter was the comfort and
staff of your age, and, therefore, almost feared to ask her hand in
marriage. But what is the nature of the trouble, if I may ask?"

"Didn't I tell you? Well, she has got a missionary maggot in her head.
It's feeding on all the little brains she ever had. She wants to go out
as a teacher and preacher to the red heathen, and spend her life and her
fortune among them. She wants to do as Rule did, and, I suppose, die as
Rule died. Oh, of course--

"Twas so for me young Edwin did,
And so for him will I!'

"And all that rot. I cannot break her will without breaking her neck. If
you can do anything with her, take her, in the Lord's name. And joy go
with her."

The young suitor felt very uncomfortable. He was not at all used to such
an old ruffian as this. He did not know how to talk with him--what to
reply to his rude consent to the proposal of marriage. At length his
compassion, no less than his love for Cora, inspired him to say:

"Thank you, Mr. Rockharrt. I will take the lady, if she will do me the
honor to trust her happiness to my keeping."

"More fool you! But that is your look-out," grunted the old man.

The next morning when they met at breakfast Mr. Rockharrt invited his
guest to accompany him to North End to inspect the iron mines and
foundries, the locomotive works and all the rest of it.

The duke had no choice but to accept the invitation.

The two gentlemen left directly after breakfast, and Cora rejoiced in
the respite of one whole day from the society of the unwelcome guest.

She saw the house set in order, gave directions for the dinner, and then
retired to her ow