Cynthia Wakeham's Money — The Specter of the Laboratory

XXXII. THE SPECTRE OF THE LABORATORY.

Had Hermione been allowed time to think, she might have drawn back from such a sudden marriage.

But Frank, who recognized this possibility, urged her with gentle speed down the street, and never ceased his persuasions till they stood at the minister's door.

Mrs. Lothrop, who had a heart for romance, opened it, and seeing the blushing face and somewhat dishevelled appearance of Hermione, she cast one comprehending look at Frank, and drew them in joyfully.

"You are to be married, are you not?"

she asked, welcoming the whole four with the gayest of bows.

"I congratulate you, dear, and will take you right away to my best room, where you will find your box and everything else you may need.

I am so glad you decided to come here instead of having us go to you.

It is so pleasant and so friendly and the Doctor does so dread to go out evenings now."

Small chatter is ofttimes our salvation.

Under this little lady's fire of bright talk Hermione lost the tragic feelings of months and seemed to awake to the genialities of life.

Turning her grand head towards the smiling little woman she let her own happiness shine from the corners of her mouth, and then following the other's lead, allowed herself to be taken to a cosy chintz-furnished room whose home-like aspect struck warm upon her heart and completed the work of her rejuvenation.

Emma, who was close behind her, laughed merrily.

"Such a chrysalis of a bride," cried she.

"Where are the wings with which to turn her into a butterfly?"

Mrs. Lothrop showed them a great box, and then left them.

Emma, lifting the lid, glanced shyly at Hermione, who blushed scarlet.

Such a lovely array of satin, lace, and flowers!

To these girls, who had denied themselves everything and been denied everything, it was a glimpse of Paradise.

As one beautiful garment after another was taken out, Hermione's head drooped lower in her delight and the love it inspired, till at last the tears came and she wept for a few minutes unconstrainedly.

When this mood had passed, she gave herself up to Emma's eager fingers, and was dressed in her bridal garments.

The clock was striking ten when Frank's impatience was rewarded by the first glimpse of his bride.

She came into the room with Emma and Mrs. Lothrop, and her beauty, heightened by her feelings to the utmost, was such as to fill him with triumph and delight.

To Edgar it was a revelation, for always before, he had seen the scar before he did her; but now he was compelled to see her first, for the scar was hidden under fold upon fold of lace.

"No wonder Frank is daft over her," thought he, "if she always looks like this to him."

As for Frank, he bowed with all his soul to the radiant vision, and then, leading her up to Mr. Lothrop, awaited the sacred words which were to make them one.

As they were being uttered, strange noises broke out in the street, and the cry of "Fire!

fire!"

rang out; but if the bride and bridegroom heard the ominous word they did not betray the fact, and the ceremony proceeded.

It was soon over, and Frank turned to kiss his wife; but just as Emma advanced with her congratulations, the front door burst open and a neighbor's voice was heard to cry in great excitement: "The Cavanagh house is burning, and we are all afraid that the girls have perished in the flames."

It was Emma who gave the one shriek that responded to these words.

Hermione seemed like one frozen.

Edgar, dashing to the door, looked out, and came slowly back.

"Yes, it is burning," said he.

"Emma will have to go with you to New York."

"It is a judgment," moaned Hermione, clinging to Frank, who perhaps felt a touch of superstitious awe himself.

"It is a judgment upon me for forgetting; for being happy; for accepting a deliverance I should not have desired."

But at these words Frank regained his composure.

"No," corrected he, "it is your deliverance made complete.

Without it you might have had compunctions and ideas of returning to a place to which you felt yourself condemned.

Now you never can.

It is a merciful Providence."

"Let us go and see the old house burn," she whispered.

"If it is a funeral pyre of the past, let us watch the dying embers.

Perhaps my fears will vanish with them."

He did not refuse her; so Emma relieved her of her veil and threw about her a long cloak, and together they stepped into the street.

The glare that struck their faces made them shrink, but they soon overcame the first shock and hastened on.

The town was in a tumult, but they saw nothing save the flaming skeleton of their home, with the gaunt outlines of the poplars shining vividly in the scarlet glow.

As they drew near to it the front of the house fell in, and Hermione, with a shriek, pointed to the corner where the laboratory had been.

"My father!

my father!

See!

see!

he is there!

He is denouncing me!

Look at his lifted arms!

It _is_ a judgment, it is----" Her words trailed off in choking horror.

They all looked, and they all saw the figure of an old man writhing against a background of flame.

Was it a spectre?

Was it the restless ghost of the old professor showing itself for the last time in the place of his greatest sin and suffering?

Even Edgar was silent, and Frank refused to say, while the girls, sinking upon their knees with inarticulate moans and prayers, seemed to beg for mercy and cry against this retribution, when suddenly Hermione felt herself clasped in two vigorous arms, and a voice exclaimed in the husky accents of great joy: "You are here!

You are here!

You are not burned!

O my dear young mistresses, my dear, dear young mistresses!"

Hermione, pushing the weeping Doris back, pointed again towards the toppling structure, and cried: "Do you see who is there?

My father, Doris, my father!

See how he beckons and waves, see----" Doris, startled, gave a cry in her turn: "It is Mr. Huckins!

O save----" But the words were lost in the sudden crash of falling walls.

The scene of woe was gone, and the dayspring of hope had risen for the two girls.

_A Selection from the Catalogue of_ G.

P.

PUTNAM'S SONS

Complete Catalogue sent on application Works by Anna Katharine Green THE LEAVENWORTH CASE.

A Lawyer's Story.

New Illustrated Edition.

Cr.

8vo.

. 50 "She has worked up a _cause celebre_ with a fertility of device and ingenuity of treatment hardly second to Wilkie Collins or Edgar Allan Poe."

--_Christian Union_.

BEHIND CLOSED DOORS.

16^o, cloth 00 "...

She has never succeeded better in baffling the reader."

--_Boston Christian Register_.

THE SWORD OF DAMOCLES.

A Story of New York Life.

16^o, cloth 00 "'The Sword of Damocles' is a book of great power, which far surpasses either of its predecessors from her pen, and places her high among American writers.

The plot is complicated and is managed adroitly....

In the delineation of characters she has shown both delicacy and vigor."

--_Congregationalist_.

X. Y.

Z.

and 7 TO 12: DETECTIVE STORIES.

16^o, 00 "Well written and extremely exciting and captivating....

She is a perfect genius in the construction of a plot."

--_N.

Y.

Commercial Advertiser_.

HAND AND RING.

16^o, cloth 00 "It is a tribute to the author's genius that she never tires and never loses her readers....

It moves on clean and healthy....

It is worked out powerfully and skilfully."

--N.

Y.

Independent.

A STRANGE DISAPPEARANCE.

16^o, cloth 00 "A most ingenious and absorbingly interesting story.

The readers are held spell-bound until the last page."

--_Cincinnati Commercial_.

THE MILL MYSTERY.

16^o, cloth 00 THE HOUSE OF THE WHISPERING PINES.

Cr.

8vo.

Colored Frontispiece.

Cloth . 50 "As good as 'The Leavenworth Case.'

"--_N.

Y.

Globe_.

THE OLD STONE HOUSE, AND OTHER STORIES.

16^o, cloth 75 cents "It is a bundle of quite cleverly constructed pieces of fiction, with which an idle hour may be pleasantly passed."

--_N.

Y.

Independent.

_ CYNTHIA WAKEHAM'S MONEY.

With frontispiece.

16^o, cloth 00 "'Cynthia Wakeham's Money' is a story notable even among the many vigorous works of Anna Katharine Green."

--_New York Sun.

_ MARKED "PERSONAL."

16^o, cloth 00 "The ingenious plot is built up with all the skill of the writer of 'The Leavenworth Case' to the very last chapter, which contains the surprising solutions of several mysteries."

MISS HURD: AN ENIGMA.

16^o, cloth 00 "A strong and interesting novel in an entirely new field of romance."

THE DOCTOR, HIS WIFE, AND THE CLOCK.

32^o, limp cloth 50 cents "The story is entertainingly told...."

--_Cincinnati Tribune_.

DR.

IZARD.

16^o, cloth 00 "Those who have read her other books will not need to be urged to read this; they will be eager to do so, and we assure them a very interesting story."

--_Boston Times_.

THAT AFFAIR NEXT DOOR.

16^o, cloth 00 "Startling in its ingenuity and its wonderful plot."

--_Buffalo Enquirer_.

LOST MAN'S LANE.

16^o, cloth 00 AGATHA WEBB.

16^o, cloth . 25 ONE OF MY SONS.

16^o, cloth, illustrated . 50 THE DEFENCE OF THE BRIDE, AND OTHER POEMS.

16^o, cloth 00 RISIFI'S DAUGHTER.

A Drama.

16^o, cloth 00 G.

P.

PUTNAM'S SONS, New York and London Who?

By Elizabeth Kent Author of "The House Opposite" _Cr.

8vo.

Frontispiece in Color by John Cassel . 25 net.

By mail, . 40_ A more thrilling detective story than "Who?"

has seldom appeared.

Not only does it deal with the story of a crime such as the ablest detective would find it difficult to solve, but there is an added mystery concerning the identity of one of the principal suspects, regarding which the reader's opinion will change a dozen times before arriving at the truth.

Every page teems with incidents, forming a succession of dramatic scenes that will keep the reader's interest at white heat throughout.

G.

P.

Putnam's Sons New York London The Adventures of Miss Gregory By Perceval Gibbon _12^o. With 8 Illustrations.

. 35 net By mail, . 50_ The rousing volume of dare-devil enterprise that Perceval Gibbon has written is a book full of freshness and surprise.

Miss Gregory knocks about the world, and wherever she goes she is in the thick of things.

At one time it is a Nihilist plot which fascinates her; at another time, a plague-stricken community that calls her.

She is in Africa when the slaver is secretly plying his trade, and again, in wicked Beira, at the opportune moment she interposes her calm, forceful personality between an aggressive ruffian and his friendless victim.

Wherever she goes she attracts adventure to her.

The book which recounts her extraordinary experiences is full of graphic pictures of men and women in widely separated parts of the globe, and the characterization of these is as forceful and impressive as the narrative in which they play their parts is swift in movement and enthralling in theme.

G.

P.

Putnam's Sons New York London Transcriber's Note: Punctuation has been standardised.

Spelling and hyphenation have been retained as in the original publication except as follows: Page 19 before her head could and its _changed to_ before her head could add its Page 87 advisable to have an an inventory _changed to_ advisable to have an inventory Page 120 heeded neither his works nor _changed to_ heeded neither his words nor Page 135 so may their hearts be.

Wont _changed to_ so may their hearts be.

Won't Page 144 Hermoine, and then I could _changed to_ Hermione, and then I could Page 209 "since Hariet Smith is _changed to_ "since Harriet Smith is End of Project Gutenberg's Cynthia Wakeham's Money, by Anna Katharine Green <pre id="pg-footer"> *** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CYNTHIA WAKEHAM'S MONEY *** Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will be renamed.

Creating the works from print editions not protected by U. S.

copyright law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation (and you!

) can copy and distribute it in the United States without permission and without paying copyright royalties.

Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project Gutenberg™ electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG™ concept and trademark.

Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you charge for an eBook, except by following the terms of the trademark license, including paying royalties for use of the Project Gutenberg trademark.

If you do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the trademark license is very easy.

You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and research.

Project Gutenberg eBooks may be modified and printed and given away—you may do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks not protected by U. S.

copyright law.

Redistribution is subject to the trademark license, especially commercial redistribution.

START: FULL LICENSE

THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG™ LICENSE

PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK

To protect the Project Gutenberg™ mission of promoting the free distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work (or any other work associated in any way with the phrase “Project Gutenberg”), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project Gutenberg License available with this file or online at www.

gutenberg.

org/license.

Section 1.

General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg electronic works 1. A.

By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property (trademark/copyright) agreement.

If you do not agree to abide by all the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg electronic works in your possession.

If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project Gutenberg electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1. E.

8. 1. B.

“Project Gutenberg” is a registered trademark.

It may only be used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement.

There are a few things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg electronic works even without complying with the full terms of this agreement.

See paragraph 1. C below.

There are a lot of things you can do with Project Gutenberg electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg electronic works.

See paragraph 1. E below.

1. C.

The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation (“the Foundation” or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project Gutenberg electronic works.

Nearly all the individual works in the collection are in the public domain in the United States.

If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law in the United States and you are located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg are removed.

Of course, we hope that you will support the Project Gutenberg mission of promoting free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg name associated with the work.

You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg License when you share it without charge with others.

1. D.

The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern what you can do with this work.

Copyright laws in most countries are in a constant state of change.

If you are outside the United States, check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project Gutenberg work.

The Foundation makes no representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any country other than the United States.

1. E.

Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: 1. E.

1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg License must appear prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg work (any work on which the phrase “Project Gutenberg” appears, or with which the phrase “Project Gutenberg” is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, copied or distributed: This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever.

You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg™ License included with this eBook or online at www.

gutenberg.

org.

If you are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this eBook.

1. E.

2. If an individual Project Gutenberg electronic work is derived from texts not protected by U. S.

copyright law (does not contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees or charges.

If you are redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase “Project Gutenberg” associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1. E.

1 through 1. E.

7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1. E.

8 or 1. E.

9. 1. E.

3. If an individual Project Gutenberg electronic work is posted with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution must comply with both paragraphs 1. E.

1 through 1. E.

7 and any additional terms imposed by the copyright holder.

Additional terms will be linked to the Project Gutenberg License for all works posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work.

1. E.

4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg.

1. E.

5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1. E.

1 with active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project Gutenberg License.

1. E.

6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any word processing or hypertext form.

However, if you provide access to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg work in a format other than “Plain Vanilla ASCII” or other format used in the official version posted on the official Project Gutenberg website (www.

gutenberg.

org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original “Plain Vanilla ASCII” or other form.

Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg License as specified in paragraph 1. E.

1. 1. E.

7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg works unless you comply with paragraph 1. E.

8 or 1. E.

9. 1. E.

8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing access to or distributing Project Gutenberg electronic works provided that: • You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from the use of Project Gutenberg works calculated using the method you already use to calculate your applicable taxes.

The fee is owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg trademark, but he has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.

Royalty payments must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns.

Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in Section 4, “Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.

” • You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg™ License.

You must require such a user to return or destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg™ works.

• You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1. F.

3, a full refund of any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of receipt of the work.

• You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free distribution of Project Gutenberg™ works.

1. E.

9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg™ electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the manager of the Project Gutenberg™ trademark.

Contact the Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.

1. F.

1. F.

1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread works not protected by U. S.

copyright law in creating the Project Gutenberg™ collection.

Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg™ electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain “Defects,” such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by your equipment.

1. F.

2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the “Right of Replacement or Refund” described in paragraph 1. F.

3, the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project Gutenberg™ trademark, and any other party distributing a Project Gutenberg™ electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal fees.

YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT

LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.

F.

3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE

TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.

1. F.

3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a written explanation to the person you received the work from.

If you received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with your written explanation.

The person or entity that provided you with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a refund.

If you received the work electronically, the person or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund.

If the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further opportunities to fix the problem.

1. F.

4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth in paragraph 1. F.

3, this work is provided to you ‘AS-IS’, WITH NO OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.

1. F.

5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages.

If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by the applicable state law.

The invalidity or unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.

1. F.

6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone providing copies of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works in accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg work, and (c) any Defect you cause.

Section 2.

Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg Project Gutenberg is synonymous with the free distribution of electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers.

It exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from people in all walks of life.

Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg’s goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg collection will remain freely available for generations to come.

In 2001, the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure and permanent future for Project Gutenberg and future generations.

To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at www.

gutenberg.

org.

Section 3.

Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non-profit 501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal Revenue Service.

The Foundation’s EIN or federal tax identification number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by U.

S.

federal laws and your state’s laws.

The Foundation’s business office is located at 41 Watchung Plaza #516, Montclair NJ 07042, USA, +1 (862) 621-9288. Email contact links and up to date contact information can be found at the Foundation’s website and official page at www.

gutenberg.

org/contact Section 4.