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"PROBABLE SONS"

BY

AMY LEFEUVRE

AUTHOR OF "CHERRY," "THE ODD ONE," ETC.

"_A little child shall lead them_."


1896


[Illustration: The Broken Statue.]


CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I. AN UNWELCOME LEGACY

CHAPTER II. DAVID AND GOLIATH

CHAPTER III. THE FIRST PUNISHMENT

CHAPTER IV. MRS. MAXWELL'S SORROW

CHAPTER V. A PRODIGAL

CHAPTER VI. A PROMISE KEPT

CHAPTER VII. CROSS-EXAMINATION

CHAPTER VIII. "HE AROSE AND CAME TO HIS FATHER"

CHAPTER IX. "A LITTLE CHILD SHALL LEAD THEM"



"PROBABLE SONS."

       *       *       *       *       *



CHAPTER I.


AN UNWELCOME LEGACY.

"Children! They are a nuisance to everyone--my abomination, as you know,
Jack. Why on earth they can not be kept out of sight altogether till
they reach a sensible age is what puzzles me! And I suppose if anything
could make the matter worse, it is that this is a girl."

The tone of disgust with which the last word was uttered brought a laugh
from Sir Edward Wentworth's companion, who replied, as he took his cigar
from his mouth and gazed critically into the worried, perplexed face of
his host--

"My dear fellow, she is not of an age yet to trouble you much. Wait till
she gets a bit older. When her education is finished, and she takes
possession of you and your house, will be the time for you to look to
us for pity!"

"Look here, Sir Edward," said a bright looking youth from the other side
of the room, "I'll give you a bit of advice. Send the child straight off
to school. Is she coming to-day? Good. Then pack her off to-morrow, and
keep her there as long as is needful. Then I will go down and inspect
her, and if she grows up to be a moderately decent-looking girl, I will
do you a good turn by taking her off your hands. She will have a nice
little fortune, you informed us, and if you will give her something in
addition, out of gratitude to me for relieving you of all responsibility
concerning her, upon my word I think I should not do badly!"

But Sir Edward was not in a mood to joke. He looked gloomily around upon
his friends as they gathered around the smoking-room fire after a hard
day's shooting, and remarked--

"I know what is before me. I have seen it in my sister's family, and
have heard something of all her toils and troubles. How thankful I was
when she and hers were translated to Australia, and the sea came between
us! It is first the nurses, who run off with one's butler, make love to
the keepers, and bring all kinds of followers about the house, who
sometimes make off with one's plate. Then it's the governesses, who come
and have a try at the guests, or most likely in my case they would set
their affections on me, and get the reins of government entirely into
their hands. If it is school, then there is a mass of correspondence
about the child's health and training; and, in addition, I shall have
all the ladies in the neighborhood coming to mother the child and tell
me how to train it. It is a bad look-out for me, I can tell you, and not
one of you would care to be in my shoes."

"What is the trouble, Ned?" asked a new-comer, opening the door and
glancing at the amused faces of those surrounding Sir Edward, all of
whom seemed to be keenly enjoying their host's perplexity.

"He has received a legacy to-day, that is all," was the response; "he
has had an orphan niece and nurse sent to him from some remote place in
the Highlands. Come, give us your case again, old fellow, for the
benefit of your cousin."

Sir Edward, a grave, abstracted-looking man, with an iron-grey
moustache and dark, piercing eyes, looked up with a desponding shake of
the head, and repeated slowly and emphatically--

"A widowed sister of mine died last year, and left her little girl in
the charge of an old school friend, who has now taken a husband to
herself and discarded the child, calmly sending me the following
letter:--

  'DEAR SIR: Doubtless you will remember that
  your sister's great desire on her death-bed was that
  you should receive her little one and bring her up
  under your own eye, being her natural guardian
  and nearest relative. Hearing, however, from you
  that you did not at that