



Produced by an anonymous Project Gutenberg volunteer. HTML
version by Al Haines.









THAT MAINWARING AFFAIR


by

Maynard Barbour




CONTENTS

       I  THE MAINWARINGS
      II  FAIR OAKS
     III  THE LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT OF HUGH MAINWARING
      IV  A TERRIBLE AWAKENING
       V  IMPORTANT DISCOVERIES
      VI  THE INQUEST
     VII  A LITTLE ROYAL
    VIII  THE WEAVING OF THE WEB
      IX  TANGLED THREADS
       X  BEHIND THE SCENES
      XI  SKIRMISHING
     XII  X-RAYS
    XIII  THEORIES, WISE AND OTHERWISE
     XIV  THE EXIT OF SCOTT, THE SECRETARY
      XV  MUTUAL SURPRISES
     XVI  MUTUAL EXPLANATIONS
    XVII  LOVE FINDS A WAY
   XVIII  AN UNFORESEEN FOE
     XIX  MUTUAL RECOGNITIONS
      XX  OPENING FIRE
     XXI  THE LAST THROW
    XXII  SECESSION IN THE RANKS
   XXIII  FLOTSAM AND JETSAM
    XXIV  BETWEEN THE ACTS
     XXV  RUN TO COVER
    XXVI  MAINWARING VS. MAINWARING
   XXVII  THE SILENT WITNESS




CHAPTER I

THE MAINWARINGS


The fierce sunlight of a sultry afternoon in the early part of July
forced its way through every crevice and cranny of the closely drawn
shutters in the luxurious private offices of Mainwaring & Co., Stock
Brokers, and slender shafts of light, darting here and there, lent
a rich glow of color to the otherwise subdued tones of the elegant
apartments.

A glance at the four occupants of one of these rooms, who had
disposed themselves in various attitudes according to their
individual inclinations, revealed the fact that three out of the
four were Englishmen, while the fourth might have been denominated
as a typical American from the professional class.  Of rather
slender form, with a face of rare sensitiveness and delicacy, and
restless, penetrating eyes, his every movement indicated energy and
alertness.  On the present occasion he had little to say, but was
engaged in listening attentively to the conversation of the others.

Beside a rosewood desk, whose belongings, arranged with mathematical
precision, indicated the methodical business habits of its owner,
sat Hugh Mainwaring, senior member of the firm of Mainwaring & Co.,
a man approaching his fiftieth birthday.  His dress and manners,
less pronouncedly English than those of the remaining two, betokened
the polished man of the world as well as the shrewd financier.  He
wore an elegant business suit and his linen was immaculate; his
hair, dark and slightly tinged with gray, was closely cut; his
smoothly shaven face, less florid than those of his companions,
was particularly noticeable on account of a pair of dark gray
eyes, cold and calculating, and which had at times a steel-like
glitter.  Though an attractive face, it was not altogether pleasing;
it was too sensuous, and indicated stubbornness and self-will rather
than firmness or strength.

Half reclining upon a couch on the opposite side of the room, in an
attitude more comfortable than graceful, leisurely smoking a fine
Havana, was Ralph Mainwaring, of London, a cousin of the New York
broker, who, at the invitation of the latter, was paying his first
visit to the great western metropolis.  Between the two cousins
there were few points of resemblance.  Both had the same cold,
calculating gaze, which made one, subjected to its scrutiny, feel
that he was being mentally weighed and measured and would, in all
probability, be found lacking; but the Londoner possessed a more
phlegmatic temperament.  A year or two his cousin's junior, he
looked considerably younger; as his hair and heavy English side
whiskers were unmixed with gray and he was inclined to stoutness.

Seated near him, in an immense arm-chair which he filled admirably,
was William Mainwaring Thornton, of London, also a guest of Hugh
Mainwaring and distantly connected with the two cousins.  He was
the youngest of the three Englishmen and the embodiment of
geniality.  He was a blond of the purest type, and his beard,
parted in the centre, was brushed back in two wavy, silken masses,
while his clear blue eyes, beaming with kindliness and good-humor,
had the frankness of a child's.

Hugh Mainwaring, the sole heir to the family estate, soon after
the death of his father, some twenty-five years previous to this
time, became weary of the monotony of his English homelife, and,
resolved upon making his permanent home in one of the large eastern
cities of the United States and embarking upon the uncertain and
treacherous seas of speculation in the western world, had sold the
estate which for a number of generations had been in the possession
of the Mainwarings, and had come to America.  In addition to his
heavy capital, he had invested a large amount of keen business tact
and ability; his venture had met with almost phenomenal success and
he had acquired immense wealth besides his inherited fortune.

His more conservative cousin, Ralph Mainwaring, while never quite
forgiving him for having disposed of the estate, had, nevertheless,
with the shrewdness and foresight for which his family were noted,
given to his only son the name of Hugh Mainwaring, confident that
his American-English cousin would never marry, and hoping thereby
to win back the old Mainwaring estate into his own line of the
family.  His bit of strategy had succeeded; and now, after more
than twenty years, his foresight and worldly wisdom were about to
be rewarded, for the occasion of this reunion between the
long-separated cousins was the celebration of the rapidly
approaching fiftieth birthday of Hugh Mainwaring, at which time
Hugh Mainwaring, Jr., would attain his majority, and in recognition
of that happy event the New York millionaire broker had announced
his intention of making his will in favor of his namesake, and on
that day formally declaring him his lawful heir.

This had been the object of the conference in the private office
of Hugh Mainwaring, and now that it was over and all necessary
arrangements had been made, that gentleman turned from his desk
with a sigh of relief.

"I am heartily glad that this business is over," he said,
addressing his guests; "it has been on my mind for some time, and
I have consulted with Mr. Whitney about it," with a slight nod
towards the fourth gentleman, who was his attorney and legal adviser.
"We have both felt that it should have