The vessel is
due back at the end of September, I believe, so Mr. Bulmer will not
have long to wait. It is more than likely that Captain Coke will not
know I am aboard until Thursday, and I have arranged with a friend that
this letter shall reach you about the same time. Please convey my
apologies to Mr. Bulmer, and accept my regret for any anxiety you may
have felt owing to my unaccountable absence.
"Your affectionate niece,
"IRIS YORKE."
David narrowly escaped an apoplectic seizure. When he recovered his
senses he looked ten years older. The instinct of self-preservation
alone saved him in his frenzy from blurting forth the tidings of the
girl's flight. Incoherent with fear and passion, he contrived to give
orders for his carriage, and was driven to his office. Thence he
dispatched telegrams to every signaling station in England, Ireland,
and Spain, at which by the remotest possibility the _Andromeda_ might
be intercepted. He cabled to Madeira and Cape Verde, even to Fernando
Noronha and Pernambuco; he sent urgent instructions to the pilotage
authorities of the Bristol Channel, the southwest ports, and Lisbon;
and the text of every message was: "_Andromeda_ must return to
Liverpool instantly."
But the wretched man realized that he was doomed.
Pages:
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33