[UNO WHO 
 
 E.STOUGHTON GALE-WHITE
 
 THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 LOS ANGELES
 
 7 
 
 3? 

 
 UNO WHO 
 
 BY 
 ELIZABETH STOUGHTON GALE-WHITE 
 
 THE 
 
 Hbbey press 
 
 PUBLISHERS 
 
 114 
 FIFTH AVENUE 
 
 Xon&on NEW YORK Montreal
 
 Copyright, .900, 
 
 by 
 THE 
 
 Press
 
 "Though ye have lain among the pots, yet shall ye be as the wings of 
 a dove that is covered with silver wings, and her feathers like gold."
 
 ps 
 
 Co m^ busbant, 
 
 Sames SlOnep TRQbtte, 
 
 tbts volume 
 is affectionately
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER PAOB 
 
 I. " Childhood shows the man, as morning shows the 
 
 m day" 7 
 
 J II. In the quick forge and workhouse of thought 31 
 
 III. "A little bitter mingled in our cup leaves no 
 
 relish of the sweet " 47 
 
 |j IV. Stronger in prophecy than in criticism 59 
 
 V. "A tale of romance and lies, false tears, and real 
 
 perjuries " 74 
 
 jr VI. " Oh ! happiness, our being's end and aim " 87 
 
 c\/ VII. " Tropic eyes too full of light and languor ; North- 
 ern soul too gray with Northern frost " 100 
 
 III. " The air was full of farewells " 112 
 
 IX. "Facts and crimes are concealed, truths and 
 
 ^ treasures are hidden " 123 
 
 X. " . . . She made his eye the lonely star of her 
 
 idolatry " 139 
 
 3 XI. "Man's love is of man's life a thing apart 'tis 
 
 woman's whole existence " 151 
 
 XII. " Her face a heart of flint might tender make".. . 161 
 < XIII. " Afford me place to show what recompense to- 
 wards thee I intend for what I have misdone " 174 
 3 
 
 448015
 
 4 Contents. 
 
 CHAPTER PAGE 
 
 XIV. " I must be cruel only to be kind ; thus bad begins, 
 
 and worse remains behind " 193 
 
 XV. "Bright with the radiance of intellect, not dark- 
 ened by madness or passion " 213 
 
 XVI. " When remorse is blended with the fear of 
 punishment and arises to despair, it constitutes 
 
 the supreme wretchedness of the mind " 229 
 
 XVII. "It came o'er their ears like the sweet South, 
 
 that breathes upon a bank of violets " 236
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE. 
 
 THE subject of this sketch, Elizabeth Stoughton 
 Gale, wife of James S. White, was born in Plattsburgh, 
 N. Y., on the banks of historic Lake Champlain. Her 
 parents moved to the West when she was an infant. 
 
 Her father, John Gale, was a pioneer merchant of 
 Milwaukee, Wis., and moved his family, stock of mer- 
 chandise, and frame for a store building on a sailing 
 vessel, that occupied six weeks in making the voyage 
 from Cleveland, 0., to Milwaukee. 
 
 He was one of the prominent men of the new city 
 and territory. He continued business as a merchant 
 until his decease in 1850. He was a large landowner, 
 also interested in building up new towns, notably Wau- 
 kesha and Algoma, Wis., where he had large manufac- 
 turing interests and branch stores. 
 
 An old Milwaukee paper in the possession of Mrs. 
 White shows her father to have been one of seven men 
 to whom a dispensation was issued for the formation of 
 the first Masonic lodge in the then territory of Wis- 
 consin. 
 
 The old family homestead was included in a plot of 
 
 5
 
 6 Preface. 
 
 land purchased by the Government, on the site of which 
 the new post-office and customs building is in course of 
 erection. 
 
 The following names are found in Mrs. White's gen- 
 ealogy: Gale, Stoughton, Wolcott, Allyu, Eice, War- 
 ham, Norcross, Holcomb, Ellsworth, Fiske, Child and 
 Flagg. 
 
 The Gales settled in Watertown, Mass., in 1640, and 
 the histories of the state give them as prominent in 
 promoting the settlement of colony. This family gives 
 her the war record, not only of the Revolution, but 
 the colonial wars, and the right of the order of the Cin- 
 cinnati is vested in her nephew. The Gales have been 
 among the landed gentry of England since 1273. The 
 Gales and Stoughtons are closely allied to Harvard, 
 the first family by the Gale Library given in 1678, and 
 at that time, according to the college records, was 
 larger than all of the colleges combined, and the latter 
 by the founding of Stoughton Hall. 
 
 Thomas Stoughton, who was descended from these 
 Stoughtons, was an ancestor of Mrs. White, as was also 
 Edwin W. Stoughton, the latter minister to Russia 
 under President Hayes' Administration. 
 
 THE PUBLISHERS.
 
 UNO WHO. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 " Childhood shows the man, 
 As morning shows the day." 
 
 IT was Christinas eve. The streets were thronged 
 with people going and coming in every direction. Some 
 had been and others were going to the Cathedral to say 
 a few prayers, then joining the crowd visiting the gaily 
 decorated shop windows. Children looking at the much- 
 coveted toys would wistfully eye those more fortunate 
 as they emerged from the shops with their Christmas 
 gifts. 
 
 On the sidewalks were booths, many of them presided 
 over by women of the Seminole tribe, who still lived in 
 their cabins or wigwams on the outskirfs of the town, 
 and supported themselves by making the beadwork 
 they were now trying to sell. Their gaily decorated 
 booths and Indian dress made it a picturesque scene as 
 they in silence held up different articles for inspection, 
 and put up their fingers to tell the price. There was 
 nothing that seemed able to move their cold, impene- 
 
 7
 
 8 Uno Who. 
 
 trable faces, which were in strong contrast to those of 
 the Spaniards who went along laughing, chatting and 
 gesticulating, and the colored people ever ready to show 
 their white teeth on the slightest provocation. There 
 were horses and carriages with liveried drivers going 
 and coming in all directions, but one seemed to attract 
 more attention than all others. 
 
 Paulo Who was a young man of fifteen, hut in looks 
 and appearance much older; he was accompanied by 
 his friend, Alberto de Gomora, a young man nearly his 
 own age, but more youthful-looking. They drove up 
 the shell road to a large mansion that overlooked the 
 sea. It was called " Sunnyside." Alberto de Gomora 
 alighted, saying, "I will be there at five o'clock/' 
 Paulo was driven around a circle (in the center of 
 which was a large fountain) to the street. Turning the 
 corner and driving the same distance whence he came, 
 he drove up a shell road to another large circle, the 
 edge of which joined the one he had left, and in the 
 center of which stood a fountain that seemed to vie with 
 its neighbor in throwing its sprays over the surround- 
 ing shrubbery of the beautifully cultivated grounds. 
 This place was called "The Shadows," as it faced a 
 grove of moss-covered trees that had been carefully 
 trained. From the side of the house was a fine view of 
 the sea. 
 
 As he drove up to the house he was greeted by a half- 
 dozen children dressed in white, who exclaimed as they 
 rushed on the broad piazza : " Paulo has come,
 
 Uno Who. 9 
 
 Paulo has come!" After saying he would come 
 to them at five o'clock, he retired to his room. 
 He then paid a visit to his mother in her bou- 
 doir. She was reclining upon a couch, while his 
 father read a letter to her. She put out her hand as he 
 entered, saying: "My son, how have you succeeded in 
 the distribution of the gifts to-day ? " He replied that 
 everything had heen done as she requested; that his 
 aunts and Meno had superintended the getting them 
 ready, and that he and Alberto had assisted each other 
 in the distribution, and he would now attend to the 
 lighting of the tree for the children. He sat beside his 
 mother holding her beautiful hand, as she languidly 
 looked at him as if devouring every word he said. 
 After a moment's silence she said : " Paulo, you will 
 never know what a treasure you have been to me/' 
 
 She was a native of Spain, and conversed in that 
 language, and as there were few English people 
 in the town at the period of which we write she 
 was not very proficient in their language. Her 
 crimson robe trimmed with swan's down relieved the 
 pallor of a face whose chief attractions were its 
 dimples in chin and cheeks. Her short upper lip 
 displayed beautiful teeth; her face seemed always 
 wreathed in smiles ; her brown eyes were full of tender- 
 ness and good feeling; her dark hair was combed from 
 a rather low brow, and the Psyche knot was held by a 
 jeweled dagger. On her feet were moccasins beauti- 
 fully beaded by Wauka, her husband's youngest sister.
 
 io Uno Who. 
 
 Osceola Who was walking the room, running his 
 fingers through his long black hair his habit when in 
 deep thought. He was tall and straight, with a firm 
 mouth and high forehead; the high cheek bones told of 
 his Indian ancestry. Paulo was like his father in looks 
 and appearance, but the expression of his face was a re- 
 flection of his mother. He had her gentle and kind 
 manner, ever thoughtful of others. As he arose to go 
 his father said : " Here is a letter from Havana. Your 
 cousin Cobre has gone to Madrid for the winter." 
 
 He kissed his mother, and bidding his father " good 
 night," took his departure. 
 
 Alberto, with his sisters Flora and Elaine, were in 
 the drawing-room with the children. Paulo at once be- 
 gan putting things in order. They must all be seated 
 until after the distribution of the gifts, then they 
 should have a dance. He ordered the doors thrown 
 open into the music room, and there was the tree beauti- 
 fully lighted. As the gifts were handed him, he called 
 out the name and sent it by one of the maids, who was 
 dressed in yellow and white. His aunts, Thetis and 
 Wauka, were there to assist him. There stood his eldest 
 sister, Mercedes Who, a very dignified girl, then Florita, 
 Burnedita, Seminole, Marie and baby Ola, as she was 
 then called. Then there were the two proteges of his 
 mother, Meno and Wewe Wildflower. Meno was only 
 a year younger than Paulo. 
 
 Pamphilo de Gomora was in Madrid. His sisters, 
 Flora and Elaine, with their brother, Alberto, consti-
 
 Uno Who. ii 
 
 tuted the ehidren of the two families, each to play an 
 important part in the drama of life. 
 
 When it came to the dancing there was a call for 
 Uncle Jake and his violin. To this Paulo consented, 
 he and Alberto dancing with the children until eight 
 o'clock ; then kissing his sisters, he bade them " good 
 night," and they quietly obeyed his instructions to re- 
 tire. Paulo then accompanied Alberto and his sisters 
 to " Sunnyside." They found Don Pamphilo de Go- 
 mora in the library. He looked up from the letter he 
 was reading and said : " Paulo, your cousin Cobre is 
 going to spend the holidays with my son at his grand- 
 father's." 
 
 Paulo replied : " My mother to-day received a letter 
 from her sister saying Cobre had gone to Madrid for 
 the winter." 
 
 Don Pamphilo de Gomora was the second son of the 
 Marquis of Floraine. He had been an officer in the 
 Spanish navy at the time of the Indian wars in Florida. 
 Osceola Who had attended a military school in Spain, 
 and while there he met Don Pamphilo, and it was in a 
 measure due to his influence that he resigned his com- 
 mission in the navy and settled in Florida. His wife, 
 a very beautiful woman, was the daughter of Lord 
 Oughton, of England. 
 
 Alberto told his father that, with his permission, 
 they would be driven out to Col. Sebastian's. His son, 
 who was spending his holiday vacation at home, was 
 entertaining his friends. They did not return until
 
 12 Uno Who. 
 
 the dawn of day, and were then informed that Paulo 
 had a seventh sister, born just after the convent clock 
 had struck the hour of midnight, and that a little girl 
 born at the same time was a welcome guest at " Sunny- 
 side." 
 
 As Osceola Who on that Christmas morning stepped 
 upon the piazza to hail the new-born day, he suddenly 
 took off his hat, his arms dropped by his side, and he 
 stood like one in the presence of the Great Spirit as he 
 gazed upon the glorious orb just rising from the sea. 
 He was aroused from his reverie by the tramping of 
 horses, and he immediately went down to the yard. In 
 silence he threw himself into the saddle, and, accom- 
 panied by his attendant, he rode several miles into the 
 country. 
 
 They stopped at a plantation house. At one side, in 
 a grove, was a wigwam; to that Osceola directed his 
 steps. It had been there since the days of the oldest in- 
 habitants; it had been repaired from time to time, but 
 no money could induce the owner to live in the planta- 
 tion house. He wished to be buried there, and the wig- 
 wam to remain a monument to old " You-Know-Who." 
 He knew his wishes would be conscientiously carried 
 out by his great-grandson, Osceola, the heir to his vast 
 estates. Osceola, his father, his grandfather, his great- 
 grandfather, and others before him had been seventh 
 sons, and now there was a seventh daughter. 
 
 When Osceola entered the wigwam he found the 
 three old men sitting in silence.
 
 Uno Who. 13 
 
 His father said : " The spell is upon him. We have 
 not slept during the night." 
 
 The old Indian sat with bowed head, his hands rest- 
 ing upon the arms of an old wicker chair. Osceola sat 
 down beside him, and laying his hand on his, said: 
 " Grandfather, it is a girl." 
 
 The old oracle nodded his head in acquiescence as he 
 said : " There will be no more sevenths born to our 
 tribe. She will carry the name of You-Know-Who to 
 her grave. She will be very much of an Indian; will 
 love freedom and the Great Spirit. She will be the de- 
 fender of many." 
 
 He was silent for a few moments, then pitifully 
 added : " Poor little pale-face, she will have a sad life 
 with pale-face man, and will be in great danger from a 
 woman of our tribe, but You-Know-Who will save her 
 and the pride of the de Gomora family." 
 
 Osceola made a written statement of what his grand- 
 father said, for he believed in the old oracle. His 
 father and his sisters kept a copy, for this was a child 
 of promise. It was food for talk among those who 
 came to call on the old oracle that Christmas day, and 
 to bring him some token of affection. There were now 
 living five generations of the Who family four seventh 
 sons and a seventh daughter, and the old man straight- 
 ened himself up as he said : " I do not feel a day older 
 than when Osceola was born." 
 
 He then seated himself in the old wicker chair from 
 which he had arisen to show off his strength. After a
 
 14 Uno Who. 
 
 moment's silence, he said : " Osceola, I am living over 
 my young days. They tell me it is second childhood. 
 There was great rejoicing when you were born, but it 
 was a great disappointment when Thetis came. It was 
 looked upon as a bad omen to have the firstborn a girl. 
 The poor little pappoose was heartbroken when your 
 father would not look at her; but when all the rest 
 were boys she found great favor in his eyes. Your 
 grandmother was very good to pappoosie, as she called 
 her. She was but a child when your father brought her 
 to live among the Indians, hardly seventeen when 
 Thetis was born. She cried all the time, and it made 
 your father cross. Indians do not like crying women. 
 I think it was remorse that made him so cross, for he 
 was blamed by his brother, the Chief, and all our tribe. 
 Your father's youngest sister was living in Cuba with 
 her brother. We sent for her to come here, and comfort 
 pappoosie, fearing she would die. She would take her 
 pappoose and sit in the grove singing the most mourn- 
 ful songs. I thought sometimes the birds stopped sing- 
 ing to listen. She was happy with her children, and 
 taught them everything. I sent to Havana for books. 
 She could talk very well in our language, but they 
 talked mostly in Spanish, sometimes in English. She 
 often asked your father to take her to Georgia, where 
 she could see some English people, but he would not. 
 I asked her to write for me the words she used to sing 
 so much. They are yours now." 
 
 He took from his pocket-book a piece of thin skin,
 
 Uno Who. 15 
 
 and carefully laid between its folds was a paper on 
 which was written in the Seminole language : 
 
 What are nature's charms combined 
 
 To one whose weary breast 
 Can neither peace or comfort find, 
 
 Or friend whereon to rest. 
 
 Alas ! My daily sacrifice is still to weep and pray, 
 
 For never, never, while I live 
 Will my heart's anguish cease. 
 
 O ! Friendly death, thy mandate give, 
 And let me be at rest." 
 
 Osceola then asked: "Was there any stain on my 
 mother's name ? " 
 
 " No," was the decided answer. " She was too pure 
 and good for this world." 
 
 He then asked : " Who was she ? " 
 
 " Osceola, I cannot tell you. I do know that none 
 of the tribe were to blame for what your father did. 
 They were married by a priest. The certificate is in 
 Cuba for safe keeping. The Chief had them married 
 again by the forms of our tribe, setting at rest any 
 doubts in the minds of our people. I often see her in 
 the clouds, and I know the day is not far distant when 
 I will join her in the Happy Hunting Grounds. Your 
 brother was killed when so young he had not married, 
 and you are the first seventh son to become chief of 
 our tribe, taking the name Osceola, and some day truth 
 that has been crushed to earth will throw off the dust
 
 16 Uno Who. 
 
 of ages and honor the descendants of old You-Know- 
 Who." 
 
 Osceola was greatly impressed by what his grand- 
 father had told him. He had never known him to talk 
 so long and freely before. 
 
 Upon his arrival home he found Don Pamphilo had 
 been there. He left a note saying : " What unspeak- 
 able rejoicing and congratulations will there be be- 
 tween us." 
 
 In his study hi made a memorandum of the conver- 
 sation with his grandfather, and after making a hasty 
 call of congratulation at " Sunnyside," he prepared to 
 spend the remainder of the eventful day with his 
 family. 
 
 Lord Oughton, with his wife and daughter, Lady 
 Margaret, had spent the winter with their daughter at 
 Sunnyside. Lady Margaret felt highly honored when 
 asked to bestow a portion of her name upon the last 
 arrival. The little Garita was baptized in the Episco- 
 pal church, Uno in the Catholic church. Don Pam- 
 philo and his sons were Catholics, but in the family it 
 was one God, one Faith, one Baptism. 
 
 Osceola had some of the superstitions of his tribe, 
 for which Don Pamphilo had upon several occasions 
 caused him to feel he had a contempt. He, therefore, 
 did not tell him of the prophecy in regard to the chil- 
 dren until Don Pamphilo asked him about it. 
 
 Dona and Lady Margaret, having heard something 
 about the prophecy, would like to know particulars.
 
 Uno Who. 17 
 
 He gave it to them in writing, saying : " I know your 
 unbelief, and did not consider it worth while to trouble 
 you. Everything my grandfather has told you has 
 come true, and I believe this will, although I think the 
 day of change has come." 
 i " Osceola, you are a fatalist." 
 
 "Yes, Pamphilo, I believe in cruel and relentless 
 fate. We can smooth the way and help our friends to 
 bear the inevitable until they reach the fatal place of 
 rest foretold." 
 
 " Osceola, neither you nor your father nor grand- 
 father seemed to have this gift of prophesying, and you 
 are seventh sons." 
 
 " Pamphilo, there are a sort of men whose visages do 
 cream and mantle like a standing pond. When he is 
 gone the mantle may fall more heavily upon the others. 
 Now he absorbs them. As for myself, I am out in the 
 world, and do not give thought to affairs of this nature 
 until they are forced upon me, as they are to us all at 
 times; fears are oft prophetic of events." 
 
 " Osceola, it is not a healthy state of mind for one to 
 dwell upon an inevitable necessity." 
 
 "I quite agree with you, Pamphilo, but a healthy 
 brain and body will find too much to think about and 
 do, in this beautiful world, to become morbid on any 
 subject that is not forced upon them. Still great mon- 
 archies have risen from barbarism and fallen again to 
 ruin. You think I still adhere to some of the super- 
 stitions of my race. Find me a man or woman that has
 
 i8 Uno Who. 
 
 not one superstitious notion. We have had a conversa- 
 tion on this subject before, and I have made a study of 
 these peculiarities in people, and I can assure you t 
 have some very funny things to relate. There is a dig- 
 nity about the superstitions of an Indian. The white 
 man's are so absurd that he often tries to conceal 
 them." 
 
 Osceola had just finished telling Don Pamphilo what 
 he had learned from his grandfather in regard to his 
 mother, when Dona and Lady Margaret entered the 
 room. They had taken the little Garita to visit the old 
 oracle, and had just returned. After telling Osceola 
 of the pleasant call they had, Lady Margaret talked 
 with Don Pamphilo in regard to their taking Flora to 
 England. She wished to have her educated there. 
 
 " Margaret, I have every confidence in your judg- 
 ment. Your life has been, devoted to your family and 
 their interests, but we would be very lonely without 
 Flora." 
 
 " Pamphilo, I have not forgotten how we felt when 
 you brought my sister to this far away home to which 
 she has become so attached." 
 
 " Margaret, I fear it would result in your keeping 
 Flora, as you have the reputation of being a match- 
 maker." 
 
 " I can assure you, Pamphilo, it would be very grati- 
 fying to have my sister's children occupying the posi- 
 tions in England to which their birth entitles them, and 
 I know it would be no less gratifying to you who think
 
 Uno Who. 19 
 
 so much of your ancestry. It is time we were giving 
 thought to this subject," and Lady Margaret drew her 
 mantle about her with the air of one who felt her sis- 
 ter's family were out of their sphere in life. 
 
 " Osceola," said Dona, " we called at ' The Shadows/ 
 and Senora tells me you are going to send Mercedes 
 and Florita to Madrid, and have them educated in the 
 convent." 
 
 " Dona, it is not my choice. I would prefer sending 
 them to England. Mercedes is a very thoughtful girl, 
 cares little or nothing for society, and I fear she will 
 become a nun." 
 
 Don Pamphilo's large brown eyes were fixed in won- 
 der upon him as he said : " Osceola, you are prognos- 
 ticating, but it is a difficult problem to solve what is 
 best for your children. Alberto wishes to enter college 
 at the North, as Paulo is going, too; just think how 
 desolate our fireside will le next winter." 
 
 Dona had little to say. Her calm, sweet face was 
 never disturbed. She had no choice ; it was always just 
 as Pamphilo said. Her soft, brown hair, blue eyes, 
 pink and white complexion were in strong contrast to 
 her distinguished looking husband. 
 
 Lord Oughton left them in April, and June found 
 the two families at their cottages in Saratoga, where 
 they were joined by Senora Who's sister and family of 
 Havana. In the fall the boys went to college. The 
 families, as was their custom, remained at the North 
 until the October days were drawing to a close, then
 
 20 Uno Who. 
 
 went to one of the plantations for a month, Dona and 
 Senora getting home in time for the Christmas work of 
 their respective churches. Dona played what was called 
 an organ in the schoolhouse where service was held 
 when she first went there, but it was not long before a 
 clergyman and money were sent from England for a 
 church. When Senora came there a bride she was very 
 much interested in the poor Indian girls and women 
 who had been left destitute by the husbands and fathers 
 being killed in the wars. Among them was the mother 
 of Meno and Wewe. Her husband and father were full 
 blood Indians of rank. She was called Wildflower. 
 When her husband was called by that name he said: 
 " Me-no-wildflower." In that way the name " Meno " 
 was suggested to Senora, and "Wewe" was mother's 
 baby. 
 
 Their mother died, leaving them to Senora, and she 
 took them into her family. They grew up with a feel- 
 ing that they were a little better than other Indians. 
 With the assistance of the priest, Padre Narcisso, she 
 found homes for many of these poor girls. Mercedes' 
 nurse, Sitka, was an Indian girl, and to her she gave 
 the care of the baby " Uno." At Christmas there were 
 birthday parties at " Sunnyside " and " The Shadows." 
 The boys were home on their vacation. Col. Sebastian's 
 daughter, who lived in Madrid, was home on a visit, 
 and he was made happy by the presence of his little 
 granddaughter, Isla Manrique. 
 
 In the spring the old oracle died. He was buried
 
 Uno Who. 21 
 
 with all the pomp and ceremony of his tribe, after 
 which the father and grandfather of Osceola went to 
 Cuba to live with his uncle. 
 
 Osceola and Senora joined Col. Sebastian's daughter 
 on her return to Madrid. Thetis, whose husband and 
 sons were killed in the wars, went to " The Shadows " 
 to live during their absence. This woman was a thor- 
 oughbred Indian. If there was any other blood in her 
 veins she did not show it. She was tall and straight, her 
 black hair was combed smooth down on her face, not 
 anything like a curl was allowed, for it looked like the 
 negro, and tied so tight at the back it looked as if her 
 eyebrows were drawn by the strain, giving deep furrows 
 running crosswise of her forehead. In the coil at the 
 back was a high top comb. She had snapping black 
 eyes, a nice nose, and beautiful teeth which were im- 
 prisoned by the compressed lips ; a more severe type of 
 woman it would be difficult to find. The only one she 
 showed any affection for was her sister Wauka, who was 
 a sad, sweet-faced woman with large brown eyes and a 
 mouth the expression of which was of one whose hopes 
 are buried. She lived at the plantation, and took care 
 of a worthless, dissipated husband that even Spanish 
 bullets had failed to make any impression upon, and 
 now that the old men had gone, he had brought his 
 mother there to live. During Thetis' absence they had 
 things their own way, so Wauka would come to " The 
 Shadows" and let Thetis go to the plantation and 
 straighten out their affairs. The old woman would
 
 22 Uno Who. 
 
 take her pipe and go out under the trees. There, 
 wrapped in her blanket, she would every now and then 
 look out of the corner of her eye, to see what the Gen- 
 eral (as she called Thetis) was doing. Wauka did the 
 most beautiful bead work and all kinds of nice needle 
 work, which delighted the hearts of Dona and Senora. 
 She was a welcome guest among her many friends. 
 Paulo remained at home with his sisters, and as his 
 father and mother did not return until Christmas, and 
 he and Alberto had spent their vacation in travel at the 
 North, he did not see the family until summer at Sara- 
 toga; he then discovered that his mother was not well. 
 She had taken a severe cold on the return voyage, from 
 which she had not recovered. When he went home for 
 the holidays he found his mother no better. 
 
 Pamphilo and Cobre had returned from abroad, and 
 she joined their party on a visit to her sister in Havana, 
 where she remained several weeks. Upon her return 
 home she entered upon her lenten work with something 
 of her old-time vigor. N"ow that Meno and Wewe were 
 out of school, she arranged for them to assist her. 
 Meno must look after the children in their studies. 
 Wewe, who was quite proficient in music, must assist 
 them. She was devoted to Seminole, and as she wag 
 quite an artist with her needle, she even looked after 
 her clothes. 
 
 Senora had never taken her proteges to Saratoga; 
 she now decided to do so, that the children might con- 
 tinue their studies. Burnedita played the harp, and
 
 Uno Who. 23 
 
 she wished her to take instructions while at the North. 
 Thus she continually planned for her children; no 
 word of complaint escaped her, but she was restless. 
 Osceola had consulted the best physicians and all ad- 
 vised change. 
 
 Don Pamphilo and family spent the summer in Eng- 
 land at the ancestral home of Lord Oughton, going to 
 Spain in the fall to visit his father, the Marquis of 
 Floraine, and with him going to Seville in the winter. 
 
 Upon their return in the spring, they found Senora 
 Who had not improved in health. Their son, Pam- 
 philo, had been devoting himself to an English lady in 
 Georgia while looking after his father's estates. In 
 the summer Senora did not wish to leave her home, but 
 the physicians said she must have change, so she was 
 taken to Saratoga. Paulo was not prepared for the 
 great change in his mother. He went to Dona, asking 
 her if she thought his mother would die. He was quite 
 overcome when she told him consumption had claimed 
 her as a victim. 
 
 His mother noticed the change in his looks and de- 
 meanor, and said as she put her hand in his : " Paulo, 
 my son, you must be brave; your father will need your 
 support in this trying ordeal. I know you desire to go 
 to Spain and enter the army when you leave college." 
 
 She could say no more. After a few moments' si- 
 lence, Paulo said : " Mother, I will never leave you 
 nor my father and sisters while they need me." 
 
 During the winter, though confined to her room,
 
 24 Uno Who. 
 
 Senora continued to take an interest in her family af- 
 fairs. Meno was her companion. After giving in- 
 structions to Ola and the little Uno, in her presence, 
 that she might hear their childish talk and questions, 
 she asked Meno to talk to them sometimes of their 
 mother when she had gone. She often had Burnedita's 
 harp brought in that she might listen to the sweet 
 voices of the children as they accompanied her, laugh- 
 ing at Ola, whom she called her prodigy in music, and 
 Marie her sister of charity ; Seminole was her sunbeam 
 in "The Shadows." She was pleased when she re- 
 ceived a letter from Mercedes that she was going to be 
 a nun, and that Florita was coming home. To Aunt 
 Thetis' heart of adamant she had found the key, and 
 there were unclaimed treasures which she had no diffi- 
 culty in taking possession of. Thetis thought it showed 
 a lack of confidence in her when told that Senora had 
 left her little Uno to the care of Dona. Senora told 
 her it was Don Pamphilo's request, and Osceola had 
 given his consent that Uno and Garita be brought up 
 together. Thetis said, with a toss of her head, that 
 she had brought up one family, and she thought she 
 could another, to which Senora replied : " Yes, Thetis, 
 my husband shows his good training." 
 
 Dona was devoted to her friend, and when informed 
 by Lady Margaret of the engagement of Flora, she re- 
 plied : " There could be no arrangements for a wed- 
 ding while Senora was so ill." 
 
 The spring days with their enervating influence
 
 Uno Who. 25 
 
 made a great change in Senora. She could no longer 
 have little Uno kneel beside her bed to say her prayers 
 and receive her good-night kiss, but at brother Paulo's 
 knee, and in her own room, where he soothed the petted 
 child into f orgetf ulness of her first grief. His devotion 
 to his mother and his loving kindness in trying to sus- 
 tain his father was never forgotten by his many friends. 
 
 When all was over, Don Pamphilo and his family 
 went to England. It was his son's wedding-trip. 
 There was a brilliant wedding for Flora in the ances- 
 tral home of her grandfather. Lady Margaret's pride 
 and ambition had been gratified. Osceola had taken 
 his family to Saratoga. Florita, though young, proved 
 herself equal to managing her father's household with- 
 out the assistance of Meno, which was gratifying to 
 him. His wife's sister and husband, Senor de Filipe, 
 were at their cottage, but Osceola was restless; he 
 must find work, and they went to their Southern home 
 earlier than had been their custom. They found Don 
 Pamphilo had returned, leaving Alberto and Elaine in 
 Spain. 
 
 It was Lady Margaret's request that Osceola would 
 send Seminole to her; to this he readily assented, as 
 she, of all his children, most needed discipline. She 
 had become so accustomed to Wewe's doing for her that 
 she treated her as if she were a maid, which highly of- 
 fended Wewe's dignity, and their friendship was at an 
 end. 
 
 Seminole was not old enough to realize what she had
 
 26 Uno Who. 
 
 done, being, like most really amiable people, very self- 
 ish. Careless was stamped upon everything she owned; 
 her manner, her whole make-up, bore the stamp, and 
 now she would not have Wewe try to obliterate it. Her 
 Indian blood was up, and she never forgave Seminole. 
 Meno had always shown an envious and jealous spirit 
 towards Elaine, who treated her with a great deal of 
 dignity, and was always making excuses for Seminole's 
 shortcomings. Now that she was going to England to 
 be with Elaine, she was very happy, much to Meno's 
 disgust, and she foolishly remarked : " Oh, the de 
 Gomoras are perfection with this family." This re- 
 mark was not forgotten in after years by Seminole. 
 
 Dona had taken Uno to her home, and Meno, as 
 governess to her and Garita, went there to live. In the 
 spring Florita was married, and went to Madrid, taking 
 with her Burnedita, who went to the convent. Semi- 
 nole had joined Elaine in England. There were now 
 only two children left, Marie and Ola, with Wewe as 
 their governess. Thetis was now a fixture at "The 
 Shadows." Paulo prevailed upon his father to go 
 abroad, as Dona said she would be a mother to the 
 children, but she hoped Paulo would return and live at 
 home. To this he replied : " That can never be ; hence- 
 forth I shall be a wanderer. I will spend a year in 
 travel with my father, then enter the army, but Dona, 
 your boy, as you have often called me, will never give 
 you cause to blush at his name." 
 
 Uno was heartbroken when told that her father and
 
 Uno Who. 27 
 
 brother were going away. Heaven was bad enough to 
 take a little girl's mother, but Spain was worse. Meno 
 could not conceal her feelings at Paulo's departure. 
 By him, the tall, handsome man, she was no longer 
 treated like a sister; they had outgrown that period of 
 their lives, and when he took Uno and Garita in his 
 arms and kissed them good-by, saying : " Meno, take 
 good care of my little sister, for my sake," he did not 
 think how she would dwell upon those parting words, 
 "for my sake." They were the seeds of hope which 
 she nourished with fond care. In her narrow sphere of 
 life, she could not realize how quickly she and the idle 
 remark had passed out of his mind. 
 
 The day after they left, Dona took Garita and TJno 
 to see Wauka ; her husband had been out hunting, and 
 had called at the wigwams scattered about the coun- 
 try, and the squaws had come with their pappooses to 
 have a feast of game, smoking and taking snuff with 
 his mother, much to Wauka's disgust. The little pap- 
 pooses, strapped to a board, were standing up by the 
 house or anything they could lean the board against, 
 picking at the bone that had been given them. These 
 babies always amused the children, so Dona let them 
 get out of the carriage and go with Meno to look at 
 them. The squaws were delighted to see Meno, as 
 some of them remembered her mother, and she could 
 talk in their language. Dona had given Meno her 
 purse, telling her to distribute its contents among them. 
 They wanted to go to the carriage door and see Dona,
 
 28 Uno Who. 
 
 but Meno told them they must be satisfied with having 
 seen the children of old You-Know-Who's prophecy. 
 They blessed them by clasping their hands and looking 
 up to the Great Spirit. Garita was a very mild and 
 quiet child, while Uno was self-willed and mischievous, 
 often causing Dona anxiety. She did not wish to study, 
 but would improve every opportunity to get away from 
 Sitka, often taking Garita with her, thus annoying the 
 nurse, Nannette, who was a slave, and had no use for 
 the poor Indian. 
 
 It was Saint Patrick's day; the music was exciting, 
 and in the passing of the procession, Garita and Uno 
 escaped from their nurses. They were found at the 
 negro quarters having a fine time. Some boys had 
 stuffed a pair of pants and coat with straw, and put 
 them together; a hat on the head, a stick in the hand, 
 a big green sash made of leaves, and placed their Saint 
 Patrick on the platform, from which the negroes de- 
 livered their speeches. They were hurrahing in fine 
 style, which brought a crowd of angry Spaniards. 
 Some one went to the house for Don Pamphilo. He 
 was not at home, but Dona mounted a horse that stood 
 in the yard and went flying to the rescue. She was a 
 beautiful sight; her dress was white and her hair fly- 
 ing in the breeze; one hand on the bridle, with the 
 other she was waving to the crowd. She mounted the 
 steps and threw Saint Patrick to the ground, amid the 
 wild cheers of the excited crowd. She addressed them 
 in Spanish, telling how it was the foolishness of chil-
 
 Uno Who. 29 
 
 dren, and begging them to be quiet. Two of the men 
 went on the platform and shook hands with her, and 
 then she rode away, amid wild cheers for Dona Marie. 
 
 Padre Xarcisso said it was well that Don Pamphilo 
 was not at home, for he doubted his being able to quiet 
 them as well. Dona saw the children looking at Saint 
 Patrick and clapping their hands. Garita told her 
 mother she thought they were old enough to take care 
 of themselves. When questioned, Uno said they had a 
 lovely time, but she would not go next Saint Patrick's 
 day. Dona kissed them as she said they had been 
 naughty girls, but she was thankful they were not 
 trampled on. 
 
 Another day they felt they were old enough to dis- 
 tribute tracts among the poor, and helped themselves 
 from a pile that had been left at the house. They 
 could read quite well. While the nurses were prepar- 
 ing to take them out they escaped, took a back street, 
 and were soon near the water where a good many poor 
 people lived. They could both speak Spanish and 
 English, and attracted a good deal of attention, as 
 many knew who they were, and thanked them for their 
 tracts. Finally they sat down on a doorstep to talk 
 with a pretty child. The neighbors called to them to 
 come away, for they had smallpox there. Uno said they 
 had no more tracts, and kept on talking. They saw 
 the nurses coming all out of breath, as they had been 
 told by the neighbors of the smallpox case. Dona was 
 very much excited, and sent for their physician, and
 
 30 Uno Who. 
 
 precautions were taken to prevent the disease. They 
 were severely lectured this time, Garita saying she 
 would never distribute tracts again. Uno said: "I 
 will, for I am going to be a missionary, work for the 
 Master, who says, ' Go into all the world and preach the 
 gospel,' but I will never worry Dona again," and she 
 kept her word.
 
 Uno Who. 31 
 
 -. , CHAPTER II. 
 
 IN THE QUICK FORGE AXD WORKHOUSE OF THOUGHT. 
 
 THE next year Don Pamphilo took his family abroad. 
 Osceola, with Paulo and Alberto, were still wanderers, 
 and they did not see them. After three years Osceola 
 and Alberto returned with Flora and her two children. 
 There were great preparations for their reception; the 
 beautiful grounds were made more beautiful ; the finest 
 horses were brought from the plantations; the houses 
 were thronged with visitors who, in true Southern 
 style, showed their hospitality and good feeling. Aunt 
 Thetis was on the warpath. " I can do more work in a 
 day than these shiftless negroes can in a week; they do 
 wear my patience threadbare," and she made the bunch 
 of keys that hung over her spotless white apron rattle 
 as she went from room to room. She would now wear 
 her gold-bowed spectacles every day, and had some 
 dainty little caps made, asking Wewe if they were be- 
 coming. " It is a poor house that cannot afford one 
 lady/' Wewe pretended not to see the servants showing 
 the whites of their eyes at this remark. She had 
 learned to take Meno's advice : " Give thy thoughts no 
 tongue." 
 
 Uno told her father she felt as though she had been
 
 32 Uno Who. 
 
 in dreamland during his absence, and had suddenly 
 awakened to find herself a woman. Osceola was greatly 
 interested in the sage remarks of this child. 
 
 A year soon passes in a large family. They seem to 
 have only gotten ready for one season before another is 
 upon them. Mary Dee, whom Dona had brought from 
 England, was no longer young, and Dona called upon 
 Meno to assist her in many ways. The children would, 
 in another year, be taken to England, then Meno could 
 devote herself to the family, and look after Dona's 
 charities, so without saying anything, and with a great 
 deal of tact, she worked Meno into Mary Dee's place 
 without offending her dignity, and she would still have 
 a home at " Sunnyside." The children were very much 
 attached to Meno. She seemed woven into their young 
 lives, and to her it was like parting with her other self. 
 She smiled sadly when Uno told her they would live 
 together upon her return from school, and " I will 
 take you to Spain, and that will please my mother in 
 her far away home called Heaven." 
 
 She quietly listened to Uno, then putting her arm 
 about her, said : " My dear child, you cannot imagine 
 how I will miss you." 
 
 Uno was surprised to see tears in the eyes of that 
 cold, dignified woman; hers seemed like a heart whose 
 hopes are buried, and when Uno said : " What shall I 
 tell Paulo for you, and will you not send him a kiss ? " 
 
 "Hush, hush, my dear, not for the world will you 
 say that to him."
 
 Uno Who. 33 
 
 " Why, Meno, do you not love my brother ? " 
 
 Child as she was, she could not but observe the deep 
 flush that crimsoned her cheeks, and thinking her of- 
 fended, she said no more. 
 
 Dona's mother, who had been sick a long time, died 
 eoon after their arrival in England, and, at their urg- 
 ent request, she spent a year with her aged father and 
 Lady Margaret. 
 
 Don Pamphilo then went to Spain that Elaine might 
 visit with his relatives. She was very like her father 
 in looks and manner, tall and graceful, a lovely com- 
 plexion, black hair and an abundance of it. She and 
 Garita had their father's large brown eyes. There was 
 no end of matchmaking, but her mother soon found 
 she was not heartwhole or fancy free, and that Lord 
 Ayliffe was Lady Margaret's choice among all her ad- 
 mirers. 
 
 Garita and Uno went to Lord Oughton's Friday 
 afternoons and remained until Monday. It was a 
 lovely April day, near the close of the month, and they 
 had been out driving. The evening was cool, and the 
 family had gathered in the large library ; the andirons 
 stood out like sentinels guarding the wood fire as it 
 snapped and crackled in the open fireplace. At one side 
 sat Lord Oughton in a large arm-chair. He was very 
 feeble. His hand looked pale and thin as he, at inter- 
 vals, leaned over to stroke a large cat that lay on a 
 cushion at his feet. As Dona sat down beside him, 
 laying her hand on the arm of his chair, she said: 
 3
 
 34 Uno Who. 
 
 " Father, this room seems like home ; I tried to have 
 our own library as near like it as possible, and I think 
 I have succeeded." 
 
 " My child, I was just wondering how many years it 
 is since we we were seated in this room talking of your 
 going to America; I well remember that conversation. 
 It was the first we thought Don Pamphilo serious in 
 wishing to take you there. During this visit I have 
 had time to recall the past; where so much is crowded 
 into a little time, one does not get an opportunity to 
 give expression to his thoughts, if he have any." He 
 then suddenly said, as if it had just come to his mind : 
 "Pamphilo, what about that old Indian? Did he not 
 tell you you were a brave and would lay down your 
 arms, and settle in a new country ? " 
 
 " Lord Oughton, that is just what he said, and Dona 
 laughed with tears in her eyes when old You-Know- 
 Who told her she would not go back to England to 
 live. My wife is very modest; she has never told how 
 she became the wonder and admiration of the dark- 
 eyed race. To them she was pale as a wordless grief, 
 and in their kindness was mingled a sort of pity. I 
 have often thought of Margaret's exclamation, ' Just 
 think of Mary going to church in a schoolhouse.' " 
 
 " We have a beautiful church now," said Dona, " but 
 I do not think I ever had anything give me more real 
 pleasure than the money for that little church." 
 
 Uno .was very much interested at the mention of her 
 grandfather's name; she and Garita had heard the
 
 Uno Who. 35 
 
 story of the prophecy from Nannette, who was the daugh- 
 ter of Dona's maid, and she knew the family history. 
 The conversation was interrupted when Lord Ayliffe 
 was announced, and the girls retired to a remote part 
 of the room to discuss Elaine's approaching marriage, 
 which had been postponed by the sudden death of the 
 aged Marquis of Floraine. Garita was her only brides- 
 maid. The pretty child had developed into a very 
 beautiful young woman; she was tall and very slight, 
 had her mother's pink and white complexion, soft wavy 
 hair with a tinge of gold, and her father's large brown 
 eyes, those dreamy, liquid eyes that seem ever looking 
 for something beyond. The bride was beautiful, but 
 Garita's beauty seemed for the first time to dawn upon 
 their many friends. As a schoolgirl, little attention 
 had been paid to her; they knew she had a fine voice, 
 which was being carefully cultivated, and a talent 
 which brought her into prominence in the school was 
 her reading and reciting. Uno had the greatest ad- 
 miration for her, watching over her with jealous care. 
 
 Don and Dona returned to their home in Florida, ac- 
 companied by his sister and her son, Captain Fran- 
 cisco de Aldana, who would spend the winter with 
 them. They found Col. Sebastian and wife prostrated 
 with grief; their son and daughter, with her husband 
 and child, were on a steamer that had been lost at sea. 
 In a most miraculous way the little girl had been saved, 
 and was at her grandfather's. 
 
 Osceola had taken Wewc to Havana, where she was
 
 36 Uno Who. 
 
 employed as governess to the young children of his 
 wife's sister; she would not remain in the house where 
 Seminole was to be mistress. Meno and Seminole be- 
 came fast friends ; with a great deal of tact she helped 
 Thetis to overlook, what she called, Seminole's airs, 
 and when she was not of enough consequence to suit 
 her dignity at " Sunnyside," she artfully managed to 
 have Aunt Thetis sent to Cuba, and she became Semi- 
 nole's companion and friend. The sunbeam pene- 
 trated "The Shadows," and they passed a very gay 
 winter, Captain de Aldana contributing to their pleas- 
 ure. There were two of Osceola's children whom he 
 felt had been neglected, Marie and Ola. The former 
 was constantly at the convent, painting and studying; 
 the latter would not go there, for they lectured her. 
 She had a fine voice, and she informed them she would 
 be an opera singer, that she was going on the stage, 
 and she was always dressing and acting by herself, 
 much to the disgust of the family. Osceola sent them 
 North to pursue their studies, trusting to Marie's re- 
 straining influence over Ola. 
 
 In the spring Lord Oughton had his son come to 
 the ancestral home to live. He was a widower with 
 two children. Philip Oughton was a distinguished- 
 looking man, and very popular, so the house once more 
 resumed something of its old-time hospitality. His 
 sister, Elsbeth, was a very plain, unassuming girl, 
 with a most charming manner. This was the last year 
 of school for Garita and Uno, and Elsbeth Oughton
 
 Uno Who. 37 
 
 was anticipating the pleasure of introducing her beau- 
 tiful cousin in society. Uno was in one sense the 
 adopted child of their sister, but what would be her 
 position in this family where ancestry was everything? 
 How would they feel about introducing an Indian 
 girl, as she was in every feature, was a question with 
 Uno. She was tall, had a fine figure and carried her- 
 self in a royal manner. She had a full black eye and 
 straight, black hair; her redeeming features being her 
 mouth and lips, and she well knew how to show off her 
 beautiful teeth. She seemed always preparing for 
 coming events. In a most dignified manner, she told 
 Lady Margaret that now the school days were over, she 
 would go to Spain and remain with her sister until 
 time for her to return to her father. Lady Margaret 
 said : " Uno, I understand your feelings perfectly, but 
 you are my guest, and I do not wish you to leave me." 
 
 Uno knew there was no deception in that woman; 
 the family's position in life had placed them where it 
 was not necessary to cultivate those traits of character, 
 and she felt herself a fortunate girl to have the in- 
 fluence of such people thrown about her, and they were 
 unconsciously preparing her for her life's work. She 
 would prove herself worthy of their friendship. 
 
 It was a few days before Christmas, and a cold, blus- 
 tering storm made Lady Margaret's morning room 
 look very inviting. She said : " Come, girls, this is a 
 good day to work; it would be very urgent business 
 that would take any one out in this storm, and we are 
 
 449015
 
 38 Uno Who. 
 
 not in danger of being interrupted. We will first read 
 our letters, then Uno can tell us about Seminole's 
 wedding." 
 
 They worked and talked, Lady Margaret wishing to 
 know who the family was into which Seminole had 
 married. When told that his father was a captain in 
 the Spanish navy and a friend of Don Pamphilo's and 
 that some of his family were titled people, she was 
 satisfied. 
 
 Garita said : " Aunt Margaret, where did my father 
 first meet my mother ? " 
 
 " In Seville," was her reply. " My mother was quite 
 delicate, and we often spent our winters there. The 
 Marquis of Floraine, who was at his villa, was an old 
 friend of my father. You will never know how dread- 
 fully we felt when your father took that beautiful 
 woman to live among Indians. It was only after visit- 
 ing her that we became reconciled." 
 
 The winter passed very quickly, and the spring 
 brought Don and Dona to England. Lady Margaret 
 laughingly told them she had come to an end of her 
 matchmaking, for she had never known three such in- 
 different girls as had graced her home the past year. 
 " I had a most desirable match for Uno, and thought 
 at one time she would accept -him. I still think her 
 undecided. Elsbeth, I think, will be a second Aunt 
 Margaret. In regard to Garita, I have left her to 
 you, but I do hope she won't marry an American; I 
 wish she was going to remain with me."
 
 Uno Who. 39 
 
 Had Lady Margaret told the true state of her mind, 
 which she did not like to admit even to herself, it would 
 have been that, if there was anything in that prophecy, 
 she did not want the responsibility of its being her 
 work. 
 
 They went to Spain and spent the winter with the 
 Marquis of Floraine. Uno improved the opportunity 
 of getting an idea of her life's work. She told her sis- 
 ters there was plenty of work where she could have her 
 freedom and enjoy this beautiful world, and she thought 
 Burnedita was making a mistake if she became a nun, 
 as Mercedes wished her to. 
 
 Then, hearing that Ola was studying for the stage, 
 she said : " Perhaps you have chosen the better part." 
 
 It was a great disappointment that she could not sec 
 her brother, who was away with his regiment. 
 
 Upon their return to Florida, Osceola asked his 
 daughter if she was not going home, to which Dona re- 
 plied : " Yes, with me." 
 
 Uno had not thought of any other home than " Sun- 
 nyside," and would have been unhappy out of the at- 
 mosphere in which she had been living. She went 
 away a child, and had returned with a woman's 
 thoughts and feelings. There was a change in every- 
 thing, animate and inanimate, and she felt like getting 
 some of the people out of the rut in which they had 
 been living, and for the first time she realized the great 
 blessing that had been bestowed upon her. 
 
 At the Saratoga cottage that summer she met, for the
 
 40 Uno Who. 
 
 first time in years, her sisters Ola and Marie ; she had 
 from time to time received graphic accounts of the stage 
 Ola had in the top of the house, of Uncle Jake playing 
 the violin for her to dance, and his daughter being em- 
 ployed as her dressmaker -and maid. To this Thetis 
 objected, but was cautious how she interfered with 
 the high-spirited girl, who was called the wayward 
 child. After acting and singing for her father several 
 times, he discovered she was possessed of more than 
 ordinary talent. He gave Dina to her, and told Uncle 
 Jake to obey her commands. He told Marie she must 
 cease her religious acting in the presence of Ola, and 
 not treat her as if she was afraid of being contami- 
 nated. She was already estranged from the family at 
 " Sunnyside," Dona feeling it her duty to tell her she 
 did not approve of the stage, and she hoped she would 
 turn her talents to better account. It was this state of 
 affairs that made Osceola tell Marie if she loved her 
 sister, as she professed to, she must go with her as her 
 companion and friend. He knew that such talent as 
 she possessed would not bear curbing, and that he must 
 gain the confidence of that proud, unbending spirit. 
 There was a little restraint on the part of Ola on meet- 
 ing Uno, who, she felt, had been prejudiced against 
 her by the de Gomoras, but it soon wore away, and they 
 were fast friends. Garita pronounced her the flower 
 of the Who family. There was a fascination in her 
 dusky beauty and commanding presence. Her friends 
 felt perfect confidence in her ability to accomplish
 
 Uno Who. 41 
 
 whatever she undertook, for firmness and decision were 
 her strong characteristics. 
 
 At the de Gomora cottage was the eldest son of the 
 Marquis of Floraine, Don Alfonso, also Philip Ough- 
 ton and his sister, Elsbeth. Uno had gone to her 
 father's cottage that she might better cultivate a happier 
 state of feeling with her sisters. She was devoted to 
 Ola, and, accompanied by their father, they became 
 noted horseback riders; in this they were often joined 
 by Don Alfonso and Philip Oughton. At a ball given 
 at one of the large hotels, Garita and Ola were dancing 
 with their respective fathers. On the sides were Uno 
 and Don Alfonso, her consin Mercedita and Philip 
 Oughton. Dona sat looking intently at the dancing. 
 Suddenly her eyes became riveted on Garita and Ola; 
 they were the center of attraction to all around them, 
 so beautiful and so unlike; Garita, gentle and cling- 
 ing, her very clothes seemed trying to keep her from 
 contact with others as they fell in soft, beautiful folds 
 about her tall, slight figure. Ola's bristled with inde-^ 
 pendence ; her large, black eyes were ever on the alert ; 
 her proud and imperious manner as she took Garita's 
 hand in the dance caused the anxious look of Dona. 
 
 That evening Don Pamphilo met an old friend from 
 Boston. He was accompanied by his wife and daugh- 
 ter; the former was not well, and they had come to 
 the land of many waters on her account. Dona was 
 pleased to see Mrs. Ayling, with whom she had a slight 
 acquaintance, and before the season was over their
 
 42 Uno Who. 
 
 daughters had become friends. Osceola had given his 
 consent that Ola should go to Paris and study for the 
 stage; she must go to Madrid and get the consent of 
 her brother, which, he told her, she must use a great 
 deal of tact in obtaining; that she would meet with 
 opposition from her sisters; that the Marquis of 
 Floraine was a great admirer of Mercedes, and he had 
 no doubt but that she would be made Mother Superior 
 of the convent in Cuba towards which he was con- 
 tributing so generously, and he did not wish her to 
 carry her feeling of resentment of the de Gomoras 
 into Spain. She might need their influence at some 
 future time. " Don Alfonso is your brother's friend, 
 and as such he has shown you marked attention. Be 
 discreet, and do not talk of the stage to him, or to any 
 one." 
 
 " I think, father," said Marie, " that before we reach 
 Madrid there will be a great deal of acting over a game 
 of hearts." 
 
 " My daughter, we are not titled people, and Ola 
 would lose the game." 
 
 After the party had sailed for England, Uno ac- 
 cepted Dona's invitation to accompany them to Boston, 
 where, at Mrs. Ayling's . urgent request, they would 
 spend the remainder of the lovely October days, which 
 the middle of November found them still enjoying. 
 
 Maud Ayling was a charming girl. She had a 
 brother younger than herself, which they supposed con- 
 stituted the members of the family until, at an evening
 
 Uno Who. 43 
 
 reception, they were introduced to Mr. Ross, an 
 adopted son. He was tall and handsome, with black 
 eyes and hair, and of very pleasing manners. Garita 
 looked very beautiful in her evening dress, and he was 
 devoted to her; from that time on he was always pres- 
 ent. They were receiving so much attention that it 
 was not observed by any one but Uno, to whom the 
 alarm was sounded the first evening. 
 
 Garita could not understand why Uno did not appear 
 pleased when she informed her that Mr. and Mrs. 
 Ayling and Maud were coming South in January, and 
 she wondered why she did not enter into the spirit of 
 the arrangement made to entertain them. Uno wisely 
 kept her own counsel, and was not surprised when they 
 came accompanied by their son Walter and Mr. Ross, 
 who was to assist Mr. Ayling in some investments he 
 wished to make. 
 
 Mercedita de Felipe was visiting her cousin, Semi- 
 nole, at " The Shadows/' When inviting the party of 
 young people to join her upon her return to Havana, 
 she quietly remarked to Mr. Ross that she feared they 
 would be deprived of his company as he was a man of 
 affairs. He quickly replied : " They are not so pressing 
 that I will deprive myself of this great pleasure." 
 
 Maud Ayling, who was very demonstrative upon this 
 occasion, for a Boston girl, said : " Oh ! We could 
 not get along without Mr. Ross/' 
 
 Uno, who had been a quiet listener, then said with 
 a bit of irony in her tone: "Perhaps, Mr. Ross, you
 
 44 Uno Who. 
 
 think this might be a tide in your affairs that will lead 
 on to fortune." 
 
 His eyes flashed as he replied : " It would not be 
 difficult for a hunter to choose even among so many/' 
 and with his sweetest smile he looked at Garita, in 
 whose big brown eyes he only saw that far-away look. 
 
 In Havana, Mr. Ross made a favorable impression. 
 Cobre and Diego thought him a fine fellow, but Alberto 
 looked with jealous eyes upon his attention to his sister. 
 
 The enervating effect of the early spring upon Mrs. 
 Ayling caused them to leave for home sooner than they 
 had intended. Maud gave Garita a pressing invitation 
 to spend a portion of the summer at. their Newport 
 cottage. 
 
 Osceola's letters from Ola were very satisfactory. 
 She and Marie were so happy with Paulo and their 
 sisters that they had not talked business until after 
 the holidays; then Marie wrote that the first scene in 
 the stage war had been acted; it was a feast of reason, 
 Ola being very cautious not to offend her stern, dig- 
 nified brother, the first person she had seen her stand 
 in awe of. In the second scene he held out every in- 
 ducement of society and travel that he could give her; 
 she should see the finest acting the world produced, 
 but he did not wish his sister to take part. It ended 
 in her saying she would consider. In the third scene 
 she asked him to go to Paris with her, and give her the 
 protection his position would command. He did not 
 speak at first, then he said: "My dear sister, I have
 
 Uno Who. 45 
 
 offered you my protection, but you think you will love 
 ft public life better than you do me; you do not know 
 the snares and temptations that surround a young and 
 beautiful woman in gay Paris." 
 
 " But, Paulo, I. will have Marie and our maids, and 
 you will come to see me sometimes." 
 
 He said: " Oh, Ola, why will you be so persistent?" 
 and he left the house looking very troubled. 
 
 She did not see him again for a week. Then the 
 fourth scene was a stormy one. She told him she would 
 go on the stage if every friend she had deserted her, 
 and she would make her family a's proud of her as they 
 were of him and Mercedes. What would her tact and 
 executive ability amount to in the position she occupies 
 if she were not an actress? She knows how to use her 
 beautiful eye, and every motion has been studied as 
 well as my soldier brother has been taught to act his 
 part. " To me, Mercedes' religion seems like mockery," 
 she concluded. 
 
 " Ola, it was our mother's religion." 
 
 "Yes, Paulo, but I worship the Great Spirit of our 
 fatliers; I have a guardian angel that will keep me in 
 all my ways, and it has promised me my brother's pro- 
 tection." 
 
 They were standing, and she proved herself a trage- 
 dienne when she said: "Paulo, Paulo, you cannot re- 
 fuse me," and putting her arm about his neck with 
 her head upon his shoulder, shed real tears. 
 
 He kissed her as he said: "Mv sister has won her
 
 46 Uno Who. 
 
 case, and I will give the dusky beauty my protec- 
 tion." 
 
 "Paulo, that will be my stage name, 'The Dusky 
 Beauty/ " 
 
 Osceola was not surprised when he heard that Paulo 
 had gone to Paris with them and arranged for Ola's 
 instruction; that Marie was going to the convent for 
 her painting lessons that she might devote a portion 
 of her time to the religious life she preferred to the 
 one in which she lived at their apartments, where Ola 
 was learning among other things that knowledge and 
 experience were excellent ingredients for a public char- 
 acter.
 
 Uno Who. 47 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 " A little* bitter mingled in our cup 
 Leaves no relish of the sweet." 
 
 QUIET reigned once more at " Sunnyside " ; the fam- 
 ily had entered upon their church work for the lenten 
 season with more than ordinary interest. Garita's fine 
 voice was in great demand; Uno accompanied her upon 
 the harp when they were called upon to give enter- 
 tainments for charity. They went to Georgia to visit 
 Pamphilo, and all attended the wedding of Alberto, 
 who had settled in Alabama. With Uno there was a 
 marked indifference to everything; she went about the 
 work the Eev. Father gave her to do, but her heart 
 seemed not in it. She often took long horseback rides 
 with her father, to whom she was devotedly attached, 
 and they often stopped at Col. Sebastian's, who was 
 now confined to his house. Uno took a great interest 
 in his daughter, Isla, who seemed very helpless in the 
 management of their home. She had a son about five 
 years of age, a bright and handsome boy. but disagree- 
 able from want of discipline. Her husband pretended 
 to look after their affairs, but it did not take a very 
 close observer to see a great change since the mother's 
 death. Upon one occasion he requested that Uno 
 should come and remain a few days; he wished to talk
 
 48 Uno Who. 
 
 to her about his granddaughter, Isla Manrique, who 
 was with Mercedes at the convent in Madrid. 
 
 There were few attractions now at the beautiful 
 home of Col. Sebastian where the gay and fashionable 
 world had so often been entertained. 
 
 Upon her return Uno told Don Pamphilo that the 
 Colonel was not so well. The next day, at -the close 
 of a lovely afternoon, he drove on the shell road with 
 Dona and Garita to pay the family a visit and leave 
 Uno with them. She found the Colonel suffering from 
 insomnia. They talked until after midnight; he gave 
 her Mercedes' letters to read ; she wrote that his grand- 
 daughter had a decided talent for painting, but that 
 the child was very unhappy in the convent. He told 
 her of his boyhood home in Spain, and many things 
 he wished her to remember to tell the child when she 
 was old enough. 
 
 After Uno had retired to her room, she heard the 
 Colonel walking up and down the piazza for some time ; 
 then the servants closed the blinds and all was quiet. 
 
 She sat thinking over the letters and conversation, 
 when there was a crash down-stairs ; she found that the 
 Colonel in his restless wandering had overturned a 
 lamp; the servants were putting out the fire, and Isla 
 giving her father a lecture. 
 
 Uno upon lying down felt something pricking in 
 her bed; she got up to investigate, and found, upon 
 pressing on the mattress, two or three needles. She 
 again tried to rest her weary head, but when she laid
 
 Uno Who. 49 
 
 it upon the pillow she was again pricked, and again in- 
 vestigating, she found the needles so numerous that she 
 folded some of her garments for a pillow, fearing the 
 point of one might break off while she was asleep; she 
 found the floor strewn with pins. She got in bed once 
 more, and when she put her feet down she started up, 
 thankful that she had not put out the light ; what were 
 those cold, hard things? She was afraid to look. The 
 maid had informed her that Senora thought she had 
 better occupy this room, as the ones over the drawing- 
 room and across the hall were thought to be haunted. 
 She did not pay any attention to the girl's talk, for if 
 a ghost should appear to her she would think that it 
 was on business, and why be afraid? 
 
 After this experience, she remembered hearing about 
 the rooms being haunted since Senora Sebastian died. 
 She sat down in an arm-chair, thinking, "Where shall 
 I lay my weary head ? " Again it came to her that 
 guests who had visited there had heard and seen strange 
 things. She thought, " How foolish ; I will go in these 
 rooms; ghosts don't have needles and pins anyway, 
 but before I go I will see what those cold hard things 
 were, they may get away." To her great surprise, she 
 found three bottles of whiskey, and thought this a new 
 way of treating one's friends, feet first. She was not 
 afraid of the whiskey, so long as the corks kept in, but 
 she could not trust her feet, and thinking that, perhaps, 
 there were only whiskey ghosts after all, she would try 
 the other rooms. 
 4
 
 50 Uno Who. 
 
 She opened the first door and looked in; it smelled 
 like a'deadhouse. She walked in, lamp in hand; the 
 windows were open, the rooms beautifully furnished. 
 In a room beyond, the moonlight was streaming in, 
 but somehow she felt cold; everything looked so weird. 
 She went down to where Isla was sleeping, and told her 
 she could not sleep up-stairs alone, so a maid was sent 
 to sleep on a couch near her in one of the haunted 
 rooms. The next morning Isla said she had put the 
 whiskey there to keep it away from her father; it had 
 been brought to him by friends, that she had used that 
 room for sewing and the pillows for needles, when 
 nothing better presented itself. 
 
 The next day Col. Sebastian talked about his grand- 
 daughter; she was a source of great anxiety to him; 
 should she remain in the convent, or where should she 
 go upon leaving there ? He was going to make Don 
 Pamphilo her guardian, and he wished Dona would 
 take her to her home. 
 
 Isla said : " Father, why don't you leave her to me ? " 
 to which he replied : " I don't think you are the proper 
 person; Dona had a loving care for Uno and her sis- 
 ters. I hope she will be a mother to my grandchild, 
 and that you, Uno, will always be interested in her 
 welfare. For some unaccountable reason, her father's 
 only sister has never taken an interest in her. His 
 mother, who was an invalid at the time he was lost, 
 never recovered from the shock, and was not living 
 when I took Isla to Madrid. At least, I was told so.
 
 Uno Who. 51 
 
 I did not see any of the family, but Mercedes writes me 
 that her aunt has been to see Isla and invited her to 
 her house, and asked my consent in regard to the visit. 
 I have written to let her go, but only to spend the day. 
 The grandmother was very fond of Isla, her only son's 
 child, but she never wrote or made inquiry in regard 
 to her except through this daughter, as she was unable 
 to write letters." 
 
 Don and Dona were considering what Uno told them 
 the Colonel said, when a message came that he wished 
 to see them. They relieved his mind of all anxiety, 
 and with Osceola did what they could to comfort and 
 cheer his last days. He had not long to wait for the 
 sleep he so coveted. 
 
 After consulting with Osceola, Don Pamphilo de- 
 cided to leave Isla in the convent, trusting to Mercedes' 
 judgment in regard to her removal. 
 
 Garita was anxious to have her come to them, for a 
 young girl would help to cheer their now almost de- 
 serted home ; " And there will still be a young lady in 
 the family when you marry," said Uno; "but my 
 mother will still have you if I should be so unwise as 
 to leave my happy home." 
 
 a Garita, I have no home. My work -will take me 
 every place that duty calls ; I am to follow the example 
 of the Great Master." 
 
 " Uno, you will not be a nun, but you will belong to 
 some religious order." 
 
 " Never, never ; I must have my freedom ; yes, glorjh
 
 52 Uno Who. 
 
 ous freedom; there is too much Indian blood in me to 
 bear restraint; our race have had already too much of 
 being told where they must go and what they must do, 
 of being driven back and told they are in the way of 
 civilization and progress. I cannot see my way clear as 
 yet; I am waiting developments. Garita, our path in 
 life has been very smooth, all sunshine; we have al- 
 most arrived where the brook and river meet; you will 
 follow the brook, but I shall take the river's broad ex- 
 panse. For many years you will follow that gliding 
 stream ere you reach the quicksands of life, when you 
 find that each step sinks deeper and deeper, and you can 
 see no way out and are in danger of a living death; 
 then you will be thankful that Uno is free, can cross 
 that river's broad expanse and come to thee." 
 
 "Uno, why do you talk thus? Your words seem 
 prophetic." 
 
 " Garita, are not our lives prophetic ? " 
 
 "Yes, and I had forgotten to tell you about my let- 
 ter from Maud Ayling; they are coming to Saratoga 
 this summer; her mother needs a climatic change, so 
 they will not go to Newport, and father has given up 
 his trip abroad. Now, if Paulo would come and bring 
 Ola and Marie, I suppose your happiness would be 
 complete. I am sorry you don't like Maud, as I am so 
 fond of her." 
 
 "Garita, I like Maud as well as I would like any 
 society girl; she is really a very charming girl, but how
 
 Uno Who. 53 
 
 well she tries to keep you from meeting this Mr. 
 Estaugh she is so in love with." 
 
 Garita laughed as she said : " I thought that was my 
 imagination; we will see if he comes to Saratoga this 
 summer on her account. His family has a beautiful 
 cottage at Newport." 
 
 " Garita, she will see that you are well out of the way 
 before she lets you meet Mr. Estaugh." 
 
 " Uno, what do you mean by that ? " 
 
 "Time only can tell, Garita, but I will not choose 
 the longest way to fate." 
 
 The first of June found Don Pamphilo and his fam- 
 ily at their cottage in Saratoga; there were Senor de 
 Felipe and Osceola, with their families, and, with Mr. 
 Ayling, they were prepared for a gay season. 
 
 Seminole had taken Meno with her, as she had now 
 become indispensable to her; she was no longer the 
 governess, but the invited friend, and as such she took 
 her position. Garita was surprised when she saw her 
 on familiar terms with Maud, but she still treated her 
 with the polite dignity she had been accustomed to. 
 
 When Mr. Ross came, she seemed undecided what 
 course to take; this did not escape the ever watchful 
 eye of Uno, she having seen undeveloped traits of char- 
 acter in her old governess, and she wondered what ob- 
 ject she could have in wanting Garita to marry Mr. 
 Ross, or in helping Maud. That she did not like the 
 proud de Gomoras was nothing new. She had heard 
 Maud laugh about Mr. Ross being so madly in love,
 
 54 Uno Who. 
 
 and heard Uno reply that Garita was accustomed to 
 that sort of malady in men, but that she had never 
 known hut one man that she considered good enough 
 for Garita, and that was her brother. Maud very 
 sweetly replied that she hoped some time to have the 
 pleasure of meeting him, as none named him but to 
 praise. 
 
 Uno knew that Maud was working in the interest of 
 Mr. Boss, but what could she say or do; she could not 
 suggest such a thing to Dona, and she went to her 
 never-failing source of comfort, her father. He saw it 
 all, but said it was no use to interfere; Garita had her 
 father, mother and brothers; the less she said, the 
 happier she would be in the end, and the more confi- 
 dence Garita would give her. She quietly submitted 
 to the inevitable, but to see her dearly loved friend be- 
 ing made the victim of a fortune hunter was almost 
 more than she could bear. 
 
 Don Pamphilo and Dona had greeted him cordially, 
 and he seemed a welcome guest at the cottage where 
 Uno spent very little of her time, preferring the so- 
 ciety of her aunt and cousins, and enjoying her horse- 
 back rides with her father, and then she kept Meno 
 from meeting Maud at the de Gomora cottage, where 
 her excuse for going was to see Uno, for whom she ex- 
 pressed the greatest affection. She never lost an oppor- 
 tunity to express her admiration of Mr. Ross to 
 Mercedita, knowing that it would be repeated to Garita 
 and Maud; she pretended not to know of Uno's dis-
 
 Uno Who. 55 
 
 like of him, not thinking that the day might come 
 when her deception would appear in glaring colors. 
 Uno was quiet and thoughtful; she was not disturbed 
 by Meno's attention to Seminole, or of her being 
 thoughtful of her father's comfort; it was gratifying 
 to her that she had cultivated a very charming manner, 
 and was using every means in her power to improve 
 herself. Dona felt more than an ordinary interest in 
 her, and never lost an 6pportunity to assist one who had 
 lived in her family so long, but it was always so far 
 shalt thou go. 
 
 The season was drawing to a close; Don Pamphilo 
 always remained until the first of October, and Mr. 
 Ayling remained, that his wife might receive the full 
 benefit of the water. Maud and Garita were insepar- 
 able ; Mr. Eoss's magnetism had acted like a charm, and 
 Mr. Ayling seemed very proud of his man from Maine ; 
 so thought Uno, who was a welcome guest at her aunt's 
 cottage. She told her father that Mr. Eoss's magnet- 
 ism gave her chills, but he told her she could prevent 
 them becoming chronic by avoiding him. Her cousin, 
 Mercedita, of whom she was very fond, wished her to 
 spend the winter in Havana, but Uno said: "My time 
 is not my own, I am only waiting." 
 
 Upon her return to Florida,, there were numerous 
 complaints entered about Eveline, a young and friend- 
 less girl that she had taken to " The Shadows," think- 
 ing she might assist in the care of Seminole's children. 
 She had a beautiful face and figure, kind and loving
 
 56 Uno Who. 
 
 manners, but she would not apply herself to any kind 
 of work. Padre Narcisso was ahout to send her to the 
 convent, when she pleaded with Uno to let her live with 
 her. Each day her work was laid out for her, but it 
 was: "Oh, pardon me, Senorita, but I forgot it. I 
 will do better next time; don't send me away," and 
 Uno let her remain, much to Seminole's disgust. She 
 never got angry. Uno sometimes wished she could 
 arouse a spirit of anger in her. She tried writing on a 
 card the work for next day, but it was the same story : 
 " I forgot to look at it." She then tied the card to her 
 rosary, to see if she forgot to say her prayers, and felt 
 encouraged when she found it was having the desired 
 effect. 
 
 Garita looked upon Uno's efforts with this girl as a 
 hopeless task, and so informed her, but Uno was patient 
 and persevering. She said there was good in the girl, 
 and she hoped to make her useful. 
 
 Garita was devoted to her mother, her church and 
 society ; Uno to her church and charities, to which Gar- 
 ita thought she devoted too much of her time. She 
 said: "Uno, you are neglecting your friends and so- 
 ciety, who are entitled to a little consideration from 
 you. I know you have a tear for pity, and a hand open 
 as day for melting charity." 
 
 " Garita, if you were to choose your path in life, what 
 would it be?" 
 
 " To follow in the footsteps of my mother, and yours, 
 Uno, I expect, would be something weird."
 
 Uno Who. 57 
 
 " What path of life would be my choice ? Ah me, 
 Tis but a choice of misery ; at home are cares ; 
 Abroad, incessant toils ; the sea is vex'd with storms ; 
 A traveler wouldst thou roam ? 
 If rich, thou'st much to fear ; if poor, to bear : 
 Wouldst seek to wed? Believe me, marriage brings its 
 
 care ; 
 
 Nor think unwed thou'st better fare. 
 A single life's the dreariest of things ; 
 Children are plagues ; a childless life accurst ; 
 Follies in youth ; iu age fresh infancy ; 
 Never to have been born, this wise man first would wish, 
 And next, as soon as born to die." 
 
 " The Greek who wrote this epigram says : ' If rich, 
 thou'st much to fear.' My only wish is to have money 
 for the work I would like to do/' 
 
 Their conversation was interrupted by Garita's maid, 
 Xannette, bringing the mail. There was a letter from 
 Spain for Uno, and Miss Ayling had written Garita 
 saying that they would come South in the winter, if 
 they would be home; but what would the South be 
 without you? Like a magic lantern without its light." 
 And she hoped Uno had not been induced to spend the 
 winter in Havana. 
 
 "Garita, if there is anything that would make me 
 spend the winter in Havana, it would be that I would 
 not have to meet Miss Ayling." 
 
 " Uno, I am very sorry that you do not like my 
 friend, and I don't wish you to make any arrange- 
 ments for the winter that will take you from me. My 
 brother, Pamphilo, will open his house in Savannah,
 
 58 Uno Who. 
 
 and they are anticipating a gay winter. Your absence 
 would be a great disappointment to them. But tell 
 me, why do you dislike Miss Ay ling ? " 
 
 " Garita, I hate her." 
 
 "Uno, do you not think it makes one unhappy to 
 have such feelings of hatred ? " 
 
 "No, it is not half so dangerous as love; what else 
 is love but sorrow? If I did not love you, what would 
 I care for Miss Ayling's deceit? She dislikes me, but 
 is too polite and politic to let you know it. Garita, this 
 is the last winter we will spend together; I will not 
 leave you." 
 
 " I have a letter from Mercedes ; she writes that 
 Senora de Vega, an army officer's wife, who was sup- 
 posed to have committed suicide some time ago, has 
 come to the convent. He says she left him in a fit of 
 jealousy, and he will not see her nor allow her to see 
 her boys. Her family wishes her to come to America, 
 as she will not remain in the convent, and they wish my 
 father's care in her interest. Mercedes hopes I will be- 
 friend her." 
 
 "There, Uno, is a charity that does not require 
 money; some of these army officers are terrors; man 
 would condemn, but the eternal God would pity and 
 forgive. Uno, you are always searching for the truth; 
 that you will never abandon the personal search for 
 truth, I have heard you say. There was, undoubtedly, 
 serious cause for so rash an act in her case."
 
 Uno Who. 59 
 
 CHAPTEE IV. 
 
 STRONGER IX PROPHECY THAN IX CRITICISM. 
 
 IT was Christmas eve; "Sunnyside" and "The 
 Shadows " were brilliantly lighted ; the mansions were 
 connected by a canopied walk. Garita and Uno re- 
 ceived with Don Pamphilo, Dona and Osceola at 
 " Sunnyside " their many relatives and friends who had 
 been invited to celebrate their birth of twenty years ago. 
 
 Garita was the personification of all that was lovely in 
 woman; Uno, stately and dignified, was handsome, the 
 likeness to her father was striking. 
 
 The Aylings surprised the family by bringing with 
 them Mr, Ross and Mr. Estaugh, whom, they expected, 
 would come later in the season. Uno was pleased with 
 Mr. Estaugh; she thought him one of the most elegant 
 men she had ever met, and it did not need words to 
 tell her he was engaged to Maud Ayling, or he would 
 not be there. 
 
 It was early dawn, and again Osceola stepped upon 
 the piazza to hail the new-born day; he clasped his 
 hands as he gazed at the beautiful clouds, saying: 
 " Sweet spirit, in thy far-away home, I know thou hast 
 visions of mine, for my heart has revealings of thine
 
 60 Uno Who. 
 
 and of thee in many a token and sign; yes, they are 
 gone, all gone; this is the worst of woes that waits on 
 age, to be alone on earth as I am now." 
 
 There was one clad in snowy white that had followed 
 him (on the way to her boudoir) as he stepped out on 
 the piazza; she quietly stood in the doorway \\nob- 
 served, and heard what her father said. Gliding to his 
 side, she put her arm about his neck, saying: "Dear 
 father, you have me." 
 
 He put his arm about her, and the fountain of tears 
 that in age lie so deep burst forth, as he said : " My 
 dear child, you left all for the stranger." 
 
 They then talked of her mother, and how happy 
 she was when the seventh daughter was born. Seminole 
 told Uno she feared they had been guilty of the sin of 
 omission; their father's life was a lonely one, although 
 he had so many about him. 
 
 Maud Ayling was proud and happy, as well as her 
 family. " Mr. Estaugh's family are among the intel- 
 lectual lights of the city, and he has lived in a purely 
 intellectual atmosphere," said Maud. "My dear Uno, 
 when a branch of the family found it necessary, through 
 reverses, to have their sons engage in business, it was 
 really sad to see how helpless they were." 
 
 "Miss Ayling, a little knowledge is very dangerous, 
 also too much when not well directed; men should be 
 educated with a general knowledge of business, then they 
 would not be made to feel the bitterest curse of noble 
 natures, humiliation, and as to their association with
 
 Uno Who. 61 
 
 uncultured people, there will be an opportunity for mis- 
 sionary work by giving them the benefit of their su- 
 perior education." 
 
 " Uno, you are very practical ; I fear I am not enough 
 so, but Mr. Estaugh is satisfied, for he says all that was 
 best and brightest in his soul awoke at once when he 
 knew me ; but, Uno, you have not given me your answer 
 about being one of my bridesmaids. Garita has ac- 
 cepted." 
 
 " Miss Ayling, I fully appreciate the honor, which 
 I decline, thanking you very much; but that is out of 
 my sphere in life." 
 
 "Uno, I am disappointed, but when Garita is mar- 
 ried, I think you will change your mind." 
 
 " Xo, Maud, I hope she will walk alone by the torch 
 of her own unflickering purity. I would not mar the 
 picture." 
 
 "And you would mold custom to your own will 
 without outraging it," said Maud Ayling. 
 
 The party went to Georgia. Pamphilo de Gomora 
 opened the season with a ball on Xew Year's eve. Maud 
 Ayling was beautiful. Her happiness seemed to be 
 contagious, for even Uno seemed to forget herself and 
 become the victim of Mr. Eoss's fascinating manners. 
 Was Uno playing a part? Or was it accident that 
 threw Mi*. Estaugh and Garita so often together ? She 
 enjoyed the remark made in Maud's presence : " They 
 are a handsome couple," and she enjoyed the bitterness 
 in Maud's smile, which had lost its sweetness; when
 
 62 Uno Who. 
 
 he returned to her after dancing with Garita, Uno 
 thought one arrow had done its work. 
 
 Mr. Estaugh was charmed with Garita's fine voice, 
 and often accompanied her. Maud Ayling had herself 
 under wonderful control; she had evidently counted 
 the cost of bringing Mr. Estaugh South, but would the 
 expense to her feelings bear the strain? She wanted 
 his assistance in capturing the prize; in fact, Uno be- 
 lieved he thought Garita and Mr. Eoss already engaged. 
 
 N"ear the close of the season Maud began to grow 
 weary of well-doing. Uno saw Maud in a promenade 
 with Garita's brother watching Mr. Estaugh as he, in 
 a most lover-like manner, was bending over Garita; 
 she saw in Mr. Ross's looks something of the intensity of 
 hate that is born of love when they formed for the dance 
 in which Maud meets her lover. She has ceased to be 
 tender; there were lines about her mouth that, with all 
 her culture, she was unable to control. Uno was watch- 
 ing her, and she knew Maud felt Garita her superior, 
 and in days to come she would not always be a welcome 
 guest at the Estaugh mansion. 
 
 Maud was growing restless; she longed for her na- 
 tive air; the foreign element had become distasteful. 
 Mr. Ross no longer concealed his mission to the South. 
 Mr. Ayling talked with Don Pamphilo; he told him 
 how Mr. Ross's mother and his wife were friends, and 
 at her death she left her boy and his fortune to his 
 care. H,e took the orphan into his family and busi-
 
 Uno Who. 63 
 
 ness. He made a favorable impression, for Don Pam- 
 philo told Mr. Eoss he would consider. 
 
 Maud was to be married the first week in June; she 
 said : " My dear Uno, you will certainly come to the 
 wedding. I fear Garita would not come without you, 
 she depends so entirely upon you ; she is very beautiful, 
 but she has not the dignity and character you pos- 
 sess." 
 
 This was said in the hearing of Mr. Estaugh. 
 
 " Miss Ayling, you are mistaken ; Garita is a girl of 
 fine mind and depth of character. If you carry out 
 your design in having her marry Mr. Ross, you will 
 find that you have been a very poor judge of human 
 nature, and regret the weakness that has made you take 
 any part in this affair." 
 
 " Then, Miss Who, you don't approve of Mr. Ross 
 as Garita's husband?" 
 
 " No, it will end in misery. She is his superior in 
 every respect." 
 
 " Uno, he will never do wrong, but her beauty might 
 lead her into some flirtation that would arouse his 
 jealousy." 
 
 " Miss Ayling, a remark like that is unworthy of 
 you." '-- 
 
 Could she have seen, as Uno did, Mr. Estaugh's face, 
 she would have known she had fallen from grace. This 
 conversation was on a side piazza. 
 
 That evening Garita and Uno were talking over the 
 events of the day, and she told Uno she had been an
 
 64 Uno Who. 
 
 unwilling listener to all that was said. She was in the 
 library reading a letter from her sister Elaine; it was 
 warm, and the windows on the piazza were open. 
 
 " Surely, Uno, friendship is an affection of earth. I 
 am very thankful I heard this, for you would not have 
 told me; but I was sorry to have the feelings of my 
 other self so hurt. If I accept this invitation, it will 
 be on condition that you go with me. I know my 
 mother will not consent to any other arrangement." 
 
 The sad " Good night, TJno," together with the events 
 of the day, caused sleep to play hide-and-go-seek until 
 near morning; when she thought she had sleep tucked 
 snugly away, " go-seek " would rout it from its hiding- 
 place, and she wished she could introduce the Aylings 
 and Mr. Eoss to a Bengal tiger. 
 
 The next morning Garita told her mother what had 
 occurred. She decided, as Uno knew she would, that 
 Maud was a little piqued at the compliments her fiance 
 had paid Garita, and she unwisely tried to depreciate 
 her in his estimation ; " I hope, Uno, you were not too 
 severe." 
 
 " Dear mother, I would have done the same for Uno," 
 exclaimed Garita. 
 
 " I know you would, but if you do not attend tho 
 wedding, she will think this talk had something to do 
 with it. Uno, you will go and act as your noble nature 
 prompts you." 
 
 How she longed to open her heart and tell her of 
 the maneuvers of the Aylings and Mr. Ross, but her
 
 Uno Who. 65 
 
 noble nature would then have vanished into air. Dona 
 would have wondered how she became so demoralized 
 as to be suspicious of those lovely people. Garita was 
 like her mother in seeing nothing but the good. The 
 atmosphere in which she lived was not only intellectual, 
 but was pure and free from guile. It was difficult to 
 make her understand that people were bad, and Uno 
 had learned to say very little to them about the work 
 she was engaged in. They gave freely of their money, 
 but did not like to come in contact with the poor. 
 
 Uno felt it an unpleasant duty to attend Maud's 
 wedding, but she could not refuse Dona who had done 
 so much for her. 
 
 As Garita's husband, it would be necessary they 
 should be on friendly terms, and she might as well be- 
 gin by bidding Mr. Ross a cordial good-by. Peace had 
 been declared, and the insurgents had returned to their 
 respective homes. The family was enjoying the rest 
 and quiet so much needed, but they were not satisfied, 
 and must accept an invitation to the enemy's camp and 
 be captured. Uno felt it would take her years to 
 reclaim Garita. Uno avoided speaking Mr. Ross's 
 name; she felt that whatever had been said in the 
 family was in his favor, or they would not so willingly 
 have consented to her going where she would meet him. 
 
 The day before the wedding, Garita informed her 
 that she had accepted Mr. Ross. Uno could not speak 
 and Garita said: "Do love me, my more than sister; 
 5
 
 66 Uno Who. 
 
 I cannot endure to see you unhappy; I know you will 
 learn to like him for my sake." 
 
 " Garita, if he makes you happy, it is all I ask." 
 
 Just then Maud came into the room; Mr. Eoss had 
 told her, and she was gushing in her congratulations. 
 " I am so pleased to have it settled before I am mar- 
 ried; everything has transpired to make me happy." 
 
 Uno thought : " 0, dear, will I ever get out of this 
 Ross atmosphere ? I will be glad when my aunt gets 
 to Saratoga, and I can go into retreat." She had not 
 long to wait, for when she and Garita arrived there 
 the families were ready to welcome them. 
 
 Soon after the engagement was announced, Garita's 
 maid, Nannette, went to Uno, saying : " Pardon me, 
 Senorita, but I must talk with you." She then buried 
 her face in her hands and sobbed saying : " I am heart- 
 broken; I would sooner bury my lamb. Oh, Senorita, 
 she does not appear like herself when he is around; 
 do you remember the prophecy?" 
 
 "Yes, Nannette, but don't mention it; Dona would 
 be very much displeased." 
 
 "Senorita, please tell me, do you like him?" 
 
 " No, Nanny, I feel as badly as you do, but we must 
 always have a care for her; never let anything drive 
 you from her; she will need us in days to come." 
 
 " Senorita, nothing but death will separate me from 
 that child; was she not put in my arms by my mother, 
 who was her mother's nurse, when she was born? I 
 was only fifteen years old, and I have not been sep-
 
 Uno Who. 67 
 
 arated from that child one day since. I wanted to talk 
 to you when we were in Boston, but thought you would 
 not approve of it." 
 
 "Xannette, I could not interfere; she has her own 
 family, and .her faithful Nannette. There is really 
 nothing we can say about the man, and we will not 
 cross the bridge until we get to it." 
 
 The next day Dona requested Uno to come to her 
 boudoir. She then told her that Maud Estaugh was 
 writing to Garita urging her to be married in the fall ; 
 she was anxious to have her in Boston the coming 
 winter. " It seems as though I could not give her up ; 
 I was in hopes she would live at home when she mar- 
 ried." 
 
 Uno ventured to say that perhaps Mr. Eoss could be 
 induced to come South. 
 
 "We have urged that, but he says his interests are 
 all at the North, and he could not without loss make 
 a change." 
 
 " Her brothers are not pleased ; they think Mr. Eoss 
 too much of a stranger to come in the family, and 
 Garita says you are not pleased, but attributes it to 
 your not wishing her to marry and go away. I think 
 it would be difficult to find any one good enough for 
 her." 
 
 As Garita entered the room she said : " I know you 
 are talking about me; is it of the past, the present or 
 the future?" 
 
 " My dear child, your future lies nearest my heart ;
 
 68 Uno Who. 
 
 when you leave your father's home and protection to 
 place your life's happiness in the hands of a stranger, 
 you are taking a step that should be well considered by 
 both yourself and friends." 
 
 " Mother, I have not known any real unhappy lives ; 
 you and my father have been all that could be desired ; 
 my brothers' wives are happy, and so are my sisters, 
 and why should I fear? I never expect to have a 
 home like the one I leave unless my father provides it. 
 Mr. Boss certainly loves me, and I could not help lov- 
 ing any one so devoted as he is. He wishes to be 
 married in November." 
 
 " So soon, my child ! " was the almost pathetic reply 
 of her mother. 
 
 Garita had a way of sitting or kneeling at her 
 mother's feet on a cushion when she wished to talk 
 with her. In this position she now sat, her hands 
 clasped in her mother's lap, and looking up in her 
 mother's face, her large dreamy eyes filling with tears, 
 she said : " Dear mother, how can I leave you ? " Dona 
 kissed her, not trusting herself to speak, while Uno 
 looked as if anticipating the day when Mr. Ross would 
 be at her mercy. 
 
 It was a sad wedding; a gloom seemed to pervade 
 the very atmosphere; even the flowers had a funereal 
 look, and the rector's voice was that of an undertaker. 
 Uno's aunt urged her to go to Havana, but she would 
 not leave Dona; this was the opportunity for showing 
 her desire to return some of the loving kindness she
 
 Uno Who. 69 
 
 had received at her hands. There was a peculiarly 
 plaintive tone in her voice when she spoke her name 
 or addressed her. It was like the pleading of Othello 
 when he says: "I loved her that she did pity me." 
 
 Uno sat down in the twilight, that wondrous magic 
 hour, and for the first time in her life felt that she 
 was alone. Yes, Garita has gone. This one short word 
 was a legacy of memory to her; it simply expressed 
 resignation; they had gone out of the happy past, and 
 she would keep out of the inhospitable future. A new 
 life seemed opening up to her; she must grasp it 
 firmly, asking strength from the Master, who giveth 
 freely and upbraideth not. 
 
 While she was thus musing Dona came to her room 
 adjoining the one Garita had just left. Putting her 
 arm about her she said : " My dear child, why are you 
 sitting here in the dark? I thought I might find you 
 here, so came myself. Here are letters for you as well 
 as me." 
 
 While lights were being brought in, she thought of 
 her own selfishness, and wondered if a more angelic 
 being ever lived than Garita's mother. After reading 
 their letters, they joined the family in the library 
 where the news from abroad became the topic of con- 
 versation. 
 
 On the last of the month Mercedes came bringing 
 with her several nuns, Senora de Vega and Isla Se- 
 bastian Manrique, whom she left with her guardian, and 
 at her request Seminole took Senora de Vega into her
 
 70 Uno Who. 
 
 home. Two of the nuns were left at the convent 
 nearby, where Senora often remained for days in seclu- 
 sion. 
 
 Mercedes then went to Cuba, where she was made 
 Mother Superior of a convent. 
 
 Garita's letters were devoted to descriptions of the 
 happy life she was living in the gay and fashionable 
 world of her adopted home. Pictures of the beautiful 
 Mrs. Eoss were in the papers; her fine voice and fam- 
 ily of high degree, her English education, and above 
 all the large, dreamy brown eyes of her Spanish an- 
 cestors together with a charm of manner made her a 
 center of attraction wherever she went, and her fam- 
 ilies both in England and Spain were possessed of 
 great wealth. 
 
 Isla Manrique had not been in the home of her 
 guardian a week when she knew every negro by name 
 and every nook and cranny of the house. She had in- 
 formed her guardian that she did not know whether 
 she would like him or not, but if he would sit for her 
 she would paint a likeness of him. She played snatches 
 of operas, and ran up and down stairs singing; finally 
 she asked Dona if she thought her a very bad child. 
 "Senora de Yega says you will think me very rude 
 because I run around so. I am so happy to be out of 
 the convent where everything was so still and gloomy; 
 I feel like screaming. Last evening before dark I 
 went down to the negro quarters in the cart with some 
 of the children, and I heard Uncle Jake ask a man if
 
 Uno Who. 71 
 
 he had counted the pigs; he said he had counted all but 
 the little black pig, and it ran around so he couldn't 
 count it. I thought to myself Dona will think me as 
 bad as the little black pig if I am not more quiet. I 
 will try and be good if you will love me. When I went 
 to my aunt in Madrid, she found fault with me all the 
 time; she did not like it because I talked that horrid 
 English; that was what she called it; Sister Rafael 
 wished me to, as I was coming to America to live. 
 Mercedes was Sister Eafaet in the convent. My aunt 
 said I was a little mongrel, very plain looking and 
 very small for my age, my music a mixture, and she did 
 not think me capable of applying myself to my paint- 
 ing. I told her I thought she would be glad if she 
 had a child as nice as I, but I guess it is best you 
 haven't any; she asked me why, and I told her because 
 it would be always winter in their hearts, and children 
 love the sunshine and flowers. I told her if my father 
 was like her it was best he was drowned. Sister Rafael 
 said it was not nice for me to talk that way; if I did 
 not enjoy my visits, I had best not go often. The only 
 thing I cared for in her stately house was the picture 
 gallery. Some of my ancestors are fine. Oh, such 
 beautiful paintings; I staid in there most of the time; 
 my aunt said I was dreaming; Sister Rafael said I 
 would love you. Just think, Dona, I have neither 
 father, mother, brother or sister; you loved Uno, per- 
 haps you will love me." 
 
 " Yes, my child," said Dona, as she drew her on her
 
 72 Uno Who. 
 
 lap and kissed her. This girl proved a godsend; her 
 merry laugh and snatches of music brightened many 
 a dark day; she would stand beside Don Pamphilo's 
 chair with her arm across his shoulders, reading, or 
 on her knees looking at some picture she had brought 
 him. He had a studio fitted up for her in the house 
 where she would remain hours at a time. The girl 
 needed a home where she would have perfect freedom, 
 and a guiding hand to develop the better part of her 
 nature, and she had found it. 
 
 Senora de Vega was very reserved and dignified, she 
 was not a handsome woman; a kind and thoughtful 
 face which lighted up when engaged in conversation, 
 and a very pleasing smile, nice manners and a fine 
 figure. Don Pamphilo knew her husband and some of 
 her family; Mercedes did not tell anything in regard 
 to the troubles, and they asked no questions. 
 
 Garita was very strict in her observance of Lent, much 
 to the disgust of Mrs. Estaugh and Mr. Eoss, who were 
 Unitarians. She thought Garita should accept her in- 
 vitations, and when she found her firm in her decision 
 said : " This will be very stupid for Eoss. You cannot 
 expect him to remain at home. I shall always go with 
 Mr. Estaugh, my first duty is to him. You will find 
 some day you have made a mistake; men don't like 
 women with such strict ideas of religion." 
 
 " Maud, I was not brought up in the society of that 
 kind of men." 
 
 " Garita, I see you will not make a society woman,
 
 Uno Who. 73 
 
 and I will have to wander amid the graves of my 
 
 buried hopes. I may as well ask you where you intend 
 
 to spend the summer ? " , 
 
 " Maud, I will go where my father and mother are." 
 " Garita, Eoss is heartily sick of that place, Saratoga, 
 
 and I want you in Newport; I hope you are not going 
 
 to be disagreeable about it." 
 
 Garita wrote to Uno of this conversation and ended 
 
 by saying : " I often wish my lips could utter to you 
 
 the thoughts that arise in me."
 
 Uno Who. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 " A tale of romance and lies, 
 False tears, and real perjuries." 
 
 IT was a cheerless day, cloudy and cold; the open 
 fire in Dona's boudoir was very grateful ; the crackling 
 wood sounded like echoes to the conversation. Dona 
 was knitting while Uno had heen reading the latest 
 novel to her. They were talking of Senora de Vega 
 when she was announced, and the conversation very 
 naturally drifted upon the subject of the novel, and 
 how many quotations which were never given as such 
 were taken from the Bible. Those familiar with the 
 Bible could trace at once some of the most beautiful 
 expressions of thought to that source. They had come 
 to the conclusion that it was a part of the early educa- 
 tion of the writer of the story they had been reading. 
 
 Senora de Vega then told them she was writing a 
 story as well as articles for a magazine in her own 
 home. " Perhaps you are not aware that I was not 
 born or educated in Spain. I was born in Berne, 
 Switzerland, of Protestant parents. I met my husband 
 while visiting friends in Seville, Spain. He was then 
 a captain in the army, and since then he has been pro- 
 moted to colonel. He is a relative of the friends I
 
 Uno Who. 75 
 
 had been visiting. My family were opposed to my 
 marrying a Catholic, but what girl in love ever let a 
 difference in religion come between her and the object 
 of her affection? My father was an active member of 
 the Lutheran Church, for which my husband and his 
 family have a great contempt. We were married in 
 my father's house, then went to a Catholic church and 
 were married by a priest. When I became a Catholic, 
 my parents felt they were disgraced. I wished to please 
 my husband, and thought a happy home the first thing 
 to be considered. 
 
 " I have a sister living in Madrid ; they are wealthy 
 and influential; our families are friends, or were." 
 This was said with a deep sigh, then she exclaimed: 
 " My boys, my darlings, could I but see them." 
 
 After going on with her embroidery for a few min- 
 utes as if to gain control of herself, she asked Dona if 
 she could tell them of her sad life. 
 
 " Certainly, Senora, we may be a comfort to you ia 
 the lonely life you are leading." 
 
 "It was the Mother Superior's advice that I confide 
 in you and her sister Uno. We had a very happy, 
 though unpretentious home and enjoyed the society of 
 literary' people. Among those who frequented our home 
 was one who entered into all my thoughts and feelings; 
 I loved her; she enjoyed life in Madrid, and I often 
 invited her to visit me; she was near my own age and 
 unmarried. She had a love affair, the particulars of 
 which I never knew. Her uncle is a friend of my;
 
 76 Uno Who. 
 
 husband, but she did not like his wife, consequently 
 her visits there were of short duration; she had the 
 freedom of my home. I had often noticed a vein of 
 bitterness, which I attributed to some sorrow in her 
 life which, instead of softening, she had allowed to cor- 
 rode and destroy her. When I saw the look of envy 
 at the caresses of my husband and children, I. pitied 
 her, and avoided any demonstrations in her presence. 
 She knew I adored my husband, and often said it was 
 foolish of a woman to make a slave of herself for her 
 affections. In time, I was almost glad when her visits 
 were over; there was a sense of relief and no restraint 
 in my husband's good-by kiss; somehow I was happier, 
 *ind he said it was nice to be alone. 
 
 "After going to her father's home, she would grow 
 weary of the quiet, and again go to her uncle's in 
 Madrid, but managed to spend most of her time with 
 me. 
 
 "It was always a wonder to her that I could leave 
 my own church, and to gratify her I often went to the 
 Protestant church with her. Yes, it is not an open 
 enemy that has done me this dishonor, for we walked 
 in the house of God as friends. I noticed her famil- 
 iarity, but drove it from my mind as unworthy of 
 me, until she began bringing up my faults and dic- 
 tating to me in the presence of my husband. When I 
 could not go out of an evening and leave a sick child, 
 she would say: 'Colonel, we can go/ When he had 
 been away from home, she greeted him with a kiss
 
 Uno Who. 77 
 
 upon his return. When I talked to my husband about 
 it, he was irritable. Then I suggested taking the boys 
 and going away for a change, and we closed the house. 
 I had my sister invite the Colonel to stay with them 
 during my absence and he did so ; then she remained 
 at her uncle's and visited among my circle of friends. 
 
 " When I came home my husband's reception was not 
 as of old; after nearly two years of this anxiety (trying 
 to have my friends think me happy in her society and 
 concealing my feelings from my husband) who I knew 
 would not bear one word that reflected on him if he 
 was ever so much at fault, the crisis came. 
 
 "I had put my darlings in bed and quietly went 
 down-stairs; I was about to enter the library when I 
 heard her say, ' Tell me again you love me.' They 
 stood opposite the mirror; I saw him put his arm 
 around her, kiss her, and heard him say, 'Yes, better 
 than any one on earth; you have nothing to fear; you 
 will never be driven from this home, my darling,' and 
 again he kissed her. 
 
 " I walked into the room and confronted them. Oh, 
 pardon me, Dona, I cannot sit still and tell this." 
 
 She arose and walked the floor. 
 
 " Why could not God have seen fit to take me then 
 and there ? How much better for me and my darlings. 
 We had a stormy scene; he stood an instant looking at 
 me; I was trembling so I could not speak. She very 
 coolly, and with a smile on her lips, said, ' Listeners do 
 not often hear any good of themselves.' I turned to
 
 78 Uno Who. 
 
 her saying, ' You are going too far, you must not add 
 insult to injury.' I then went to my husband, who 
 had treated me so indifferently of late, and putting my 
 arms about his neck said, 'Tell me it is not so.' 
 Is it not all a dream ? Oh, Dona, Dona, I cannot tell 
 it." 
 
 She walked the floor; her hands clasped as if in 
 agony. 
 
 " Oh, if I could only weep, but in my heart are 
 rank, polluting weeds kept green by my crimson heart 
 tides. Yes, he, my husband, unclasped my hands and 
 threw me from him saying : ' How dare you question 
 my actions? Henceforth you are nothing to me/ and 
 with a curse he bade me leave the room; that when he 
 wished to see me, he would let me know. 
 
 " I knew his temper, but now I seemed dazed and 
 stood looking at him when he said : ' You understand 
 I am not to be disobeyed.' I took one long, agonizing 
 look and left him. 
 
 " That night I quietly packed all my valuables ; I 
 told my maid to have a cab ordered for the five o'clock 
 train next morning; as Senorita often took that train, 
 they thought nothing of it. My trunk had not been 
 all unpacked since my return. 
 
 "After taking a farewell look at my darlings, I 
 drove to my sister's house, left the trunk and a note 
 for her, saying it was useless to look for me. 
 
 "1 outlined what had occurred, and knowing that 
 my husband would vent his wrath on me now that I
 
 Uno Who. 79 
 
 had proof of his infidelity, what was I to do? He 
 would never acknowledge his wrong, and to save him- 
 self he would defend the woman. I had but one 
 thought, to leave them forever and save my darlings 
 from disgrace. 
 
 "I went to Switzerland; there in the mountains I 
 knew so well, I was about to end all. I stood upon 
 a precipice below which the water was dashing with the 
 roar of a cataract. It would be useless to search for 
 me there. I tied my bonnet and wrap to a tree nearby. 
 What was it that saved me? It was the voices of my 
 darlings; at this hour, I imprinted that farewell kiss. 
 I felt they were dreaming and calling for their mother. 
 I knelt down and prayed, but my heart was so full of 
 bitterness, I felt God had forsaken me. 
 
 "I put on the peasant cap and clothes I took the 
 precaution to bring with me in case I needed a disguise. 
 I left my bonnet and wrap and went to the mountain 
 home of an aunt, my mother's eldest sister. She lived 
 alone with her son and his little girl, his wife having 
 died at her birth. I did not meet any one I knew. 
 Although they had not seen me for a long time they 
 recognized me. I was tired and sick; I did not know 
 what to say to them, and I told them not to tell any 
 one I was there until they heard my story; then we 
 would decide what to do. 
 
 " In a few days I was strong enough to tell them 
 all. Dear old auntie; she so calmly said: 'That was 
 because he was not meeting folks, dear; I knew when
 
 80 Uno Who. 
 
 you married that Catholic there would no good come 
 of it.' 
 
 "My cousin went to my father's house and heard 
 all the talk and excitement in regard to me, and 
 brought me the Madrid papers. My bonnet and wrap 
 had been found, and I was supposed to be dead; I was 
 dead to all but the two humble beings with whom I 
 found a home. 
 
 " What was I to do ? To sit by the hour and think 
 was maddening. No, they shall not drive me mad; it 
 would be the most gratifying to them of anything I 
 could do. I went to the one upon whose promises I 
 could rely; morning, noon and night found that dear 
 old soul on her knees, her arm around me, asking God 
 to take care of her ewe lamb, to help and direct us, 
 and restore to me my darlings. 
 
 " There is nothing like work for a troubled mind. I 
 had a little money which my cousin invested in pen, 
 ink and paper. I went to work with the determination 
 that I would prove to my husband that the pen is 
 mightier than the sword. I wrote an article that was 
 published in a magazine and I was paid for it. My 
 cousin attended to my affairs. 
 
 " I kept on writing, meeting with so much success 
 that I attempted a book which has been published. 
 Yes, Dona, ' Out of the Depths ' placed me on my feet. 
 
 " My aunt went to my mother and told her all ; they 
 sent for my sister and brother. I went home, and they 
 wept tears of joy over the long lost one.
 
 Uno Who. 81 
 
 " I then learned of my husband's anger at the course 
 I had taken; he said nothing in regard to me, but al- 
 lowed that woman to insinuate that he discovered I 
 was deceiving him, and in my desperation had com- 
 mitted suicide. He must not let this scandal in regard 
 to himself reach the army, so he had hushed it up, 
 sacrificing the reputation of the mother of his children. 
 
 " Oh, God, had a dagger pierced my heart, the agony 
 could not have been greater. 
 
 " To think that my darlings may grow up, perhaps 
 taught not to speak their mother's name, is almost 
 more than I can bear. Think of the long years I must 
 be deprived of their society, those precious childhood 
 years so dear to a mother. He says I shall not see 
 them, so I must bide my time, for they shall yet be 
 proud of their mother's name. 
 
 " My sister went to him, and he was terribly excited 
 when he heard I was in Madrid ; said I had undoubtedly 
 come to try and destroy him. My sister told him if 
 I wished to destroy him, I would not have gone away; 
 that I would not blacken the name of the father of my 
 children as he had done me. ' She could have for- 
 given your infatuation and temper, but the mask has 
 fallen; she loathes the weak and cringing nature that 
 would stab a helpless woman in the back; that her 
 darlings will yet be proud of their mother's name and 
 fame, and she warns you to beware of the pen of a 
 ready writer who may yet cause you to lay down your 
 sword and flee as she did to the mountains for refuge.
 
 82 Uno Who. 
 
 "He grew pale as death and walked the floor; finally 
 he said, speaking my name for the first time : ' No one 
 ever heard me say anything that would reflect upon 
 Jeanie.' ' No/ said my sister, ' but you allowed that 
 woman to do so.' He excitedly turned upon her saying : 
 'Don't you mention that name to me.' 
 
 "The rest you know. I went to the convent and 
 there met Mercedes, now Mother Superior. It was not 
 pleasant for me to live in Madrid; the convent was 
 gloomy and my writings would become morbid. I 
 wished to see something of the world, and I improved 
 this opportunity of coming to America. I am out of 
 the night of dark despair, and look forward to happier 
 days. My faith in man I have forsaken, but faith in 
 God most surely I have found." 
 
 They were very much affected by the sad story of 
 Senora de Vega's life. Uno said: "Why are the in- 
 nocent made to suffer for the wrong of others? Had 
 she committed suicide, the world would have thought 
 her guilty; her husband would have gone on accepting 
 the sympathy of his friends, and the woman bewailing 
 the manifold sins and transgressions of one she had 
 loved. Dona, I am greatly exercised over Senora's 
 fate. I suppose her family feels she might better 
 have remained at home. I would and have used the 
 tomahawk and scalping knife. I feel now that I 
 would like to make war on that woman. I will write 
 to Garita to never have a bosom friend, and I will 
 follow a traitor to the end of time/'
 
 Uno Who. 83 
 
 " My dear child, Senora has gone through trials that 
 would have deprived many a woman of her reason. It 
 was the voice of God through her child that saved her, 
 and she went to the source from whence cometh her 
 strength. She did not seek any of her worldly friends; 
 they were like those our Lord loved to dwell with. 
 When she became calm and wanted work she was im- 
 pressed with the idea of writing. She has succeeded 
 beyond her expectations. Her trials have developed a 
 talent she did not know she possessed. She has been 
 purified by the fires of affliction which she has accepted 
 in a right spirit, and her writings may benefit many 
 who read them. 
 
 " Her husband, were he brave enough to tell the 
 truth, would say that he despised himself; that he 
 constantly sees that pure woman with outstretched 
 arms imploring him to say he loved her; that it was 
 all a dream. What would he not give to recall the 
 curse that drove her from home and children? Think 
 you he is a happy man trying to conceal his guilt, and 
 feeling he is looked upon with suspicion? She has 
 lost her friend and pleasant home, and is despised by 
 the man she has, in one sense, ruined; she has found 
 that ' conscience does make cowards of us all/ for it 
 appears she does not visit her old friends. What could 
 she say? People are not blind to the excuses of the 
 guilty. There is no future for her except in seeking 
 new victims. 
 
 " Uno, whoever has a great sorrow should turn it
 
 84 Uno Who. 
 
 to good account. Make those who have wronged us 
 feel our superiority by cultivating the resources within 
 ourselves that will place us beyond their reach as 
 Senora has done. Of course, all are not gifted as she 
 found herself to be, but there a door will be opened 
 for the pure in heart. 
 
 " Mercedes has shown great tact in bringing her here 
 to us. We will try and prove ourselves worthy of her 
 confidence. Your father is very much pleased that 
 Mercedes has been made a Mother Superior, and it cer- 
 tainly is gratifying to us all. 
 
 " I quite agree with you that it is best to take your 
 father and go and see his old uncle, and I hope you may 
 succeed in finding out all you wish to know in regard to 
 his family and affairs. He must be very old, as your 
 grandfather was the youngest son, and he is next to the 
 oldest. Yes, I remember your great-great-grandfather. 
 He was not inclined to like me at first because I am 
 English. He looked with suspicion upon all the Eng- 
 lish. There were not many girls in the family, I am 
 told. They were all boys or there would not have bee a 
 those famous seventh sons. I have known four of them 
 and a daughter, yourself. There were three girls in 
 that generation. Your aunt, Thetis, has rather en- 
 joyed telling me about the family and wars. I have 
 been a good listener to her stories of the early days of 
 my adopted country, and my love of romance has often 
 been gratified. We have passed a good many rainy days 
 together, knitting and talking in her quiet way. She
 
 Uno Who. 85 
 
 always took that straight-backed rocking chair. She 
 would rock and knit, looking out the window all the 
 time, as if addressing the rain and trees. I never in- 
 terrupted her by asking questions, as that seemed to 
 break the spell. Once I asked her about her mother. 
 She was silent as the grave and dropped her eyes on 
 her work. The clicking of the needles seemed to keep 
 pace with her thoughts and the nervous rocking of the 
 chair. 
 
 "Your father had three aunts. The youngest kept 
 house for your uncle in Cuba. This story I think ac- 
 counts for your grandfather not liking me at first ac- 
 quaintance. During the war they were sometimes 
 visited by Englishmen who came from Georgia. They 
 were on friendly terms with some of the Indians, and 
 the girls used to meet them. Finally the Chief was 
 wild with rage when he found his daughter was going 
 to marry one of that tribe, as he called them. The 
 man had been engaged to the two sisters at the same 
 time. Each went on preparing to be married without 
 telling anything about it. They had secretly had their 
 dresses made, and when he married one of them the 
 other committed suicide after telling of the deception, 
 and she was buried in her wedding dress. The man 
 disappeared, and no one could tell what became of him. 
 His name was never spoken. His wife died not long 
 after him. She said she mourned for her sister, not 
 him. She was buried in her wedding gown and finery. 
 They lie, side by side, in the old Indian burying 
 ground.
 
 86 Uno Who. 
 
 " The other sister was ready to be married and the 
 guests assembled, but she changed her mind. She was 
 afraid some evil would come to her. She loved the 
 man, but they could not persuade her to be married. 
 He went away, saying he would never see her again. 
 She went to see him, and they were married in his wig- 
 wam, then went to her father's home and had the 
 wedding. 
 
 " Her sister's fate was always before her, and she had 
 in this way broken the spell, but her husband was soon 
 killed in the war. She was very young, and went to 
 live with her brother in Cuba. His home has always 
 been a sort of refuge for the family. He is supposed 
 to be very rich, and has great respect for the seventh 
 sons. Why not for the seventh daughter ? " 
 
 Uno was in hopes Dona would refer to the prophecy 
 in regard to her and Garita in some of their conversa- 
 tions, but it seemed forbidden ground upon which Uno 
 never ventured. Now she said : " I wonder why Medi- 
 cine-Man, as my uncle is called, has never told my 
 father anything about his mother ? Dona, I believe the 
 prophecy of the old oracle when he said that ' Truth, 
 which had been crushed to earth, would throw off the 
 dust of ages, and honor the descendants of old You- 
 Know Who,' had reference to my father's mother, and 
 that his branch of the family will, in the near future, 
 receive the honors due them." 
 
 There was no reply; she, like Thetis, was silent as 
 the grave.
 
 Uno Who. 87 
 
 CHAPTEE VI. 
 
 " Oh ! happiness, our being's end and aim." 
 
 UNO and her father went to Cuba, where they found 
 their uncle very feeble. Thetis said it was well they 
 had come, as he wished to talk in regard to his affairs, 
 and he felt himself neglected by Uno, of whom he often 
 talked. She had not been there long before he found 
 himself in " willing chains and sweet captivity." His 
 fancy saddle was brought out, he mounted his pet horse, 
 and with her father, she rode over the plantation, 
 taking great interest in everything, which gratified him 
 very much. He told his men that she would some day 
 be their mistress; he patted her cheek and smoothed 
 her black hair which, he said, was very much Indian. He 
 showed her his mother's blankets and some of her dress 
 and bead work. " I took her here to live," he said, 
 " for the poor squaws had a hard time, always moving, 
 taking care of their children, cooking, and often going 
 into the fight. Sometimes their ponies were stolen, and 
 they would walk miles, carrying heavy burdens, often 
 dying of fatigue and the want of care. Your mother 
 was very kind to the old men, and they talked very 
 much about you and the little pale-face." He was 
 called "Medicine-Man," from his great knowledge of
 
 88 Uno Who. 
 
 roots and herbs, of which he told her a great deal. He 
 said it would be useful to her in going about among 
 the poor. 
 
 His house was full of Indian trophies, and he was 
 never tired of telling stories of his boyhood days, to all 
 of which she listened with the greatest interest. One 
 day he dressed up like a Chief, near as he could with 
 his stock on hand. After he had flourished his toma- 
 hawk, and showed her how fierce an Indian could look, 
 he stepped up to an old table and took from an old 
 box (that looked as if it had been through more than 
 one Indian war) a paper, and handed it to her. He 
 watched her while she read it. It was a check on a 
 bank in Havana for a large amount of money; she 
 rushed up to him, put her arms about his neck and 
 kissed him, saying : " You dear old Indian, how I love 
 you/' He took hold of her hands, holding her at arm's 
 length, and gave a war-whoop which brought several 
 negroes to the room. Her father and Thetis stood by 
 laughing. 
 
 After looking at her a moment, he said : " Osceola, 
 I have become the victim of a woman in my old age ; " 
 then he drew her to him, saying : " Do that again," 
 and she kissed the other cheek. He gave another war- 
 whoop and walked off, flourishing his tomahawk, to 
 the great delight of the negroes. 
 
 He told her he had made his will, leaving everything 
 to her upon condition that she did not become a nun, 
 or get married. In either case, the property must be
 
 Uno Who. 89 
 
 equally divided with his relatives, except the nuns, 
 who did not need anything. She was to pay annuities 
 to some members of his family mentioned in the will. 
 She was to give to the deserving poor, regardless of 
 church. He worshiped the Great Spirit, and he 
 wished to be buried like an Indian. 
 
 He began to show fatigue from the excitement of the 
 visit, and Uno asked him to take some of his medicine, 
 but he replied : " No use ; old tree ready to fall most any 
 day/' Thetis told them that when they were gone he 
 would sit in his big chair on the piazza and sleep most 
 of the time. 
 
 He said : " Our next meeting will be in the Happy 
 Hunting Grounds, to which the wind and the clouds 
 tell me I will soon go." 
 
 Uno and her father went to the convent to see the 
 Mother Superior. She was as pleased to see them as 
 any one could be whose earthly affections are buried. 
 She showed them about the convent, telling them of 
 the beautiful country and its resources, of the financial 
 condition and what she hoped to do. They were then 
 left to themselves. 
 
 The next day, about nine o'clock, she sent for Uno. 
 They were as strangers, and she felt the chill of dis- 
 appointment and frankly told her so, and that they 
 must meet heart to heart or not at all. She looked at 
 Uno for a moment, and then taking her hand in both 
 of hers, paid : " It is heart to heart, dear sister." They 
 then talked over family affairs, of the old uncle and his
 
 9o Uno Who. 
 
 will, and the subject that lay nearest lino's heart, 
 Garita's marriage. She told her of the prophecy and 
 her own feelings, and that the time would come when 
 she would need her assistance. After going over all in 
 Uno's impressive manner, she promised not to lay away 
 in memory's storehouse, where it would take days to 
 unpack, what she had told her in case she needed her 
 advice. Also, that she would use her influence in hav- 
 ing Burnedita defer taking the veil as long as possible, 
 as she might need her assistance. She quietly said, 
 with almost measured words: "Uno, I believe in you, 
 and will render you all the assistance I can." 
 
 She sent for Uno to come and spend the twilight 
 hour with her. She said : " This is my hour for think- 
 ing; let us enjoy it together." She clasped her hand?, 
 saying: " Your coming has opened up a new life to me. 
 In it I see a large field for work in which we can both 
 take part. I know your course will be onward and up- 
 ward, and I extend to you the freedom of this con- 
 vent." 
 
 It was a lovely moonlight night. She said : " Let us 
 commune with nature and the Great Spirit." As they 
 passed out into the death-like stillness, they involun- 
 tarily clasped their rosary and knelt in prayer. The 
 moon had just risen, casting its silvery sheen over the 
 water. The sun's last golden rays, kissing mountain 
 and forest, had not entirely died away. No sound but 
 that of the lonely whip-poor-will, as in a song of praise 
 to the Giver of this glorious sunset. As they arose from
 
 Uno Who. 91 
 
 their knees the Mother Superior said: "Is not this 
 heavenly vision soul-inspiring? Goethe says the works 
 of nature are always a freshly uttered word of God." 
 
 " Yes," said Uno, " and to me the words are : ' Do 
 good unto all men.' We will be workers together. I need 
 your calm judgment to guide my impetuous spirit when 
 it is stirred to its depths by the knowledge of some 
 great wrong. We must part, but these precious hours 
 are locked in my memory, and I will leave the key 
 with the Mother Superior." 
 
 Uno and her father went to Havana, where the usual 
 preparations for the family's departure North were go- 
 ing on. The first question was : " Uno, where are you 
 going this summer ? " 
 
 " I am sure," said Mercedita, " Garita will go to 
 Newport and, perhaps, take a cottage, and you will go 
 there, but you will certainly spend a part of the 
 summer with your father, if not with us ? " 
 
 " Cousin, do not worry, I am not ready to forsake 
 my father yet," said Uno, but she found upon her ar- 
 rival at "Sunnyside" that the Newport cottage had 
 been taken. 
 
 From the tone of Garita's letters, she was in fine 
 spirits. She had told Maud about the uncle's will, and 
 Uno received a letter from Maud, congratulating her. 
 She said : " Of course you will spend the summer in 
 Newport, and I would be so pleased to have you meet 
 Mr. Estaugh's friends." 
 
 The family went to Saratoga for the month of June ;
 
 92 Uno Who. 
 
 they wished Senor de Vega to accompany them. " Not 
 yet," she said, " I have no time nor heart for anything 
 but work, and but one thought which I must work out 
 or my life will be a faded dream." 
 
 It was a merry party that took possession of a beauti- 
 ful cottage in Newport. Mr. Eoss was like a devoted 
 lover to his wife and her family, even Uno came in for 
 a share of his attention, and she said she never spent 
 a pleasanter six weeks in her life. Garita was made 
 happy by Uno's not allowing Mr. Ross or Mrs. Estaugh 
 to outdo her in politeness. Her Indian ancestry was 
 talked of. No one ever played the harp so well, and 
 Garita liked to have her play her accompaniments on 
 the piano. 
 
 " I did not know you were so fine a musician/' said 
 Mrs. Estaugh. 
 
 "Shall I tell you the reason you have been so long 
 finding out my good points ? " asked Uno. 
 
 "My dear, they are so numerous, one has to know 
 you a long time to fully appreciate you." 
 
 " I see, Mrs. Estaugh, I cannot get the better of 
 your flattery, but when one is in love and matchmaking 
 at the same time, it is not surprising that they should 
 be oblivious to all else." 
 
 " Really, Uno, you should be pleased with my match- 
 making ; did you ever see a more devoted couple ? " 
 
 " I cannot answer your question, Mrs. Estaugh, as 
 this is the first couple I was ever interested in, and the 
 honeymoon is not over yet."
 
 Uno Who. 93 
 
 " Nonsense, Uno, you talk like a schoolgirl. So- 
 ciety people do not have honeymoons." 
 
 " I think you are right, Mrs. Estaugh, for custom 
 seems to have made them all moneymoons. He that's 
 wise should live alone." 
 
 " Uno, you're an odd chicken." 
 
 " And my uncle called me an Indian," said Uno. 
 
 Mrs. Estaugh patted her cheek, and with a sweet 
 smile, said : " Uno, you have been well grafted." 
 
 " I am pleased it is to your relish," said Uno. 
 
 "Garita tells me you are going to leave us soon; T 
 very much wish I could hold out some inducement for 
 you to remain, but you will not leave 'until you have 
 seen Lady Margaret Oughton, and Garita's sister and 
 her husband ? " 
 
 "I have arranged to meet them in New York, but 
 they will all go to Saratoga this fall." 
 
 "By the way, Uno, has your charming cousin, 
 Mercedita, any lover ? " 
 
 " Mrs. Estaugh, are you looking for new victims ? 
 if so, beware; you will be trespassing; that is my 
 field." 
 
 As Garita entered the room Mrs. Estaugh said: "I 
 am glad you have come. Uno is accusing me of match- 
 making and seeking new victims, and everything that 
 an old lady with two or three marriageable daughters 
 could be guilty of; all because I inquired about her 
 pretty cousin."
 
 94 Uno Who. 
 
 "Well, Maud, you have not succeeded in making a 
 match for Uno ? " 
 
 "No, hers is a hopeless case. She has a heart of 
 adamant. Just think of a young woman, rich and 
 fine looking, with every advantage socially, being here 
 so long and nothing approaching a flirtation; the world 
 would be full of old maids if she had her way." 
 
 " You are both very happy now. You have yet to 
 become acquainted with your husbands. If at the end 
 of five years you both advise me to sacrifice my free- 
 dom upon the altar of matrimony, I will consider it. 
 Some of my friends wish me to wear a nun's veil, 
 others a bridal veil. I fear if I were to take the latter 
 I would go to the cloister door telling them there were 
 never thorns so sharp as those within its lace." 
 
 "Really, Uno, this conversation has taken a serious 
 turn; I admire your independence. If all women were 
 as thoughtful upon that subject as you, we would not 
 see so many young hearts grown gray, that it makes 
 us almost marvel that we dare to love; but hope is 
 strong within us all, and we go on loving until we find 
 our idols are but clay, then we say thus are we ever 
 slaves to fate. I hope at the end of five years we may 
 be able to tell you there had been no thorns in our 
 path, and you are very foolish to live alone. I sin- 
 cerely wish there may be many happy returns of this 
 visit that we have all enjoyed su much." 
 
 That evening Garita went to Uno's room to talk over 
 the events of the day. She expressed herself as being
 
 Uno Who. 95 
 
 very pleased that she and Mrs. Estaugh were on such 
 friendly terms. Uno said she was one of the most 
 charming women she had ever met, and possessed of 
 wonderful tact, and that she would rule her husband 
 without his knowing it. 
 
 " Yes," said Garita, " and every one else ; even Mr. 
 Eoss goes at her bidding, hut what "can I do here among 
 strangers. It is not nice to be placed in the back- 
 ground, and not even consulted by my husband. He 
 says it is no use to say anything; we cannot afford to 
 offend her. She rules her father through her mother, 
 She now wishes me to purchase a handsome house in 
 Boston. I prefer the hotel, and told my father so. 
 She is a thorough woman of the world, and would sac- 
 rifice her dearest friend if it was for her interest to do 
 so. Aunt Margaret will spend the winter in the South, 
 and I hope to be there a portion of the time." 
 
 After Garita had gone to her room TJno began read- 
 ing between the lines of what she had told her. She 
 said to herself as she walked the room : " Mr. Eoss, 
 you do not know Don Pamphilo de Gomora as well as 
 I do, or you would deal gently with him on the money 
 question. He is not an American, and will not sup- 
 port a son-in-law, even if he had a title. Mr. Eoss, I 
 advise you to attend to business and let Mrs. Estaugh 
 paddle her own canoe. Mr. Eoss goes at her beck and 
 nod, does he ? I must set this down as weakness No. 1 ; 
 been married less than a year; I will draw a black 
 line under each number in my diary. I know there
 
 96 Uno Who. 
 
 well be plenty of them attached to his name. I think 
 that man is going to prove a choice specimen. Well, 
 here I am walking around, talking to myself, an In- 
 dian trait I had not developed until I met him. I 
 hope his career will be short, or I will be a Ross mono- 
 maniac." 
 
 Uno was anticipating a sort of dream life during .the 
 lovely autumn days, to steal away and listen to the 
 gentle sighing of the leaves as they took their de- 
 parture from this world, so bright, so beautiful, so fair. 
 She very soon found there was no dream life for her, 
 surrounded, as she was, by young people. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Pay and two daughters had come from 
 Alabama. They were friends of the family and noted 
 horseback riders. Elaine and her husband, Lord Ay- 
 liffe, were fine riders, also her brothers, and Uno's 
 cousins, Cobre and Diego. Osceola had his fine horse, 
 and the party often took long rides. Garita was 
 timid and never joined them. She was very much 
 interested in Isla Manrique, who had made herself 
 necessary to her father's comfort. He was not in his 
 usual good health, but insisted upon taking his walk 
 to the spring in the morning. Isla was always ready 
 to accompany him. His black hair was now almost 
 white, and the large brown eyes seemed larger and 
 more thoughtful. His face had a worn look. The 
 elastic step was gone; the tall form not so erect. The 
 plain-looking child at his side was short, thickset, 
 straight black hair and black eyes, dark skin, and a
 
 Uno Who. 97 
 
 mouth that had a severe expression, cultivated through 
 want of affection, for it disappeared when she looked 
 up in her guardian's face and laughed, showing a 
 beautiful set of teeth. 
 
 Dona called her the " sunbeam " that had been sent 
 to brighten their declining years. She read to them the 
 magazines and papers in both Spanish and English, 
 and often attended to the correspondence. She was 
 very sensitive about her figure. She had often been 
 called chunky, and went to grandfather with her griev- 
 ance, and he told her there was a bright future for her. 
 that some time he and Dona would take her to Italy, 
 and that she must not let such foolish talk take pos- 
 session of her mind, which was better than most girls 
 of her age, and that he would not exchange her talents 
 for their good looks. 
 
 The lovely October days were drawing to a close, 
 restful, happy days to all, only for the undercurrent of 
 anxiety in regard to Don Pamphilo's health. With the 
 exception of Flora, his children and grandchildren 
 were with him. They were expecting Garita to go 
 South and remain until after the holidays, when a 
 dispatch came from Mr. Boss that he wished her to 
 return to Boston, and he would go South with her 
 later. They were all disappointed, and none more so 
 than Xannette, who improved the first opportunity to 
 tell Uno it was Mrs. Estaugh's doings. 
 
 It was a lovely morning in the first of November 
 that the party of horseback riders started out. The 
 7
 
 98 Uno Who. 
 
 cool bracing air made the horses restless in their anx- 
 iety to be on the run. Cobre de Felipe was engaged to 
 Miss Fay, who was a fine rider. They had prevailed 
 upon their friends to remain that they might take a 
 few more rides. Pamphilo's horse was said to be the 
 fastest in the South, and there was no accounting for 
 the terrible accident that occurred. Miss Fay's pet 
 horse took fright and ran. Cobre was beside her with 
 Pamphilo only a short distance behind. Her horse 
 went like the wind. Her father said : " She can con- 
 trol her," and at the same time was putting spurs to his 
 horse. Her friends could see her patting the horse's 
 neck to quiet her. There was a wild plunge as if some- 
 thing was in the way. " Oh, she will be thrown," they 
 exclaimed. "No, she is still holding on; there, Pam- 
 philo will save her. No, with another bound into the 
 air she has gone on ; unless she can retain her hold upon 
 the horse until it is exhausted, she will be thrown. 
 Oh, Pamphilo is losing- ground, her fate is sealed." 
 Such were the exclamations of her half-crazed mother 
 and friends. They saw the horse give a jump, as if 
 something was in the way, and Miss Fay was thrown to 
 the ground. She had freed herself from the saddle, 
 and the horse went madly on. Her father was soon 
 upon the scene. Cobre and Pamphilo had taken her 
 up, but her neck was broken. They placed her in her 
 father's arms, and with one on either side, they led 
 his horse, taking her to Cobre's home. Her mother did 
 not learn the sad truth until they arrived there.
 
 Uno Who. 99 
 
 Elaine and her husband accompanied them to their 
 home in the South. The cottages were closed. It 
 seemed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, all 
 was changed. Yes, they were closed forever to several 
 who had passed many happy days there. 
 
 Cobre, the hand of fate has torn her from you, and 
 you must forget.
 
 ioo Uno Who. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 " Tropic eyes too full of light and languor ; 
 Northern soul too gray with Northern frost." 
 
 THOSE were busy days at " Sunnyside " and " The 
 Shadows." Christmas gifts for home and abroad. 
 The poor to be looked after. Negroes on the planta- 
 tion must have their clothes and Christmas. Dona 
 said : " I am very glad you are here, sister Margaret ; 
 you and Elaine can assist me and relieve Uno, who 
 often tries to help me, as I have two churches to work 
 for; Uno and I have tried to have things go har- 
 moniously, and we have succeeded admirably. Since 
 my daughters married, I am alone in the Episcopal 
 church. Elaine, I wish you would take your work and 
 go to the library, as your father is usually there at this 
 hour, and I do not like to have him left alone. We 
 will join you very soon." 
 
 They were a happy family. Isla was making a ball 
 of yarn from the skein which Don Pamphilo held for 
 her on his hands, and laughing because he could not 
 let off the yarn as fast as she could wind. 
 
 " Isla," said Dona, " I think you can dress the dolls." 
 
 " Oh, grandmother, won't that be lovely. Just think,
 
 Uno Who. 101 
 
 I never had a dolly in my life that I know of. I never 
 had anything to play with." 
 
 " Well, Isla," said Don Pamphilo, " your dollies have 
 all come at once. They are in a box that has been sent 
 here." 
 
 She glided to his chair, and putting her arm across 
 the back, said : " As well as my other pleasures, grand- 
 father. Sister Eafael used to take me in her arms and 
 talk to me when I prayed for my father and mother to 
 come and take me to Heaven. I think now they sent 
 an angel to her that said to bring me here. When I 
 am older and can paint better I am going to make a 
 picture of a homely little child with a nun talking to 
 her. In the clouds will be the father and mother 
 watching the angel and whispering to the nun what to 
 do with their little girl. I pray every night that I may 
 be able to paint pictures you will be proud of; then it 
 will be forgotten that I am a dwarf/' 
 
 " Isla, you are not a dwarf," said Don Pamphilo, 
 earnestly. " By the time you are fifteen I think you 
 will wish to stop growing. You must be proud; be strong; 
 do not let such ideas take possession of you; they will 
 dwarf your mind. What is the body compared to the 
 mind? You are allowing yourself to become morbid 
 on this subject. You say you are happy here, and we 
 all love you, and God has given you talents to be proud 
 of." 
 
 " Grandfather, pride is a sin." 
 
 "Then, my child, why do you wish to be tall and
 
 io2 Uno Who. 
 
 handsome ? Are we not proud of our friends when they 
 do right, and will we not be proud of you when you 
 become a celebrated artist? We all need a certain 
 amount of self-esteem, which you do not possess. You 
 are constantly wishing to be something you are not. 
 If you were tall and handsome you might be so carried 
 away by flattery that you would not cultivate the talent 
 God has given you. You have another talent. You 
 will make a fine linguist, which will be a great ad- 
 vantage to you in studio life. If you wish to please 
 us all, do not borrow any more trouble about your looks, 
 for your life will be spent in the workhouse of 
 thought." 
 
 She put her little white hand on his cheek as she 
 kissed him, then went to Dona and kissed her, saying: 
 " Pray for me, grandmother, that I may be strong." 
 
 If time is the stuff that life's made of, the family 
 used plenty of it. It was the week before Christmas, 
 and they felt they could take enough of the material 
 for thinking. 
 
 The family had gathered in the library, near the 
 close of a lovely day. They were watching the sunset 
 as it was about to bid their little world good night, 
 and discussing the subject of their going to Alabama 
 for Christmas. Lady Margaret did not think it the 
 proper thing to do. It would be a disappointment to 
 the rector. They should remain and assist in the 
 church work, and have him and his family to their 
 Christmas dinner. " Our boys must come to us, but
 
 Uno Who. 103 
 
 Uno, who is that coming across the lawn ? " Through 
 the conservatory windows she could see Osceola and 
 three men. They were Don Alfonso, eldest son of the 
 Marquis of Floraine, and Captain Francisco de Aldana. 
 But who was the tall handsome man standing in the 
 shadow while the others were being greeted as they 
 entered the room? As he stepped forward and ex- 
 tended his hand to Don Pamphilo, there was a chorus 
 of voices saying : " Paulo, Paulo." 
 
 "We have brought the wanderer home," said the 
 Captain, "and it is gratifying to see the pleasure it 
 has given you." 
 
 " I fear our boys would be jealous if they were to 
 see their mother/' said Lady Margaret. 
 
 "My friends, it pleases me more than anything to 
 have my adopted mother so glad to see her boy." He 
 put his arm about her and smoothed her gray hair as 
 he said : " I have tried to keep my promise and live so 
 that you would not be ashamed of me." 
 
 " Colonel, you are a brave man to say that in my pres- 
 ence," said the Captain. All laughed at this remark, 
 as they were in the same regiment. 
 
 "Captain, for the first time in my life I feel like 
 laying down my arms, and being a prisoner of war." 
 
 The news spread like wild fire that Paulo had come 
 home. Bonfires were started and he had to go out and 
 make a speech. They were preparing for their Christ- 
 mas, and feeling in good spirits, which turned into a 
 regular jubilee.
 
 104 Uno Who. 
 
 In a few days Garita and Mr. Ross came, but they 
 left soon after New Year's. Mrs. Estaugh was an- 
 ticipating a very gay season, and would not listen to 
 their remaining at the South. 
 
 At Garita's urgent request, Elaine and her husband 
 accompanied her to Boston. She had not told Mr. 
 Ross or Mrs. Estaugh, but she intended giving a ball 
 in her hotel, and wished her sister and husband to as- 
 sist her. She wished to act independently of Mrs. 
 Estaugh, who was becoming so dictatorial that it was 
 almost unbearable. She was elated with her success of 
 the last winter, and would not allow anything to stand 
 in her way now. 
 
 It had been announced that Mrs. Ross's cousins, Don 
 Alfonso and Captain de Aldana, of the Spanish army, 
 also Col. Who and his sister were to be the guests of 
 Mrs. Ross; that her sister and husband, Lord and Lady 
 Ayliffe of England, had been her guests for some time. 
 
 The ball was a success. Mrs. Ross was the most 
 beautiful woman there. Lady Ayliffe's exquisite taste 
 had done for Mrs. Ross what she would never do for 
 herself. She was so modest in everything she said and 
 did that her dress partook of her nature. That night 
 her dress and beauty were simply bewildering. 
 
 Mrs. Estaugh for once was baffled. She could not 
 conceal her feelings at her husband's devotion to Mrs. 
 Ross, who had always avoided him, knowing his wife's 
 jealous disposition. To-night she was surrounded by 
 loving friends, and there was no restraint in her man-
 
 Uno Who. 105 
 
 ner; no one to give her to understand that she was a 
 stranger in a strange land, and they were the first con- 
 sideration, even with her own husband. 
 
 Col. Who was a beautiful dancer; he and Mrs. Ross 
 were dancing together. Uno was watching them when 
 Lord Ayliffe came up and said : " What a pity she did 
 not wait. It might have been. They are the hand- 
 somest couple I ever met. Elaine was considered a 
 beautiful girl, and is a handsome woman, but there is 
 a charm about Garita that it is difficult to define. 
 She has the loveliest manner, and is so gentle and con- 
 fiding that one feels a desire to shield her from contact 
 with the world. A weak and selfish nature cannot 
 appreciate a woman like her, but would cause her to 
 suffer intensely. I have become very much interested 
 in Garita, who has been almost a stranger to me." 
 
 This conversation was a great relief to Uno, as she 
 felt that Lord Ayliffe was not blind to the state of af- 
 fairs, and that the ball would be a marked period in 
 Garita's life. So many of her friends were there, and 
 all so charmed with her, it would not be easily effaced 
 from their memory. 
 
 Early in the spring, Lord Ayliffe and his wife re- 
 turned to England. Uno intended to remain with 
 Garita until the families came North, but the death of 
 her uncle made it necessary for her to go to Cuba. 
 
 Garita was now very happy, having spent a pleasant 
 winter, and Mrs. Estaugh was like a loving sister. She 
 invited Uno for a month to her cottage in Newport.
 
 io6 Uno Who. 
 
 " My mother is so lonely since I left home. She is 
 going to have a daughter of a sister live with her. 
 The girl graduates this summer. Then my mother 
 will take her to some of the fashionable watering places, 
 and will he my guest for only a short time and then 
 late in the season. I do not care to have Caroline here 
 at present. She has been educated in Maine, and 
 really you know they are very different from our Bos- 
 ton people." 
 
 "Mrs. Estaugh, I thought Mr. Eoss was from 
 Maine, and you seem to think him a paragon of perfec- 
 tion, and he certainly has lived in your family long 
 enough to have outgrown the Maine part of his educa- 
 tion. I presume this girl will in time, if you take the 
 same interest in her that you have in Mr. Eoss." 
 
 She was piqued at this remark, and with a good deal 
 of spirit replied: "Uno, I have never thought Eoss a 
 paragon of perfection. He is a good fellow, but not a 
 man I consider my equal. I found it very convenient 
 when a young lady to have him dance attendance upon 
 me, and I often forget when calling upon him that he 
 is another woman's husband, but he is the last man I 
 would have married, for I must have a husband I can 
 look up to." 
 
 " Yes, Mrs. Estaugh, you certainly have outmarried 
 yourself in birth and education; there are few who 
 can outgeneral you in maneuvering. I think people 
 should be very thankful who have a high social position 
 and wealth so that while they are seeking position for
 
 Uno Who. 107 
 
 themselves they do not have to assist other members of 
 their family in fortune-Inmting." 
 
 " Uno, that is rather broad." 
 
 "I intended it to be, Mrs. Estaugh. Most people 
 have two sides; I use one of mine for the poor and 
 afflicted, which is, 'Do unto others as you would have 
 them do unto you/ and the other is for society; with 
 it, I do to others as they do to me." 
 
 " Uno, I think you a very strange woman." 
 
 " Is it because I do not smile and wet my cheek with 
 artificial tears? I love my friends, would almost lay 
 down my life for them, but I do love to cross 
 swords with an enemy. Mrs. Estaugh, you and I ought 
 to understand each other by this time." 
 
 " Dear Uno, I have never misunderstood you ; to 
 me you are the dearest and noblest woman I ever 
 knew." She then lovingly patted her cheek, and Uno 
 was glad when a servant entered saying that Mrs. 
 Ross's carriage was at the door. She was glad to leave 
 the depressing atmosphere of that palatial home. She 
 entered the carriage with flushed cheeks that had fol- 
 lowed the chilly sensation that always came when the 
 subject that laid nearest her heart was brought up. 
 
 When she entered Garita's rooms she threw herself 
 into a chair with an air of abandon that called forth 
 from Garita the remark that she seemed utterly de- 
 moralized. "You sometimes think Maud such a 
 charming woman. This must have been one of her off 
 days."
 
 io8 Uno Who. 
 
 " Garita, she keeps cool and calm when she says dis- 
 agreeable things. With me it is difficult to control 
 the brain's fireworks of indignation, contempt and 
 scorn. Then the nervous strain of thinking which ball 
 to fire first sends the heart into the battle, and when 
 she patted my cheek, I felt very much like the sailor 
 who had been shipwrecked, when questioned by a 
 woman who delighted in analyzing feelings and emo- 
 tions, she asked him compassionately, ' How did you 
 feel, my poor man, when the cold waves broke over 
 you ? ' ' Wet, ma'am, very wet.' Garita, how do you 
 manage to keep on such friendly terms with her ? " 
 
 " I simply do not say anything. When she is in one 
 of her disagreeable moods I quietly look at her just as 
 sorry as I can. Mr. Boss says I manage her better than 
 any of her friends, and it is because I do not manage 
 her at all. I have learned to treat her with indiffer- 
 ence." 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Ross went to New York with Uno, 
 where she met her brother, the Captain and Don Al- 
 fonso; the journey was uneventful; her father was 
 already in Cuba, and when she suggested taking Aunt 
 Wauka, Seminole thought she could not get along with- 
 out her, but Uno knew she would be happier with 
 Thetis, and now that her husband and his mother had 
 died there was nothing to keep her at the old planta- 
 tion home. Her uncle would not have her bring her 
 intemperate husband there or she would have gone long 
 ago, for she was not happy away from her sister Thetis.
 
 Uno Who. 109 
 
 She had been like a mother to Seminole and her chil- 
 dren, and they felt they could not get along without 
 her. Seminole said that Lady Margaret had lectured 
 her because she was not a more devoted mother; that 
 she went out and had too much company, leaving her 
 children to the care of servants. "I thought to get 
 Aunt Wauka to come here and live, and now what will 
 I do if you take her away ? " 
 
 " Get Meno to look after them for you," said Uno. 
 
 " She would feel that she was out of her sphere in 
 life; perhaps you do not see that she is not the same 
 Meno who taught you." 
 
 Before Uno and her brother left for Cuba it was 
 settled that Don and Dona would go to England, taking 
 Isla with them. Lady Margaret was sure it would be 
 a benefit to Don Pamphilo, who was not well. They 
 hoped Uno would return and go to New York with 
 them, so as to be with Garita when they left her. 
 
 Uno and her friends went to see the Mother Superior 
 before going to the plantation. The Marquis of Flor- 
 aine had been very liberal in his donations to the con- 
 vent, and as his son was interested he wished to be able 
 to inform his father as to the condition of things there. 
 
 They stopped in Havana. Cobre de Filipe had not 
 recovered from the shock of Miss Fay's tragic death, 
 and his father wished Col. Who to take him to Spain 
 upon his return, and he would spend some time in 
 Paris with his cousins, Ola and Marie. Paulo said 
 there was no doubt of Ola's success, both as an actress
 
 no Uno Who. 
 
 and singer, and she expected to make her debut the 
 coming winter. His sisters were very happy in Paris, 
 and he improved every opportunity to visiting them. 
 
 At the plantation the party found more to interest 
 them than they anticipated. To begin with, it was a 
 storehouse of Indian relics that different members of 
 the family had brought there for safe-keeping. Wauka 
 said she was afraid Uno would be disgusted with her 
 rubbish, but it proved a very valuable collection. 
 Osceola, with the young men, set to work with a will 
 to have a room gotten ready for its reception. 
 
 " Uno, you can connect this room with the museum," 
 said her brother, Paulo ; " the light is fine as well as 
 the view of the water; this is the room for a library." 
 
 " Really, this is going to be a high-toned institution," 
 said Captain de Aldana. 
 
 "And I see an opportunity for a contribution of 
 books," said Don Alfonso, " which I will remember." 
 
 They went to the boathouse to see the curiosities 
 there, and found relics of long ago. There were fine 
 boats in which they took a sail and did not return until 
 nightfall, causing Uno anxiety. 
 
 The party went for a horseback ride, piloted by an 
 old overseer ; they galloped on over mountain and moor, 
 enjoying the fine scenery and balmy air. 
 
 Captain de Aldana, who was riding beside Uno, said : 
 " Senorita, you have a great work to accomplish here 
 if you carry out your plans to make this a charitable 
 institution. By-the-way, what name shall you give it, 
 or have you not had time to consider that ? "
 
 Uno Who. in 
 
 " I shall leave that to my brother." 
 
 " Senorita, it could not be in better hands. He is 
 a most just man. The humblest man in our regiment 
 can go to him with a grievance and be treated with the 
 greatest kindness and consideration." 
 
 The rest of the party had arrived at the house a little 
 in advance of Uno and the Captain. As she rode into 
 the yard Don Alfonso said : " Here comes our genus 
 loci." ' She thanked him, saying : " The presiding 
 spirit of a nameless place." She then turned to her 
 brother and said : " Colonel, will you do me the honor 
 of giving this place its name ? " 
 
 The men had all dismounted and were standing be- 
 side their horses. As Uno sat in her saddle she waved 
 her hand to the servants to wait. On the broad piazza 
 were her aunts, Thetis and Wauka. At one end of the 
 piazza stood the servants with their daintily laid table 
 spread with viands for an open air lunch. It was a pic- 
 turesque scene. All was silence for a few moments ex- 
 cept the restless tramping of the horses. All bared 
 their heads as the Colonel turned to his sister and said : 
 '' I call it, Uno, Deo non fortuna " (from God, not 
 from fortune). 
 
 Uno said : " In God's name, it shall be used for his 
 deserving poor." 
 
 Then her father offered up a prayer. The evening 
 was passed in talking over what had best be done, and 
 in the morning they departed for Florida, leaving 
 Osceola and his sisters to carry out the plans.
 
 H2 Uno Who. 
 
 CHAPTER VIIL 
 " The air was full of farewells." 
 
 THE parting with BO many of her friends had a 
 very depressing effect upon Garita, and caused Mr. Ross 
 to give his consent that she should spend a portion of 
 the summer with her brothers in Saratoga. She re- 
 mained there until August, when, in order to keep 
 peace, she went to Xewport, and TJno with Senora de 
 Vega went traveling, as this seemed the opportunity of 
 her seeing something of America. 
 
 While in Xew York, Uno received a letter from 
 Garita, asking her to come to Boston without delay, as 
 she was intending to leave there as early in the fall as 
 possible. Senora de Yega wished to visit that city, 
 but to live in a retired place, as she did not care to 
 meet strangers. 
 
 Garita's visit to Xewport had been far from pleasant. 
 Mrs. Estaugh's jealousy knew no bounds. She frankly 
 told Mrs. Ross that her beauty was simply maddening, 
 and that men did not take their eyes off her. 
 
 "Uno, I did not know what to say. I only looked 
 at her. Then she said : ' Garita, you need not put on 
 that pathetic look with me. It may work with my hus-
 
 Uno Who. 113 
 
 band and other men, but I do not wish you to infer 
 from this remark he cares for you or that I think so, 
 but you draw the attention of men by your eyes/ I 
 laughed, and said, 'Maud, get me some blue glasses.' 
 Then she was angry. I said, 'Maud, have I ever in 
 word, thought or deed given you reason to talk like this 
 to me ? ' She said, ' No, Garita, but you will be one 
 woman in a thousand if your head is not turned by the 
 flattery and homage you receive; if you were poor, you 
 would have a fortune in your beauty.' 
 
 '" I said, ' Mrs. Estaugh, beware ; you are going too 
 far. This talk is unworthy of you, there is no telling 
 how high up the ladder of fame a woman of your at- 
 tainments will climb. You are surprising your friends 
 by your elocutionary powers. I am called a fine elo- 
 cutionist, and have given many recitations for my 
 friends towards charity.' At this she colored, saying: 
 ' There seems to be no end to your accomplishments, 
 but, Garita, are you aware that the business connections 
 between my father and Eoss will end the first of Jan- 
 uary, when he will have the humiliating position of 
 looking for something to do ? ' 
 
 " I said, ' Oh, no, Mrs. Estaugh, please reverse that. 
 He will be leaving the humiliating position for one 
 that is fitted to his wife's station in life.' 'Then, 
 Garita, you have been preparing for this change?' 
 
 "I said my father's and mother's wealth does not 
 make it necessary for their children to prepare for 
 anything but death. She said I hope you will not 
 8
 
 ii4 Uno Who. 
 
 leave Boston. I told her I would not have to leave 
 any place I chose to live in. We have been here now 
 nearly two years, and I feel quite at home. She was 
 baffled, but I have not come to the end of my story. 
 
 " She had arranged for a musicale that evening, and 
 I felt that she had been trying to disturb my mind so 
 that I would not sing well. I told Mr. Ross I wished 
 to give Maud a surprise, and just before it was time 
 for her recitation to call upon me. I did not tell him 
 of our disagreeable talk, and am not going to. Uno, I 
 do not think I ever sang so well as I did that evening, 
 nor recited better. Mr. Ross behaved beautifully, help- 
 ing me in every way. I went to Maud and put my 
 hand in hers. She was cold, and her face would have 
 chilled a summer's day. Her morning's work had re- 
 coiled upon herself, as I intended it should, for her 
 recitation was almost a failure. 
 
 "Mr. Ross was delighted with the attention I re- 
 ceived. Now, TJno, I am ready to leave Boston. There 
 is no reason why I should live this kind of life. Strife 
 corrodes the purest mind. I find myself worried and 
 irritated at I do not know what, and I want your as- 
 sistance in perfecting my plans to leave here." 
 
 "Garita, you are like your mother, long suffering, 
 but when you have borne enough you know how to act. 
 There is no telling what sort of unexplainable position 
 that woman might place you in. What does Mr. Ross 
 say to this?" 
 
 " He now admits that Mr. Ayling has acted strangely
 
 Uno Who. 115 
 
 in regard to their affairs, and he has consented to close 
 up their connections and go abroad with me. He says 
 there is no doubt but Maud is at the bottom of all the 
 trouble. She has been here and asked me about our in- 
 tentions. I only looked my answer." 
 
 " Uno, she fears you, and Mr. Eoss says he is glad 
 she has found her equal. You understand in what 
 sense he means that. He thinks her sincere in being 
 sorry to part with us, but it is her jealousy. She tries 
 to conceal it, but it is devouring her. She has not been 
 pleased with the attention Mr. Estaugh's family has 
 shown me, nor even the fond manner in which her 
 mother treats me." 
 
 Garita had sent Nannette to bring Senora de Vega to 
 her hotel, and she was sitting in a remote part of the 
 room when Mrs. Estaugh came to make her morning 
 call. 
 
 " My dear Uno, this is a very great and unexpected 
 pleasure," and she affectionately kissed her and Garita. 
 " I hope you have not come to hasten Garita's departure. 
 You cannot imagine how lonely I will be without her. 
 My friends say they will have hopes of seeing me now 
 that you are going away." 
 
 " Maud, how did they know we were going? Neither 
 Mr. Ross or I have told it. Have you told where we are 
 going ? " 
 
 She colored at this spirited remark from Garita. 
 
 "Uno, my brother is home from college, and he can 
 assist my father. Of course he will not do all that
 
 n6 Uno Who. 
 
 Eoss has done, but he wishes his son to know about 
 his estate, that he can manage it if he should be taken 
 from us. You see, Uno, we are an old Boston family; 
 my father inherited his estates." 
 
 " Mrs. Estaugh, I have often heard you speak of 
 your father's family. They must be very exclusive, 
 for I have never seen any of them. I hear your mother 
 was a school teacher from way down in Maine. As far 
 as Mr. Eoss is concerned, it may be for your father's 
 interest to have him leave Boston. Business men do 
 that sometimes when an employe knows more than they 
 care to have him." 
 
 " Uno, I see you are on the war-path again." 
 
 " Yes, Mrs. Estaugh, I think I have told you I en- 
 joyed crossing swords with you. Mr. Eoss has made 
 a very favorable impression upon his wife's family, 
 and they desire them to live in England, so in the 
 future he will be a gentleman of leisure. He has much 
 to thank you for." 
 
 " Then, Garita, you really intend to leave Boston for 
 good ? " She only looked her reply. " If you are going 
 to England to live, I shall give a reception for you. 
 I never expect to see Uno after you have gone, much as 
 I would like to. It really makes me feel sad to think 
 of your going, and what will I do without Eoss? He 
 has been like a brother to me." 
 
 " Use your brother as you have him," said Uno. 
 
 " He would not let me." 
 
 "Mrs. Estaugh, if Garita were to remain here I
 
 Uno Who. 117 
 
 think she would take the advice of friends and call 
 upon your husband for attention that would give you 
 cause for jealousy. One thing has always surprised 
 me in regard to you. You boast of your culture, but 
 I have never met a more uncultivated heart than yours. 
 You have lovely manners, and in society you are a 
 charming woman, but you will say the most cutting 
 and unkind things I ever heard come from a woman's 
 lips. All our conversations of an unpleasant nature 
 have come from remarks of a disagreeable and cutting 
 sarcasm in regard to Garita and Mr. Ross. You know 
 she came from a home of cultivated hearts from which 
 true politeness springs." 
 
 " Uno, I think this our parting battle. I will see you 
 again, Garita, in regard to the reception," and with 
 the air of one who felt they had no defense to offer, 
 she took her departure. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Estaugh accompanied them to New 
 York, and they at once sailed for England. 
 
 Uno experienced a sense of relief in knowing that 
 Garita was with her family, and that she would not be 
 called upon, for a time at least, to perform any more 
 disagreeable duties. 
 
 After several weeks of travel, she and Senora de 
 Vega reached " Sunnyside," that haven of rest, tired 
 and travel worn. 
 
 They found Meno there to greet them. She had 
 been installed as housekeeper upon Dona's departure. 
 They did not remain there very long, as Uno wished
 
 n8 Uno Who. 
 
 to spend the holidays with her father on the plantation. 
 She, therefore, took Senora de Vega and her no-account 
 Evelyn, for whom she now felt she had a home, and 
 went to Cuba. 
 
 Her father had set every one to work, and it was re- 
 marked that things were beginning to look up at 
 " Medicine-Man's " home. 
 
 Senora was delighted. She sat down by the window 
 of the room selected by Col. Who as a library, and 
 looked out upon the sea, saying: "Here will I rest, 
 with your permission, until I go to my darlings. From 
 my room there is a fine view of the mountains; the 
 whole place is soul-inspiring. I feel that my best work 
 will be done here." 
 
 " Senora, I am happy in being able to give you this 
 pleasure; I will remain with my aunt this winter, and 
 can see you often. She is very happy, now that Cobre 
 is regaining his health, and they write that Mrs. Fay 
 is slowly recovering from the terrible shock. Cobre 
 will be with them in London this winter, and I would 
 not be surprised if he consoled himself with the sister 
 of his lost one ; stranger things have happened/' 
 
 "Uno, I am prepared to believe anything your im- 
 agination suggests, and in order to prove to you that 
 it is not my imagination, I wish you to look out of 
 the window and see Seminole and her family driving 
 into the yard." 
 
 They had a merry time. Thetis wondered if she 
 was going to be persecuted by those Arabs very often.
 
 Uno Who. 119 
 
 Wauka said: "Now, don't worry, sister; I will look 
 after them." 
 
 " But, Wauka, you will have to help me. What am 
 I to do with these green negroes? I told Osceola the 
 other day I hoped all the relations would not honor 
 us at one time, for there were not dishes enough to go 
 around. You will have to go to that museum and get 
 some of Uno's pottery; then I guess they will remember 
 to buy dishes and chairs. This dining-room will speak 
 for itself. Take your choice of curiosities. I could 
 have gotten along if Senora de Felipe and her airy 
 daughters were not coming. I do not like this kind of 
 charity work. I am the hardest worked slave on the 
 place, and think I will have one of the cabins cleaned 
 up so it won't smell of color, and live there by myself. 
 I don't like this Fourth of July all the time." 
 
 " Oh, Aunt Thetis," laughed Seminole's oldest boy, 
 "they don't have Fourth of July in Cuba. Come on, 
 brother, your aunt is wound up, and we had better git." 
 
 The dinner was fine, and the dishes afforded the 
 greatest amusement. Uno said: "I must confess 1 
 felt a little anxious, knowing the dishes had been for- 
 gotten, but I knew Thetis was a wonderful manager, 
 and she has made the table look odd and pretty." 
 
 They showered so many compliments upon Thetis 
 that she came near forgetting she was sitting on a 
 stool instead of her straight-backed chair. 
 
 In Havana, Uno found a letter awaiting her from 
 Garita. They were at the ancestral home of Dona in
 
 I2O Uno Who. 
 
 England. She had been shocked at the change in her 
 father, and they would soon go to Spain, where she 
 would write at greater length. 
 
 Uno was in the whirl of fashionable life at Havana. 
 Her aunt was a bright woman, who lived for her hus- 
 band and children, and she made their home a center 
 of attraction. Mercedita was a general favorite, and 
 her cousin Uno was devoted to her. She had often 
 wished that Lord Galvin, who had once been her ad- 
 mirer, could see Mercedita, but he lived in England, 
 and there was no prospect of their ever meeting. 
 
 Uno had many letters from abroad, urging her to 
 get her father to live with her in Spain, and not con- 
 fine herself to the work she had laid out, but she went 
 quietly about perfecting her plans for the new institu- 
 tion, asking advice only of her father. She had re- 
 ceived letters from Garita during the winter. They 
 had gone to Seville, where, at the castle of the Marquis 
 of Floraine, who was also very feeble, they would re- 
 main during the winter. 
 
 While in England Lord Galvin had called upon her. 
 " He inquired about you, and said he had no doubt but 
 that you would give most of your fortune to the church. 
 I told him that you would not, and explained why. He 
 and your brother were invited to dine at Aunt Mar- 
 garet's. He said had he known that your brother was 
 going to America he would have accompanied him, and 
 said, ' Let me know, Colonel, the next time you go/ "
 
 Uno Who. 121 
 
 Uno dropped the letter as she thought, then will be 
 my time for matchmaking. 
 
 Garita wrote that Isla's devotion to her father was 
 very beautiful. The bitterness that was grafted in the 
 child's rature was fast being rooted out, giving, in its 
 place, a soft sweet expression. 
 
 Her aunt came to see her while we were in Madrid. 
 She said to Isla that she was very much improved, to 
 which she replied with a great deal of dignity : " That 
 it was the sweet and gentle atmosphere in which she 
 lived, and the help she received from loving friends." 
 
 She hoped Uno would not become so infatuated with 
 her work that she would neglect writing to her friends. 
 " Always remember that a timely written letter is a 
 link in the chain of affection." 
 
 As TJno folded the letter, she thought there was not 
 much danger of her neglecting her friends. She 
 wanted them all to know how bright and complete her 
 life was, and that she would not exchange it for a 
 throne. 
 
 She went to the convent to have a talk with the 
 Mother Superior, and take time to think. It was five 
 o'clock in the morning that she sat down in that little 
 world of sweet sounds. The sisters were in the chapel 
 at mass ; their voices with the organ came in waves with 
 the soft morning air. As she sat enjoying the peace, 
 sweet peace; peace holy and divine, and the birds, it 
 seemed, of all nations had gathered there, their beauty 
 and their chivalry ; each one's song seemed sweeter than
 
 122 Unq Who. 
 
 its predecessor ; then such a chorus ; for a time she gave 
 herself up to all this sweetness ; then arose and entered 
 the chapel, where it seemed like entering into spirit 
 life, and being in the glorious company of Heaven.
 
 Uno Who. 123 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 "Facts and crimes are concealed, 
 Truths and treasures are hidden." 
 
 WHEN at the plantation Uno was constantly looking, 
 expecting to find something, she hardly knew what, but 
 she inspected every place it would be possible to secrete 
 anything in. Her grandfather had said the marriage 
 certificate was in Cuba at her uncle's. Thetis had 
 found the books and music which had been sent to her 
 mother in Florida. Her father had every little trinket 
 packed, and she found them in the attic, but she could 
 not find the marriage certificate nor any clew to her 
 mother's maiden name. 
 
 Uno talked with her father in regard to her feelings. 
 He said he was in the came state of mind, and was 
 sure he would succeed in finding that "truth which 
 had been crushed to earth," and together, my daughter, 
 we will " shake off the dust of ages." 
 
 " While you are away I will concentrate my thoughts 
 on this subject, and am sure I will be drawn to it; the 
 magnet may not be strong enough for us both." 
 
 Soon after her return from the convent she received 
 a message from her father to come to the plantation. 
 He met her at the station, and together they drove 
 about that he might talk with her. He said that in
 
 124 Uno Who. 
 
 the room where his father slept was a sort of closet 
 built on the wall. It went up to the ceiling, but the 
 doors did not go up to the top of this closet. Just 
 above the top of the doors, inside, was a board very 
 firmly put in. It had hooks all over it for hanging 
 clothes as well as on the wall. This left a space over 
 the doors firmly enclosed. He took off tne boards and 
 found there two boxes, one of which was nailed up and 
 the other locked. The key was in one corner on the 
 shelf. He found his mother's marriage certificate, also 
 a deed and tax receipts to the property of the Castle by 
 the sea. There were many letters from members of 
 the family in Spain which he did not take time to read, 
 but his mother's maiden name was Madeline Estabanez. 
 
 They drove down to the Castle by the sea and up the 
 road which circled around the house, and which had been 
 kept in good condition, although the house had not 
 been inhabited for years. He had often driven around 
 there when a boy, and it was called the haunted house. 
 He was told that the people who owned it lived in 
 Spain, and his uncle had the care of the estate. 
 
 He remembered having said to his father that it was 
 a pity there was no one living in that beautiful house, 
 and he wondered that his uncle did not rent it as it 
 would be beter for the property. He replied that peo- 
 ple did not like to live where a family had died of 
 yellow fever. He felt sure Thetis knew all about their 
 mother, but was very peculiar about telling anything 
 that she thought a person wished to know. She having
 
 Uno Who. 125 
 
 lived at their uncle's when Wauka was born, it was 
 quite natural they should talk about it, as she hacl 
 lived with him of late years. 
 
 When Uno and her father arrived at the house it was 
 quite dark, and the family had been to dinner. Thetis 
 was sleeping in her high, straight-back chair. It was 
 her habit to retire early, but when Osceola and Uno were 
 out, she always waited until they were safely housed, 
 then made some excuse for being about, fearing they 
 would think she was anxious on their account. 
 
 She started up as they entered the dining-room, say- 
 ing : " I expect your dinner is all spoiled," while at the 
 same time she had taken good care that it should not 
 be. 
 
 Uno was delighted to find that she had taken a nap 
 and was in a talkative mood. She said : " Come, Aunt 
 Thetis, sit down here and I will tell you about my visit." 
 
 She sat down on the lounge, Uno on one side of her 
 and Wauka on the other. The dining-room was very 
 large, and Thetis most always had a fire in the large 
 fireplace to keep out the dampness, and in the country, to 
 her, a fireplace without a fire was like a home without a 
 mother, and she would have everything cheerful and 
 pleasant, even if she had to scold for it. 
 
 So they sat down with the firelight dancing and 
 flickering as if enjoying the fun of Uno's plot to unseal 
 Thetis' lips. She had little to say about the family in 
 Havana, for she knew Thetis did not care for them. 
 She also cared very little about women who shut them-
 
 126 Uno Who. 
 
 selves up in a nunnery and put on such airs. She 
 was afraid to speak to them, and she did not think she 
 would ever visit her " Superior " niece, but she would 
 give all the information she could about any of the 
 family so far as that was concerned, as she was about the 
 only one left now who knew anything, and she would not 
 last long if they did not get the new institution done 
 soon, and have a place for some of Uno's proteges, as 
 they called themselves. 
 
 Uno's heart sank when she brought up that subject, 
 but she rallied, and slipping her hand in Thetis', said : 
 " My aunt in Havana is looking up the ancestry of her 
 family. I expect we shall find we are quite somebody. 
 I always avoid saying anything about ours, as I know 
 the remark that will be made." 
 
 "What is the remark, Uno?" said Thetis with a 
 great deal of spirit. 
 
 " Why, auntie, nothing, only that we are heirs to the 
 throne of a tribe of played out Indians." 
 
 "Uno, you have never thought there was any one 
 worth speaking of, but your mother's family." 
 
 " I have been trying to get an opportunity to tell you 
 something I have learned from uncle, but there are 
 always literary women and these proteges around for the 
 negroes to stop work and look at, and it is enough for 
 the head of a family like this to keep everyone at work, 
 and see that things do not go to rack and ruin without 
 being expected to unearth secrets, opening wounds that 
 have been healed for years."
 
 Uno Who. 127 
 
 'All was silent for a few minutes, then Uno said: 
 " I think we had better retire, as the owl will soon be 
 chanting his midnight mass." 
 
 Osceola sat looking at the fire as it flickered and 
 crackled and snapped as if throwing out sparks of en- 
 couragement. Uno again rallied and renewed the 
 fight for knowledge by saying: "What a pity 
 ' Medicine-Man' did not think to leave information in 
 regard to his ancestors as well as roots and herbs. If 
 I had been here I would have found the ancestral room 
 of his brain, and he would have left me something be- 
 side land and relics." 
 
 " Uno, when you get to talking you know not when 
 to stop." 
 
 " I am aware of that, auntie, and I often wish I was 
 like you, but I find out a good many things that you 
 don't." 
 
 "I am not so sure of that, Uno, your uncle knew 
 more than you gave him credit for. I have a paper 
 given him by his oldest brother, the Chief. It is a his- 
 tory of all the tribe." 
 
 "Dear auntie," said Uno, as she fondly pressed her 
 hand and turned so as to look her in the face. " Did 
 he say anything about your mother's illustrious 
 family?" 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 "Does my father and Wauka look like her?" 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 "Will you tell me about her.?."
 
 128 Uno Who. 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 "Where was she born?" 
 
 "In the Castle by the sea/' 
 
 "Were they Cubans?" 
 
 "No," came short and quick. 
 
 Uno dared not stop and give her time to think, so 
 she said: "I suppose they were of the sort of people 
 who hardly know what they are." 
 
 " They were Spaniards, and came here in their early 
 married life. The Castle was built for them. Their 
 three children were born there, two boys and a girl, 
 My mother's name was Madeline Estabanez. Uncle's 
 youngest sister was here living with him. She had 
 been married but a short time when her husband was 
 killed in the war, then she came here. She and mother 
 became friends ; father came often to Cuba. 
 
 "As a seventh son he was not allowed to do any of 
 the fighting. Those sevenths were all well cared for, 
 and were spoiled, except your father whom I brought up. 
 
 "Father was tall and handsome. His sister was 
 younger than he and near the age of mother. Her 
 brothers were older, and they were all friends until 
 they found he wanted to marry mother. He got her 
 to deceive her family, and the friendship continued to 
 all appearance. All the time she was having her clothes 
 and valuables brought here by slaves they had bribed. 
 Uncle knew nothing of it. 
 
 " She went from this house with his sister and met 
 father in Havana. They were married. His sister, and
 
 Uno Who. 129 
 
 the man who drove the horse were witnesses. The man 
 is living on this place now. He and his wife know all 
 the family secrets. They have been true to uncle, and 
 he has rewarded them. I think he is a Cuban. 
 
 " When the Estabanez family died of yellow fever, 
 he told the slaves that Senor had recovered and gone 
 to Spain, leaving everything in uncle's care for his 
 daughter. 
 
 " This man helped uncle and his brothers, the Chief 
 and father, to bury the. family. They opened the wall 
 toward the Sea in the cellar, and after excavating, 
 shoved the coffins which they had made in the aper- 
 ture, and walled up the place, marking each grave. 
 
 "He told of the house being haunted and the family 
 not buried to protect the property. They took from 
 the house all the valuables and brought them here, 
 uncle did not know what father did with them, but 
 said they were in this house. 
 
 " I have now come > the saddest part of my story," 
 continued Thetis. " Mother often asked my father to 
 let her come here, but he would not. At first she 
 grieved so much that he thought she would die, and 
 he had his sister come home. 
 
 " When you was born there was great rejoicing " (ad- 
 dressing Osceola). "You were not called Osceola un- 
 til your brother, the Chief, died. Then you were the 
 first seventh son to take that name. Before Wauka was 
 born mother wished to come here, and I now think 
 9
 
 130 Uno Who. 
 
 father foretold her death, he seemed so anxious to 
 gratify her every wish. 
 
 "We took the baby (your father, who has been 
 watching the fire light so intently), and came here. 
 Mother sent word to the Castle she was here. 
 
 "In a few days her mother came, and such a meet- 
 ing I never want to witness again. Mother asked if 
 she was sure she had been forgiven, and if her father 
 would only let her come home to die. Her mother 
 assured her it was not her fault that she had not been 
 home long ago, but my child, you know the Estabanez 
 family pride. ' He does not know that I am here. 
 Do my brothers ever speak of their sister ? ' Her 
 mother laid her head on the pillow beside her, and 
 with their arms about each other they wept tears of 
 joy and sorrow." 
 
 Uno and Wauka were crying. Osceola wiped his 
 eyes, but Thetis went on to the end, as if she had nerved 
 herself up to a task she had long been dreading. 
 
 " Mother died and left Wauka to me. I was twelve 
 years old. Word was sent to the Castle of her death, 
 but there was no response. She is buried on this place 
 beside father." 
 
 Thetis arose with the air of one who had performed 
 an unpleasant duty, and without a word retired. 
 
 Among the letters from Spain was one from a sister. 
 She wrote that she had not informed the family of 
 Madeline's marrying an Indian, as she would not re- 
 ceive any mercy at the hands of the proud Estabanez
 
 Uno Who. 131 
 
 family, even if he were the brother of a Chief, and 
 that it was a pity, for her father would, in a few years, 
 return to Spain to live. 
 
 "His uncle was very feeble since the death of his 
 only son which leaves your husband heir to the title 
 and estates. They will more than equal your own 
 fortune and titles." 
 
 She hoped she would be able to see her daughter 
 and be a comfort to her. They should remember she 
 was but a child. 
 
 There were many letters proving they were a family 
 of position, and Osoeola felt they would have no trouble 
 in establishing their claim in Spain. He advised keep- 
 ing the affair a profound secret until he and Uno re- 
 turned from Madrid, where they would advise with 
 Paulo what course to pursue. 
 
 Their first duty upon their arrival at Madrid was 
 to Don Pamphilo, who was at the ancestral home of 
 the Marquis of Floraine. Although prepared to see 
 a very sick man, they were unprepared to find him so 
 near the time when he would receive the crown of life 
 given to all the faithful. 
 
 (Mr. and Mrs. Ross were there, and he was devoting 
 himself to her father. She did not think they would 
 ever return to America, and Uno felt like giving a 
 sigh of relief. Still she felt in her heart of hearts it 
 was only a little longer way to fate. 
 
 Uno remained with the family while her father and 
 brother, as gentlemen of fortune, went looking for,
 
 132 Uno Who. 
 
 their good berth, and they had less trouble in finding 
 that birth and fortune had joined to make them greater 
 than they anticipated. 
 
 Don Pamphilo was very much interested in the his- 
 tory Uno had given him of their discovery, and when 
 after days of search for the truth Osceola returned 
 and told them he had found he belonged to the nobil- 
 ity of Spain, through both his grandfather and grand- 
 mother, Don Pamphilo became so interested that it 
 helped for the time being to throw off the depression 
 of spirit that had prevailed in the family. 
 
 His grandmother's name was Pezula. She was a first 
 cousin of Captain Pezula of Florida, whose son Semi- 
 nole had married. "Then she has married her third 
 cousin," said Garita. 
 
 " The only wonder to me is," said Don Pamphilo, 
 " people do not marry nearer relatives than that in 
 going to a new country. After a time they neglect 
 writing to their friends; they become absorbed in busi- 
 ness, and do not take the time to visit their old homes, 
 consequently their children grow up not knowing who 
 or what they are." 
 
 It was several days before Don Pamphilo ceased to 
 talk at intervals of Osceola's mother. 
 
 One afternoon Osceola, Paulo and Uno were in the 
 room. Garita was in her accustomed seat at her father's 
 feet, with her mother at his side. The invalid sur- 
 prised them all by saying : " Osceola, this brings out 
 the prophecy of your grandfather, that ' truth which
 
 Uno Who. 133 
 
 had been crushed to earth would throw off the dust of 
 ages, and honor the descendants of old You-Know- 
 Who.' Paulo, had you thought of it?" 
 
 "No, Don Pamphilo." 
 
 He then looked at TJno, and said: "I know you 
 have." He then gently stroked the hair of the child 
 at his feet and yet more kindly stroked her cheek. 
 
 Isla had not been told that her guardian would not 
 get well. She had not spent so much time in his room 
 since Uno was there. The fear of intruding by too 
 many being in the room had kept her away. The 
 invalid's chair had been drawn to the window. It 
 opened upon a broad balcony upon which Isla was 
 sitting. 
 
 It was the close of a very warm day. The scenery 
 was fine. Light and shadow as they fell over the 
 beautifully cultivated grounds seemed to have a cool- 
 ing influence. 
 
 Isla came in through the window, and stood by her 
 guardian's chair. He said : " What have you been 
 thinking about?" 
 
 "Grandfather, I was thinking this sunset was like 
 the decline of a beautiful life. It arose so bright this 
 morning, gradually until it reached the zenith of its 
 power, giving light and heat to the bad as well as to 
 the good. Then it began to descend, all the time doing 
 its work. When it closes, leaving behind that beauti- 
 ful glow that good works leave when a true worker of 
 time departs from this life. The sun goes down, but
 
 134 Uno Who. 
 
 it rises again. Our lives go out, but they rise again 
 to receive their reward. The Bible tells us, ' The Son 
 of God shall come in the glory of His Father, and He 
 will reward every one according to his work.' " 
 
 Don Pamphilo broke the silence by saying : " Isla. 
 do you know I am going to leave you very soon?" 
 
 She looked at him an instant, then dropped on her 
 knees at his side, burying her face in her hands. He 
 laid his hand on her head as she sobbed convulsively. 
 
 In a few minutes she looked in his face and said: 
 "Yes, grandfather, going to receive the reward of the 
 righteous. No one has told me, but I have thought 
 when the doctors did not cure you it was because they 
 could not, and I have so longed to ask you what you 
 wished me to do when you are gone, and if you see my 
 father and mother to bear them sweet messages of my 
 love. Oh, grandfather, how can we live without you ? " 
 
 They were all in tears. Dona was about to go to 
 her, fearing it would excite him, but he put up his 
 hand to stop. 
 
 " My child, you will live with Dona and be a comfort 
 to her; she will be in one sense alone and will need 
 you, while you need her protection. She will carry 
 out my plans in regard to your education. You have 
 been a good girl, Isla, and I love you very much. 
 Every member of Dona's family and mine are your 
 friends, so you have nothing to fear. I have placed 
 your affairs in Lord Oughton's hands, as he is a most
 
 Uno Who. 135 
 
 just man. When I am gone, you will go to England 
 and live with Lady Margaret." 
 
 She was on her knees, her face still buried in her 
 hands on the arm of his chair, his hand on her head. 
 When he had finished she looked up and said: 
 
 " Grandfather, the Bible says ' all scripture is given 
 by inspiration of God'; perhaps when grandmother 
 and I are alone, and I am painting, you will be per- 
 mitted to come and be my inspiration. I know you 
 will come sometimes, and have a loving care over us." 
 
 She arose from her knees, kissed him, and went out 
 of the room. 
 
 Dona and Garita went to him, taking their accus- 
 tomed seats, the afterglow of the sunset making a 
 fitting background for them. It was a picture in 
 which Uno thought Garita was never so beautiful. Her 
 hands were clasped over her father's knee; her face 
 upturned as if in pleading, and tears crushed out from 
 the long lashes lay upon her cheeks. 
 
 She touched the harp upon which she was playing 
 when Isla came in and sang : " Softly now the light 
 of day fades upon my sight away." When she had 
 finished, Don Pamphilo put out his hand towards her. 
 She went to him and knelt down beside Garita. With 
 a hand upon each of their heads he said: "God bless 
 and keep you, my children." . 
 
 Uno and her father were very anxious to see Marie 
 and Ola. The Colonel was ready to accompany them. 
 He was very much interested in Ola, who had become
 
 136 Uno Who. 
 
 quite noted as an opera singer. She was ready to make 
 her debut upon the stage, but her brother and Marie 
 had with great tact caused her to defer it. 
 
 Living in the city of Paris for two years among 
 strangers had softened and rounded off the sharp and 
 severe tone of her character. Marie, who was almost 
 morbid on the subject of religion, had learned there 
 was a duty she owed to her sister, and if she would not 
 attend the opera, Ola would not attend church. 
 
 When the Colonel came he was gratified to find 
 Marie willing to be reasonable and go with him. She 
 had imparted much of her gentle and loving nature to 
 Ola, and better than all she knew there was a secret 
 that even if Ola were a good Catholic, she would not 
 impart to her Confessor. She had, without Ola being 
 aware of it, used this secret to keep her from going 
 on the stage as an actress. She knew if her sister did 
 not marry the man she loved she would marry some 
 one else. 
 
 When her father had finished the story of his dis- 
 coveries, and she saw the color come and go in her 
 sister's face, she quietly went up to her and patted 
 her cheek, then sitting herself beside her brother she 
 slipped her hand in his, when she saw his pleased look 
 at Ola's silence. 
 
 When Osceola took his mother's picture from his 
 pocket to show her she recovered herself and said: 
 "How much Marie looks like her." 
 
 When they were alone Uno asked her father if he
 
 Uno Who. 137 
 
 noticed Ola's expression when he told of his discovery. 
 He said he did. She told him she expected Ola, of 
 all the family, to he the most pleased, hut she, like 
 Dona and Thetis, was as silent as the grave. " Father, 
 I hope Ola is not going to begin life with some hidden 
 secret. With Aunt Thetis there have been dark, 
 heaved up graves in her heart from which the flowers 
 are just beginning to spring. Father, do you think 
 Ola loves Don Alfonso?" 
 
 There was no reply. 
 
 " Father, Thetis says, ' Uno, when you get to talking 
 you know not when to stop ;' good-night, father." 
 
 After remaining some time in Paris, Osceola took his 
 daughters and went to visit his mother's relatives, and 
 to quietly find out about his mother's family in Spain 
 and elsewhere. He wished to see the house and lands 
 which were now his. 
 
 In this way the time now passed until fall, when a 
 message came from the Colonel that he had better re- 
 turn to Madrid as Don Pamphilo was very low. 
 
 The swollen eyes and gentle clasp of the hand as 
 they greeted their friends told them that death was 
 waiting to claim its victim. His brave wife stood by 
 the bedside, one hand clasping his, while with the other 
 she wiped the dew of death from his brow. No tear 
 dimmed her eye. By her side were her three daughters 
 kneeling beside the bed. The physician, with his finger 
 on the dying man's pulse, was trying to sustain his
 
 138 Uno Who. 
 
 brother, the aged Marquis, beside whom were the sons 
 from America. 
 
 Uno and her father and brother were in the room. 
 Don Alfonso was at the foot of the bed with other 
 relatives, when Isla glided in like a spirit. She was 
 dressed in white. In her hand was an open basket of 
 forget-me-nots. She stood at the foot of the bed and 
 scattered them over the white cover. 
 
 When all was over Dona sank down, her head al- 
 most on the pillow beside her husband. Colonel Who 
 went to her and in his strong arms bore her apparently 
 lifeless form to her room. 
 
 Don Pamphilo was laid beside his ancestors, and 
 Dona with her daughters returned to England, and to 
 the home of her childhood.
 
 Uno Who. 139 
 
 CHAPTEE X. 
 
 "... She made his eye 
 The lonely star of her idolatry." 
 
 UNO was about to start on an errand of mercy, 
 taking her sister Burnedita, of the convent, with her. 
 Her brother, learning her intention, said he would ac- 
 company them as they might need his protection. 
 
 A lady of good family, who had met with reverses, 
 was in trouble. She had been a teacher in Florida, and 
 had twice been abroad as companion. Uno knew she 
 was a woman of good sense and dignity ; that she had 
 accumulated what to her was a little fortune; she also 
 knew that Imogene had more than a year before gone 
 abroad as companion, but was surprised to hear from 
 a member of her family that she had married and was 
 living near Seville. 
 
 The lady for whom she was companion had returned, 
 and told them she was sure Imogene had been deceived. 
 It was at the hotel where they spent the winter 
 that they met the widower she had married. They 
 were invited to his house. His mother and daughter 
 and son were there. Everything about the estate, which 
 he said was very large (the reason for the house being 
 so isolated), was in good order.
 
 140 Uno Who. 
 
 Friends of the lady had written Uno they thought 
 Imogene in trouble. They had been to see her, but 
 were told she was not at home. The daughter did 
 not say when she would be home. Then a letter 
 came to her family asking to have her money sent to 
 her. 
 
 They became alarmed and wrote to Uno. When they 
 drove up to the house Burnedita went quickly as pos- 
 sible to the back door, knowing they would not turn 
 a nun away, while Uno opened the front door, the 
 Colonel remaining in the carriage. They found Imo- 
 gene getting dinner, while the son and daughter were 
 looking on, also an old woman who was in a bed in a 
 corner of the large kitchen. 
 
 Imogene was nearly overcome when she saw Uno, 
 and the family did not know what to say when they 
 found she and the nun had come together. 
 
 In English Uno told Imogene that they had come 
 to take her away. She said she had no clothes, and 
 Uno ordered the daughter to go with them and get her 
 clothes, but she would not obey the orders until the 
 Colonel appeared upon the scene. They then became 
 alarmed, and Imogene was allowed to take her valu- 
 ables. 
 
 The old woman was toothless, had a large nose and 
 small black eyes. She put her head from under the 
 bedclothes, shaking the wide frill of her cap, and 
 said " yam-yam," then again drew the clothes over her 
 head.
 
 Uno Who. 141 
 
 The Colonel told Burnedita to go and assist her 
 sister, that he would take care of the house in their 
 absence. The son did not speak to him; he appeared 
 dazed. Imogene said that he always remained at home 
 when his father went away, and they certainly would 
 have had trouble if the Colonel had not come, as the 
 son was very ugly, and she was afraid of him. 
 
 She was in reality a prisoner. Her husband told her 
 she could go when the money came to pay off his 
 mortgage. The family silver and fine things they dis- 
 played before marriage she found was loaned for the 
 occasion. They left the house before the husband re- 
 turned, but the old woman sat up in bed and screamed 
 at the top of her voice, making her frills fly, "Yam- 
 yam-yam." 
 
 The Colonel told Imogene she had reason to be 
 thankful for having made her escape without trouble. 
 
 " I think," said Uno, " this must have been a case of 
 platonic love. I am disappointed at not seeing 
 the man of your choice, but do tell me what did the 
 old woman mean by ' Yam-yam ' ? " 
 
 " She always says that when she is displeased, mean- 
 ing there is a future punishment for us." 
 
 " My kind friends, I am ashamed to go home, and 
 wish I could find employment in Madrid." 
 
 "That would not be safe," said the Colonel, and 
 there was something like a smile on his face when Uno 
 said : " Imogene, you must be brave, and let the ocean 
 separate you from your ideal happiness."
 
 142 Uno Who. 
 
 "Uno, how this mistake of mine must have looked 
 to you with your keen sense of the ridiculous." 
 
 " Imogene, it was only one step above the sublime, 
 and you must have learned to suffer and be strong." 
 
 " I certainly have suffered, but noAv that I am rescued 
 from what seemed to me a terrible fate, I feel very far 
 from strong." 
 
 During the conversation Burnedita sat with down- 
 cast eyes, and Uno thought she had the lesson well 
 learned to give all her ear and but few her voice, and 
 that she would be of the greatest service to her in time 
 of need; and she would make sure of her being one of 
 the pilgrims to their native land to which Marie and 
 Ola were desirous of going, feeling the day of change 
 had come. 
 
 Don Alfonso expressed great pleasure at the good 
 fortune of his friends. Ola blushed crimson when he 
 told her that her carriage was royal, and that he hoped 
 in the near future the family would be able to occupy 
 their ancestral palace in Spain. 
 
 He said : " If your brother goes to Cuba this win- 
 ter, I shall accompany him, as I am interested in Uno's 
 charitable institution; also in the improvements that 
 are being made at the convent, and better than all, I 
 shall be interested to know if the 'dusky beauty' has 
 given up being an actress." 
 
 They were pacing the deck of the steamer, and the 
 Colonel had to remind them that it was time to bid 
 friends farewell.
 
 Uno Who. 143 
 
 The family went to Cuba to spend their Christmas, 
 taking Seminole's children. Uno said they were the 
 brightest, handsomest, and worst behaved the sun ever 
 shone upon. 
 
 They did not call at her aunt's in Havana, as she 
 wished to be the first to see Aunt Thetis and make 
 things smooth and pleasant for the family. Thetis 
 said she did not mind the people if Seminole had only 
 left those pesky children at home. 
 
 The children were let loose, and the no-account 
 Evelyn was glad to be one of their number. 
 
 Thetis' lectures on cultivating memory, Wauka's on 
 mending clothes, and Senora de Vega's on literary at- 
 tainments, had caused her to lose flesh, and she told 
 Uno she envied the blacks their freedom. 
 
 There was a Christmas tree at the Castle by the sea. 
 The colored people were wild with delight at having 
 the Castle inhabited once more. There was a sound of 
 revelry that night that, in spirit, perhaps the grand- 
 father saw how much he had lost of life's pleasures. 
 Had he forgiven his daughter, perhaps his grand- 
 daughter, Thetis, would have outgeneraled the yellow 
 fever. 
 
 Uno ventured to express these thoughts to her aunt, 
 who tossed her head with so much dignity that she 
 nearly threw off her best cap as she remarked : " Is there 
 anything more you can think of ? " 
 
 " Yes, dear auntie, you have been a remarkable wo- 
 man. Even your faults are a pleasure to think of, and
 
 144 Uno Who. 
 
 how many can refer to you as ' This is the aunt who 
 brought me up/ We must now have your picture to 
 show at such times so as to make an impression. 
 Auntie, were none of the seventh sons talkers?" 
 
 She very emphatically said " So." 
 
 " I thought not," said Uno, " as there have been no 
 opinions handed down." 
 
 "Well, future generations will know yours." 
 
 "Auntie, that is because I am a girl, and so much 
 like you, but I have the key to one of your opinions." 
 
 With the faintest glimmer of a smile, she said: 
 "What is it?" 
 
 " It is, Uno, you know not when to stop talking." 
 
 They spent a portion of the winter on the plantation. 
 Uno did not feel like entering into the gaieties of life 
 in Havana after losing so dear a friend. Ola was 
 a great success and favorite with her aunt. Marie re- 
 mained with Uno planning the plantation work. Tho 
 church and school, which had been established, were a 
 source of anxiety to Uno; she needed teachers. In 
 the midst of her quandary she received a letter from 
 Imogene asking for work. She was unhappy at home, 
 the mortification of living where they all knew her 
 mistake made a change desirable. Uno wrote what she 
 wished to have done, and Imogene accepted the posi- 
 tion, thus relieving Uno of all care in regard to the 
 school; and in many other ways she found she had 
 " cast her bread upon the waters." 
 
 Change seemed to be the order of the day. Thetis
 
 Uno Who. 145 
 
 said: "The family hardly had time to turn around 
 since their return home, and now those people on the 
 other side (as you call it) are going to trot over here. 
 I will just tell you now, Senorita Uno, you need not 
 bring any more of your proteges here for me to look 
 after. If you do not stay at home more, I will go to 
 the Castle by the sea. I am sick and tired. It is noth- 
 ing but Senora, Senora, from morn till dewy eve." 
 
 "Aunt Thetis, be careful, you're getting poetical. 
 I am so happy that I often feel a poetical inspiration 
 myself, but I want to open my budget of news for your 
 inspection. I wish to introduce you to Lord Galvin." 
 
 " Well, who, in time, is he ? " 
 
 " Well, auntie, I may as well tell you now. He is 
 an Englishman who wanted to marry me when I was 
 in England at school, and Lady Margaret was dis- 
 pleased that I did not accept him then." 
 
 "Uno, have you gone to hunting up old lovers? 
 This secret that I carried about for years, afraid to 
 tell that our family belonged to the nobility of Spain, 
 thinking it might turn their heads from the path of 
 duty, waiting until I thought you were old enough to be 
 sensible, but I find there is no fool so great as an old 
 fool. You all seem to have done gone mad. Paulo has 
 resigned his commission in the army so that he can have 
 more time to spend money. The only one out of the 
 nunnery who seems at all sensible is Ola, and she has 
 given up that stage craze she had. Don Alfonso coming, 
 is he? I thought you were about done with the de 
 10
 
 146 Uno Who. 
 
 Gomoras, and Cobre de Felipe has let his sweetheart's 
 sister heal his wounds. Well, Uno, I am not surprised 
 at anything, but your letting this Lord coine to see you. 
 That news has given me a headache; I suppose you are 
 aware that if you marry it will make a fine mess of 
 uncle's will and the charitable institution?" 
 
 "Auntie, when you get to talking, you know not 
 when to stop. I want to tell you about Lord Galvin 
 and my plans." 
 
 " I don't wish to hear your plans ; I am disgusted 
 with you, Uno Who." 
 
 " Auntie, do please let me tell you about him." 
 
 "I tell you I do not wish to hear about him. A 
 portion of the prophecy has come true, and now if 
 you marry, what will become of Garita? A woman 
 with a husband has to go at his beck and nod, and he 
 would not let you go looking after that renegade Eoss." 
 
 " Aunty, I am going to look after him. There is no 
 man that will interfere with me and my duty. The 
 statute of limitation has almost run its course, and his 
 downward career will begin next summer, as he is plan- 
 ning to come to America for an English syndicate. I 
 received a letter from Garita wishing me to join them 
 on this trip to some new country where there are mines, 
 I believe." 
 
 " Uno, I am afraid Eoss will get her fortune." 
 
 " He cannot do that. Lord Ayliffe, when consulted 
 by her father in regard to her fortune, advised protec-
 
 Uno Who. 147 
 
 tion. Auntie, I ain going to turn matchmaker. What 
 do you think of that?" 
 
 " I think when a person's head is turned, they do 
 very strange things; you seem to get your own way in 
 most everything, why don't you help Ola to marry Don 
 Alfonso?" 
 
 Marie had been a quiet listener to the conversation, 
 but she now looked up from her work and smiled. 
 
 " I tell you," said Thetis, " Ola is the flower of the 
 family. I used to think she would drive me crazy with 
 her pranks, but a good father and brother, and the in- 
 fluence of a devoted sister, have done their work." 
 
 " Auntie, I am going to have Mercedita marry Lord 
 Galvin, if I can. I wanted you to see him; that was 
 all." 
 
 " Uno, I will do my best, and dress my best. I hope 
 our coat-of-arms will be here by that time, and Osceola 
 will know if he is to take the title of his uncle. I have 
 no doubt Paulo will be able to tell us all. about it. 
 Your cousin, Mercedita, knows how to put on airs 
 enough for all the Lords of creation." 
 
 It is difficult to disguise sorrow or joy. Paulo and 
 Cobre proved escape-valves for their sisters. The de 
 Felipe family thought Lord Galvin one of the most 
 charming men they ever met. 
 
 " Uno, what a strange girl you are to refuse such an 
 offer of marriage," said Mercedita. 
 
 " I will promise you that he will never make me the 
 second offer now that he has seen you."
 
 148 Uno Who. 
 
 " Oh, Uno, I might as well try to pick a star out of 
 Heaven." 
 
 "Mercedita, this is a shooting star, and it will fall 
 at your feet." 
 
 It did fall at her feet sooner than she expected, mak- 
 ing Uno and IKT family very happy. Don Alfonso's 
 choice met with the approval of all his family, and it 
 was arranged that they were to be married at the an- 
 cestral palace of the Estabanez family in Spain. 
 
 Col. Who, with his friends, went to Xew York, where 
 they were to meet the party from England, whom they 
 were to join in the trip to the promised lands of wealth. 
 Upon their return in the fall, Mercedita would be mar- 
 ried to Lord Galvin, and go to England to live. 
 
 Uno and Ola, with her aunt's family, were in Sara- 
 toga, but she went to !N"ew York to see Garita, taking 
 Meno with her. She had received a letter from Dona 
 asking her to have Meno go with Garita as companion. 
 There was no one better fitted to fill that position 
 than the one who had been in the family so many years 
 as companion and friend; otherwise, they would have 
 sent some one from England. 
 
 Garita said that she would much rather have had 
 Wewe, as she never did like Meno as well, but her 
 mother thought it was foolish to take Wewe away from 
 her position in Havana, and Meno was a woman of 
 more character than Wewe in a case of emergency. 
 
 Uno was not prepared for so great a change in 
 Garita. Was it the death of her father, and the part-
 
 Uno Who. 149 
 
 ing with her mother? Or was there some hidden 
 trouble ? 
 
 After a conversation about their relatives and friends, 
 Uno said : " Garita, you do not enter into the spirit 
 of this trip that Mr. Eoss does. Why are you so sad ? " 
 
 Garita motioned to Xannette, who placed a cushion 
 at lino's feet, and went out of the room. 
 
 She folded her hands on lino's lap as she said : " I 
 have so longed for this hour. I could not add any more 
 sorrow to my mother's overburdened heart. My sisters 
 would think me foolish, and when I ventured to say I 
 wished we were not going, Mr. Ross said ' Nonsense ; the 
 trip will be a pleasant change, if nothing more,' and I 
 am tired of the monotonous life." 
 
 Uno smoothed the soft brown hair, twining the 
 little curls around her fingers, unable to utter a word, 
 but she thought, " The shadow is crossing the path of 
 our sunbeam," as she was so often called at home. 
 Then for an instant the curtain seemed drawn aside, 
 and she saw dark heavy clouds gathering in the West, 
 the silver lining being obscured by its sable cloud. 
 The vision passed, when Garita said: 
 
 "Uno, what makes you so pale? And your hands 
 are so cold. This is very selfish of me. You will worry 
 when I am gone." 
 
 "Garita, who else should you confide in? It will 
 make me unhappy if you do not tell me everything. 
 There is nothing that would so stir my spirit to its 
 depth as to know you were in trouble. The arrow of
 
 150 Uno Who. 
 
 the Indian girl upon the trail of her enemy will not 
 be more sure than the cultivated eye and ear of her 
 civilized sister." 
 
 Uno had risen and was walking the floor. Garita 
 went up to her, and laying her head upon the shoulder 
 of her friend, said : " Uno, Uno, what would I do 
 without you? I awaken from sleep with a shudder 
 and a feeling of depression. Mr. Boss says I am griev- 
 ing over the death of my father, and that change of 
 air and scene will bring the color back to my face." 
 
 " Rest, troubled heart, and believe me, Mr. Ross is 
 not unlike other men, who give their wives credit for 
 having very vivid imaginations. They don't see a 
 danger until the crisis is upon them. Then it is ' Hur- 
 rah, boys.' The woe to come and the woe that's gone 
 they think calmly on, but show me the man who calmly 
 bears the woes that are. Garita, we will look our woes 
 squarely in the face, and if necessary take the animal 
 by the horns. Here is my rosary ; wear it for my sake ; 
 we have said our prayers with it many times kneeling 
 side by side."
 
 Uno Who. 151 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 " Man's love is of man's life a thing apart 
 'Tis woman's whole existence." 
 
 "Uxo, you look as if you had lost all your friends," 
 said Mercedita. 
 
 " I am tired, and I think I will retire early." 
 
 " You, tired ? Uno, I do not think I ever heard you 
 say that before. We all think your powers of endur- 
 ance are something marvelous. I know what it is. 
 It's the parting with Mrs. Eoss, and you want to be 
 alone and think. Uno, it is foolish to love so well; 
 love wisely, but always bear in mind that love is a 
 cheat." 
 
 "That is fine talk for a girl who has just parted 
 with her lover," said her sister Eulalie. 
 
 " Well, his love is transferable," replied Mercedita. 
 " He came here for Uno, was piqued by her treatment 
 of him, made up his mind to be engaged to somebody, 
 and I am the willing victim. I am very much in love 
 with his prospective title. If I should find that he still 
 pines for Uno, I will have a compensation in the title. 
 Cousin Uno, why did you not accompany the party 
 on their trip when your brother and Mrs. Ross so 
 urged you ? " 
 
 " Mercedita, it would have been unkind to you.
 
 152 Uno Who. 
 
 From the remark you have just made, you might think 
 Lord Galvin still cared for me. He does not. My 
 brother says he is madly in love with you. A girl 
 gifted, beautiful, stylish and rich should not make a 
 remark like the one you have just made." 
 
 " Uno, you have a faculty of making your friends 
 feel quite satisfied with themselves; but how very quiet 
 Ola is. I suppose her heart is too full of happiness to 
 breathe it to mortal ear, and she finds it very pleasant 
 to think of. Ola, I think you feel very much as the 
 country school teacher did when he said to his pupils 
 that they need not be surprised if he was rather sober 
 to-day and for several days to come, as he had just 
 heard of the death of his father. With the school 
 teacher it was 'from whence no traveler returns/ but 
 with us it is until the travelers return." 
 
 "Mercedita," said Ola, "I was thinking that you 
 and Garita had the most cheerful dispositions of any 
 one I ever knew. I wish she could have remained with 
 us. She said she would be very glad to, but Mr. Eoss 
 insisted upon her going. I told him I thought it was 
 very selfish of him to take that beautiful woman into 
 a new country to remain so long. If he were coming 
 back with the rest of the party, he would not take her, 
 he said. I cannot keep her sad face out of my mind, 
 and I know Uno is all upset and glad to be alone. I 
 see she has dismissed her maid." 
 
 Uno had thrown herself into a chair with an air of 
 abandon that was demoralizing. The change in Gar-
 
 Uno Who. 153 
 
 ita's life had come. The vision was her warning. It 
 is cruel and relentless fate. Hush, troubled heart, and 
 in thee I will erect an altar and it shall be my constant 
 prayer, " Defend, Lord, Thy child." 
 
 She retired, trying in slumber to steep each weary 
 sense into forgetfulness of the past week's excite- 
 ment. 
 
 The summer at Saratoga passed very quickly, the ap- 
 proaching wedding affording food for talk, if not for. 
 thought. 
 
 The October days had nearly gone when the party 
 returned. 
 
 The wedding of Lord Galvin and Mercedita at a 
 Catholic church in New York was simple and beauti- 
 ful. After their departure for their home in England, 
 Uno improved the first opportunity to talk with her 
 brother about Garita. He said she seemed very cheer- 
 ful and appeared to enjoy the journey. 
 
 " It is a frontier town at which place we met some 
 very fine people among the officers and their wives who 
 were connected with the fort, but this scheme of Mr. 
 Ross's won't amount to anything, and you will have 
 Garita at home before long. Uno, why did you send 
 Meno with her?" 
 
 " It was her mother's request. Paulo, why do you 
 ask the question? A remark like this from you means 
 something." 
 
 " Oh, well, I think Wewe would have been more com- 
 panionable."
 
 154 Uno Who. 
 
 " Paulo, she would have been my choice, but she was 
 in Havana, and I did not like to take the responsibility 
 of sending for her, so I simply obeyed Dona's instruc- 
 tions. Meno has always been lovely to Seminole and 
 to me." 
 
 A disgusted look passed over the Colonel's face as 
 he walked to the window, saying: "You belong to 
 the Who family." 
 
 The remark of years ago flashed into Uno's mind: 
 " The de Gomoras are perfection," also the sarcasm 
 that accompanied it. 
 
 "I fear she will not get along well with Mr. Ross, 
 for he did not think it necessary to take her. It is for 
 her interests to be faithful to Garita. Captain Guyford 
 says she made a very favorable impression at the fort, 
 and that you and Garita excited the envy of both men 
 and women. He seemed to have enjoyed his trip im- 
 mensely. 
 
 The Colonel did not appear to have heard a word his 
 sister had been saying, for he turned suddenly around 
 as he said: "Uno, are you not aware that Indians 
 never let anything come between them and the object 
 of their affection ? " 
 
 " Paulo, she cannot be jealous of a married woman." 
 
 "Uno, you do not understand that Garita will un- 
 consciously excite the jealousy of her own sex. Meno 
 may turn traitor. She said to me with a bitterness 
 she was unable to control, that she supposed she ought 
 to feel highly honored to be the companion of one of
 
 Uno Who. 155 
 
 the proud de Gomoras. She expected me to say some- 
 thing, but was disappointed." 
 
 Later events caused Uno to wonder that she did not 
 at the time more fully comprehend the meaning of the 
 conversation with her brother. Had she known then 
 that these were the preliminary steps to a plot, that 
 even the actors themselves were unconscious of what 
 they were being led into, what would she have done? 
 Simply nothing, but make herself supremely miserable. 
 
 For a time Garita seemed to have passed out of lino's 
 life, so occupied was she in what was going on about 
 her. Imogene's school was a great success. She had 
 interested Evelyn in the work. Seminole had fold 
 her of Col. Sebastian's daughter being without a home. 
 The mortgage on the place was about to be foreclosed; 
 and her husband was dissipated. 
 
 Uno said : " The daughter of Col. Sebastian must be 
 provided for." And she took the family to the plan- 
 tation, taking care of the mortgage, that the boy should 
 not be deprived of his inheritance. 
 
 Her cousin Cobre had married Miss Fay, and the 
 family was settled in Havana. Ola and her brother 
 spent most of their time in that city, and they thought 
 Uno should not confine herself to the plantation, as 
 Marie, and her father were there. 
 
 She found she had hardly time to think, so many 
 demands were made upon her. Garita's letters were 
 cheerful. She enjoyed the society of the Rector and 
 his wife, and had been asked to play the organ, in
 
 156 Uno Who. 
 
 church, a reminder of her mother's early life. There 
 were several ladies who were fine musicians, and she en- 
 joyed the dancing parties at the fort. 
 
 "Auntie," said Uno, "which had you rather we 
 would do? All go to Florida and spend Christmas 
 with Seminole at ' The Shadows,' or have them come 
 here." 
 
 " Uno, I think it would be very heartless for you to 
 go and leave Wauka and me here alone, as you know we 
 would not go." 
 
 " Auntie, it would also be heartless to leave Seminole 
 alone. For my part, I prefer having them all come 
 here at this happy time." 
 
 "Oh, dear, how can my nerves bear the terrible 
 strain of having those young Arabs here? I can tell 
 you one thing, Senorita Who, you will have to lock 
 that museum door. The last time they were here 
 they took those beautiful birds' eggs your Uncle thought 
 so much of out of the case, and were going to play 
 marbles with them. I took the boys by the ears and 
 led them out of the room, and they screamed like wild 
 Indians on the warpath. 
 
 "They may come out of the narrows, and be as 
 good as Ola is, but I doubt it. The blood is mixed 
 there, and ours is very pure. They have never been 
 allowed to sit at the table with their father and mother, 
 and of course have very bad table manners, but I sup- 
 pose they will have to come, and I will find myself 
 making ginger snaps for them."
 
 Uno Who. 157 
 
 Seminole brought a letter that she had just received 
 from Meno which she wished Uno to read. They were 
 very homesick, she wrote, except Mr. Ross, who seemed 
 to be enjoying himself. She said : " It would be pleas- 
 anter for them all if Garita was not so very exclusive. 
 She does not visit any one but the Rector's wife, and 
 the wives of the officers who are stationed here. She 
 will not receive Mr. Ross's friends who, I think, are very 
 nice. She was agreeably disappointed in Mr. Ross, who 
 is one of the best of men. Just now Garita is feeling 
 quite unhappy. She has made the Colonel's wife very 
 jealous of her, and they have stopped the dancing 
 parties. Of course there is no cause for jealousy, only 
 Garita's pretty face does fascinate the men." 
 
 They had passed a pleasant winter, however. Garita 
 had done a great deal for both the Catholic and Episco- 
 pal churches, and had assisted in getting up entertain- 
 ments, which made her very popular at first. 
 
 " As for myself, I get along very well, I have made 
 several very pleasant acquaintances." 
 
 Uno did not like the tone of this letter. It was a re- 
 flection upon Garita, and her brother's words came to 
 her mind. Why did she send Meno? 
 
 She told Seminole to write at once to Meno, and find 
 out all she could. As they had been on confidential 
 terms, she could do so, and she was surprised when 
 Seminole asked her if she did not know that Meno was 
 very much in love with Paulo. Uno had not noticed it, 
 but she said pehaps Meno was jealous of Paulo's at-
 
 158 Uno Who. 
 
 tentions to Garita, whom he always treated in the same 
 kind and gentle manner he did his sisters. She then 
 told Seminole what Paulo had said, and her fears that 
 she would not be true to Garita if she were in trouble. 
 
 " Uno, you have known very little of her since you 
 were a child. I know her thoroughly. She is a bitter 
 foe, so sly and gentle, when there is a point she wishes 
 to gain, and will take one unawares. She is now un- 
 happy to think Paulo is at home, and she is away. 
 When she returns she can go to ' Sunnyside,' and take 
 care of old Mary Dee. I do not want any more wild- 
 flowers around me." 
 
 " Seminole, this is a revelation to me. I am now in 
 deep trouble. If I ever get the truth, it will be from 
 Xannette, and I gave her instructions to write me if 
 Garita was unhappy. Fortunately the maids at ' Sun- 
 nyside ' were quite well educated. When Garita returns, 
 we will manage to keep Meno out of her life. I shud- 
 der at the thought that she might be the one of our 
 tribe told in the prophecy." 
 
 While they were talking Osceola came in with the 
 mail. One letter was from Garita. She had little to 
 write about. The church in which she was very much 
 interested would be open for service the first time on 
 Christmas eve, and she would play the organ, which was 
 her gift. 
 
 "Meno has become very religious of late, and spends a 
 great deal of time in going to church, which is quite 
 new for her. She has made a great many acquaint-
 
 Uno Who. 159 
 
 ances, also rather forces herself upon mine. Uno, she 
 is developing." 
 
 If it were possible they would have recalled Meno, 
 but for what reason? They knew she would willingly 
 come, for Paulo was at home. They made up their 
 minds they would not worry any more, nor do anything 
 until they heard from Nannette. 
 
 In a short time Garita wrote again, saying she had 
 found a letter on the floor of her room from Mrs. 
 Estaugh that she had written to Mr. Eoss. It impressed 
 her that the letter was left there intentionally. She 
 wrote sympathizing with Mr. Boss for being out in that 
 new country, and was sorry to hear there were stories be- 
 ing circulated in regard to Garita. " That she had ever 
 been in love with any one before you met her, I do not 
 believe, neither do I believe she married you out of 
 spite, or that her friends were glad to have her out of 
 the way because of her marrying beneath her position in 
 life. That she is pining to the extent of losing her 
 mind, surprises me, though I never thought her very- 
 strong minded. I hope you will write me should her 
 malady increase." 
 
 Garita wrote she had told Mr. Eoss about this letter. 
 He said he did write to Mrs. Estaugh occasionally, but 
 he had not written in a long time, neither had he heard 
 from her. He could not imagine how the letter came 
 there. It was from Boston, and in Mrs. Estaugh's 
 handwriting. " Strange, is it not, TJno ? " 
 
 Uno's first thought was to send Imogene to her. She
 
 160 Uno Who. 
 
 could counteract all Meno's underhand work. She is 
 under obligations to me, she thought. Then after con- 
 sidering she felt that was a reason why she^should not 
 be employed in a case like this. " Her family live in 
 Garita's birthplace. She might some day wish to make 
 them forget her mistake by bringing up Garita's mis- 
 fortune, and the active part she was called upon to .take 
 in it. People do so like to have something to tell," and 
 Uno threw the letter on the floor saying to herself: 
 "No, Imogene, stay where you are." 
 
 Uno talked with her father and he said: "My daugh- 
 ter, you cannot hasten the day of Garita's release. When 
 you are called upon it is time enough to act, otherwise 
 even she might think you officious. We must wait until 
 that man is fully developed."
 
 Uno Who. 161 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 " Her face a heart of flint might tender make." 
 
 IN the fjpring Uno received a letter from Nannette 
 which she took to the convent that the Mother Supe- 
 rior might understand the state of affairs from the be- 
 ginning. It read as follows : " Dear Senorita : I hope 
 you will pardon me for writing a conversation that 
 has taken place between my mistress and myself. I 
 told Senora there was something I would like to tell 
 her if she would allow me. She said e Certainly.' We 
 were among strangers, and that she wished me to tell her 
 all I heard that we might protect ourselves if necessary. 
 I told Senora her colored laundress was brought up 
 in the South, and we had become friends. She washed 
 for ladies at the fort, and had often told me of ques- 
 tions she was asked in regard to her, and that she had 
 been told the reason that Mr. Ross kept Senorita Meno 
 and me with her was because she was not in her right 
 mind. She turned deathly pale, and I thought she would 
 faint. I said, ' Honey, don't look like that, it breaks 
 my heart to tell you. The good Lord knows I would 
 bear it all if I could for the child I have never been sep- 
 arated from a day since she was born. Honey, be brave, 
 and we will work together, otherwise my actions might 
 11
 
 162 Uno Who. 
 
 look strange to you. It is no use to put this notion 
 into Mr. Boss's head. Men are queer. They cannot 
 see trouble until it is ready to knock them down. That 
 is why women get the best of them. Now, honey, dear, 
 what is the trouble ? Tell your old nurse. If we want 
 to beat the devil, we must use some of his tools. If 
 we are as watchful for good as he is for bad, we will 
 get there first. We will watch and pray, that is what 
 I've been doing.' 
 
 " Then my dear mistress told me that she had found 
 a letter on Mr. Ross's dressing table. He had laid it on 
 the white cover with the address down, and had forgot- 
 ten to take the letter with him when he changed his 
 coat. It was an invitation signed ' Signal.' I did not 
 give him the letter, as I did not wish him to know I 
 had seen it. Nannette, this seems to excite you. Have 
 you ever heard the name before? Yes, honey, that 
 was from Mrs. Red, the woman he wished to have call 
 upon you. Her husband's name is Signal, and a danger 
 signal they are. He works for Mr. Ross, and must 
 get fine pay from the way they are living in the house 
 they have just moved into. 
 
 " I did not tell my mistress, but I know he goes there 
 a great deal. They wish to make a cat's paw of my poor 
 darling by her going there, as it would take the curse 
 off his visits. Mrs. Red is angry because Mrs. Ross 
 would not receive her, and is now quietly circulating this 
 story. She tells it to her dressmakers, who are anxious 
 to keep in her good graces, as she is dressing fine. I
 
 Uno Who. 163 
 
 used to think the colored people could be as smart as 
 white folks if they had the chance, but this beats me. 
 All I can do is to deny the lie, but it needs a powerful 
 sight of grace to keep my tongue still. 
 
 " I went into the closet and shut the door, and Sen- 
 orita, I took right hold of the horns of the altar and 
 asked God to help me to save my poor darling from these 
 people, for I had heard Mr. Eoss tell his wife that she 
 must send home for money, and I knew where the 
 money was going. I hope you will not think I have 
 done gone mad, but Mr. Eoss is acting very strangely, 
 and Senora has very little to say to Meno, who, I think, 
 goes to Mrs. Bed's to please Mr. Eoss." 
 
 The Mother Superior said she understood the case 
 perfectly, and advised Uno to see Garita's brother and 
 prepare him for a change. That when the time came 
 there would be no delay. 
 
 Uno took Ola and they went to Florida. She had 
 a talk with Seminole about Meno, and the course to 
 be taken in regard to her upon her return. They must 
 keep control of her tongue, and that she should not be 
 among Garita's old friends they would manage to get 
 her on the plantation for a visit. 
 
 She did not tell Seminole of the story circulated in 
 regard to her mind, only that Mr. Eoss was spending 
 his time and money upon a family Garita would not 
 visit, and Meno did to please Mr. Eoss. The crazy part 
 of the story must be told only to Osceola and the 
 Mother Superior.
 
 164 Uno Who. 
 
 While in Florida Uno received what seemed a strange 
 letter from Nannette. She said Senorita Meno had 
 called at the house of Major West, and while there Col. 
 O'Toole's wife came in, and this was the conversation 
 that took place. " Senorita Meno has written it for me 
 to copy, saying she did not wish to get mixed up in 
 this affair, but thought it best you should know how 
 Senora was talked about. 
 
 " I have taken your advice, and have never told Meno 
 anything. I saw enough on the journey here, and 
 while your brother was here, to disgust a sensible woman. 
 She was so jealous of your brother's little attentions 
 to Senora that she has hated her ever since, and I know 
 that she started the story that they were old lovers, 
 and her father would not let her marry him because of 
 his Indian blood, and it had affected her mind. I think 
 she has put this idea in Mr. Ross's head, for I heard my 
 mistress tell him it was no more for Paulo to be at- 
 tentive to her than it was for him to be attentive to 
 Mrs. Estaugh. He told her he could see through the 
 whole affair, and she had married him out of spite, 
 and that she was mourning for her lover, not her father. 
 
 " You see he must get some excuse for his own bad 
 conduct. I wish we had some one here as smart as 
 Senorita Meno to help us. It takes a powerful sight 
 of faith to sit here and wait for help, seeing these devils 
 gaining ground every day. 
 
 " This is a copy of what Senorita Meno gave me ; 
 but she was very careful to keep the one she wrote:
 
 Uno Who. 165 
 
 " Mrs. West, I hear that Mr. Ross is very pleased 
 that the Colonel has stopped the dancing parties. My 
 daughter feels very badly about it, and I know we will 
 all miss them. There is so little pleasure to be gotten 
 out of life in a place like this. 
 
 "Well, Mrs. O'Toole, it is all your own fault. Of 
 course, Mr. Ross does not care, as he never dances, but 
 I think it very selfish when he sees how much his wife 
 enjoyed them. Mrs. Red is so piqued at her not being 
 able to get into our little circle that she would help to 
 break up the dancing or anything else. She is very 
 liberal in her purchase of tickets for our entertainment. 
 Miss Wildflower, I hear Mr. Ross does not wish his wife 
 to sing or recite for us. I cannot see what objection 
 he can have. 
 
 " Mrs. O'Toole, I do not think he has any objection, 
 only on account of her health, but she is going to both 
 sing and recite for you. She says if Mr. Ross does not 
 care to go we can go alone. Then said : ' Mrs. West, the 
 papers will make a time over the beautiful Mrs. Ross, 
 lashing Mrs. O'Toole' s and Mrs. Red's jealousy into fury.' 
 
 "'Well, I cannot understand why a young and beauti- 
 ful woman like Mrs. Ross should come to this frontier 
 town to live,' said Mrs. O'Toole. 
 
 " ' I suppose she came for the same reason that you 
 and I did, to be with her husband/ said Mrs. West. 
 
 " ' Miss Wildflower, I presume you have come here 
 to live, judging from the beautiful furniture and piano 
 Mrs. Ross has here,' said Mrs. O'Toole, 'but they
 
 166 Uno Who. 
 
 say that Mr. Ross's business will be a failure, and I 
 should think she would want it to be.' 
 
 "'Why, Mrs. O'Toole? Mrs. West, I cannot see 
 any pleasure in living in a place and being talked about 
 as Mrs. Ross is.' 
 
 " ' Then/ said Mrs. West, laughing, ' I should think 
 you would want to receive marching orders, for your 
 jealousy is as much talked of as Mrs. Ross's beauty/ 
 
 ."'That is rather broad, Mrs. West, but it seems 
 that I am not the only jealous person, for her husband 
 is also affected in that way. Now, don't you really 
 think that a very strange match, Mrs. West?' 
 
 " ' Yes, I have often thought of it. She is his super- 
 ior in every respect. He is fine looking, but not a man 
 of much character. She seems so sad of late.' 
 
 " ' Oh, Mrs. West, she puts that on to attract the men.' 
 
 "'My dear Mrs. O'Toole, this is beneath you. We 
 should try and put down this gossip. It is very unpleas- 
 ant for the Colonel, and when the officers' wives see you 
 and your daughter treat her as you do, they do not know 
 how to act/ 
 
 " ' Mrs. West, what do you think of this story of her 
 being in love with Col. Who? Her parents opposed it, 
 as he is a half-breed Indian, and she married Mr. Ross 
 out of spite, which has somewhat affected her mind; 
 and they got this position for him to get them away 
 from England. You know she married him in America, 
 did she not, Miss Wildflower ? ' 
 
 " ' Yes, they were married in the South at her home,
 
 Uno Who. 167 
 
 and there is not a word of truth in her mind being 
 affected, and I shall be glad to see her leave here.' 
 
 " ( I feel strangely drawn to her/ said Mrs. West, 
 ' and think she has a wordless grief. That she is simply 
 accepting the position in life in which she has placed 
 herself. The. Rector and his wife do not wish to give 
 offense to you and the Colonel, and Mrs. Ross has re- 
 fused to play the organ, as your daughter is not allowed 
 to sing.' 
 
 " ' Then, Mrs. West, you do not believe the story about 
 her seeing my husband, and what do you think of her 
 flirting with the officers as she used to when we had the 
 dances ? ' 
 
 " ' There was no flirting about it, Mrs. O'Toole. 
 They were simply the pretty airs and graces of a culti- 
 vated society woman. She goes very often to the con- 
 vent. I hear she had letters to the Mother Superior. 
 Is that true, Miss Wildflower ? ' 
 
 " ' Yes, and Mrs. Ross is going to give an organ to 
 the Catholic church, and it will be here very soon.' 
 
 " ' There, she knows my husband is a devout Catholic, 
 and she will make that organ an excuse for going there. 
 He has known of this and has not told me.' 
 
 " ' Oh, Mrs. O'Toole, you are exasperating ; I have 
 heard you tell your husband to not mention her name 
 in your presence.' 
 
 " ' Well, I hope they will go away. His business is 
 a failure. He and Mr. Red are always together, and 
 he must pay him a fine salary from the way they live.'
 
 1 68 Uno Who. 
 
 " ' Mrs. O'Toole, if I were you I would not allow my 
 feelings to run away with my judgment. You will 
 find it is Mrs. Ross who has reason to grieve, and not 
 you, and we will not allow this gossip to bring on a 
 war that would be worse than fighting Indians/ " 
 
 After hearing the letter, Seminole sitting with 
 clasped hands looked at Uno, as if waiting for her to 
 express herself upon the subject and object of this 
 strange missive, and finally she spid: 
 
 " Uno, what are your thoughts upon the course Meno 
 is taking?" 
 
 " My thoughts are in such a muddle I have to stop 
 and arrange them. In the first place Meno wants to 
 came home, and has taken this course to get me stirred 
 up and have her sent for. She is jealous of Garita, and 
 for some reason is trying to undermine her. I do not 
 believe she contradicted one of the lies she said she did 
 in talking with those ladies. There is truth in part 
 of it. What Nannette has written proves that. She 
 has Nannette do the writing, so that if anything should 
 come of it there would be no proof against her, and I 
 will venture to say she has taken good care to secure 
 the paper she gave Nannette to write from. She would 
 not like to have it known that she had written about 
 Mr. Eoss, even in the guarded manner she has done." 
 
 " I have no doubt but that it is her doings with, 
 perhaps, the assistance of Mrs. Red, that has excited 
 Mrs. O'Toole's jealousy so as to get a start for her 
 plot."
 
 Uno Who. 169 
 
 "Uno, in all our talk, you have never given any 
 reason for her dislike of Garita. What is it? " 
 
 " I must confess I do not know, though I have often 
 in a sort of a way wondered at it." 
 
 " I will tell you. She is never accepted as an equal 
 by the de Gomora family, but is always kept in the 
 position of one who is being paid for their services. 
 When Paulo is there she feels it keenly to have him see 
 her not treated as he and his sisters are, and she will 
 bring disgrace on the family if she can. She is madly 
 in love with Paulo, and knows he will never marry 
 beneath him. She has often told me that her father 
 and mother were as good as ours, and she was our equal 
 in all but money. When I told her Ola was engaged to 
 Don Alfonso, she set her teeth, then .said the ' de Go- 
 moras again.'" 
 
 " Seminole, there is no doubt but that she is the In- 
 dian of the prophecy. You know her better than I do, 
 and you must help me. It is something we cannot ex- 
 plain, even to our own family. You will remember on 
 what familiar terms she was with Mrs. Estaugh, as 
 Maud Ayling at Saratoga, and I am now quite sure she 
 has written something to her as if coming from Mr. 
 Ross, and the reply she put in Garita's room herself, 
 thinking to make trouble between Mr. and Mr?. Ross, 
 and in other ways to worry and embarrass Garita." 
 
 Garita's letters did not give any information in re- 
 gard to her troubles. She said Mr. Ross's business did 
 not seem to be a success, and she thought it would not
 
 170 Uno Who. 
 
 be long before she returned to her home in Florida. 
 Garita would consider it a great liberty on the part of 
 her maid if she knew she was writing to Uno in re- 
 gard to her troubles, overlooking the loving kindness of 
 the act which in time she would approve of, and Uno 
 fearing her letters might fall into other hands dared 
 not mention in a direct way what Garita had written in 
 regard to the Estaugh letter. 
 
 The only thing she could do was to wait until the 
 syndicate were tired of sending money and he began to 
 make demands on Garita. 
 
 Her brothers had heard what Meno had written Semi- 
 nole, and when asked for a large amount of money they 
 wrote her she had best come home on a visit, and they 
 wrote to England to have Mr. Boss recalled. 
 
 In the early fall, while the families were at Sara- 
 toga, Uno received a letter from Nannette. She had 
 heard the first quarrel between Mr. and Mrs. Ross. He 
 demanded that she dismiss Xannette; that Meno was 
 company enough for her; that she was well and able to 
 wait upon herself, as other women did, and they could 
 not afford the expense. 
 
 " Senorita Uno, at this her proud spirit rebelled, and 
 Mr. Ross saw he was going too far, and appeared sur- 
 prised at what he called her display of temper. She 
 cried herself into a nervous headache. I tried in every 
 way to soothe her, then she said : ' Xanny, sing to me/ 
 After a while she said : ' I can almost imagine I am at 
 home once more. No, my faithful, I will never part
 
 Uno Who. 171 
 
 with you.' I said, ' Just think, honey, my mother was 
 your mother's maid when you were born. She always 
 called her that dear angel. Many's the story she told 
 of your grandmother; how fine they were in England. 
 Senorita Uno's great-great-grandfather was alive 
 when you and she were born. My mother had a great 
 love for telling and talking about the prophecy until 
 your mother told her to not say anything more about 
 it.' Oh, Senorita, I was so frightened. She said, 
 ( Nanny, give me my salts, I am very faint ; open 
 the window.' ' My dear mistress, what is the trouble ? ' 
 I exclaimed. She walked the room, her hands clasped 
 over her head, and after a while she said : 1 1 feel better 
 now. Come sit beside me. I am interested in the 
 story of the prophecy, I really had forgotten it. 
 Strange, is it not, that we should have gotten on that 
 subject to-day ? I believe it is going to drive my head- 
 ache away? Do you remember it?' 
 
 " I said, e I think so, but I have a copy of it,' and I 
 think every slave on the plantation had a copy of the 
 oracle's last prophecy. I got it and read to her. When 
 it came to the part about her, ' poor little pale face will 
 have sad life with pale-face man, and will be in great 
 danger from a woman of our tribe, Uno Who will save 
 her, and the pride of the de Gomora family.' 
 
 " She sobbed and cried, saying, ' I wish I could see 
 Uno. The part of the prophecy of their family being 
 honored has come true, and I am sure this will, even my 
 father spoke of the prophecy concerning them coming
 
 172 Uno Who. 
 
 true. Yes, they all believe it, and strange that I have 
 not thought of it.' 
 
 " She was walking the floor again, and said, 'This day 
 my eyes have been opened.' She threw herself on the 
 bed in a fit of hysterical crying. She said, * Do not let 
 Meno come in until I get myself under control. Then 
 I will tell her to go to Mrs. West and say I cannot go 
 out this afternoon. Nanny, I see my time for action 
 has come. I will think of my future, asking wisdom of 
 Him who giveth freely, and upbraideth not.' 
 
 " I left her and went to my room. There is a com- 
 municating door, and I heard that dear child praying 
 for the man who is so unjust to her. Yes, Senorita, 
 praying for him and I wishing the devil had him. If 
 things keep on at this rate my thinking cap won't hold 
 out. I believe in prayer, and am on my knees half of 
 the time asking for help, but to pray for that man is 
 an insult to the Lord. 
 
 " Pardon me, Senorita, I know you would not allow 
 me to talk to you this way, but all the ' nigger ' in me 
 is roused. My disposition is ruined forever if I live 
 here much longer. 
 
 " Mr. Ross is done gone when he reach the point when 
 he want to separate me from my mistress. This is that 
 woman's work. She has him sure enough. My blood 
 is boiling, and I wish I could go to ' nigger ' prayer- 
 meeting, where I could shout. The evil one has got 
 hold of me since I went with the laundress and saw Mr. 
 Ross go to the Signal Red house, and they were having
 
 Uno Who. 173 
 
 a fine time. It is now common talk of the town his 
 attentions to her. I have heard Mr. Ross ask his wife 
 what made her talk so nervous, and she simply replied, 
 ' Do I ? ' When we were alone she said, * He never used 
 to talk like this to me/ 
 
 " Senorita, it will be necessary to do something for 
 her very soon, or her health will suffer. She is not 
 well now, and if things keep on it will be enough to 
 turn her head. She seems to have taken a dislike to 
 Meno, but does not appear so to her, as they go driving 
 together every day, but the Indian lady is fine. She 
 needs your care, for I believe she is the Indian of the 
 prophecy." 
 
 When Uno received this letter she knew Mr. Ross 
 would soon be recalled, and they would keep Garita in 
 her old home during the winter. She wondered where 
 the powers of the seventh daughter were that she had 
 not read the heart of Meno, but Meno did not know her 
 own heart. Had anyone told her before she went away 
 that she would plot to injure that innocent woman, she 
 would have been highly indignant. 
 
 The little things she had said were harmless, perhaps 
 she was jealous. Who could help being of one so richly 
 endowed with blessings? 
 
 Could she have stood beside Uno while she drew aside 
 the curtain to a tragic scene she would have said, " How 
 horrible!"
 
 174 Uno Who. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 " Afford me place to show what recompense 
 Towards thee I intend for what I have misdone." 
 
 THERE was great rejoicing at the news that Garita was 
 coming home. To the many friends who thought her 
 ill, it was told that she had been very homesick, also 
 that the climate did not agree with her. 
 
 Mr. Ross was very loverlike in his devotions to his 
 wife. Meno had to tell of her sympathy for Mrs. Ross 
 at having to live so long in that new country, and how 
 much she had done for the churches, and how she had 
 been admired. Uno was unprepared for the course 
 she and Mr. Ross were taking, but she thought, " You 
 are not going to outwit me this time. The serpent is 
 not dead, but waiting a more convenient season." 
 
 Garita received their attentions in an indifferent man- 
 ner. She made not the slightest sign of approval or 
 pleasure at anything they said or did. She was at 
 home and could talk if she chose, and all would be 
 taken for gospel truth. For the time being they were 
 in her power. She could send them both out from her 
 life homeless and friendless, but it was her husband, and 
 it was for better or for worse. Then perhaps the dark 
 days would never come back.
 
 Uno Who. 175 
 
 Uno invited the families to her plantation home. It 
 seemed that every one wanted to do something for 
 Garita. She was overwhelmed with kindness, and by 
 none more than Paulo, who was so straightforward and 
 honorable in all he said and did that her enemies could 
 not help but understand that he knew what they had 
 done and said. 
 
 Mr. Ross would not go to England to live, and Garita 
 had her friends secure a position for him at the North, 
 where they went in the spring to live. Uno felt that 
 Garita was being led on by the light of the eternal stars 
 to promised lands that lay ahead only to be betrayed 
 into the hands of her enemies. 
 
 In regard to Meno, she felt that their path in life 
 would never cross again, for the family could prevent it. 
 It would have been better for Garita if Mr. Eoss had 
 gone to England to live, but the social atmosphere was 
 not congenial. He could now have a fine income, and 
 could seek the society of those who would appreciate a 
 nature like his. He admired and loved his wife, if he 
 could bring her down to his level, all would be well. 
 He was under restraint in her society and that of her 
 friends, and he deceived her because he knew she 
 would not approve of the truth, and consequently 
 drifted away from her into the social life of those who 
 make a weak nature like his believe he is married but 
 not mated. 
 
 Mr. Eoss had asked his wife to write to England, 
 and secure this position for him, and she was in hopes
 
 176 Uno Who. 
 
 that he would do differently. Vain hope she did not 
 know this would be one more act in the drama of her 
 life. 
 
 Garita spent the summer at Saratoga with her 
 brother, Mr. Ross going there frequently. In the fall 
 she would go to the beautiful house she had purchased. 
 Her friends were delighted when they heard she was 
 going to a home of her own, and were lavish in the 
 beautiful gifts they bestowed. 
 
 She was happy to all appearances, taking the greatest 
 interest in the furnishing of her house. It was late 
 in the fall before she was ready for the reception of 
 Ola and Uno whom she had invited to be her first guests. 
 
 She was expecting her cousin, Don Alfonso, but he 
 was detained in Madrid by the illness of his father 
 whose recovery was doubtful. 
 
 Upon receipt of this news Col. Who went to Eng- 
 land. He had been waiting for Don Alfonso that they 
 might return together. 
 
 The family's claim to nobility had been established, 
 and there was much that needed looking after. He 
 would, therefore, remain in Spain during the winter. 
 
 Garita had not told Uno of her strange and unhappy 
 life, and she felt that perhaps it was unjust to her 
 friend. In the future if anything further should oc- 
 cur, Uno would be prepared by knowledge of the past 
 how to act for her. 
 
 Uno had not referred to anything in regard to Mr. 
 Ross except the Estaugh letter, and she rather encour-
 
 Uno Who. 177 
 
 aged the belief that it was Meno'c doings. It at least 
 would make better feeling in regard to Mr. Koss to think 
 so. 
 
 Garita improved the first opportunity when they were 
 alone to relate to her what Nannette had already writ- 
 ten, omitting the one subject of most importance, her 
 mind. She tried in every way to make some excuse for 
 Mr. Ross, even smoothing over the parts she was obliged 
 to tell. Uno had brought with her the letter that Meno 
 had Nannette copy, and she gave the letter to Garita 
 to read. It opened the way to Uno's letting her know 
 she was aware of the story about her mind being af- 
 fected, which she felt sure Garita would never tell un- 
 less forced to. 
 
 At first she was inclined to blame Nannette for 
 doing what Meno asked her to, but Uno very soon mads 
 her see the necessity for action on the part of Nan- 
 nette. 
 
 Garita walked the floor of her boudoir for a few 
 minutes in silence, then as if in desperation at finding 
 her secret was known, she pushed a hassock in front of 
 Uno, and sitting down laid her head in her lap, bursting 
 out crying, saying : " Uno, Uno, how I longed for you 
 in those terrible days. The prophecy has come true, 
 but I am sure the worst is not over. I had forgotten 
 about it until Nannette referred to it one day, and since 
 then my eyes have been opened, and I am sure my hus- 
 band is deceiving me now, but I am among friends, and 
 shall try and have some of them with me. 0, that I
 
 178 Uno Who. 
 
 could forget. You can never know how cruelly he has 
 wronged me. I kept a great deal from Nannette, for she 
 got so excited, but now I shall trust her, and you will 
 know what I cannot write. 
 
 " When my eyes were first opened I was crushed, yes, 
 my very life seemed to have paused, as it were, but now 
 I am learning to suffer and be strong, though I also have 
 learned that life is a lie and love a cheat. I first 
 thought that I would go and leave my husband to his 
 fate, but that would cause no end of talk. Then 1 
 knew they would soon hear of the wreck at home and 
 that lifeboats would be sent, and he would go with 
 me. It seemed sometimes that I was forsaken by God. 
 I could not pray, my heart was so full of grief. My 
 looks were my accusers with those who had wronged me. 
 Oh, he was strangely infatuated; very irritable, and the 
 letters I found fairly glared at me. Then I became the 
 daughter of my proud father in my treatment of him. 
 You know my affectionate nature toward those I love. 
 I continued to bestow upon him that affection until one 
 day with his strong arm he laid my heart dead at his 
 feet. Since then these poor lonely ghosts of my buried 
 hopes have haunted me night and day. I try to bring 
 back the quickening tide of life once more, but it is 
 too late. Each day I enter into my holy of holies, and 
 there implore of him who doeth all things well to keep 
 my home from being polluted by the one I have taken 
 for better or for worse." 
 
 She asked Uno to accompany her, and before a beau-
 
 Uno Who. 179 
 
 tiful altar they prayed that peace and purity, truth and 
 justice might be her gentle guests. There with uplifted 
 hands she prayed for the man who had so cruelly 
 wronged her. Then she told Uno she had now buried 
 the past, and would go forth to meet the shadowy future. 
 In her beautiful little chapel she had a window in mem- 
 ory of her father, a crucifix that had been sent to htr 
 from Spain with paintings, and an organ. She said: 
 " I have always thought when I had a home I would 
 have a chapel where our dear Lord should be the 
 honored guest." She then had the folding doors thrown 
 open into the music room, connecting it with the chapel. 
 
 When Mr. Ross came home, Garita with Ola and 
 Uno were singing. He stood listening and enjoying 
 the beauty of the rooms until they had finished. He 
 then put his arm about his wife, and kissed her lovely 
 brow, saying: "The arrangement of these rooms is 
 like you ; have you shown Senorita the harp ? " 
 
 " Oh, yes, Mr. Eoss, and I have enjoyed it very much, 
 also the inscription for You-Know-Who ; it is very kind 
 of you, and I have been made to feel I am a welcome 
 guest in your house." 
 
 Garita played and sang, accompanied by Ola and 
 Uno: 
 
 " Some may win fortune, 
 
 And some may win fame ; 
 All must know sorrow, 
 
 And many know shame ; 
 As we wander life's pilgrimage through ;
 
 i8o Uno Who. 
 
 Come the joy or the grief in my pathway that lies, 
 Even shame I could bear if the few that I prize 
 Would look on me with the same fond eyes, 
 And thou art among the few." 
 
 As they sang the last line Garita looked up in her 
 husband's face as he stood beside her turning the leaves 
 of the music, her large brown eyes beaming with love 
 so sad it must have gone to his heart, for he put his 
 arm across her shoulder and lovingly patted her cheek. 
 
 Was it their imagination that there was a slight 
 tremor in his voice when he said : " Garita, you never 
 sang better, and it would be well to take lessons of one 
 of our fine professors this winter." 
 
 As she arose from the piano she said : " I am trying 
 to prevail upon Ola to remain here. She is already 
 in great demand, and I would have an incentive to keep 
 up my practice." 
 
 The shadow that passed over his face did not escape 
 Uno's notice, and seating herself in an armchair, she 
 thought, that man is playing a part, and from this 
 time I will begin playing mine. Why cannot he be 
 true to himself and the woman who has placed her 
 life's happiness in his hands? He is a weak man, and 
 an artful woman could flatter him into almost any- 
 thing when she has him in her power. She can lead 
 him, for he is a moral coward. That artful woman 
 will say, 'Do as I wish or I will expose you to your 
 family.' The wife says, 'I can bear this neglect no 
 longer.' He knows exposure is financial ruin. His
 
 Uno Who. 181 
 
 evil influence says, 'Be cautious, we must keep the 
 means of support. I love you and would make any 
 sacrifice, and that is more than you will receive in 
 your uninteresting home. Your wife wearies you. 
 Her friends are not congenial. If I have not family 
 influence I manage to keep as good society as you care 
 for, and there is no restraint. You must be careful 
 how you treat your wife, for we must keep public 
 opinion on our side.' His evil influence says, ' I dare 
 not say it to him, but I will poison the mind of public 
 opinion, then it will be easy to control him. When he 
 sees others turn against her, and she will be left to 
 weep alone, he will think there must be something 
 wrong. His treatment of her will irritate her, for she 
 is proud and sensitive. He will come to me, and I 
 will sympathize with him, but tell him what I have 
 heard, and that he must take his wife out and have 
 his friends see that he does not neglect her. But I will 
 be sure that I have a new story of some freak of hers 
 started; a certain set will get it, and she will feel that 
 she is the subject of remark. He will notice the neglect, 
 and begin to think there must be something wrong. 
 He will tell me, and I will pity him, but urge him to 
 take her out, and keep her before the public. Show 
 them how devoted you are, and when the right time 
 comes you can keep her home and have the sympathy 
 of the public, and your business interests will not be 
 injured. I must not let him know the part I have 
 taken in it, for he once loved his wife. Yes, he idolized
 
 182 Uno Who. 
 
 her, and I must be very careful that he does not see 
 through my plot to get him in my power and his wife 
 out of the way." 
 
 " Uno, what have you been thinking about ? " said 
 Garita. " You have been buried in thought for some 
 minutes." 
 
 Uno then realized she had been oblivious to every- 
 thing about her during which time Garita's life lay 
 before her, and she felt herself in the worst Eoss chill 
 she had ever experienced. She saw him looking at her 
 intently, and the thought came to her mind, had Meno 
 told him of the prophecy? She was satisfied she had, 
 and that he would keep her out of his life as far as it 
 was possible for him to do. He knew few of her sisters, 
 and she would take good care that Meno did not know 
 of any of their movements to inform him. Burnedita 
 and Marie, she would have Meno think, were in Spain. 
 As soon as she could make arrangements to have them 
 removed, they would be brought to the convent near 
 Garita, and she would know there were those who would 
 be friends in need near by. 
 
 Such were her thoughts, and she could not drive 
 them away. Finally she said: "Garita, I am poor 
 company this evening; if you will excuse me, I will 
 retire." 
 
 As she closed her door, she said aloud: "You will 
 have reason to dread me, Mr. Boss, I am ever on the 
 trail of my enemies. You cannot go out into the world 
 and say and feel that you are your own master, but the
 
 Uno Who. 183 
 
 victim of an evil influence, which you cannot and dare 
 not throw off. Mr. Ross, you are a weakling, and I 
 will help you throw off this influence in a manner you 
 least expect. I have said, he it prophetic or not, that 
 the arrow of the Indian girl on the trail of her enemy 
 would not be more sure than the cultivated eye and ear 
 of her civilized sister, and I will prove my words true, 
 for you will yet he in my power." 
 
 Ola and Uno, leaving Garita apparently in the hest 
 of spirits, returned to Cuba. They stopped in Florida 
 to see Seminole, and found Meno at " Sunnyside," 
 where she would remain. They went to the convent 
 where Uno prepared Burnedita for the change she 
 knew would take place as soon as she had seen the 
 Mother Superior. 
 
 Uno went to Georgia, and after a talk with Pam- 
 philo, he said that he and his wife would surprise Mr. 
 Ross during the winter, and she impressed upon him 
 the necessity of some of her friends going to his sister's 
 house and looking into her affairs. He, as one of the 
 executors, could do so. 
 
 Before going to the plantation, Uno went to see the 
 Mother Superior, who quite agreed with her in having 
 help near at hand. She would see that Burnedita and 
 Marie were sent to the convent near Garita. Ola re- 
 mained at her aunt's in Havana while Uno went to the 
 plantation, where they were waiting for her return to 
 open the new institution. 
 
 The old house, though spacious, was becoming
 
 1 84 Uno Who. 
 
 crowded, and Aunt Thetis on her way half of the time 
 to the Castle-by-the-sea. There were several kinds of 
 work in progress on the place, and all were trying to 
 make themselves useful. 
 
 Uno was enjoying the rest and quiet of her home, 
 and with her father planning their future in Spain. 
 Thetis was enjoying the serene expectation of her 
 future life. Now they were rid of the proteges, when 
 they were surprised by Ola. She had received news of 
 the death of the Marquis of Floraine, and did not wisli 
 to remain in Havana. 
 
 In the spring Paulo wrote : " We are now in pos- 
 session of the ancestral palace of the Estabanez family, 
 and Don Alfonzo (now Marquis of Floraine) tells me 
 that he and Ola will be married in the fall. I hope 
 the wedding may take place in the home of her grand- 
 mother's ancestors." 
 
 When Thetis heard of this arrangement, she said: 
 "Will this family ever get through tramping across 
 the ocean? I think it would look more respectable 
 for Don Alfonso to come here. No, I would not cross 
 the ocean for a crown. It makes me sick to think how 
 I felt when I came here from Florida, but do tell me 
 who is going to look after Seminole's Arabs. She can- 
 not take them along, and they must not be left to the 
 mercy of servants. I suppose Wauka will have to go 
 there. I do hojje this will be the last wedding of my 
 day."
 
 Uno Who. 185 
 
 " Just think, Aunt Thetis," said Uno, " Ola is going 
 to marry the Marquis of Floraine." 
 
 " Yes, I am aware of it, and that he is going to take 
 the flower of an illustrious family." 
 
 " Aunt Thetis, father has decided to let Paulo have 
 the titles and estates in his grandmother's native coun- 
 try." 
 
 " Osceola, you have done well. Paulo is a good man 
 if he would only settle down. That military life made 
 him restless. I was afraid you and Uno would think 
 you must go there and live in the palace, leaving me 
 to look after the proteges. I had my mind made up 
 on that subject." 
 
 "No," said Uno, "I will never desert this home. 
 My work here has only just begun." 
 
 Mr. Ross urged his wife to accompany her brothers 
 and friends to attend the wedding in Spain, but he 
 could not leave his business. Garita thought how dif- 
 ferent it was from the days when he would not let her 
 go home without him. Now he was willing to place the 
 ocean between them. 
 
 Uno improved the opportunity of getting Burnedita 
 North, that she could become familiar with the Ross 
 household. Ola insisted that Marie should attend her 
 wedding, and wished her to live with her, only leaving 
 to help Uno, and Paulo had written that she must 
 live with him. 
 
 The lovely girl had been faithful over a few things, 
 and now found herself ruler over many.
 
 1 86 Uno Who. 
 
 Garita and her brothers went to England, where, 
 after the wedding, they remained some time. Upon 
 their return to America they went to Saratoga, Marie 
 going to the convent. Uno did not return, but at her 
 brother's urgent request, remained with him. Then 
 she had work for the Mother Superior, who had written 
 that Senora de Vega was in Madrid, called there by 
 the serious illness of her husband. He was in the hos- 
 pital, where she needed Uno's influence in gaining 
 entree. She met Senora at the hospital, and explained 
 to the sister in charge who she was. The Colonel was 
 delirious, and, in the garb of a sister, she was allowed 
 to assist in nursing him. The first words she heard 
 upon entering his room were : " Jeanie, Jeanie, why did 
 you go? I did not mean what I said. Forgive me. 
 Jeanie." 
 
 Then he rolled his head upon the pillow, and with a 
 sudden start in which it took two attendants to hold 
 him, he screamed: "Kill that snake. It has bitten 
 Jeanie. It has driven her away to die. Yes, to die 
 alone." 
 
 Then exhausted, he lay back on the pillow. Putting 
 N out his hands, he very pitifully said: "Here, Jeanie. 
 are your darlings. It was cruel to take them from you." 
 Then folding his arms, as if he had her in his embrace, 
 he said : " I knew you would forgive me," and he cried 
 like a child, saying: "It is nice to be in our happy 
 home." After he had lain exhausted for a while he 
 would again start up, screaming : " Where am I ? _ Take
 
 Uno Who. 187 
 
 me to her. They say she is not dead." Then laying 
 back on his pillow, he cried out : " Oh, these years of 
 misery." 
 
 The sisters told Uno the fever had nearly run its 
 course. He had raved for days, and it would soon end. 
 
 The disguise was perfect, even should he suddenly 
 become conscious. 
 
 When the fever was broken the physicians said he 
 was a strong man and would no doubt soon recover. 
 When he asked to see his boys they were permitted to 
 come, but he was not allowed to talk. 
 
 This was a very trying time for Senora, but she kept 
 back where the Colonel could not see her watching 
 them. She went to the door and managed to shake 
 hands as they went out. When he was stronger they 
 came every day, sometimes bringing papers and read- 
 ing to him. One day they brought a magazine, saying, 
 " Here is an article by the writer you like so much. I 
 think, father, it is strange we cannot find out who she 
 is." 
 
 In the twilight she managed to talk with her hus- 
 band about his lovely boys. She told him she had lost 
 two children and a husband, that she was restless and 
 unhappy and had become a sister of charity as a diver- 
 sion. He told her it was very kind to sit with him in 
 the twilight, as he did not like to be alone, so evening 
 after evening she talked with him. Once he said: 
 " Did you not tell me you had been in America ? " 
 
 " Yes, Colonel, I wanted to tell your sons I had met
 
 i88 Uno Who. 
 
 the authoress of the magazine articles, but I did not 
 know that you would approve of a sister of charity 
 taking part in your conversation. It was in America 
 I met her. She is quite a noted woman, and has written 
 several novels, the last of which has created a greater 
 sensation than ' Out of the Depths ' did. I met her at 
 the home of the brother of the Marquis of Floraine. 
 Lady Margaret Oughton was there from England, 
 and invited her to visit her. She is coming to Spain 
 as the guest of the sister of Col. Who, who has just 
 married the young Marquis of Floraine. Colonel, has 
 she not taken a strange nom de plume? 'The Un- 
 known/ and the title of her last book is ' Seek and ye 
 shall find.' It seems like an invitation for some one 
 to look for her." 
 
 Uno was sitting where she could hear the conversa- 
 tion, and he did not know she was in the room. After 
 a few minutes' silence he asked : " What does this un- 
 known woman look like ? " 
 
 " She is not handsome, Colonel. She has dark hair, 
 and expressive gray eyes. Her friends say she has a 
 bewitching smile and beautiful teeth, but I never saw 
 her smile. She rarely ever goes out in company, but 
 has traveled extensively with the sister of Col. Who. 
 They say she has had a strange sad life. Her last book- 
 has caused her to scorn delights and live laborious 
 days, but it has made her famous." 
 
 "Is she French?" said the Colonel.
 
 Uno Who. 189 
 
 " I do not know, she speaks several languages, and 
 holds an enviable position in the hearts of her friends." 
 
 " Sister, what did you say her name is ? " 
 
 " Senora de Vega, but every one calls her the ' Un- 
 known.' " 
 
 It is best to not talk unless one has something to say, 
 so the sister evidently thought, for she went quietly out 
 of the room, then returned to light up and give her 
 patient his medicine. 
 
 The next day, when his sons came, he told them 
 that the sister knew the unknown authoress, and her 
 name was the same as theirs. After they had gone 
 she sat down beside the bed, and in conversation about 
 his sons, she said : " You are always called Colonel, 
 and you call your sons by their given name, so I had 
 not heard the name ' de Vega.' It would be strange if 
 you should find that she is a relation of yours, but I 
 see and hear stranger things than that in my hospital 
 life. My own sad life makes me interested in others. 
 I envy you because you have something to love." 
 
 He said : " Yes, my sons are a great comfort. Are 
 you alone in the world, sister ? " 
 
 "Yes, I saw my husband and sons taken from me 
 at almost one blow, only a few short hours apart. It 
 left me stunned, stricken and alone. I loved my hus- 
 band, God only knows how well, but the blow came 
 when I was trying to rescue him from the approaching 
 ill which clasped him in its black arms. I then went
 
 190 Uno Who. 
 
 to my children, knowing that destiny's relentless knife 
 must sever them from me. If I could only hear my 
 darlings say, 'Mother, dear/ once more, I would ask 
 no greater boon. Were your sons old enough to remem- 
 ber their mother when she was taken from them?" 
 
 With a trembling voice he said : " Yes," then look- 
 ing at the sister, he said: "You often remind me of 
 my wife." 
 
 With a smile she answered : " I hope it is a pleasant 
 reminder." 
 
 " Yes, sister, but I cruelly wronged her, and the re- 
 membrance of it doth afflict me grievously. My wife 
 is always in my mind." 
 
 " Then that was what made you so continually rave 
 about Jeanie in your delirium. Was that her name ? " 
 
 "Yes," he said. 
 
 " Then, perhaps, in spirit, she was near you." 
 
 " She has not entered into spirit life," he said. 
 
 " Col. de Vega, it was your wife I met in America." 
 
 " I have no doubt of it," he replied. 
 
 " Do you love her ? " 
 
 " I have never ceased to love her." 
 
 "Why not send for her?" 
 
 " I do not think she would come." 
 
 " Col. de Vega, that sad face told me of a heart that 
 was yearning for its home, husband and children. Send 
 for her, and thou wilt find love and peace no mortal 
 tongue has told."
 
 Uno Who. 191 
 
 He burst into tears, as he exclaimed: "If I could 
 only see her and die in our home." 
 
 " Colonel, you are not going to die, but I am sure 
 you will go to your home, and find your wife there to 
 meet you, if I can get her there before you get well and 
 leave this hospital, so don't get well too fast, and you 
 have the disagreeable task of preparing your sons to 
 meet their mother. I am almost as happy as you are 
 to be able to bring about a reconciliation for that un- 
 happy woman, and now that I see you love her, and 
 always have, I feel that the closing of your once happy 
 lives was as though a morning in June, with all its 
 music and sunshine, had suddenly paused in the sky. 
 She has been making this dreary blank of absence a 
 noble task of time, while you, too proud to acknowl- 
 edge your wrong, have grown gray, carrying about the 
 great heart's secret that she alone must hear. How 
 strange it must have seemed with so much gone of life 
 and love to still live on. Think of her who has been 
 longing to hear the coming of little feet she left upon 
 the untried border of life's mysterious land. Oh, 
 Colonel, I know her heart will leap forth in joy to 
 greet her husband and boys." 
 
 " Sister, when I was on the shore of death's dividing 
 sea, with spirit scathed and rent and riven, I thought 
 the sweet unspoken words were never more for me. 
 The thorns which I have reaped are of the tree I 
 planted. They have torn not only me, but those whose
 
 iQ2 Uno Who. 
 
 lives I held closer and dearer than my own. Can I 
 hope to be forgiven ? " 
 
 "Yes, for she believes we climb to Heaven on the 
 rounds of love." 
 
 Colonel de Vega did not have to wait but a short 
 time before his physicians said he could be taken to his 
 home. His wife, with her home looking as it did the 
 day she left it, was watching for her husband and sons. 
 He was carried to his room, and the family so long 
 separated were once more united in the bonds of peace, 
 and the sister of charity hoped in righteousness of life.
 
 Uno Who. 193 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 " I must be cruel only to be kind ; 
 Thus bad begins, and worse remains behind," 
 
 WHILE in Spain, Uno had told Garita of the Mother 
 Superior having Burnedita sent to the convent in the 
 city in which she was living, and that Marie was to go 
 there upon her return. 
 
 Mr. Ross had never seen either of them, and they 
 could go to her house, Marie to give painting lessons, 
 and Burnedita to assist her in keeping up her practice 
 *n music. In this way they would know if anything 
 was going wrong, and she would have some one besides 
 her faithful Nannette to confide in. 
 
 When people have once gone astray, they are apt to 
 give false ideas and false intelligence. She told Garita 
 she had very little confidence in Mr. Ross. The Mother 
 Superior would do all in her power to protect her from 
 wrongdoers. She said the daughter of Don Pamphilo 
 de Gomora would not be without friends. 
 
 Garita had expressed herself in most affectionate 
 
 terms for the loving kindness she was receiving, and 
 
 was not surprised when Uno told her that Marie had 
 
 written of Nannette's receiving a letter from the colored 
 
 13
 
 194 Uno Who. 
 
 laundress, and that Signal Eed was preparing to leave 
 that place. 
 
 Uno urged Garita to remain in England, and have 
 Mr. Eoss come there to live. She had hoped this bit 
 of news would make her feel the necessity of being 
 with her family, but her pride had been wounded, and 
 she disliked to bring the one who had done it among 
 her friends. No, she would return to her home and get 
 what happiness she could out of life. After a few 
 minutes' silence she said : " Uno, I wonder if I was 
 born for no other than this kind of life. In Boston 
 it was Mrs. Estaugh, and now my husband is the slave 
 of an evil influence that I feel will not hesitate to com- 
 mit almost a crime? Must I leave my husband and 
 home? Not yet, Uno, give me one more trial. I must 
 confess that I would be almost afraid if I did not have 
 you at the helm. If those people come to live where 
 we are I will soon know of it, and I am determined that 
 I will not give my husband an air of respectability 
 and have him spending his time and money on 
 others." 
 
 After seeing Senora de Vega out of her trouble, Uno 
 went to England at Dona's request, she wishing to see 
 her before her return to America. She did not know 
 how much or how little Garita had told of her affairs, 
 but she felt sure they wished to interview her in regard 
 to the unhappy life they now knew she was living. Uno 
 found Garita's mother and sisters anxiously awaiting 
 her arrival. Garita had not told them of her trouble,
 
 Uno Who. 195 
 
 and avoided every approach to a conversation on the 
 subject. Her brothers had told what they knew, but 
 did not think Mr. Eoss would be so foolish as to renew 
 his past life, and they were going to look after her. 
 Thus they quieted their mother and sisters. 
 
 Uno told them everything, except the story about 
 her mind being affected. She gave them the Estaugh 
 letter to read. They could think what they chose 
 from that. It was a satisfaction to let Dona see that 
 those lovely people could do wrong. She related Gar- 
 ita's experience with them and Mr. Eoss in Boston, 
 in regard to which her sister, Lady Elaine, knew some- 
 thing. 
 
 Dona was surprised at the part Meno was taking in 
 the life of her unhappy daughter, and wondered why 
 that beautiful and amiable woman should have become 
 the victim of bad people. Uno said it was simply be- 
 cause she had married beneath her, and cannot asso- 
 ciate with the people her husband enjoys, and it creates 
 in their hearts envy, hatred and malice towards one 
 they would never have known anything about, only 
 for him. 
 
 "Eight, quite right," exclaimed Lady Margaret. 
 "Uno, you were always opposed to this match. See 
 what happy and complete lives Flora and Elaine are 
 living. It nearly broke my heart to see Garita trying 
 to appear happy. Uno, if you were not there, I do not 
 know what we would do. I am very sure this Mrs. 
 Eed will be found living near Garita. It is very wise
 
 196 Uno Who. 
 
 of Nannette to keep track of her, and I hope you will 
 manage to be with Garita all you can." 
 
 " Lady Margaret, that is what I am trying to avoid. 
 I know Mr. Boss does not want me there, and I could 
 not see him treat his wife badly without saying some- 
 thing, which would bring on a war of words. Then 
 my influence would be gone. When the right time 
 comes, I will be there if he does not treat her well." 
 
 Uno sailed for America, but she did not let Garita 
 know of her return, fearing Mr. Eoss might hear of it, 
 and it would be a restraint upon him. She preferred 
 his miserable life to mature as rapidly as possible that 
 she might be rid of him, for she knew the blood around 
 his heart was dry as dust. 
 
 Uno went to the convent, and there learned from 
 her sisters of the miserable life Garita was living. He 
 had made the most of his time during his wife's absence. 
 
 Nannette had learned from her laundress friend that 
 Mrs. Signal Ked had sold her house and left that place, 
 but that she could not find out where they had gone, 
 but it was not long, however, until the ever-watchful 
 Nannette saw Mrs. Red on the street, and had followed 
 her to where she lived, in a beautiful house not far 
 from Mrs. Ross. 
 
 Mr. Eoss was home very little, and was very dis- 
 agreeable when there. 
 
 One afternoon, near the close of the day, Garita was 
 in the chapel playing the organ. Burnedita was play- 
 ing the harp, and with Marie they were singing. Heart
 
 Uno Who. 197 
 
 and voice were in their devotions, and they did not hear 
 (Mr. Boss enter the house. As they finished he entered 
 the chapel, and said with a sneer: "That is a very 
 pretty song." 
 
 Garita was a proud woman, and these drizzling 
 rains of existence were very wearing to her sensitive 
 nature. They had chilled her to the very bone. 
 
 Mr. Ross did not like the nuns coming there, and 
 he now took occasion to show that he was displeased. 
 Garita for an instant seemed petrified, then she said: 
 "Mr. Ross, you have wounded a spirit that has loved 
 you, and my heart is too full of grief to breathe its 
 bitterness to mortal ear. You have told me that I am 
 being made the subject of ridicule for having this 
 chapel in my house, that I am considered morbid upon 
 the subject of religion, and having the nuns come here 
 is one of my freaks. Where do you get all of your in- 
 formation? You say novices are not allowed to go out 
 in their religious dress, and you do not believe they are 
 from the convent. Mr. Ross, the custom of giving 
 novices the religious dress began, I think, about the 
 Twelfth Century. I do not blame you for what you do 
 not know, for you were educated way down in Maine, 
 but I do blame you for spending half of the night away 
 from home in some place that cannot be far off, for the 
 foul odor of the vile incense is still upon you when 
 you return. You have asked me why I did not take 
 lessons in singing of one of our fine professors instead 
 of the nuns. I will now tell you it is because you
 
 iQ8 Uno Whe. 
 
 said if I did not place a mortgage upon my house for 
 you, that you would get rid of me, if not by fair means, 
 you would through foul, and, Mr. Eoss, I feel that I 
 am safer with a sister of charity." 
 
 "Mrs. Eoss, have you finished with your tirade of 
 abuse?" 
 
 " No, Mr. Eoss, not if you call this telling the truth 
 abuse. You say your business does not pay expenses. 
 If so, I wish you would close your office, and I will sup- 
 port you." 
 
 He looked at the sisters, who had sat with downcast 
 eyes, as he said : "Did you ever hear any one in her right 
 mind talk as she has done? Her family are no doubt 
 paying well to have you look after her." 
 
 Garita smiled as she said : " My case is becoming in- 
 teresting, as even the sisters coming here is being mis- 
 construed. We have been in this house a year and a 
 half, and, Mr. Eoss, you have developed very rapidly. 
 I have never been able to find out what talents you 
 possess, but it is very evident that some woman has 
 made the discovery, and is bringing you out. Mr. Eoss, 
 I think you will regret the price you are paying for it." 
 
 He left the room, ordered his wife's carriage, and in 
 evening-dress left the house and did not return till 
 near morning. 
 
 Garita had improved this opportunity of telling the 
 sisters about the mortgage in his presence, and other 
 things she had been hesitating and trying to make up 
 her mind to talk about.
 
 Uno Who. 199 
 
 Next day she told the sisters that she did not like a 
 Mrs. Mauve, to whom Mr. Eoss had introduced her. 
 She was a very lovely and cultivated woman, but Nan- 
 nette had found, through Mrs. Red's maid, that she 
 visited there. But Garita had thought it best to treat 
 her well, and not let Mr. Ross know she did not care 
 for her. 
 
 The servants in Garita's house^were sent to her by 
 the sisters, and in the fall they would secure servants 
 for Mrs. Red. 
 
 Uno went to her home in Cuba without seeing any 
 of her friends in Florida. She feared Meno would re- 
 port her return to Mr. Ross. Before going to the plan- 
 tation she went to the convent and had a consultation 
 with the Mother Superior. They were sure that Garita, 
 in asserting her rights, which her conversation with 
 their sisters proved she was doing, would make Mr. 
 Ross anxious to mature his plans. They felt sure his 
 next move would be to introduce a doctor friend from 
 whom he could get a certificate of insanity. The 
 friends of his who went to the house, and with whom 
 Garita was on friendly terms for the reason there was 
 no excuse for her not being, might unconsciously be 
 doing him a service. If he should manage to get her 
 in a retreat, it might kill her, or it would take so long 
 before her family could understand the case and get 
 her released, she might be driven insane. She certainly 
 would be crushed by the mortification should she sur- 
 vive it. If she were to leave her home, and seek refuge
 
 200 Uno Who. 
 
 with her friends, her enemies would have a case and say 
 she had been taken away. Mr. Eoss could thus prevent 
 her making a will, and before anything could be done 
 her affairs would be in his power. 
 
 " Uno/' said the Mother Superior, " you will have to 
 go to the battlefield, and work for God and the truth. 
 You have the divine faculty of being able to inspire 
 enthusiasm, and I know you will be able to gain her 
 release from this unequal strife. I have already pre- 
 pared the way for you, and you will be provided with all 
 the help you require." 
 
 TJno went to the plantation and remained during 
 the summer. Her aunt and family were in Saratoga. 
 Garita was there with her brothers. While Uno with 
 her father awaited the coming of the hurricane, often 
 with a thrill in every vein, when they received letters 
 from Burnedita or Marie of Mr. Ross's indiscreet con- 
 duct. 
 
 Late in the fall, " Senor Who, daughter and maid," 
 was on the register of a fashionable hotel of the city 
 in which Garita lived. Uno learned from her sisters 
 that Mr. Ross was going from bad to worse. He had 
 taken several trips during the summer, and they found 
 Mrs. Signal Red was away at the same time. Garita 
 had told them he did not pay any of the expenses of the 
 house, and made demands upon her for money which 
 she gave for the sake of peace. He was still worrying 
 her for a mortgage on her home, and when she appeared 
 to acquiesce he was very lover-like, and seemed to think
 
 Uno Who. 201 
 
 her in her right mind, to which opinion she kept him 
 as long as possible. 
 
 Her worried and troubled life was telling upon her 
 fine constitution. Her brothers had observed the 
 change in her demeanor and looks, but it seemed that 
 she would rather die of tormenting grief than tell the 
 cause. 
 
 In the fall her brother, Pamphilo, went home with 
 her. The politeness and devotion of Mr. Ross not all 
 Heaven could move, and the powers approved it. So 
 Garita went tugging away at her heavy burden, Mr. 
 Ross knowing the day would soon come when the nerves 
 would relax and he would behold her in tears and not 
 relent. He sold her horses and carriages without con- 
 sulting her, and when she rebelled he informed her he 
 did not wish any scene. She was not in a condition to 
 go out, and they were a needless expense. 
 
 She asked him why he did not go out with her, but 
 he said he did not wish to parade a sick woman before 
 the public. " Your brother noticed the change in your 
 appearance. Garita, you must have the advice of a 
 physician to get you out of this moping melancholy. 
 I have talked with a specialist, and he will see you very 
 soon." 
 
 " Mr. Ross, I will not see your doctor. I am not 
 sick. All I ask is for you to stop tormenting me, and 
 I know you and your friends are trying in every way 
 to injure me."
 
 2O2 Uno Who. 
 
 " Garita, such talk as that proves that you are not 
 in your right mind." 
 
 She fainted from over-excitement caused by his tell- 
 ing of a specialist coming. She told her maid she was 
 sure it was the beginning of a plot to destroy her. 
 
 That day Mrs. Eosepink called. She was surprised 
 to hear that Mrs. Eoss was not well, as she had seen her 
 on the street only the day before. In the afternoon 
 her pretended friend, Mrs. Mauve, came from out of 
 town. She remained all night. In the evening she 
 said she would let poor Mrs. Eoss rest, and went out. 
 Mrs. Eed's maid reported that she was there, also Mr. 
 Eoss, with several others. They inquired after his 
 wife. He said he had consulted a physician in regard 
 to her. He dreaded to go home, she worried him so. 
 She was constantly running in debt, and had now sold 
 her horses and carriages to give to charity. He thought 
 the nuns who went there had a depressing effect and 
 that they made her morbid. Mrs. Eed said : " Do not 
 do anything rash, Mr. Eoss. You certainly do not care 
 how much she gives away of her abundance. It seems 
 to come from the heart instead of a disordered brain. 
 Cannot you induce her to go abroad? I think this old 
 colored woman an injury to your wife. She makes such 
 a baby of her. She certainly is a beautiful woman, 
 but fading like a flower in both body and mind. I 
 hope you will not do anything her friends will blame 
 you for." 
 
 Marie had laid aside her charity dress, and as a
 
 Uno WhcK 203 
 
 friend of Mrs. Bed's maid, heard this conversation. 
 Not long after Uno's arrival in the city her sisters re- 
 ported to her an affecting scene that had taken place 
 the night before. 
 
 Garita, in a white robe, sat watching for her hus- 
 band. It was after midnight. Her maid was in the 
 room, and knew she was crying, when she dropped on 
 her knees. Putting up her hands, she said: "Jesus, 
 Lord, my heart will break. Help me for Thy dear 
 name's sake." 
 
 It was enough to melt a heart of stone. Mr. Eoss 
 had quietly come in, and seeing her, he said he had 
 heard enough of this nonsense. He was tired of coming 
 home and finding a lunatic in his room. " Hereafter 
 I will take a room up-stairs," and he did. 
 
 The next day the specialist called. She would not 
 have seen him, only Mr. Eoss came with him, and un- 
 announced brought him to her room, and in a few min- 
 utes took his departure. 
 
 Burnedita was sitting in Nannette's room, which ad- 
 joined that of her mistress. The door was open. Xan- 
 nette was with Mrs. Eoss, who was very calm as she 
 said: "I was never sick in my life, and am not now 
 going to consult with a specialist." 
 
 "Mrs. Eoss, you need not feel offended. Perhaps 
 your husband and friends have been over anxious in 
 regard to you. I have often seen you, and have of late 
 remarked the change in your appearance. I will not
 
 204 Uno Who. 
 
 talk too long with you to-day, as I see you are nervous 
 and tired." 
 
 During the week he called again, taking his time to 
 make a sort of visit. Mr. Ross had taken him to her 
 boudoir, where with Marie she was studying a new 
 piece to recite. The latter had become quite proficient 
 as an elocutionist during the years she and Ola were to- 
 gether. Marie did not leave the room, and Nannette 
 was not far off. 
 
 The doctor told Mrs. Eoss she appeared like one who 
 had some sorrow that was preying upon her mind, and 
 she should have constant change. There was nothing 
 like it for a troubled mind; when a woman's nerves 
 get to a certain tension they must relax or snap. " That 
 is what causes you to faint so easily." 
 
 " Doctor," Garita said, " I will be my own specialist 
 and prescribe. Shall I tell you what ? " 
 
 " Certainly, Mrs. Ross." 
 
 He was quite gushing in his desire to please, par- 
 ticularly as she had not replied to any of his remarks. 
 
 She very quietly said : " I will remove the cause of 
 the tension without your assistance. The string which 
 is kept in a state of tension will vibrate at the slightest 
 impulse." 
 
 " Then you admit there is a cause ? " 
 
 " I admit nothing." She smiled as she said : " Doc- 
 tor, don't you know that when a woman will, she will, 
 even if she has to faint for it ? I did not think I would 
 alarm Mr. Ross to the extent of sending for a specialist,
 
 Uno Who. 205 
 
 but really, doctor, you will have to excuse us, for I 
 have an engagement." 
 
 She arose from her seat, and he was obliged to take 
 the hint, but said : " It is really sad, Mrs. Ross, to see 
 a young and beautiful woman like you getting into such 
 a morbid state of mind." 
 
 " Doctor, you are not a good mind reader, or you 
 would know that I think a specialist that is constantly 
 looking for something wrong in other people's minds 
 cannot help becoming morbid himself, and I shall be 
 obliged to treat you to a dose of excuse me." 
 
 She sailed out of the room, while he looked as if he 
 preferred his own medicine. 
 
 The next time he called Garita was in the chapel 
 playing the organ. Burnedita was playing the harp. 
 Mr. Eoss brought the doctor to the chapel door. Throw- 
 ing the doors open he said : " Doctor, this is where my 
 afflicted wife spends most of her time." Garita and 
 Burnedita stepped into the music room, and Nannette 
 at once closed the chapel doors. 
 
 "It is a great pity, Mr. Ross, that you don't spend 
 more of your time cultivating manners," said Garita. 
 
 " There, Doctor, you see how careful one has to treat 
 that royal blood." 
 
 "Mr. Ross, the royal blood must be very apparent 
 to be seen by you." 
 
 With a frown he left the room, well knowing it was 
 not safe to open fire when his wife's spirit was aroused 
 by his insinuating remarks.
 
 206 Uno Who. 
 
 The doctor turned away, and with a smile looked 
 over the music on the piano. 
 
 After Mr. Ross had gone he said : " I think from 
 what I saw that your chapel must be very beauti- 
 ful, but I thought you were a Protestant." 
 
 " I am, Doctor, but my father was a Catholic. He 
 and his family were and are very influential in the 
 Church. My mother and sisters attend the Church of 
 England. My parents were not narrow-minded people. 
 They loved wisely and well, and did not let the subject 
 of religion cause any discord." 
 
 " Mrs. Ross, I hear you are very religious." 
 
 " Doctor, I hope you are, but I shall not take the 
 trouble to inquire." 
 
 He had very little to say, waiting to see if she would 
 not talk, but she knew that in repose there was power, 
 and she simply looked at him in an amused way at his 
 increasing embarrassment. Finally he said: "Mrs. 
 Ross, a morbid state of mind always has its ups and 
 downs at the beginning of the disease. I am glad to 
 see you feeling so well to-day, and if you will take a 
 tonic, for which I have written a prescription, and a 
 few trips with your husband and friends, you will soon 
 be able to go out in society again." 
 
 After he had gone Burnedita said if she remained 
 there much longer she would not be fit to take the veil. 
 All the old Adam in her was aroused. 
 
 " Oh, yes you will," said Garita, " for you are learn- 
 ing some of the wickedness that lurks in high places,
 
 Uno Who. 207 
 
 and you will go to your secluded home happy that you 
 are not worried by evil-doers." 
 
 Garita now saw the necessity for action on her part, 
 and she readily consented that Burnedita should lay 
 aside the nun's garb and come to her house as her friend 
 from Florida. In fact she had received instruction 
 from the Mother Superior to do so. Garita introduced 
 her to Mr. Boss as her friend, Miss Burnie. He asked 
 how long she was going to remain. Garita said : " I 
 did not limit the time in this case. Now that the nun, 
 as you call her, has been ordered away, I will be alone 
 a great deal, and sent for her to come. You will not 
 be troubled about the nuns any more." 
 
 Mr. Ross was very much annoyed, and still more so 
 when he found that his wife, with Miss Burnie, had at- 
 tended a reception. 
 
 Uno was there, but kept away from Garita. Marie 
 had found out, through Mrs. Red's maid, that she would 
 be there. Uno could interview Mrs. Red, and there 
 would be no danger of Garita seeing her, as she would 
 not look that way. 
 
 Uno went as the guest of Mrs. Anson, to whom she 
 had letters of introduction. 
 
 When Garita arrived, Mrs. Anson said : " There is 
 Mrs. Ross; I did not know she was able to go out. I 
 have not seen her in a long time." 
 
 " Mrs. Anson, who is that woman that seems so sur- 
 prised and stared after Mrs. Ross so boldly ? " 
 
 "0, that is Mrs. Signal Red and her friend, Mrs.
 
 208 Uno Who. 
 
 Crimson. They are strangers to me. I hear she says 
 Mrs. Ross is an old friend of hers, but of late she has 
 seen very little of her on account of her failing health. 
 The physicians have advised Mr. Ross to keep her quiet 
 as possible. By-the-way, Miss Uno, there is to be a 
 musicale which I wish you to attend this week. I pre- 
 sume Mrs. Ross will be there. I wish she would sing. 
 I wonder who that pretty young lady is she has with 
 her?" 
 
 Garita went home and did not say a word about the 
 reception to Mr. Ross. The next morning he said: 
 " You seem in fine spirits after going out and giving 
 people something to talk about. I have planned a trip 
 for next month, and the Greens are going with us. Gar- 
 ita,! know the doctor will be very much displeased when 
 he hears of your going in company. You must be care- 
 ful, Miss Buinie, and not let Mrs. Ross overdo. If 
 you see her in one of her sick spells, you will not want 
 to witness another." 
 
 They attended the musicale. Mrs. Ross gratified her 
 friends by singing for them. Burnedita accompanied 
 her. Mr. Ross did not hear of this, as none of his set 
 were there, but he did hear of another reception she 
 attended which caused great excitement for Garita. 
 Mr. Ross told her that unless she mortgaged her home 
 and gave him the money, he would leave her. 
 
 She asked him if he was going to let his evil influence 
 ruin him, soul and body. He said: "How dare you 
 say there is any one ruining me ? "
 
 Uno Who. 209 
 
 " Then, darling, where does your money go ? I wish, 
 for your own sake, you would not be seen in Mr. Signal 
 Eed's company any more." 
 
 " See here, Mrs. Ross, I have heard enough of this 
 queer talk of yours, and only that they would take 
 away my business, I would not live with you another 
 day." 
 
 All was silent for a few minutes, then she said : " No, 
 my darling husband, you do not mean what you say," 
 and going up to him she affectionately said: "Tell 
 me you love me. That you will leave this evil influence 
 and be as of old." 
 
 "Mrs. Ross, I have had enough of this tragedy. 
 These beautiful ravings. You talk like a mad woman." 
 
 "I am not mad, but heartbroken. The demands 
 made upon you are greater than the supply. You come 
 to me for money, and because I do not give you my in- 
 heritance, you think you do not love me. My darling, 
 you do, and the day will come when you will repent 
 of your treatment of me. You are now a slave, but I 
 will break the spell that binds you." 
 
 With a sneer, he said : " I will see that you are well 
 taken care of before that time. You are not the same 
 woman you once were. Your lack of confidence in me 
 is the outcome of a disordered mind. I am tired of this 
 Ophelia business." 
 
 " Mr. Ross, if I were weak enough to listen to you, 
 I might have to play the part of Ophelia to earn my 
 living and yours. You wish to make me out insane 
 14
 
 2io Uno Who. 
 
 that you may get the control of iny fortune and prevent 
 me making a will, but if it will be of any comfort to 
 you I will tell you that it is already looked after. Why 
 did you take me from my happy home to make a wreck 
 of my life?" 
 
 " For which act, Mrs. Boss, I have no doubt you and 
 your family will try to make me suffer." 
 
 " Mr. Eoss, in taking revenge, one is but even with 
 her enemy. In passing it over, she is superior." 
 
 " Garita, you are always praying and talking of 
 your trust in God, why don't He help you, if you are 
 being so fearfully wronged ? The people I go with seem 
 to have a good time, much better than you do. I intend 
 to invite some of them here, and I expect they will be 
 treated well. The best thing you can do is to mortgage 
 this house, receive my friends as well as yours, and you 
 will prove your love in deeds as well as words." 
 
 He went out of the house, and Nannette went into 
 the boudoir where Garita was walking the floor, her 
 hands clasped as if in agony. 
 
 When Miss Burnie went in she said : " Is there no 
 escape from this terrible fate which threatens me? 
 Must I open the doors of my pure home and become the 
 associate of doubtful characters? Is it my husband 
 who asks this? No, a thousand times no. He may de- 
 prive me of my inheritance, but I will remain true to 
 myself. I know that God will send help to me, though 
 He scourge me, yet will I trust Him. The scales have
 
 Uno Who. 211 
 
 fallen from my eyes. It is all over. My influence has 
 gone. All hope is buried." 
 
 She went to her room and threw herself on her bed 
 in an hysterical crying spell, saying : " Uno, Uno, how 
 I wish you were here. Burnedita, you will have to 
 write for her to come." 
 
 She arose from the bed and walked the floor, the 
 personification of purity in her long white robe de 
 chambre. Suddenly she stopped as if listening. Then 
 turning her head to one side she clasped her hands. 
 All was silent. Then turning to her friend and her 
 maid she said : " Did you not see it ? " 
 
 They said :ffo." 
 
 " That was strange, for there was an angel looking 
 over my shoulder. I felt its wings, and it said: 
 ' Though you have lain among the pots, yet shall you 
 be as the wings of a dove that is covered with silver 
 wings and her feathers like gold.' " 
 
 While she was talking the clock struck twelve, and 
 she said: " I know that help is coming; that I will not 
 be destroyed." 
 
 Nannette said : " Now, honey, let me put you in bed. 
 I am glad this talk is over, and that you know the worst. 
 Senorita is coming, and we will all fight the devil. I 
 feel just like it to-night, but your seeing that angel 
 has quieted me a little. I really thought I should forget 
 who and what I am and give Mr. Ross a piece of my 
 mind when he said that I and the rest were not your 
 friends. Never mind, he will get the hot end of the
 
 212 Uno Who. 
 
 poker, and we will fix him so he can't let go of it either. 
 Honey, I must talk, and do promise me you won't pray 
 for him to-night. I think it would be an insult to the 
 angel who has just been here."
 
 Uno Who. 213 
 
 CHAPTEE XV. 
 
 " Bright with the radiance of intellect, 
 Not darkened by madness or passion." 
 
 GARITA, looking very beautiful, attended another re- 
 ception with Miss Burnie. Mrs. Signal Bed, with the 
 other danger signals, were there: Mrs. Scarlet, Mrs. 
 Crimson, Mrs. Carnation and Mrs. Rosepink. Mrs. 
 Anson had given Uno a sketch of the gossip in regard 
 to Mr. Ross and Mrs. Red. 
 
 Uno improved the first opportunity to get near Mrs. 
 Red, and entered into conversation with her by saying: 
 " I have strayed away from my friend, Mrs. Anson, 
 do you see anything of her ? " 
 
 " Yes, she is near the conservatory." 
 
 " Oh, I see her," said Uno. " I am a stranger here, 
 but through mutual friends, Mrs. Anson is making my 
 sojourn very pleasant. Who is the lady Mrs. Anson is 
 talking with? She has a sad sweet face." 
 
 With heightened color she said : " That is Mrs. Ross. 
 I'm surprised to see her here, but she has a friend 
 with her, as they do not let her go out alone." 
 
 " Why not ? " asked Uno, in surprise. 
 
 " Oh, her mind has been very much affected of late, 
 and she has not been allowed to go out at all. They are
 
 214 Uno Who. 
 
 seeing what effect a little pleasant excitement will have 
 upon her. The doctor says he expects he will have to 
 spend half the night there, as he did some time ago 
 after she had attended a reception and made a few 
 calls. We used to be very intimate,, but she has dropped 
 one and then another of her friends. I do not care 
 to let her see me and have her get to talking." 
 
 This woman thought Uno would repeat this conver- 
 sation to Mrs. Anson, who was being so pleasant to 
 Garita, and she indifferently said : " I believe they are 
 talking of taking her abroad very soon." 
 
 This bit of news to her friends would account for 
 the prolonged absence she was plotting for Garita. 
 
 Uno bowed herself away saying: "I see my friend is 
 looking for me." 
 
 Mrs. Anson had talked with Garita in regard to a 
 concert for some charity which she wished to interest 
 her in. In a few days Mrs. Anson called with a pro- 
 fessor who wished to hear Mrs. Eoss sing. He said her 
 voice was so sweet that it reminded him of the plaintive 
 tone of the robin at early morn, and when Miss Burnie 
 played the harp he said they would certainly have to 
 take part in the concert. 
 
 Garita requested that there be nothing said in re- 
 gard to it until she had time to consider. 
 
 Burnedita went to the convent and there met Uno, 
 whom she told that it was not possible for her or Garita 
 to take part in the concert. She knew they would be a 
 failure.
 
 Uno Who. 215 
 
 Uno said : " There is no can't or failure in this work. 
 Burnedita, it must be done. You must encourage Gar- 
 ita, and when Mrs. Anson calls for her answer, tell her 
 to not have your names mentioned as you wish to sur- 
 prise Mr. Ross." 
 
 Uno said she would be at the rehearsal, and if there 
 was a chance for failure she would discover it. They 
 had only a week to work in, and she also wished them 
 to sing in St. Aloysius' church on Sunday, and she 
 would see that it was in the paper. This would be a 
 beginning, and give them practice. 
 
 Mrs. Red's maid had reported that the doctor, Mr. 
 Ross and Mrs. Red held a long consultation the even- 
 ing before. Mr. Ross had not alluded to the last re- 
 ception, thinking undoubtedly that Mrs. Red had said 
 enough to Mrs. Anson's friend. 
 
 After they had gone, Mrs. Red said to her maid: 
 "They have awful times with that woman. Mr. Ross 
 is about worn out. It is a relief for him to come here, 
 and he consults with the doctor and is not seen going 
 to his office, which would make talk, as it is known he 
 is her physician. It is a pity she cannot enjoy her 
 beautiful home. I hear her family are going to have 
 her taken to England, and the place will be sold." 
 
 Garita now saw the necessity of doing something to 
 save herself, and entered into the spirit of her work 
 with her old time vigor. She also knew it would not 
 be long before Uno would come, and she would then 
 make some change in her unhappy life.
 
 216 Uno Who. 
 
 She was mortified when she was obliged to admit 
 that she had not money to pay for a carriage. She had 
 anticipated her income in order to keep peace, and had 
 received a loan from her mother. 
 
 When Uno heard this she gave her purse to Burne- 
 dita, saying: "Let me know all her wants. Has it 
 come to this with a daughter of Don Pamphilo ? " 
 
 They went to Mrs. Anson's, and from there to re- 
 hearsal. Mr. Eoss had been home in the evening, and 
 finding them out he began to make inquiries where 
 they were. Mrs. Eed had been to Mrs. Anson's to see 
 about securing seats for her party, and show off her 
 generosity, which helped Uno to secure seats for her- 
 self and father just back of them. She told Mrs. Auson 
 she thought it would be interesting to see how Mr. Eoss 
 took the surprise in store for him. 
 
 After they were in their seats, Uno and her father, 
 well disguised, took theirs. Mr. Eoss had a troubled 
 and careworn look. When Signal Red would lean over 
 his wife to speak to him he acted like one who wished 
 to be let alone with his thoughts. He seemed to be 
 oblivious to all about him until Garita made her ap- 
 pearance. Then he was startled. He acted like one 
 awakened fiom a dream. He could not but feel he 
 was the observed of all observers, and he looked as if 
 he would like to end his days on some desolate coast, 
 for dead to the world and yet shut out of Heaven, he 
 was a target for unpitying fate. 
 
 Burnedita made her harp fairly talk, so anxious was
 
 Uno Who. 217 
 
 she to inspire Garita with confidence, but she had an- 
 other inspiration. She had trusted in man and found 
 him shifting sand, and this was a last effort to save 
 herself and him from destruction, as she sang : 
 
 How I have called thee, 
 
 Lifted hands beseeching ; 
 
 Hands of imploring and despairing woe ; 
 
 Thou answerest not my piteous outreaching, 
 
 Dear heart, that I loved so." 
 
 Her voice and plainly spoken words seemed to pene- 
 trate every part of the large hall. Mr. Eoss could not 
 hold up his head. He wished to shut out the jubilant 
 voice that was repeatedly encored. It was never more 
 for him. 
 
 Mr. Ross did not get home until near morning. At 
 the late breakfast he informed his wife that Mrs. Green 
 would be there during the day to talk over the little 
 outing they had been anticipating. " The doctor was 
 at the concert last evening, and was many times con- 
 gratulated upon your recovery. He says that you have 
 had excitement enough for the present." 
 
 In the afternoon Mr. Ross came home with the doctor. 
 As usual, he brought him to Garita's boudoir un- 
 announced. He tried to get her to promise that she 
 would go in less than a week with Mr. Ross and Mr. 
 and Mrs. Green to a fashionable resort. She said she 
 would think the matter over, and let them know in a 
 day or two. She conversed with Miss Burnie, almost
 
 218 Uno Who. 
 
 ignoring him, treating him as though he was her hus- 
 band's friend. 
 
 The next day Mrs. Green called, hut she did not 
 urge their going, and seemed to think it was all to 
 please Mrs. Boss, who said very little in regard to it. 
 
 While there Mrs. Anson called, and Mrs. Green 
 seemed puzzled. She listened to their animated con- 
 versation about the concert, and Mrs. Anson's plans 
 for the future, in all of which Mrs. Eoss took a deep 
 interest. She was very pleased to have her friend, 
 Miss Burnie, enjoying her visit, and they would accept 
 Mrs. Anson's invitation. 
 
 Mrs. Green had evidently told of her call, and the 
 meeting of Mrs. Anson. Garita knew the woman went 
 to Mrs. Eed's but thought her innocent of their plot. 
 
 One afternoon Mr. Eoss came home and said that 
 he and Mr. Green had arranged to go early next morn- 
 ing. They had purchased the tickets and telegraphed 
 for rooms. It was all nonsense to take Nannette, but 
 he supposed she would have to go along. Miss Burnie 
 could enjoy herself with Mrs. Anson for a few days, 
 and he told Nannette to have her trunks ready that 
 night. 
 
 Garita did not say a word. He went out and in a 
 short time returned. When he saw there was nothing 
 being done, he wished to know the reason, and very 
 pleasantly said : " Come, Garita, you do not know how 
 happy I am at having my wife herself once more. I 
 hardly know how to leave just now, but the doctor so
 
 Uno Who. 219 
 
 fears a relapse, and Heaven knows I have had enough 
 of this kind of life. Miss Burnie, I hope you will cheer 
 Mrs. Eoss by telling her you will manage to enjoy your- 
 self for a few days. Now, Nannette, you see that every- 
 thing is ready for the early morning train," and he 
 again went out. 
 
 Garita said: "Burnie, what shall I do? Oh, Uno, 
 Uno, if you were only here. Why did I not send for 
 you sooner? I know she will come on the wings of 
 the wind, but 'tis too late. Despair seems to have 
 clasped me in its black arms/' 
 
 Burnedita said: "You must be brave, and I will 
 help you." 
 
 "Nannette, tell Katie to keep near this room." 
 
 Then she quietly said: "I do not wish to be sur- 
 prised." 
 
 To which remark Nannette said: " What if those 
 girls were traitors ? " 
 
 " Be calm, my poor Nannette, I know from whence 
 they come, and I have other help near at hand." 
 
 She then went to the basement of the house and told 
 Bridget not to leave the door, and tested her memory 
 as to the countersign. 
 
 After Mr. Eoss went out two men who had been 
 watching him come and go, quickly went to the base- 
 ment door. It was now no longer daylight, and there 
 was little danger of being seen. The door was in- 
 stantly opened, and they entered, remaining in the 
 basement.
 
 220 Uno Who. 
 
 In a few minutes two women walked leisurely along, 
 laughing and chatting. They stopped and looked up 
 at the house as if to see the number. One of them had 
 a bundle, and the other went to the front door and rang 
 the bell three times. It was answered by Bridget. 
 
 After talking a few minutes the woman went down 
 the steps and had a consultation with the one with the 
 bundle. They walked along as if looking for the right 
 number, then turned and went into the basement. 
 They were instantly admitted. 
 
 Garita, in a beautiful white robe, was lying on a 
 couch in her boudoir. Her fears had been quieted 
 by telling her they had sent to the convent for help, 
 and if necessary there would be a carriage ready to 
 take her there. They had just heard through Mrs. 
 Eed's maid that the doctor and Mr. Boss were in her 
 house, and they appeared to be holding a consultation. 
 
 Garita had decided to be determined and say she 
 would not go, and so settle the matter at once, after 
 being promised that they would protect her. 
 
 The two women who had entered the house were in 
 Nannette's room, adjoining Mrs. Ross. They had put 
 on their nuns' cloaks and bonnets, and were waiting 
 for an exhibition of Mr. Ross's temper. They had 
 not long to think of what they would say or do when 
 he came in with the doctor, who said : " I was coming, 
 Mrs. Ross, to see how you are feeling after the con- 
 cert, and I met Mr. Ross. You sing divinely, and are 
 the talk of the town. I was proud to say that you were
 
 Uno Who. 221 
 
 my patient. Mrs. Boss, you are in a fair way to regain 
 your former good health. I was afraid I would find 
 you in bed after the excitement you have had, as a re- 
 action will very likely take place. I see you have not 
 recovered from the nervous strain, and I will give you 
 a tonic to take on your trip, your good husband tells 
 me you are about to take." 
 
 " Mr. Ross, I may as well tell you now that I am not 
 going." 
 
 "Garita, I have made all arrangements, even to 
 buying the tickets." 
 
 " Mr. Ross, I have never had to consider the waste of 
 a traveling ticket, and will not begin now. Take the 
 party you had with you at the concert. Do you think 
 I will be seen with you after that public exhibition? 
 Never; this is the straw that breaks the camel's back. 
 Do your worst, I defy you and your doctor. I wish 
 you would retire to the library with him. There is 
 no occasion for him to visit me." 
 
 " Mrs. Ross, you are well, all but your mind, which 
 has become morbid from brooding. We do not wish 
 you to get back into your old tracks and have to be 
 taken to a retreat." 
 
 " I will let my own family be my judge. You are 
 not my doctor, and I do not wish to hear any more 
 upon this subject." 
 
 " My dear Mrs. Ross, I have only come to help you, 
 and the advice of a pleasant little outing with a devoted 
 husband cannot be very disagreeable."
 
 222 Uno Who. 
 
 " I have given my answer." 
 
 "Garita, I am tired of having Mrs. Signal Eed 
 brought up to me, and the house expenses, and 'why 
 don't I go out with you/ and finding you in your den 
 praying, and nuns around to keep the house gloomy, 
 and so suspicious of me that you won't have a professor 
 give you lessons for fear I have some design. And, 
 Doctor, she had to get up a scene for me one night be- 
 cause I was out to a card party. When I came home 
 she was up, and when I went in to our room she fell on 
 her knees and began to pray. She makes me tired." 
 ; "Mr. Eoss, as that did not seem to please you, I 
 had a friend come, and I have been having a very gay 
 time, and am going to have it kept up. I am all over 
 praying for you or wasting any more tears. I shall 
 not give you a mortgage nor ask my mother for money, 
 nor again place myself in a position where I have not 
 money to pay for a carriage, but have to borrow of my 
 friends. Mr. Eoss, I am done with you, and shall send 
 for my friends, and you can live with those Danger 
 Signals if you choose." 
 
 " Doctor, there is only one way. You will have to 
 use the papers you have in your possession declaring 
 her insane. I cannot live this kind of life any longer. 
 You think these women are your friends, but they have 
 been keeping me posted in regard to your doings all 
 the time, or I would not dare go to business." 
 
 " Mr. Eoss, I'm tired of this talk. I see your object
 
 Uno Who. 223 
 
 is to worry me into a state of excitement in which you 
 can take advantage of me." 
 
 " There it is, Doctor, a lunatic's suspicion." 
 
 "I see it, Mr. Ross, and there is no other way but 
 to use our papers." 
 
 Garita arose from the chair she had taken when they 
 came in, and as the doctor handed the papers to Mr. 
 Ross which declared her insane, she started to leave 
 the room, but Mr. Ross stopped her, saying : " You are 
 not to be lost sight of, day or night." 
 
 Garita said: "Has it come to this? Have you 
 gotten so degraded that you will be a party to a con- 
 spiracy? I see it all; you and your friends want my 
 money, and in order to get it, you will place me in an 
 asylum where you were intending to leave me on this 
 trip that you and your friends have been plotting for 
 me to take. I could almost wish to be insane if I could 
 come back to reason and find that my husband had 
 never been the demon he is." 
 
 " Mrs. Ross," said the doctor, " we have to be cruel 
 only to be kind." 
 
 She stood for an instant and looked at him, as if 
 her fast failing strength could bear no more. Then 
 she said : " It is thus that bad begins, and for you, Mr. 
 Ross, the worst remains behind." Then she clasped her 
 hands as if in agony, saying : " Oh, Uno, Uno, how long 
 must I plead and cry in vain? Lift back these iron 
 bars," and putting her hands up to her head she 
 fainted.
 
 224 Uno Who. 
 
 This was the opportunity that the doctor and Mr. 
 Ross were evidently waiting for. Mr. Ross caught her 
 as she was falling, and laid her on the floor. 
 
 " Bring me some water," said the doctor, and he took 
 a small phial out of his pocket. 
 
 Mr. Ross was bending over her, chafing her hands. 
 As the doctor stooped down to give her the medicine, 
 a nun appeared at the door. "Hold there," she ex- 
 claimed, " give her a drop at the peril of your life." 
 
 The doctor started up, spilling his medicine, and Mr. 
 Ross said: "Who are you who dares to dictate in my 
 family?" 
 
 The nun's cloak and honnet were thrown off as she 
 said: "Uno Who." 
 
 In an instant Osceola and an officer entered the 
 room, who said: "Mr. Ross, you are my prisoner. 
 You, the doctor and Mrs. Signal Red are under arrest 
 for conspiracy." 
 
 The doctor, at sight of the officer, had gone down- 
 stairs and out of the house, leaving his medicine case 
 behind. 
 
 The officer stood with his hands on Mr. Ross's 
 shoulder while Uno told him there were not words 
 in the English language to express her contempt for 
 him. 
 
 "It was not bad enough to spend your time and 
 money, taking the name of your pure wife upon your 
 lips in the society you have been keeping, but you must 
 demand her fortune, plotting with a miserable fiend
 
 Uno Who. 225 
 
 who calls himself a physician to declare her insane, 
 and doom her to a life worse than death. Surely, you 
 are a fit subject for the gallows. You poor miserable 
 weakling. The woman will fly, leaving you to your fate, 
 taking what she can of her ill-gotten gains, and what 
 are you? Despised of man. God and the angels say, 
 ' I never knew you.' Officer, take this man to a room 
 on the top floor, which has been prepared for his re- 
 ception. Lock the door and remain in sight of the 
 room until I give you further instructions." 
 
 Uno then turned her attention to Garita, who had 
 
 been carried to her room, and was just recovering 
 
 from her fainting spell. She said : " Don't let them 
 
 take me. Where am I ? I don't want that doctor here. 
 
 They said I am a prisoner. Why did TJ-no not come ? " 
 
 " There, honey, don't get excited, Senorita is here." 
 
 "What did you say, Nanny? I must be dreaming. 
 
 She is not here, and I am afraid I will never see my 
 
 mother or sisters again. But you will never leave me." 
 
 They were relieved when she began to cry. She said : 
 
 " The way is dark, my Father. Cloud on cloud is 
 
 gathering thickly o'er my head. I am bewildered. 
 
 Merciful Father, take my hand, and lead safe along 
 
 Thy child. Did I hear Uno's voice?" Nannette was 
 
 crying so she could not answer. 
 
 " Yes, Garita, I am here, and your troubles are over." 
 
 She laid her head on the pillow beside her, saying: 
 
 " Did I not tell you I would be here at the right time ? 
 
 My father is with me, and we will see that the doctor 
 
 15
 
 226 Uno Who. 
 
 does not come again, and that you are not disgraced by 
 these bad people." 
 
 Osceola was on the war-path, but the culprits dis- 
 appeared so quickly that it was hopeless to follow them. 
 
 Mrs. Bed's maid was in the house, having been sent 
 there to get information as to how the preparations 
 for the journey were progressing. She returned to Mrs. 
 Eed in great excitement, telling her that Mr. Eoss was 
 arrested, that she saw the officer, and that Miss Who 
 and her father had come with him. Then the other 
 maids came in corroborating the story, saying she 
 too was to be arrested for conspiracy. The doctor 
 had already been there, and advised her to leave the 
 city before daylight if she could. He was going right 
 away, and could not help her. 
 
 "Ha, ha, ha, Sally/' said Signal Red; "they can't 
 do anything with me. I have not had anything to do 
 with this affair, only to bear the humiliation of being 
 your show husband. Your ' Mx-my-Dolly/ as you call 
 me. Ha, ha, ha, Sally, this is fun for me." 
 
 " You miserable wretch, how dare you sit there and 
 laugh?" 
 
 Mrs. Scarlet and Mrs. Crimson had come in to hear 
 how they were getting along with poor Mrs. Ross. It 
 was late, but they were anxious to hear the latest news. 
 
 " I will tell you the very latest," said Mr. Red, and 
 after relating what had occurred, he said : " I am mon- 
 arch of all I survey, except Sally. Ha, ha, ha, ' Nix- 
 my-Dolly ' feels fine. I will keep peaceable possession
 
 Uno Who. 227 
 
 of this house, and you can't help yourself, for you 
 won't dare to come back. What a fool that Eoss has 
 been." 
 
 " I think we had better be going," said Mrs. Scarlet 
 and Mrs. Crimson. They were horrified, they said 3 
 "but there is nothing that can be proven against us. 
 Mrs. Bed, we have all thought you were carrying this 
 Eoss scheme too far." 
 
 " Yes," said .Signal, " she has been digging a ditch 
 for that innocent woman, but has fallen into it her- 
 self. Sally, the tables have turned, and 'Nix-my- 
 Dolly ' is a free man while Mrs. Eoss is a free woman. 
 I will go home to my respectable relations, marry a 
 respectable woman, and we will have all these nice 
 things. I need some compensation for being your 
 < Mx-my-Dolly.' " 
 
 Just then the maid came to the door ready to go 
 out. Mrs. Eed said : " I want you to help me." 
 
 " Indeed, ma'am, we are leaving you to-night." 
 
 " What do you mean ? " said Mrs. Eed. 
 
 "I mean our work is done. We have been in the 
 employ of Miss Uno Who as detectives in your house, 
 and are to appear in Court against you." 
 
 "We must go," said Mrs. Scarlet. "I really am 
 very much surprised to learn that you are trying to 
 make Mrs. Eoss out insane so as to take her to an 
 asylum. I see through this terrible plot now. I 
 thought you were only circulating this story so as to 
 keep people from believing what she said in regard to
 
 228 Uno Who. 
 
 you and her husband. You certainly have had great 
 power over him to get something like a fortune out 
 of him. I shall do everything I can to contradict this 
 lie." 
 
 " So will I," said Mrs. Crimson. " I think Mr. Eoss 
 has been the insane one, and, Mrs. Red, I have often 
 heard you call Mr. Ross your weakling. It is a strange 
 match, that beautiful woman; I have often wondered 
 how she happened to marry him." 
 
 "Yes," said Signal Red, "and so have I, but it is 
 a greater wonder why he lets Sally fool him so, but 
 he is not the first man she has fooled I mean besides 
 myself. I have not pretended to be anything but 
 ' Nix-my-Dolly ' so long that it will take me about 
 as long as it will Ross to regain my equilibrium. 
 
 " Signal, I think you have talked quite enough, and 
 I want you to begin packing our trunks." 
 
 " Sally, I will help you to get out of my house, but 
 I am not going with you, as it would look as though I 
 was guilty." 
 
 When Mrs. Crimson and Mrs. Scarlet left, Mrs. Red 
 sent a message to Mrs. Rosepink, saying if she kept 
 very quiet she would not expose her to her husband 
 for the sake of her daughter. "But if I remain here 
 I think you will all be glad to pay me well for seal- 
 ing my lips. I will return when the excitement has 
 died out, and Mrs. Ross has gone with her friends. 
 They won't care to have him around after what he has 
 done, or care to have the disgrace of troubling me. I 
 have no further use for Mr. Ross."
 
 Uno Who. 229 
 
 CHAPTEK XVI. 
 
 " When remorse is blended with the fear of punishment 
 and arises to despair, it constitutes the supreme wretched- 
 ness of the mind." 
 
 OSCEOLA wrote at once to Lord Oughton the state 
 of Garita's affairs, and received news that some mem- 
 bers of the family would come to her at once. 
 
 Garita said she had never been so happ} r in her home 
 as while she was waiting for their arrival. She said 
 the air seemed purified, and there was no restraint upon 
 her actions. It was a relief to know where her husband 
 was, though a prisoner in her house. They went out 
 and entertained a great deal. 
 
 Mrs. Anson was delighted when she found TJno was 
 visiting Mrs. Eoss, and that they had mutual friends in 
 England and Spain. 
 
 Mr. Eoss was allowed to go to the drawing-room, so 
 there was no suspicion of what had occurred. When 
 he went to his office, the officer and Osceola went with 
 him. He was not allowed any money, and was told 
 they could do nothing for him until some of the family 
 arrived from England. 
 
 He asked Garita to let him go to Boston, and he 
 would not trouble her again. She told him he had 
 taken his case out of her hands and she had nothing to
 
 230 Uno Who. 
 
 say. Her friends would not listen to any suggestion 
 from her in regard to him. He was now in the hands 
 of the law, and she was in fact powerless. 
 
 Her sister, Flora, came accompanied by Lord Phil- 
 ippe Oughton. Uno and her father told Lady Flora 
 the entire story that they might act in accordance with 
 the facts. The house was to be sold, and Garita to 
 go to England. Her sister was so incensed at his con- 
 duct that she wished Garita to leave him. Her reply 
 was: "Thy vows are upon me, God." She said: 
 "I have lived through the worst, and what would be- 
 come of him were I to leave him ? " 
 
 They took him to England, also the officer, that they 
 might decide what was best to do. They went to the 
 ancestral home, where he was treated like one that was 
 just recovering from brain trouble, and the officer 
 was allowed to return to America. 
 
 Uno, with her father and sisters, went to Florida. 
 After a visit with their friends they went to Cuba. 
 Marie, taking the advice of the Mother Superior, acted 
 as an assistant to Uno. 
 
 They now felt that Garita's troubles were over. Osce- 
 ola was quiet upon the subject. Did he still see danger 
 in her path? Uno said: "Father, I cannot see how 
 Meno can harm her with the ocean between them. I 
 think she has done enough, and the prophecy has been 
 fulfilled," though even as she said it, there was a feel- 
 ing as of something tugging away at her heartstrings 
 warning her to be watchful and beware.
 
 Uno Who. 231 
 
 Uno had a year of uninterrupted work at the insti- 
 tution, when she received a letter from Dona asking 
 her to come to England. She was shocked at the 
 change in Mr. Ross. He seemed like a man that was 
 being devoured by remorse. The kindness shown him 
 only the more made him feel his unworthiness. He 
 could not bear to have Garita out of his sight. With 
 her the arrow had gone deep into her very soul. It 
 was the cold calm winter of her existence, and she was 
 waiting for an angel to sweep the drifts away, when 
 she was made aware of Mr. Ross's condition. Con- 
 sumption had claimed him for its own. In the fall he 
 failed very rapidly ; even Uno, who had a heart of stone 
 towards him, softened when she saw him watch every 
 move Garita made. If she was out of his sight, he 
 would ask for her. 
 
 They had been in England two years, and he was now 
 about to take the journey that has no companionship. 
 He implored his wife's forgiveness, asking her to call 
 him darling as of old. 
 
 " Is it too much to ask that you will sometimes think 
 kindly of me ? Oh, wretch that I have been, that I did 
 not listen to your pleadings. The unhappy hours I 
 have caused you have eaten into my very soul." 
 
 As Garita kneeled by his bedside, holding his hand, 
 Uno stood not far off. Her thoughts were that it was 
 fine talk, but she was not a believer in deathbed re- 
 pentances; that if he were well and had money, know- 
 ing what he did now, he would do it all again, for he
 
 232 Uno Who. 
 
 was of such a weak character. He worried her life 
 out with his cruel treatment, and now he was worry< 
 ing her sick with his pleadings for forgiveness. Oh, 
 consistency, thou art a virtue. 
 
 It was an affecting scene, and Uno was glad when 
 it was over. Garita had heen true to her marriage 
 vows " until death us do part." 
 
 Uno and Garita spent the following winter in Rome 
 with Isla Manrique, where she attracted a great deal of 
 attention as a young and beautiful widow. Her sor- 
 rows had given a new charm to her face and manner. 
 She said she was tired of thinking and wished to 
 travel. " Oh, help me to forget my strange, sad life. 
 Uno, take me with you and give me work. When I 
 am with my family I make them unhappy by my in- 
 difference, but I cannot enter into the gay life they 
 live. Those memories ! Oh, help me to fold them up, 
 and lay them sacredly by. What avail is it to dream 
 of the bitter past that now lies scattered around a bier, 
 when, perhaps, there is a bright and happy future in 
 reserve for me ? Uno, pale-face has taken of the bitter 
 dregs mixed in the cup she could not see, thus fulfilling 
 the prophecy in regard to you and me." 
 
 <l Garita, you say give me work. My sweeter self, 
 you know not what you ask. My work will cover a 
 broad field. When I leave you, it will be a scene of 
 solitude, a wilderness of care, as I walk with the motley 
 throng in which my work is never done. I have crossed
 
 Uno Who. 233 
 
 the river's broad expanse and come to thee. I will not 
 leave you until the prophecy has been fulfilled." 
 
 " Uno, you helped me out of the quicksands where 
 I was in danger of a living death, proving true your 
 own prophetic words. Yes, I followed the gliding 
 stream in all its devious ways into a wilderness of doubt 
 and shifting sands." 
 
 In the spring Isla Manrique received news of her 
 aunt's serious illness, and wishing her to come to Ma- 
 drid. Uno and Garita went with her, and remained 
 at the house until her aunt died. She lived long 
 enough to tell of the wrong and injustice she had done 
 her only brother's only child, and wished to make 
 what reparation she was able by leaving her estate 
 to Isla. 
 
 At the time her brother and wife were drowned, it 
 was supposed the child was also drowned. Her mother 
 was somewhat an invalid and lived with her. She never 
 recovered from the shock of her son's death, and the* 
 aunt of Isla, hearing from Col. Sebastian that he had 
 the child, did not reply to his numerous letters, know- 
 ing the child was well provided for by her rich grand- 
 father, and she did not let her mother know that the 
 child, of whom she was very fond, was saved. All who 
 inquired for her mother, wishing to see her in regard 
 to her affairs, were directed to her lawyer, who had his 
 instructions, and Col. Sebastian was unable to leam 
 anything about the estate of his son-in-law. 
 
 The mother died, leaving everything to her only child.
 
 234 Uno Who. 
 
 Isla Manrique was now a fine-looking, self-possessed 
 young woman. Her first thought was that she could 
 provided a home for her Aunt Isla and her son who were 
 in Cuba at the TJno home, her husband having died 
 from the effects of his dissipated life. 
 
 TJno and Garita were warmly welcomed by the young 
 Marquis of Floraine and his beautiful and happy wife. 
 They were disappointed when they learned that Col. 
 Who had gone, they hardly knew where, but he was 
 traveling with his sister Florita's son, who was living 
 at the palace with him, where TJno and Garita went. 
 
 A young and attractive widow finds many admirers, 
 and Garita wished the convent was her dwelling-place, 
 but TJno said that would not do, for she would turn the 
 heads of the priests. " Then we will go home to 
 Florida. I want to see my old home and friends once 
 more." 
 
 This was the first time she expressed a wish for or 
 about anything, and TJno's heart was glad. 
 
 After seeing Senora de Vega in her happy home, 
 which was a center for the literary lights of that city, 
 and seeing Isla with her aunt in their beautiful home, 
 the son giving promise of a bright future, they sailed 
 for Cuba, and the plantation the dearest spot on earth 
 to TJno and her devoted father. 
 
 They went to the convent taking with them Marie, 
 to whom Garita was devotedly attached. She wished 
 to see the Mother Superior who had done so much to 
 save her from destruction.
 
 Uno Who. 235 
 
 While there she asked Uno to tell her from beginning 
 to end how she managed to be at her house the night 
 she and her father rescued her from the hands of her 
 husband and doctor. She wished to know how she had 
 used her cultivated eye and ear. She was now able to 
 hear the whole truth, and there was no better place or 
 time. She was perfectly calm. The fountain of her 
 tears seemed dry. No words escaped her. It was the 
 peace of a heart whose conflicts are over and whose 
 sorrows are buried.
 
 236 Uno Who. 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 " It came o'er their ears like the sweet South, 
 That breathes upon a bank of violets." 
 
 <e OH Uno, this is the shrine where my heart can 
 find its needed treasure," exclaimed Garita as she stood 
 on the piazza at " Sunny side," enjoying the low : lone 
 song of the waves as they came dashing upon the distant 
 shore. " This soothes my soul, and here will I find the 
 blessed balm of healing. It is the dearest spot on earth 
 to me, and I feel like taking life's lease anew." 
 
 " Come, Meno, here are the children that shot many 
 a dart from mischievous eyes which you warded off 
 with your good government." 
 
 "And you have let your light so shine before men 
 that they have seen my good work," said Meno. 
 
 " One of you is happy in reply and the other excels 
 in rejoinder," said Uno, "but, Meno, the reason your 
 good work has not been seen by women is that jealousy 
 has obscured the light. In order to prove her beauty 
 and lovely character to some people would be like hav- 
 ing to light a candle to see the sun." 
 
 When Meno retired, Garita said : " The injured for- 
 gives the wrong that is past, but he who wrongs you 
 hates you to the last."
 
 Uno Who. 237 
 
 " Garita, what shall we do in regard to Meno ? I fear 
 she will make your home unhappy by being disagree- 
 able, and I wish to see you free from annoyance." 
 
 "Uno, I have already thought of the subject, but 
 where can she go or what can she do? W<e really have 
 no excuse for sending her away from the house. Should 
 I pension her? I have come to the conclusion that I 
 am or ought to be capable of ignoring anything dis- 
 agreeable she says or does." 
 
 Garita's friends were delighted when they heard she 
 was going to spend the winter at " Sunnyside." She 
 now felt that Heaven was showering its richest blessings 
 upon her. There was nothing she asked for she did not 
 have. Loving friends anticipated her every wish, and 
 she felt that she could afford to be generous in over- 
 looking Meno's faults she who had so little and loved 
 so much. 
 
 She set about wiping from the table of memory all 
 that was gone by preparing for a Christmas of the 
 olden time. 
 
 Osceola had Marie accept her invitation to be one of 
 her guests at " Sunnyside." He would spend the winter 
 at "The Shadows" being cautiously observant of all 
 things, for the unexpected had come. If Meno was 
 jealous of a married woman's beauty, what must now 
 be her feelings toward the beautiful and fascinating 
 widow ? The still evening and twilight gray had in her 
 sober liven 7 all things clad, when Garita asked Meno 
 to join her in the library, where she with Uno and Marie
 
 238 Uno Who. 
 
 were talking over the finishing up of their arrangements 
 for Christmas. 
 
 The shadows had deepened. The pine knot looking 
 as if it might be a near relative of the one of long ago, 
 was snapping and crackling in the open fireplace in true 
 Southern style. 
 
 Garita went to the piano during a lull in the conversa- 
 tion, and played soft, sweet airs, until a spirit of in- 
 spiration took possession of them, and all joined her 
 in singing. Then one after another (wishing to hear 
 the melodious murmurs, the soul of melody, she poured 
 into their listening ears) stopped. They were so ab- 
 sorbed that they did not hear the footsteps in the dimly 
 lighted hall the only light in the room came from the 
 pine knot that seemed to be enjoying the honor of be- 
 ing the favorite light of the songstress. 
 
 Osceola came to the door. He put up his finger that 
 they might wait until Garita had finished, and the li- 
 brary was lighted, then he and Paulo entered the room. 
 Paulo embraced his astonished sisters, kissing Garita 
 as he did them, and turning to Meno he took her hand 
 while with the other he patted her shoulder, saying: 
 " And here is Meno still making home pleasant for the 
 wanderers. I am glad you have not outgrown your 
 usefulness/' 
 
 There was now no lack of good cheer at either of 
 the mansions. Upon both plantations rolled one un- 
 ebbing tide of overflowing admiration for Paulo and 
 Garita. Bonfires and music were kept up evening after
 
 Uno Who. 239 
 
 evening. The melodious voices of the negroes, as they 
 joined the band in a refrain of " There is none so rich in 
 birth and beauty as Paulo and Garita," was heard for 
 a long distance as it was played and sung in the different 
 negro quarters. 
 
 When Garita heard her name so suddenly associated 
 with Paulo's she did not know what to think, much less 
 to say, and when Paulo told her it was just as it should 
 be that his wish had been anticipated, and that he 
 desired to include the heart which had been hers for 
 years, she was silent. 
 
 Who does not know the magic of a brief pause? A 
 calm of five minutes will invite back our vagrant powers. 
 As she put her hand in his she said : " Paulo, tell me, 
 this is not all a dream?" 
 
 They were on the piazza, where they were soon joined 
 by Uno, who for an instant gazed at Garita's flushed 
 cheek, when Paulo taking Garita's hand placed it in 
 Uno's, saying : " It is now mine." 
 
 "Oh, Paulo, she is now doubly mine," said Uno as 
 she embraced her. 
 
 At a dinner given by Osceola to the members of the 
 two families who had come to be present at the Christ- 
 mas eve festival he said : " Come, health and love to all, 
 but I drink to the general joy of the whole table over 
 this engagement." 
 
 Pamphilo said : " In Heaven this day there is rejoic- 
 ing with your names." 
 ""Sunnyside" and "The Shadows" were connected
 
 240 Uno Who. 
 
 by a canopied walk. In the former the guests were re- 
 ceived by Garita and Uno. The dancing was in the 
 ball-room at " The Shadows." No cloud obscured the 
 vision of Garita as through the mazy dance she was led 
 by Paulo until she saw Meno. Then with beating heart 
 she thought : " Your eyes do menace me. Why do you 
 look pale ? " 
 
 That night she told Uno how the strange, weird look 
 of Meno made her shudder. 
 
 Congratulations came from all their relatives and 
 friends. They spent the winter in making happy by 
 their presence those they had known in their child- 
 hood days. 
 
 The families abroad were well represented, and costly 
 bridal gifts came from all their friends. One of great 
 value was from Mrs. Estaugh. She had seen the 
 notice of Garita's approaching marriage to Col. Who, 
 of his being heir to the title and estates of the Esta- 
 banez family, and she did not fail to do the proper 
 thing. 
 
 Garita asked Uno to reply to her letter of congratula- 
 tion, as she did not wish to revive old libels that were 
 born to die. They were of death's old life, which she 
 would soon cast off, even in name, and she would keep 
 the past out of her happy future. 
 
 The bloom of favor was gone. The old wound closed, 
 but the highest skill in spiritual surgery could not make 
 it heal. 
 
 The family made a pilgrimage to the convent, Garita
 
 Uno Who. 241 
 
 making an offering to the sacred wit of the Mother 
 Superior. 
 
 They went to the plantation where Paulo found his 
 Aunt Thetis a willing captive. She had her household 
 affairs settled and in a prosperous way that she might 
 attend his wedding. She was glad Garita had shown 
 so much good sense in being married at home where the 
 old folks could be present. 
 
 "Paulo,, your Aunt Wauka and I are going to be 
 a credit to the family. It needs gray hairs and black 
 satin to give tone and character to such an occasion." 
 
 Everything was now ready. The beautiful wedding- 
 dress Garita's mother had ordered had arrived from 
 Paris. Osceola and his daughters had doubled the con- 
 stant vigilance they had kept over the wan specter. 
 Garita and Uno occupied the rooms of their childhood 
 days. Osceola had set a watch upon the valuables that 
 had been placed in these rooms. He managed to be 
 the companion of Meno, advising with her in every pos- 
 sible way, his wonderful presence of mind serving him 
 well in this emergency. He wished to keep Paulo and 
 Garita in ignorance of what was going on, and he could 
 not rely in this hour of need on broken reeds that might 
 pierce the hand that trusted them, so he depended 
 upon his ready wit which was better than a coat of mail 
 to those about him, the valuable gifts often being a 
 source of excuse for his presence. 
 
 The evening before the wedding, which was to take 
 place at noon, Meno was seen to watch Paulo as he left 
 16
 
 242 Uno Who. 
 
 the house. The Indian could not shelter passion under 
 friendship's name, as she stole from the dark like a guilty 
 thing longing to catch a glimpse, not a meeting, only a 
 crumb of comfort for her heart to feed upon in that last 
 hour when she would sink to rise no more. 
 
 After Garita had retired, Uno went to her room say- 
 ing as she did so : " There are so many valuables in our 
 boudoir that I am taking extra precautions by seeing 
 that every entrance to our rooms is locked." 
 
 She left the key in the doors as Meno had skeleton 
 keys to all the rooms of the mansion. Osceola spent 
 the night in their boudoir, Uno taking a room opposite 
 Garita's. The door opened in a curve of the hall. They 
 were both corner rooms of the halls that crossed each 
 other, and at the crossing was a light suspended from 
 the ceiling. Uno could see Garita's door from the key- 
 hole of hers, also when the door was slightly opened. 
 
 It was two o'clock, the house was still as death. 
 Through the keyhole Uno saw the light suddenly turn 
 down, not out. At that instant the well oiled locks of 
 two doors were turned. Uno saw Meno take from her 
 right hand a steel that glittered in the dim light. Then 
 holding it in her left hand while with the right she used 
 the skeleton key. It did not work, and she saw her drop 
 it in her pocket, taking another which Uno knew would 
 turn the key. At that instant she glided from her room 
 and stepping behind Meno laid her right hand on 
 Meno's left that held the dagger, saying as she did so : 
 " My poor Meno, come with me." 
 
 At the sound of Uno's voice she gasped as if suffocat-
 
 Uno Who. 243 
 
 ing; Uno, holding the hand which held the dagger firmly 
 clasped in hers, led her to the room she had just left. 
 As the door closed Osceola put his hand on the knob. 
 Uno, looking Meno in the eyes that glittered like the 
 steel she still firmly held, said : " You thought to find 
 me there," avoiding speaking Garita's name. " You 
 did not know there were officers in there guarding the 
 treasures." 
 
 In her excitement at the mention of the presents she 
 loosened her hold on the dagger, and Uno took posses- 
 sion of it. Then with her eyes still on Meno, she said : 
 " I thought I heard some one at this door." She 
 backed up to the door, and through the opening slipped 
 the dagger in her father's hand, then putting her arm 
 around Meno she said: 
 
 " I feel like going to early mass. What say you ? " 
 Then looking at her watch she said : " It is now three 
 o'clock. We have only an hour to wait." 
 
 She did not appear to notice what Uno said, but 
 dropped on her knees before her, and putting up her 
 hand said : " Fate sets apart one common doom for all 
 who love too well. I have loved and that love has been 
 my curse. I shall know no better life. I can know 
 no worse. The washing waves of this wretched life is 
 all that is left for me. You have been my friend, 
 knowing the intensity of an Indian's nature, and to- 
 night you have saved me from a terrible deed, for God 
 only knows how I hate her. When he left you as chil- 
 dren he said: 'Meno, take good care of her for my 
 sake/"
 
 244 Uno Who. 
 
 " Come, Meno, I will go to your room with you and 
 we will get ready for mass." 
 
 "I will go, and when I am ready, I will return to 
 you," said Meno. 
 
 She did not go to her room, but went to the porter's 
 lodge, saying she wished the gate opened, as she was 
 going to mass. He was but half awake and said : " This 
 is an early hour to get a man out for that sort of busi- 
 ness. I thought it was for the wedding, or I would not 
 have budged an inch." 
 
 " I see you are all willing to work for the wedding," 
 was her reply. 
 
 "Yes, but we are all don' gon' ela'r of getting a 
 chance to work for yours," was his angry reply. 
 
 When she left the lodge she went some distance to 
 a boat-house where were anchored several boats of dif- 
 ferent kinds, among them a small yacht. The men in 
 charge were still sleeping and she walked to the end 
 of the pier and threw herself into the sea. There was 
 a high wind which had prevailed during the night, 
 and she was washed upon the beach. 
 
 In the morning the sailors discovered her and in- 
 formed Osceola, who had everything hushed up until 
 after the wedding. He assisted the sailors who took 
 her lifeless form into the boat-house, and he smoothed 
 her dark hair down, the long, tangled hair, all dripping 
 from the sea. 
 
 In the excitement for the preparations of the wed- 
 ding, the incidents of the night and early morning 
 were for a time forgotten. In order that Uno's mind
 
 Uno Who. 245 
 
 might be free from anxiety, Osceola told her what had 
 happened. 
 
 She said: "Thank God that danger is over." 
 
 Garita walked alone to the altar where she met hei 
 brother, Pamphilo, who gave her away. Her path was 
 strewn with flowers by her two little nieces, as they 
 walked in advance of her. 
 
 The sun never shone upon a happier or a more beau- 
 tiful bride. They spent their honeymoon at the 
 beautiful plantation home of Alberto in Alabama, then 
 joined their friends in Saratoga, later going to Eng- 
 land, making happy the heart of Lady Margaret, who 
 said that everything was just as it should have been 
 long ago. 
 
 Garita and Paulo were made happy by her mother, 
 whose mind was already made up to spend her declin- 
 ing years with them. There was no lack of good cheer 
 at their beautiful home in Spain, where in sweet, con- 
 fiding trust Garita found the peace she so longed for, 
 not the peace which brooded over Eden, but the peace 
 which crowned Gethsemane. 
 
 Thus the prophecy has been fulfilled. Garita has had 
 her sad life with pale-face man. She has been in 
 great danger from a woman of the tribe, and the pride 
 of the de Gomoras has been saved; all by a seventh 
 daughter of the tribe of You-Know-Who. 
 
 THE END.
 
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