father's wishes, and been cut off from the Crompton property, which, at
the old man's death, all came to the Colonel. It was a fine estate, with
a very grand house for the New England town by the sea in which it was
situated. It was built by the elder Crompton, who was born in England,
and had carried out his foreign ideas of architecture, and with its
turrets and square towers it bore some resemblance to the handsome
places he had seen at home. It was of stone, and stood upon a rise of
ground, commanding a view of the sea two miles away, and the pretty
village on the shore with a background of wooded hills stretching to the
west. It was full of pictures and bric-à-brac, and statuary from all
parts of the world, for the Colonel's father had travelled extensively,
and brought home souvenirs from every country visited. Florida had
furnished her quota, and stuffed parokeets and red birds, and a huge
alligator skin adorned the walls of the wide hall, together with antlers
and pieces of old armor, and other curios. A small fortune was yearly
expended upon the grounds which were very large, and people wondered
that the Colonel lavished so much upon what he seemed to care so little
for, except to see that it was in perfect order, without a dried leaf,
or twig, or weed to mar its beauty.

It had not always been thus with him. When he first came into possession
of the place he was just through college, and had seemed very proud and
fond of his fine estate, and had extended his hospitality freely to his
acquaintances, keeping them, however, at a certain distance, for the
Crompton pride was always in the ascendant, and he tolerated no
familiarities, except such as he chose to allow. This genial social life
lasted a few years, and then there came a change, following a part of a
winter spent in South Carolina and Georgia with his intimate friend and
college chum, Tom Hardy. Communication between the North and South was
not as frequent and direct then as it is now, and but little was known