"Barbadoes.
"My dear Major Jen:
"It is over a year since I wrote you my explanatory letter from Deanminster, and I little thought that it would be necessary for me to write to you again, least of all from this place. But here I came in search of Dido; and here I found Mrs. Dallas, and to my profound astonishment her daughter--still Miss Dallas. I sought an explanation. They would not give me one. In despair--having received the most uncivil reception--I left them. Then, to my surprise, I ran across Mr. David Sarby.
"He was glad to see me, and thanked me for bringing him back from the grave. I, on my side, complimented him for saving my neck from the hangman's noose. The first greetings thus being over, he told me the news which concerned those who where implicated in our little Deanminster comedy. I confess that the news surprised me; and I write to you for an explanation.
"In the first place, I learned from Mr. Sarby that Isabella Dallas refused to marry Mr. Alymer, and that, far from being offended, he appeared to be glad of the release from his engagement. I also learned that he has since married Lady Meg Brance, who has always been so deeply in love with him. Will you be so kind, my dear major, as to explain this sudden misplacing of Mr. Alymer's affections?
"I learned, also, from Mr. Sarby, that he has prevailed upon Miss Dallas, the deserted Ariadne of Mr. Alymer, to reward his long devotion by giving him her hand. I hear that they are to be married within the month, and that the match is one which meets with the full approbation of Mrs. Dallas. Under these circumstances I am afraid that there is no chance of my marrying Miss Dallas; so I must content myself with searching for another wife.
"I found in my brief interview with Miss Dallas that she had learned how she had tried to kill Mr. Alymer while under the hypnotic influence of Dido. Perhaps this knowledge broke off the match, and the young couple took a dislike to one another from the peculiar circumstances of that night. Certainly--hypnotism or not--one would not care to marry a woman who had attempted one's life; so that, I conjecture, is the reason of Mr. Alymer's withdrawal.
"Also, Miss Dallas must have had a horror of seeing constantly before her the man whom--innocently enough--she tried to kill. Hence her refusal to marry your dear Maurice. Am I wrong in these ideas? I think not. Still I should like an explanation from you. As I shall be here for some months--searching for the Voodoo stone and Dido--please send your letter to Barbadoes, directed to your anxious inquirer, Max Etwald."
THE THIRD LETTER OF DR. ETWALD.
"Barbadoes.