The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1875-11-05
CT cannot say, madam. 1 do not

"Then / think cook had better go
with you-she has been here before. L
dare say no one will call this evening.
"Thank you, madam" and the nurse
left the room. Presently Mis-. Comyers
heard the hall door closet, aud the two
women's footsteps ccho.ng down the
steps.
A quarter of an hour-twenty minutes
passed. The doors between the draw
ing-room and the nursery, two flights
higher up, were left open, so that Mrs.
Comyers could hear every sound. The
evening was fast closing in, and she ex-
perienced a strange feeling of loneliness,
and began to regret her foolish impulse
in allowing both servants to go out. She
laid down the book she had been read
ing, and presently one of the children
gave cry.
The mother started from the couch
where she was reclining, and was about
to go up to the nursery, when hurried
footsteps on the stairs struck upon her
ear.
"Oh, L need not CO." she said to her
self. 81 suppose cook has stayed at
home after ALL" and having by this time
reached the door, she indeed saw by the
waning light the figure of an elderly
woman turning the landing of the fight
opposite to her. Mrs. Comyers returned
to her sofa. But the child's crying did
not cease, and as she listened it increased
from whining cry to wall of terror.
In alarm she started up and ran to the
nursery. The eldest boy, child three
years old, was sitting up in bed,
shrieking, but the cook was nowhere to
be seen.
In vain Mrs. Comyers tried to pacify
the child. Freddy" she asked, "did
not cook come up to you?"
But the child only sobbed the more
convulsively, so much so that the mother
refrained from asking any further ques-
tons. Softly singing to him, he was
soon asleep again, and she stole quietly
from the room. 1t was almost dark, yet
she distinctly saw, walking few steps
before her, the figure of woman which
she yet believed to be the cook.
"Why, cook, l thought you had gone
out with nurse"
The figure had just reached the bot
tom of the flight of stairs; it turned
slowly round, revealing the face of an
old woman with n white cap-border
closely crimped around her puckered-
up, leering face. A gruesom, weird
light seemed to surround her, so that
Mrs. Comyers distinctly saw the shriveled
lips move, the bleared eyes CLEAN; and
the shaky, skinny hand, which was raised
and shaken menacingly at her. The
figure then turned and ran swiftly down
the stairs.
For a moment Mrs. Comyers was
frightened; but, girding up her courage,
blamed herself for giving way to nerv-
ousness-persuading herself TINT it must
be some person engaged by the cook.
She walked slowly down the stairs, her
heart beating violently, and called out
courageously:
"My good woman, who are you, and
what is your business here ?"
For answer, a chuckling laugh re-
sounded throughout the echoing old
house. The clatter of many feet was
heard upon the stairs; still, the brave
little woman hardly quailed. But what
was she to do? She was too terrified to
venture after the figure. Just then there
was knock at the hall door, and, with
a sense of relief, she fastened down to
open it. The two women servants en-
tered.
"Cook, said Mrs. Comyers, "did you
leave any one in the house during your
aDsence2"
"No, madam.
"Weil, you had better go and look in
the kitchen, for some woman went dswn
the stairs just now"
Lights were speedily procured, and
every inch of the basement story was
unavailingly searched. The doors were
then secured, and as Mrs. Comyers saw
the servants were rather frightened, she
wisely refrained from entering into any
particulars concerning either the manner
of the figure or the strange noises which
she had heard.
The next day she related the circum-
stance to her husband, who laughed at
her nervous fancies, and practically sug-
gested that a close eye be kept on tie
area gate. The weeks flew by, and the
affair seemed to be almost forgotten,
until one evening, as Colonel and Mrs.
Comyers sat alone in the dining-room,
the sound of many footsteps was heard
in the drawing-room overhead, and a
plaintive air was played upon the old
spinnet. They listened amazed for a
minute, and at length Mrs. Comyers
said:
"Henry, 1 am sure it is that-that
thing ?"
"You little goose :" he exclaimed,
laughing "Stay where you are, and I'll
go and see"
He bounded up the stairs-there was
hurried shutting of feet; the music
ceased, and he soon returned. The
scene he had witnessed he could not re-
late to his nervous, delicate wife.
Therefore, to avoid being questioned, he
said, with an assumption of gaiety-
Mabel, congratulate me ! have Mt
last seen your mythical old woman !"
Mrs. Comyers shivered, and nestled
into her husbands sheltering arms, as
she whispered, family: Eyes, j know
you have seen her, for 1 saw her go be-
fore you out of the room.
They could not account for the
phenomenon, and naturally were diff
dent about mentioning it to any one.
Thus the time passed on until Christ
mas.
With the Christmas time there arrived
a nephew of Col. Comyers--clever,
~ L