The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1876-10-26
THE OAK CLOSET.
FRIDAY, 9RD OF NOVEMBER,

THE OAK CLOSET.
Margaret Gray was in some sort an
upper servant in the household of Judge
Wallace. The judge lived in hand
some house in the suburbs. of the little
country village of Thorndale.
Margaret was left an orphan at an
early age, and the judge and his wife had
taken her into their house to save her
from being thrown on the charity of the
town.
They, had done their part well for her.
They had two children of their own
Alice and Algernon. twins-and Mar
garet had enjoyed advantages OF educa-
ton in common with the brother and
sister.
As she grew older, and began to real
ize how much she owed the judge and
his wife, she felt desire to be able in
some way to9make them return for
their kindness, and, as she was strong,
active girl, she soon became very useful
about the domestic affairs of the house
hold. Mrs. Wallace was feeble woman,
and, very willingly resigned some of the
cares and burdens in Margaret, and in
due, course of time the young girl came
to be trusted aud depended upon, until,
by the time she was twenty, she was
really the head of the establishment, al
though Mrs. Wallace still did the honors
in her quiet, ladylike way, and poured
the tea and coffee at the head of the
table.
Alice had married early, and gone to
the far West with her husband; .Alger-
non was finishing his medical studies in
German University, and only the judge
and his wife and Margaret-beside a
man and woman servant, who had been
with them for Sears-remained at holne.
Some unfortunate speculation, largely
INDUCED in when the judge was young,
had encumbered the old estate with q
mortgage, and this it was the judges
ambition to discharge. He wanted to
leave the place totally free from debt to
his son Algeruou. q
The strictest economy had been prac-
ticed for years in the household, with
this end in view, and at last the judge
held in his hand the money with which
to liquidate the claim.
1t was late ON Saturday night when he
brought it home, and said to his wife, as
he swung the little black leather trunk
containing it before her eyes:
"Well, Annie, at last We are to be free
from debt. There are eight thousand
dollars in that trunk, and on Monday I
shall pay Jones in full, and We shall
burn the abominable mortgage together,
you and I, Annie. 1t will be the hap
piest day of my life"
"But if anything should happen, Will
liam" said Mrs. Wallace nervously.
"Do put the money in some safe place.
It has cost us dear enough to scrape it
together"
The Judge bent down and patted the
little woman on the head.
aI am going to put it in the little oak
closet, and if by chance burglar should
enter the house, he would never dream
of finding anything of value in that little
stided up-closet at the head of the garret
stairs"
And with light heart the judge went
off to deposit the treasure.
Margaret was sitting in the room darn
ing the judges stockings when the con.
yersation took place, and of course heard
where the money was to be placed,
though at the time she gave little atten-
ton to it.
The next day John and Susan, the two
servants, had holiday to visit married
daughter of theirs, Who resided fifteen or
twenty miles away, and as it was in No
vember, and as the days were short, they
would not return until Monday night.
And sometime after they set ont
there came an imperative message to the
Judge from his sister, saying that she was
very i'll and desired to see him without
delay. Her home was in Shelby, eight
or ten miles of, and, of course, he lost no
time in obeying the summons. He took
his wife with him, leaving Margaret
alone in the house.
cit is barely possible, Margaret, that
we may remain all night. It looks very
much like storm, and in that case We
shall certainly stay. And if so, you had
better get Sallie Turner to stay with you
for company"
But, though Margaret would have
liked Sallie's company we'll enough, she
at once decided not to ask for it. Sallie's
brother would be sure to come along, and
the less she saw of Willie Turner, the
better she was pleased. Willie was an
honest, Industrious sort Of fellow, and he
was Margaret's most devoted admirer;
but, with the usual Inconsistency OF her
sex, she utterly refused to see what was
best for her.
The afternoon went slowly away.
Margaret read little, drummed few
tunes on the old-fashioned piano, played
with the black and white kitten, and
held the old Cat curled up in her lap, like
a sleepy caterpillar, and at last it was
sunset-time to milk the COWS and shut
the barn doors for the night.
1t was evident enough that there was
storm brewing, for the north and west
were dark and gloomy with ominous
black clouds, and the east winds sighed
drearily in the pine woods back of the
house. And indeed, before Margaret
had done up the chores in the barn, the
great drops of frozen rain began to fall
and BY the time she had eaten her sup
per and strained the milk, the storm had
set in in good earnest.
She closed and barred the door-the
windows were already fastened-drew
the shutters, and piled the fireplace full
of dry hickory, The kitten had gone to