The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1877-03-30

mask, and his whole aspect was so start
ling-not to say unexpected-that Mrs.
Crampe sat in her chair as if petrified.
She stared at the demon, and the demon
stared back at her fiXedly, until a roll
of the eye in the direction of stove
pipe revealed the white balls in the
midnight of his countenance in such an
alarming manner that Mrs. Crampe's
heart began to thump violently, aud
she gave little jump on her chair.
"Who are you ?u she demanded, in
trembling English.
The demon advanced into the room,
and growled some inarticulate response
in an unknown tongue.
"Go away" said Mrs. Crampe, rising,
and pointing to the door, with assumed
dignity.
The demon glanced back at the door,
shook his head, and even chuckled in a
derisive manner, which was calculated
to chill the stoutest heart.
"Do you hear me ? Leave this roomp'
said Mrs. Crampe, with surprising ac-
cession of firmness and increasing color.
Whereupon the demon poured forth a
return vOlley, harsh, cultural, and
wholly unintelligible, raising his voice
to higher key, as if defying her au-
thority, and still looking about the
room. To this day Mrs. Crampe is con-
fident that he was swearing at her.
In this truly serious emergency the
lady's spirit quailed within her, and
she backed into a remote corner, behind
an armchair. What did he wish
What would he do next? Had he come
to rob and murder her?
''He looks wicked enough for any
hi I,k ii
neck for a siX-pence," she meditated, in
trepidation.
The demon, thus left in possession of
the field, sprang on chair, and
wrenched long stOve-pipe from its fit
tent of his evil deeds. A cloud of SCOT
pufed out into the chamber, whirled
about in eddies, and settled in Mrs.
Crampe's open trunk, aud covered, like
sable vale, the delicate lace shawl and
the mauve silk dress on the bed.
When the extent of her misfortune
drawned upon her understanding, such
a shrek escaped from the lips of the in
dignant lady, followed by ringing OF
the bell, that Mr.. Crampe heard it five
doors away, not to mention other af-
| frighted inmates of the hotel all along
the corridor.
! Mrs. Crampe, that mild and inoffen-
sive woman, transformed into giantess
of courage and strength by the wrongs
heaped upon her, was discovered strug-
Cling frantically with the demon ovel
the dismembered stove-pipe, each con-
versing eloquently in a different Ian
guage, and unable to make the Other
out in the least. To use familiar term
she was "beside herself" and was moi
! fully aware of her own intentions
whether she desired to take the demon
| prisoner, or to rescue the proof of hi:
guilt, the stove-pipe, to serve as witnes:
against him, she could not afterwarC
! herself decide. There never was such
an exhibition in that hotel before. Mr.
! Crampe, suddenly aroused from testing
his own pulse for the edification of {
nervous invalid in the latter's apart
ment, could not believe his own eyes
His wife was struggling with sulky
ehimney-sweep, and between them &
stove-pipe swayed wildly to and fro.
"My dear, what are you about ?" in
quired Mr.. Crampe, bouncing in the
door with not unnatural alarm.
"He has spoiled every thing, the
wretchw gasped Mrs. Crampe.
Indeed, the destruction of her bes
clothes had alone nerved her to assault
ing the demon with her own hands
That dusky intruder, with as much in
dignatiOn as a coal-black countenanct
might express, now withdrew, bearing
away the stove-pipe in triumph, ant
muttering remarks in which the sanity
of Mrs. Crampe clearly was called int
question.
Every one ran to examine the smutty
dress and blackened lace shawl; tn,
ridges of SCOT in the open trunk wer
delightful to contemplate as well. D
course 10 one was to blame for the ca
tastrophe involving the ruin of Paris
made mauve silk dress. The Landlord
accused the secretary of negligence, ant
the secretary laid the charge to tn
porter, who in turn scolded the QarcOl
o. etdge, until the whole weight of blam
fell on the shoulders of the femme d
chanlbre, who had told the sweep t.
take away the pipe of room No. At, thel
unoecupied, and he had chosen tn
wrong corridor and No. IL instead. Il
a great crisis there is always a scape
goat on whom is wreaked public ven
geance. The poor femme de chdn6r
wept over her own confidence in a blum
dering chimney-sweep, and was dis
missed on the spot. 1t was quite aston
ishing to ascertain the number of fault
previously perceived in the delinquent
; which now came to light against tina
murky background, Mrs. Crampe'
demon. The lady opposite had neve
quite liked her expression, which con
veyed repressed insolence; her unwill
T ingness to produce hot water at tn
right moment was also freely discussed
while the little boy from school wa
nearly sure that another boy had &C
, cused her of stealing ten francs the pre-
vious year in neighboring hotel. Mrs
t Crampe gave her napoleon behind tn
door, however, and neck ribbon res
cued from the sooty depths of the trunk
The chimney-sweep vanished swift
r amidst the confusion incident to his e:
, capade. A believer in witchcraft Nigh
readily fancy him an evil spirit in dis
guise, who departed subsequently rt
joicing over the mischief he had wrougt
! among Mrs. Crampe's worldly goods.
| "You can break every bone in chin
: ney-sweep's body in these foreign landl
: 1 suppose, but that will not restore
) soiled silk" observed Mr.. Crampe, phi
= osophically.
"Or beautiful lace shawl" added b
r wife, sharply. "If was a man,
: wouldn't sit still, though"
t This contemptuous remark so astor
] ished Mr.. Crampe that he could onl
gaze silently at his better half.
2 "In America all the stove pipes al
s removed and cleaned as early as May,
sobbed Mrs. Crampe, taking refuge