Sharp County record., 1877-09-07

D
here, KARL Porter"
/ "I?n
The young mans eyes turned evasiye-
/ ly away from the others frank glance.
/ "Oh. we lawyers are here and there
and everywhere I've had libel case
| in the town, and il has brought me
down occasionally
"Who was that woman you were talk
! ing to when first came in?' carelessly
questioned Falconer. "She seemed an
noyed or angry
Porter laughed again, this time mere
constraincdly than before,
/ Its only 4 woman from The other
end of the town" said he. "l'ye paid
her pretty daughter few passing at
! tcntions, and she wants to take the mat
ter an scricUr. These county people
are SO desperately in earnest Here
comes the hostler; now you'll be OIL. "
But fate had ordained otherwise.
The only horse left in the stables was
hopclessly lame. \
"But if the gentleman could wait an
hour orr
"Wait an hour!n echoed Mr. Fal-
coner, "and it's after II already! No,
thanks, my good fellow. It's an easy
two miles. | could walk it in less time
than that
"But it's a bitter night, sir, for all
| the moon shines so BRIGHT urged the
man, land you'll be famished with the
cold"
No matter. My friend here will
lend me his fur-trimmed Ulster-eh,
PorterP" laughingly demanded Fal'
cOner.
"With al the pleasure in life" KARL
| Porter languidly made answer; "that is,
if you are actually determined to commit
such an eccentricity."
"Wait until your wedding-eve comes,
and see how you will feel about it, re-
torted the bridegroom-elect, as he but
toned the long wrap about him, and
turned up the fur collar to protect his
neck from the cold. "Well, au revoir.
| shall expect to see you at the wedding
breakfast Tomorrow, remember And
with the long, swinging stride OF a
practiced walker, he disappeared down
the road.
All this transpired at about II 80, and
the little alabaster clock on Miss Con-
ways mantel pointed to y precisely,
when. ,.still broOding over Mr.. FalcOner's
letter, something like tremulOuS quiver
of chill air across her made her start in
stinctively and look up. The lamp il
Illuminated only a small portion of the
room, but the silver radiance of the full
moon, shining in through the easement
across which Katie had forgotten to
draw the crimson draperieS, made all as
light as day. And there, standing lean
ing against the long French easement,
Katie Conway saw her lover, wrapped
in long, fur-trimmed coat, a seal-skin
cap on his head, and face as pale as
marble, save one scarlet spot on the left
temple. She started up with low cry,
and at the same instant he seemed to
beckOn her to come to him. And even
as he beckOned the bell in the old
cburch-tower struck y.
Katie ran to the easement, but when
she reached it the moonlight and gliSten-
ing snow of the untrOdden lawn, and
the moving shadows of an immense old
! tree that grew close to the house, were
all that could be seen. For an instant
she looked with wild, startled eyes out
upon the snowy silence, and then, wrap
ping her dressihg-gown about her, she
ran to her mothers room.
mamma, wake" she cried, STOPPING
over Mrs. Conway's pillow. "Robert
Is herel Robert is outside in the cold.
Call Michael to unbolt the doors. Quick,
mamma, quick And in five minutes
Michael, the old man-servant, had un-
fastened the ponderous front door and
was looking out.
"Did you say it was at your window
you saw him, Miss Katie?n he asked.
Eyes; close to the glass--beckoning
me to come"
"But it couldn't be, MISS" protested
the man. "LoOk at the smooth snow.
There's naught on it for three yards
around your window, let alone the spar
rows tracks. Sure there's never a foot
print touched it since the snow fell,
three days ago.
"For all that | saw him." she said
lifting blanched and haggard face
towards her mother. 81 saw him. Oh,
mamma, mamma, put away the flowers
! and tho bridal veil | shall never he
married now"
Darling,n soothed hermother, "you
are nervous. 1t was only 4 dream. Go
to bed now and rest.'
But Katie kept on saying, "I shall
never be married now.n
Early the next morning old Michael
set off to the florists for the freshly-cut
flowers which had been ordered for the
wedding breakfast. But he had scarce
! ly reached the gates when the outline
of something dark lying in the snow
]