The daily gazette., 1878-10-02
The HOuSemaid'S Story.

| them, and under her were five servants.
The cook and the chambennaid and tbe
housemaid and the seamstress. Oh. but
Mrs. Madder was qllare lookin' little
woman, sharp as a hatchet, and cross as
two sticks, and she followed us about as
N thaving was our trade and Ill,adnt
been in the house long before | found
out that there was continued changing.
and that the reason always was dishon-
esty.
Now there'd be wine gone and now
frtiit- Now aspoon and now a napkin;
and always Dlrs. Madder complained and
there was disnissing. Before I'd been
there month silver handle corkscrew
was missing, end the waiter lost his place !;
and then an old table-cloth, and off went
the waitress.
l "Dear, dear" says my mistress, saws
she, ''is there no finding an honest SER
Evant ?"
"Ma'am," says l, hearing her, 81 am
one ma'am."
Says she-"You look like it child.n
Says then says |, all of sudden
like, for the thought poppedinto my mind
in minute:
"Ma'am, "A deal is stolen there, and YOU
L
i finds out tbe losses
/ "Mrs. Madder-that faithful woman -
says she. ''But for her I'd be cheated, out
of my very eyes"
l "Maybe so, ma'am," seys l. ''But.
indade, / think the waiter was innocent
of the spoon, and Hannah Jane of the
cloth"
l 'I don't KNOW" said size, shaking her
head. Mrs. Madder thinks different
ly."
"Ia'am," says l, dive notion. j
\ want to ask your lave to watch. I'll get
at the truth, or I'm no woman, If I've
your permission. If Fm,caught spooking
about | my be thought o thafe myself.
Will you stand up for Inc If amp In
dade, ma'am, I'm true and upright, and
only anxious to get at the secret, for
thaving gees on though the servants
\ change, and there's mystery in it."
Says she, "You've my lave, Maggie"
And that's how l came to 90 tiptoeing
about of nights, losing my sleep and
breaking my rest, and being took for a
ghost by tie waiter-a new one-and
come near breaking his neck on the stairs
with masters hot night-cap-I name a
one to swalkr-on tray in his hands.
| But come what would watched on,
until one night L said to myself, "What
\ Is the use? Things go on all the same.
Servants are dismissed. Old Madder calls
Lis wicked names and suspects me of all
sorts of things. The house is bewitched.
l think. I'll watch one night more, and
then Pll go before I'm sent away on ac-
count of spoons | never took or forks /
newer wanted"
We counted the silver and linen after
dinner, and whenever this is done there's
| "A loss. Then j looked out from my win
dow and saw that the curtain of Mrs.
Madder' room was up, and that late as
| it was she was UP, too.
could see through into the room, and
what L saw was quare enough. There
was the old Lady standing at the door
with her ear to it and her shoes Off She
| listened for bit, and then nodded her
head and went to the closet. Out OF it
she took little dark lantern and lit the
candle in it. Then she opened the door
and went creeping out.
'If she's found a thafe I'll help her."
said /, and off went my shoes and out |
went without lantern, but found my
self able to see my way by that Mrs.
Madder carried, Whenever she opened the
slide.
Straight ahead she went, the dock
Striking two that minute, to the dining
room, and followed. got behind the
door and peeped at her as she went fidg-
citing about, and my heart was in my
mouth when the thought came to me that
if was found she'd take me for thafe
for certain. What was she looking for
what was she doing? In five minutes i
knew, for what did the old creature do
but take the silver ice-pitcher from the
sideboard and creep away with it.
AS for me, | ran TO my room as quick
as l could, and leant out Of the window.
And saw her come in and open the
closet and put the pitcher in AID lock it
up.
"For safety, maybe" says L "But
we'll wait and see.o t-
Next morning came, and we were all |
in the kitchen, and in comes Mrs. Mad |
der.
"John," says she to the new waiter, |
mJohn. did Mrs. Rose bid you bring the |
ice-pitcher to her room last night ?"
"No, ma 'am," says John.
"Where is it then ?"
"On the sideboard," says he.
81 don't see it," says she.
The poor things looked at each other.
Mrs. Madder turned on me. 1
"Where did you 60 at nine last even
ing, Maggie ?" sad she.
STo my aunt's," said "and an homes
ter woman doesn't live"
"We'Il see," says Mrs. Madder. "0h,
dear oh, dear this is the most valuable
loss yet. Mrs. Rose, ma'am, you step
here 2" for the mistress; was just passing
the door.
Then began the hullabulloo. | heard
it all without a word for while, and
then i spoke:
"Ma'am," says I, 81 I'M not the thafe,
but l found her last night, she Went
down to the dining-room with .n lanternai sna
clever, Oh, Mrs. Madder, ma'am, don't
stare at me. It's you l name, and you
daren't open your closet and show. show tne
mistress this inmate, that you darent
"My lady would not degrade gentle l..
woman in reduced circumstances by ask
ing her to do such thing at the instance
nEG