The daily Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1878-1???, 1879-07-27
MISS JARVIS MYSTERY.
[coxrrsuED FROM SATURDAYS pAnr.l

fire-lit wall; such Q soft dark hair,
curling little at the temples, aud
knotted back with such simple grace over
a shapely head; such wide, sorrowful
brown eyes, and sweet mouth. And there
was such perfection Of taste in every line
and shade. Of her simple dark brown dress,
with her red worsteds trailing across, that
il was no wonder Miss Jarvis thought her
richly dressed. She rose to meet the girl
with peculiarly winning smile.
"You must be Miss Jarvis--I thought
you would be here soon. And l am Miss
Wyman. Mrs. Sharp has gone to the
sheep.camp; she told me, and left me to
introduce myself. She is going to let me
board here for few weeks, so we shall
know each other quite WE'LL"
She was looking down-for she was
little the taller--with sort of kindly In
terest at the girls handsome face, which
made vivid contrast to her own, clear and
pale, and dark as that of an Indian Mad
onna. :"
Miss Jarvis made some confused answer,
and sat down 10 cross question Miss Wy
man. She had learned caution by expert
ence, and did not dare push her questions
too far. So she only found that Miss Wy
man was from the East; that returning
from trip to Shasta, she had come upon
this place by the merest accident, and, lik-
ing its loneliness, had decided to stay here
and rest awhile. She led the girl always
imperceptibly away from the subject Of
Miss Wyman to that of Miss Jarvis, and
entered into all the little interests that
made up the teachers life. Miss Jarvis
found horself telling of those Wedgewood
letters. She did not know jus how the sub
iect came up, but 1t was something that
Miss Wyman said about men disappearing
in California.
"And was the man found!' the lady ask
ed, with her pleasant, interested way.
mo, there was no such man, either here
or in my neighborhood.r
Miss Wyman shook the ends Of the red
worsted from her lap into the fire, and
stood looking through the window. She
began to talk of the manzanita, and of the
wild-howers sin home,' and of some she
had picked in Europe. Miss Jarvis learned
by persistent questioning that this slight,
| quiet lady had travelled almost everywhere
that white mems feet had gone--in China
and Africa, as we'll as in Russia. The longer
she studied Miss Wyman's face the surer
she was that some object notlove Of adven-
ture, had led her over the world, and she
vowed that she would learn what it was, if
she had to 80 herself and ask questions in
China or Russia.
From that afternoon the new school
teacher in the "Sheep District lived to
unrayel the two mysteries she had lighted
on. Teaching was ''side issue;' her chief
business in life was to find out who Old
Tom was, and why he left the world; who
Miss Wyman was, and why she travelled
the world over alone. She used to walk
home from school by the longest way,
along the road, and stop to talk to the her
nit. There was something perplexingly
gentlemanly always IN his way to her on
\ such, oocasions,- but he talked, only Of
his garden or her school, and seemed
uncomprehending when she asked about
his former wife. II was so evident that his
mind was to some extent shattered, that
Miss Jarvis began to suspect that he had
partially lost his memory. Certainly she
could "get no more outen him. than Mr..
Baker--whom his constituents had this
time sent with pride to Sacramento as
specimen Of the honest granger with no
book-learning, who was to circumvent the
wies of literary fellers and of railroad
kings, and. make the cost of freighting
wool and sheep merely nominal, while
their prices should remain as high as
ever.
At last Miss Jarvis admitted that Tom
himself either could not or would not tell
his history to her, so she decided to search
for herself. She watched for time when
he was busted in a distant part Of his Or
chard, and slipped valiantly in his house
| by courtesy so called. She found shah
by kitchen with the unmistakable air Of
mans housekeeping, but though she looked
in every pot and pan, and up the rough
stone chimney, she could find no more than
a fireplace, two shelves Of dishes and ket-
ties, box made into cupboard for food,
and two chairs. There was dark closet
of a bedroom, too, which she explored,
holding her breath and listening
for the owners step. II
had a rough bunk, with only pillow
| anu blankets, anu lew ClotleS III UOx,
nothing more. Not book in the house;
not even a candle. She had just found
some seeds and garden tools under the bed
when she heard Toms step in the other
room. There was no resource but to
scramble ANONYMOUSLY under the bed, and
dispose herself among the bags OF beet AND
turnip seed till, after a half-hour OF the
greatest trcpidaton, she was liberated by
his departure. twas bitterly disappoint-
ed young scbool-teacher that found her
way home in the dusk, and told Mrs.
Sharp she had stayed to sweep the school
room and that was what made her dress 30
dusty She had counted on making tire
mendous revelations secret correspondence,
documents, at least the college diploma.
She began to think Old Tom was hum
bug, in spite of his manners.
But the incident did her service by sug-
costing plan for her other campaign
Miss Wyman had not gone far in her ac-
quaintance with Miss Jarvis before abe
began to be very careful about
keeping her door locked. She made Mrs.
Sharp's sort Of headquarters, whence she
made LONG or short trims n the Gamma