, 1880-06-07
The Man With Black Beard.
BY MARY KYLE DALLAS.

BY MARY KYLE DALLAS.
We wore all assembled in the little
school room, girls on one side, boys on
the other, and Miss Linda in the mid
die, beside mahogany desk, piled with
spelling books, and graced with pol
ished ruler, which never, within tho
memory of tue oldest scholar, had been
used fer any moro unpleasant purpose
than to rule copies with. for Miss Lin
da's sway was gentle one, as any one
who looked az her fair face might we'll
have imagined. Even our habit of
calling her Miss Linda was proof OF
this any other teacher would have
been addressed by her surname, but
we never even thought of ours as Miss
Harrington. To this day 1 cannot
guess her age she was certainly young.
but her features had a certain peculiar
ity OF their own, which made it impos-
sible to say how young she was. In
her mirthful moments she looked like
merry child, in her sadder ones she
was quite woman but in any mood
she was as beautiful as perfect features,
ivory skin. wealth of golden hair, and
great, long fringed black eyes could
make her. She was il her merry mood
this morning, and there were dimples
in her rosy cheeks, and those black
eyes out-rivaled the brightest diamonds
that ever glistened amid the tresses of
a princess. The stupid scholar of the
school There is always stupid scholar
in the school, and he is inevitably a
boy) was stumbling through his spell
inglessons, and falling flat over the in
surmountable word physician He
and was at present mute with despair,
and, oblivious to the promptings of q
sympathizing little girl behind the
teacher chair. was preparing to cover
his eyes with his coat-sleeve and be-
moan himself, when the whole school
was startled by the sudden finging
open of the door, and the entrance of
little Lilly Darwin, the smallest of the
small children under Miss Lindas care,
in state Of violent agitation.
"Oh, the man, the man !" sobbed
Lilly. 1.-The great tall man with the
black beard He's frightened NE out
of my senses"
$ What man, Lilly ," said Miss Liu-
da, compassionately. "How Gid he
frighten you, my dear?'
He came close behind me and said -,
Never, never ." answered the child ;
"and lie put his hands to his forehead,
and then went away out Of sight down
by the river. Oh I'm so frightened,
so frightened, Miss Linda, you can't
think"
s. It was only some poor crazy man,
nay dear" said Miss Linda. You are
safe now, at all events wipe away your
tears, and tell me all about it."
I was coming along thu :, ,leeu lane
towards school, Miss Linda, hurrying
very fast for fear would be late, when
I met our new minister, who stopped
and shook hands with me, and asked
how you were and said he would look
in at the school and hear us sing this
afternoon and while I was answering
him this tall man with the black beard
passed US twice, and then stopped be-
side the water. And when the minister
turned away he locked after him, and
then walked very quickly towards
school, and then back again, and then
clasped his hands and said Never,
never, never !! out loud, and frightened
me so that cried, and ran here as fast
as could"
This horrible narration affected all
the smaller children as a ghost story
would have done; and Miss Linda,
after looking around at these frightened
faces, laughed merrily, and, expressing
her decided conviction that the gentle
man with the black beard had escaped
from the lunatic asylum, called the
school to order, and proceeded in the
usual routine Of duties, as though moth
ing particular had occurred.
Early in the afternoon " our minister"
did call. He had habit of visiting
the school, and it appeared to me that
the teacher was much more interesting
than her scholars. At all events, it was
rertain that he looked at her much Oft
lner than he did at us, and was very
particular about shaking hands whom
he took his leave. He was young and
very handsome man, and rumor said
that he was exceedingly in love with our
Miss Linda. He fingered in The little
school-house long while on that bright
summer afternoon but ho went at last,
and then the children wero dismissed,