The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1880-04-23
NUMBER 2 MELR0SE SQUARE.
A STORY IN TWO CHAPTERS.

The following day, the 18th Of No
vember, was bright and sunny; and /
awoke, feeling more cheerful, and
able to reason with myself quite
calmly as to their last nights occur
renee. Looking back upon it thus,
through the medium of sunlight and
refreshing sleep, I could only conclude
that, however unlikely and foreign to all
my previous experience, had simply
been the victim Of some strange optical
delusion, though how produced and
whence arising could not tell. Against
any other idea, that, for instance, which
had already presented itself to me, of
some mad or imbecile girl being con-
cealed in the house with Mrs. Gathers
connivance, / guarded by looking into
every room and cupboard Immediately
after breakfast, and after locking up
those which l did not require for present
occupation, depositing the keys in my
desk.
l spent the greater part of that day
like the last, at the British Museum, and
afterward called on some old friends in
Russell Place, and staid to dinner with
them. had been half in hopes of car
rying off one of the girls to sleep and
spend a few days with me, for the
strange vividness and reality of the last
nights vision, and the CHASTITY sense of
horror and mystery encompassing it,
had left a sufficiently strong impression
on me still to make me wishful for some
other company than my own. was not
exactly afraid to be alone, but my nerves
had received an unpleasant shock, and |
wished to assist myself to recover from
it. ! was disappointed, however, both
the daughters being away on visit in
the country; but their father, one of the
kindest and most genial men living, in
sisted on seeing me home at night, and
even came in and sat for half an hour
or SO talking to me, greatly, as Judged
from her face, to the discomfort of Mrs
Gathers. Indeed, the sournessf of her
expression, when she saw me return
accompanied by clergyman, even at
tracted the old gentleman's attention
and caused him to observe laughingly to
me:
"Why, Mary, my dear, one woufd
thipk you were jealous wife, with 8
husband partial to pretty servant girls
and had chosen the most repellant you
could find accordingly. Does your Abb
gail always present such an unarhiablt
appearancew D'>
She was to have her amiability further
tried. My kind friend, to whom l hat
half jestingly mentioned the previou;
nights fright, insisted on looking oveI
the house with me before he left, SO as
to "set my mind at rest" he said; ant
Mrs. Gathers resented the proceeding SC
much that she came up TO me in the
middle of it, and without taking any
notice of MIR. Is presence, asked
me, in her strongest tone of ill usage
whether objected to her going to bed
'seeing as how it was past twelve before
she got to rest last night, and just or
eleven now, and having been hard a
work since"
told her shortly that she might 60 te
bed as soon as she pleased. When yol
are used to nice old family servants
with gentle, respectful ways, this sort O
coarse incivility CRATES on you, and as
bid my kind old friend good night, a few
minutes later, l told him, smiling,
''WeIl, | think shall take your ad
vice in one respect before Tom and Hes
ter come, although she is rather jealou
wife. / shall look out for pleasantel
maid"
said this with the hall door in m,
hana-he will bear witness now, how
cheerfully, and how little the though
that should never require another mait
in that house, or sleep another nigh
there, had occurred to me. Indeed,
can safely say that such an idea hat
never been further from my mind.
went back to sthe dining-room quit,
cheerfully, too. Originally, I had in
tended going to bed very early, and hat
even, by an impulse which / wa
ashamed to put into words, recovered
the mirror with its hideous yellow veil
but the evening with my CHEEKY hearted
friends had so restored my natural spir
its that felt divided between laughter
and bushes at my own folly in SO doing
sand finding little pile of letters anC
proofs which had come for me by the las
post lying ON the side table, I sat down
to look over them, and speedily got st
absorbed in the task as to forget alto,
gether how time was passing.
was aroused from it quite suddenl,
by feeling which / can not explain, bu
yet which was strong enough to make MI
lift my head with start and look sharp
ly around-a feeling that some one wa
in the room with me!
CHAPTER Ii. b.
I said at the end of the first part o
this statement that l was aroused from
my occupation by the sudden sensation
that some one was in the room with me