St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1881-04-08

gel" Here a swift embrace.) II dom
know how | feel, or what l want, anC
shan't know till l can get off some
where at distance, and put that boy
in proper perspective. He is too nea
by half as it is now he blinds and be.
wilders me. | can't see clearly or de
termine; so discretion being the bette
part of valor, shall fee" Kitty spoke
merrily but Judith, without turning
her head, felt sure that the tears wer,
not far from her eyes.
"Oh, you kitty-Cat! Well, if you
must, you must; but what shall | dc
without you ~ she said. Then, after
pause: "Well, here we are at the top
Let's climb the rock, Kitty, and 81
just where we sat that first night wher
there was that remarkable yellow sun
set, the night when Ben-Why, what
the matter D. in a changed voice, TO
Kitty, stepping short, had given sharE
exclamation of pain.
"Oh, Judith, how unlucky that
stone turned under my foot and I've
twisted my ankle I'm afraid. Help MT
to sit down. Perhaps the pain will g,
off in a minnie or two"
But the pain did not quite go, though
Judith unbOttond the boot and chafeC
| the slender ankle in her own warn
| hands.
"It's better, though" declared Kitty
after while. ats decidedly better
and | can walk, l think, if you'll let me
| hold your ARM
But the first step brought renewed
paleness and a grOan.
EENNhnf ehoI IL, L..
bled Judith.
''My dear goosey don't look so terri
fled. It's simple enough business.
shall sit here quietly-the ankle does
well enough while l keep still-and
you will please go down to the Barrett
farm and get Mrs. Barrett to send little
Seth to Mr.. Barrett, wherever he hap
pens to be, and ask him to tackle up
the carry-all and fetch me. That's all
that's necessary, dear, SO don't be wor-
ried. Only you'd better start at once,
for the afternoon is getting on. Stay,
though. Before you go, couldn't you
help me to a less conspicuous place than
this p Somehow | don't fancy the idea
of sitting here alone to be stared at by
the people in the Mountain House stage
as they 60 by. Oh, know. There's the
old Pound; I'll go there"
1.-The old Pound ?"
"Didn't you know that that thing
over there was the Pound Dear me l
have known about it ever since that
first afternoon. Ben told me, think.
1t always seemed rather interesting,
but [ never took the trouble to go in
side before. They haven't used it for
years, | believe, but it will make a
very good retreat till you come back
just as good as if l was a cow" And
laughing gaily, though with a brow
twisted by pain, Kitty hoped across
the road, and into the small walled in
closure opposite. "There that is beau
tiful," she declared, dropping into a
corner. "This wall makes a good back
for me to lean against, and no one but
you will suspect that am here. Don't
run and don't heat yourself, Ditha, or
you'll have headache tomorrow. Pm
doing very nicely and don't mind wait
ing bit. Take your time"
With this injunction, Judith depart
ed. For few moments her footsteps
were audible on the stony road; then
they died away, and perfect quiet took
possession of the hilltop and the old
Pound, broken only by the drowsy chirp
of grass-hOppers in the soft, yellow
grass. So silent was it that when fly
ing bird skinned across the wall with
sharp call to his mate, Kitty quite
started i'll her corner. About her stretch
ed Il carpet of low aromatic growths-
tanzy and sweet-fern and white bios
somed immOrtelles, with here and there
a tall spike of golden-rod Haunting its
yellow flag. The sun was nearing the
horizon now. Crimson tints flushed the
soft valley distance, and little fleets of
rose and purple cloudlets began to tleck
the pure sky overhead. After a while
Kitty beard the rattle of the stage
wheels and the snap of the drivers
whip as it cruncbed by on the steep
road. Then came silence again, brok-
en- a little later by the sound of dis
tant voices, which she guessed to be
those of people on the lower cross
roads; but they did not come near her
retreat E; nor was she startled when a
soft thud of hOOfs drew near, till loud
CLAW :" close to her ear made her
jump, and at the same moment a big
red COW vaulted into the Pound with a
bounce and a clatter. There was a rat
tie of bOyish boots on the road, and be-
fore Kitty could realize the situation
and scream it was too late. The boots
were far down the hill, and there was
she, Kitty Roach, shut-yes, actually
shut into the old TevertOn Pound with
a red Ayrshire-she, whose horror from
childhood had been a COW, to whom the
fear of lion was as nothing in compar-
ison 1t was too terrible.
Fright, no less than her disabled
ankle, kept her perfectly motionless.
Even had she been able to stir, nothing
would have induced her to reduce the
distance by an inch which lay between
herself and the terrific creature which
was now cropping the immorteles in
the immediate neighborhood of the
gateway. Frozen by fear, she sat, her
one hope being that Judith might re-
turn soon, when suddenly the sound of
manly footsteps on the road restored
her faculties of speech, or rather of
screech, and with wild and desperate
energy she screamed, "Oh, please come
here, whoever yOu are ~
''COme where n asked voice and
above the wall, close, very close, to
Kitty's corner, appeared head-a well
known, determined, handsome head,
with thick, wavy auburn hair and
beard, whose ends melted into warmer
color still-the head, in short, of Ben
Hazard, the very Benjamin from whom
Kitty was proposing to run away the
next day save one. Poor Kitty! run
ming was the last thing possible now.
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