St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1881-11-18
The Head Of Apollo.

sound, coming from Mrs. MOnson's thin
lips and acrid voice.
Felicie came slowly up the stairs to
where Mrs. MonsOn stood talking vOlu-
bly, with her lodger, Mr.. Thornton.
"Felicie, walk a little faster" said
Mrs. MOnson, sharply. "Here is Mr..
Thornton, that has missed his finest
cameo. You were in his room dusting,
yesterday"
at was a head of Apollo" said Mr..
Thornton. 81 bought it in Naples.
Could you have swept it behind the
furniture 7"
At the first mention of the cameo,
Felicie put her hand in her pocket, she
turned deadly pale, and a half cry es
capped her.
son, shrilly. ''If you have, out of
these doors you shall pack. Trouble
enough | have had with you already
and all your relations"
She seized her by the shoulders, and
attempted to put her hand into her
pocket Felicie resisted desperately.
She was as white as ghost.
"Come, come, Mrs. Monson The
cameo is not worth all that" said Mr..
Thornton.
1t was really worth enough to have
made Felicie open her eyes wider than
they had ever opened before.
Mr.. Thornton had often noticed Fe-
licie. He believed her to be honest,
and saw that she was terrified by Mrs.
Monson's violence.
"But | mean to get to the bottom OF
it," said Mrs. MonsOn.
Thornton caught her by the wrist
and forced her to unloose Felicie. He
gave her look before which the
shrewdness vanished like smoke.
"'You had better go down stairs, y
said he, quietly. II will settle with
Felicie."
Mrs. Monson walked submissively
down stairs, and left Thornton and the
frightened girl alone.
"Now," said Thornton, kindly, but
with determination in his voice, "tell
me how this all happened"
Felicie put her hand in her pocket
and handed out the cameo.
81 know you won't believe me-" she
said, bursting into tears, "but | did
not steal it."
81 believe you,n said Thornton, ego
on.n
81 was dusting in your room. put
my handkerchief on the mantel-piece
When took it up | did not notice that
| took anything with it. When | got
down stairs l felt it in my pocket.
was hurrying to put it back when i
found you and Mrs. MOnsOn here"
She was very pretty when she cried.
She had delicate beauty very differ
ent from Mrs. MOnson's buxOm daugh-
ters. He wondered how two types sc
different could be produced in the same
family.
care you Mrs. Monson's niece ~ he
asked.
NO" she answered with a ring OF
indignation. "My mother was Mr.
Monson's sister, and lady. My father
was French"
=. "And how came you here 7"
"My father and mother died, and
had nowhere else to GO"
She began to cry again.
r Thornton had never felt so bad fol
any human being in his life.
"And have you never been educa
ted 7" he inquired, after pause.
"a little. can read and write, an(
r can speak French. My father was {
French teacher, and he used to saytt
me when | was little thing, 'Felicie
you must study hard some of thes,
days, and you must learn to play ant
sing ; but | cannot play, and | have
not the heart to sing"
+ Thornton looked at her in silence fO
I some time.
81 have never benefited others much
but this is a chance | will not let slip
Felicie, how would you like to go t,
$ school, and then learn some business
that would make you independent
+ such as tiower-making ?"
: "Or dress-making," responded tn,
!, practical Felicie. d.
every WE'LL" said Thornton. 90
: know of respectable place where yOu
/ can live. Let me see-yOu are ahOu
, fifteen 7"
2 ''Nearly eighteen" said Felicie.
a Thornton stared.
e She was, then, quite woman, an
an uncommonly pretty one, too, h
3. said to himself
c "1Ou are sure you will not repent
Il But perhaps am wrong in taking yo
5, away from your natural guardian i
$ this manner"
(, said Felicie, coOlly. "But if some on
! | does not take me away | shall take my
$. self away. | am going now to g,
a. a, everything | have, and nothing will il
duce me to sleep another night unde
this roof"
Dr. That settled it. Thornton took
i'll card and wrote an address upon it, an
n, in less than hour Felicie presented he
Is self at her new friends with bask'
IN containing all her worldly possession
e Mrs. MOnsOn came home to find F.
n licie gone, and no clue to her, viii
co Felicie was being snugly enscOned
a sunny little room at Miss Shepard
Miss Shepard had been an humb
friend and dependent of Russell Thor
toms mother, and was only too glad
a, n have it in her power to do anything f,
" "Mr. Russell"
Thornton appeared in the evenin
and fixed upon plan for Felicie's fl
ture arrangements.
"You shall have a certain amount
Ist month";" said he, "abOve your boar
m With that you may do as you pleas
You may go to school, or learn dres
making, or anything else you like.
leave for New York to- morrow evenin
r. and in a week / sail for London.
sw shall be in Europe certainly for thr
ar years, and at the end of that time l shs
in look you up, to see what you ha-
made of yourself
= Felicie looked up to him with h
pretty dark eyes brimming over wi
tears. She had learned to dread al
fear strangers. These two, Russ,
Thornton and Miss Shepard, were t
81 only two who had ever been kind