The Northern Pacific farmer. [volume] (Wadena, Minn.) 1878-1885, 1881-08-11
THE MISSING MAN.
A Story of q Fact,

THE MISSING MAN.
A Story of a Fact. 8
She was curious sort Of woman; II
could never; quite make her OUT Evident
~ she had q sspast, but che would not tell
opened it al1up. IL will not stop to relate
how knew Der, but come to the point at
once.
Her husband must have been man of
good family, but an utter scamp, gambler
spendthrift and drunkard. All his own PEG
pie turned their backs on him. Dropping
lower and lower he reached q very low ebb
indeed at last, and she had bad time of it
with him. They had been living somewhere
in Yorkshire, he racing, betting-heaven
knows what. The Doncaster meeting was
coming round, and he found the region get
ting too hot for him, SO he made q bolt of it
and came to London, bringing her with
him 0hey bad no children); came, as IN
derstood, with couple of portmanteau
and under an assumed. name. Of course,
she never told me his real name. He
took small, old fashioned cottage for
three months; a cilapidated place some
where near Kilburne, quite on the outskirts,
and where the new neighborhood, which
has now sprung up, was only then first be
ginning to be thoughtof.
They had been in this precious abode but
three days, when what happened, happened.
They we're without servant, in the house
alone, in fact, the wife becoming the drudge
meanwhile. A high wall surrounded the
garden in which the cottage stood, it having
been . neat little box in its day, quite in
the country. An old and almost disused,
road ran along one side of this wall, which
had door in it amongst some trees. Well,
it was early in September, the weather was
close and sultry, and on the third evening
"a it was getting dusk, she strolled out and
sat down on q bench under these trees near
the door, leaving him sulkily smoking in
the house. + =.
''sad and miserable indeed 4 was as 1:
sat there, s,went~r on: my p friend. thinking,
thinking, thinking, in the silent cleaning.
Everything was as still as death in that
neighborhood, SO that when tho sound of
footstep coming slowly along the road by
the side Of the wall caught my ear, I al
most started; but when heard the foot
step suddenly totter, then stop close to the
door, and some one stagger against it, II
rose from sheer nervousness. When to
this sound succeed a long drawn gasp and
moan, and then heavy thud, as of the
person falling to the ground, with an in
stinctive pity few to the door, and, draw
ing back the lock, gently opened it. There,
on the step, lay, as we'll as could see by
the twilight, young, well dressed man.
He made an effort to.rise when he saw me,
partly regained his feet, caught at the door,
post, staggered. and fell headlong, into. our
garden. All this was but the work of
moment, and now thoroughly alarmed and
hardly knowing what did, I closed the
door an rushed into the house. My hus-
band met me on the Threshold. 49,
"'What now2 WHAT'S all this scrimmage
about?' he said.
@Timialy told him.
"'You fool, arew we not hard up enough
already, but you must be playing the Good
Samaritan, and let the man in! Do you want
to turn the place into a hospital? He's
drunk, no doubt .:
With this he reached the spot where
the unfortunate man lay face down wards
upon the edge of the soft unknown lawn.
Gently turning him over, my husband
went on:
"'Why, he's dying, if not dead; we
must fetch the doctor. A pretty mess you
got us into, but we mast go through it
honestly, or else who knows what we may
be charged with-murder, perhaps! Be
off and get the doctor: there's red light
at the second turning to the left down this
road
"I flew to do his bidding, terrified by
his words, which saw had some reason
in them, and had nearly reached the b. use,
when he called out:
Here, go out this way, by this door
here, into the road; its nearer
II returned, and was about to open the
RI ~
bending over the body, when I saw he was
examining the contents of a large porte
monnaie, which he had taken from the
pocket of the PROSTATE, Unconscious man.
It seemed to be full of notes and gold.
I hesitated, but fearing to demonstrate,
was drawing back the bolt, when he whis-
pered
4stop-wait minute. Did any one see
you let him in?"
"'No one; there is not creature about,
and the road is not overlooked, answered.
"'No, nor the corner of the garden where
we are-no, its too much shut in by trees
| and it's getting too dark
whilst speaking, he was looking around
to assure himself that he was unobserved,
and, seeming satisfied, began further to ex-
anime the contents of the young mans
pockets and to transfer the portemonnaie,
u
chain and scarf pin to his own.
What are you doing? timidly asked.
mind your own business, he said, do
as I tell you and hold your tongue. I'll go
for the doctor myself; but first we must get
him into the house. Here catch hold of
his feet.
Then, without listening to my protests,
my husband raised in his arms the slim,
helpless form of the young man, an1, with
my assistance, carried him along the path,
under the shadow of the high wall and trees,
into the house and laid him on sofa in
the little breakfast parlor that gave upon
the lawn by sash window.
"'Lighta candle and pull down the
blind, get some water and brandy; he is not
quite Dead said my husband, whilst ex-
aiming the mans pockethandkerchief.
mo initials, nothing to- identify him BY:
Goodt Now. will go for the doctor; you
stay with him. Put little more brandy to
tie-sO, and now, when return with the
doctor, if there have been any signs of
consciousness, or if the poor fellow speaks
at all, keep it to yourself; don't say a word,
you can tell me when the doctor is gone.
The man is not dead, but he will die, I
think, and if he does die without speaking
wei, We shall lose nothing for our hos
pitality; it's worth risking. Mind, now,
what tell you,' he added with fierce look
at me; 'ifyou don't, III be the death of
you .,.: p
"Then he went through the front door
and gate, ostentatiously in hurry, and I
heard him running down the silent road. I
turned to my patient and found him still
breathing, but quite unconscious.
Terrified and bewildered hardly know
how long it was before I heard hurrying
footsteps again on the road and presently,
havingle himself in by. a latch-k:y, my
husband appeared with d stranger the doc
tor, a seedy, needy looking man.
"Rapidly examining his patient, he said,
NTH hia &rnar a., tho x,11lco.