Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1883-06-29

queer" mused Mrs. Pember. "Have You
seen her ?"
LET him tell the story. Caroline, ="
urged the old gentleman peevisllly.
Tompkins looked gloomily out upon
the lake and the broad landscape for a
few moments and then, resuminr hie
narrative, said, ~.
GAS I was saying, have worked hard
and have got a nice little pile. am
worth thirty-6ve thousand dollars. When
l made up my mind to come East this
summer, the money to pay uncle Jason
for what he had done was all ready 1t
made me choke to think how long | Lad
let it run. 1 figured it up az near as ]
could, the two hundred that came to me
in college, and the two hundred after
that aud put it in the simple interes,
at seven per cent, according to the York
State law, which brought the sum total
up to nearly nine hundred and to fix il
all right l made it an even thousand dol
lars Then bought a new buckskin bag
and went to a bank in Chicago and goi
the money all in gold. knew that would
please uncle Jason. He once talked Of
going to California to dig. suppose he
had never seen pile of the real yellow
coin in his life. l wrote to him that | was
to be in Burlington, and that would be
80 glad if he would come over and sec
me. 1 met him yesterday afternoon, as
he got off the boat, down at the steam
boat landing. He knew me, and knew
him, although We were both changed 0
good deal. After we had talked q little
and got used to each other. took him II,
to my room in the hotel. I was in a hur
~ to get ut the business part of my visit
with him first for it seemed to me thai
it would be better to let him see, to begir
with, that l was not exactly poor, moi
such an ungrateful cub as may be ht
had thought / was 1t was my resolve
that before we talked of anything else
would get that money off my conscience
] knew that then / could hold up my
head, and discuss our neighborhood and
old times. and it would be plain sailing
for me. l had pictured to my mind d
dozen times how uncle Jason would look
with that new yellow bucksllin bag cram.
med with gold OH his knee, steldying il
with his hand and talking to me. Sc
when l got him up to my room, and seat.
ed him in n chair, | began the perform.
ance. got red in the face, and splitter.
ed, and hourished round with the bag
and the gold and to tell the truth,
fully expect to make the old mans hair
rise right up. But it did not work He
got shaky and trembled, and somehow
did not seem to want the money at all,
and finally owned how il was. He said
that he had never given me cent : it was
all Lucy Cary's doing. And she had
made him promise, Oh his everlasting
Bible oath, as he called it, that he would
not tell. She had put him up to the
whole thing even that first two-dollar
bill had come from her wagea.
My old classmate ceased speaking. He
was becoming flushed and excited. He
gazed abstractedly at the broad blue mir
ror of old Champlain, upon which he and
l had looked together 80 often in the days
Of our youth.
Mr.. Pember sat- silently. Mrs. Penn
Der was Whispering behind her handker-
chief.
I ventured the inquiry, "Have you seen
Lucy yet?'
Tompkins' face quivered he was
silent.
Mrs. Pember's interest in the question
restored her, "Tell us, have you seen
her?" she asked.
81 heard of it yesterday" Tompkins
replied huskily, with an effort.
why, Timothy, what is the matter q
cried Mrs. Pember, rising from her seat
and coming to him, as he bent his head
ard buried his face in bis hands. The
motherly woman took oft his soft hat,
and stroking his hair said, "You had bet
ter tell it will do you good" And then
she put his hat on again, and stood wip-
ing her eyes in sympathy, while he strug-
gled viii. himself.
The storm OF feeling passed away, and
Tompkins, having gained control OF his
emotions, slowly lifted his face from his
hands, and sat peering out under his Ii at
brim, looking apparently at boat upon
the lake At last he said in calm voice,
"She is dead"
1t was very still after this announce
ment. The softest breath of June scarce
ly whispered in the pines overhead, and
the vast landscape below seemed strange
ly at rest in the fcrvid brightness of the
summer noon.
My old elessmate was the first to break
the silence.
"Well,' said lie YEARLY, at must be
about time for dinner let us go to the
hotel
We took the little brown road, and
walked down long, shaded, quiet street.
Memories of college days and romantic
summer nights, with music and starlight,
and the long, long thoughts OF youth
came back to nc, rs l looked at the
houses and gardens familiar IN college
days, and chatted about them with Mrs.
Pember.
"Timothy always means WE'LL" said
she to me confidentially, reverting to
the subject of which we were all think
ing, "but it was very wrong for him to
neglect that poor factory girl; don't You
think 500"