The Arkansaw traveler., 1885-12-05
THE OLD CHART,

"With all your fine courage you wouldn't dare spend an hour in the old Grange alone after dark"
 would cried Rllla, with flushing glance at her fair, pale cousin.
 "Oh, Rlla, but they say it is haunted" taltered Bessie Sage, with a little shudder.
 By rats and Sls," sad Rllla, laugh ing.
 Mss Justine Penryun, the heiress and beauty, and also the cousin of fearless daring R,lla Brooks, rapidly concocted a little plot, which should test the giIrs courage, and also appease the spirit of malice and spite harbored in her own heart.
 She had no cause to hate Rilla, but hate her she did, and with venom. She had all her heart could desire-or al least it seemed so-youth, beauty, for tune and friends by the score, while her young cousin lived in penniless obscurity. 1t came about in this way:
 Old Captain Penrynn had son and daughter. The son married to plea his father, but the daugh h,er married to please herself, and suffered d,sinheritance in consequence. She died in a few years, leaving oaoy daughter, and pleading piIlful letter to her father, who read Il with tears in his eyes, and who forthwith tosk charge of the little girl--a brown eyed, dainty spri,e, who made the old Grange merry with her childish laughter and patterins, childish feet.
 It seemed that Captain Penrynn was doomed to outive all hls family, for his son also died, leaving one daughter, so he had only two grapdchlldren to inherit his wealth, and he made new will, di. vidiDg the property equally between them. Two years before our story opens he died very suddenly but when Lawyer Sage searched for the latter will, To it had vanished. He was astounded; he went through his old friends private pA- pers again and again, but no will ap- peared. except the one leaving all to his son and his heirs, forever.
 Perhaps he hid it." unused the puz- zled lawyer. remember ju,t b. tore he died he pointed toward that old cna,t and tried to speak. will exAmine It."
 He took down the heavy chart, and shook it, and looked behino 1t, but only the blank wall met his vlew. So he read the old will, after an elaborate explana- ton to the assembled friends ana rela- hves, and Justine listened with secret ex- ultation, and Rilla with some pain ana bewilderment.
 Miss Peorynn returned to town without offering even small portion of the estate to her cousin.
 "A mean, heartless, stingy thing cried Bessie, indignantly.
 Her father secretly agreed with her, He could not see pretty, impulsive Rllla turned adrlft on the world, and took her home with him, to faish her education with Bessie, and 10 help teach the young. CT childien. She had hved qdiet, busy, happy life there until Paul Came out to the village to spend the summer hunting and fishing. It was by the doctors or ders be sought the healthy quiet of coun. try life, and afer making acquaintance with Lawyer Sage's family, he ceased to groan over the dullness of his existence He had not been in Hartwell more than a month when Miss Penrynn came down for a few days. She wished to consult dear MT. Sage about some investments, and she coolly anno ouncsd that she would stop with them, and her Paris 6neiy and finished worldly graces quite overshad. owed Rilla and Bessie.
 The few days had heightened into three weeks, and they had been weeks of torture to poor Rtlla, for she had not only to endure her halfveiled taunts and cut ting malicious stabs from the velvet topgued heiress, but her poor D assion ate heart suffered an agony of jealousy. Jus tine stepped in between her and Paul Daverant. Sac claimed his attention al- most as right, and, with fine assump. tion of careless indiffs renee, he allowed her to do it.
 Perhaps it amused him, perhaps it pleased him; Rdla thought the latt.r, and blushed scarlet with shame and in. dignation to think that she had given her heart to man who cared nothing for it
 She grew cold m her manner iowa, d him, and avoided his society so persist ently that he must have notic, it, though he made no sign. But she was miserable and half reckless, and rather fancied the idea of spending night at the lonely old Grange which had not been inhabited siuce the captains death. Perhaps i, vas haunted, a some of the ignorant