Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1885-08-07

Mrs. Palfrey favored her daughter ana
sonin law with suggestions for a more
harmonious" arrangement of the sitting
room furniture, together with criticisms
on the pattern of the carpet and wall
paper.
"Never mind, dear, said Mr.. Melton,
soothingly, when at last his mother-in-
law had been persuaded to retire for a
good nights rest after her ride. 'Let
us humor her for the day or two that she
will remain, and then we can have our
own way again.
But Mrs. Palfrey gave no indication
of an intention of speedily ending her
visit. On the contrary, she made arrange
ments for being comfortable in her own
room, and then set about investigating
into the household and domestic affairs,
and reforming and regulating things ac-
cording to her own notions.
This involved a system of cookery
comprising her own favorite dishes,
while Mr.. Melton's were condemned as
either unwholesome or extravagant; and
also a constant shifting about of furni.
ture; so that, as her son-in law observed,
when he came home of an evening, he
never knew where to look for anything.
To add to his uneasiness, Mrs. Palfrey
began to give hints of letting her own
house, and in future dividing her time
between her two dear, married daugh-
ters, to whose inexperience and helpless
ness she could be of so much use, and
such a comfort in case of sickness-they
having no family to look after them.
If the old lady should choose to carry
out this plan what could they do? Mr..
Melton and Matilda asked each other.
Of course mamma could not be turned
out of their house; and yet-and Mrs.
Melton turned away to hide her tears,
whilst her husband walked up and down
the floor, striving, for mis- wife's sake, to
repress his vexation.
Had it depended upon himself he
would have had small scruples; but how
could he hurt Matilda's feelings by being
what she would consider rude or unkind
to her mother9
Mrs. Palfrey had not been three days
in the house when she made an explor-
ing tour throughout every nook and
corner. and among other things remarked
the locked closet.
"What have you stored away therep
she inquired of her daughter.
81 don't know. Some old lumber, |
suppose. Horace merely said he prefer
red it to remain locked, as we had no
special use for it,"
''But where is the key? Of course you
have looked into it9"
mo; 1 have not cared about it. be-
lieve Horace has the key"
"You don't mean to say, Matilda, that
you allow your husband to lock up apart
ments in your house and keep the keys
himself, without ever letting you know
what he has shut up in them? Why,
Bluebeard himself couldn't do more
outrageous thingw
'It is only little closet, mamma; and
if there had been anything particular in
it, he would have told me-"
"Humph! little you know about hus-
bands and their ways! Now, 1 will
wager that Horace has his uncles choice
o!d wines and spirits stored in that
closet, to which he helps himself on the
sly"
But when, that evening, Mrs. Palfrey
limited an inquiry to her son-i law in
regard to the late Mr.. Melton's stock of
wines, he assured her that his uncle had
left none. He had never stored wines,
but bought them as they were needed.
This only added to Mrs. Palfrey's
curiosity, and day or two after she
assaied him again.
II have been assisting Matilda in ar
ranging the store room more conven-
iently. think that ground-hoor rather
damp, and that it needs good airing
and some quick lime. / noticed a closet
in one corner which emits musty and
unwholesome smell. 1t ought to be
opened and thoroughly ventilated.
There is nothing SO dangerous in a
house as damp"
$50 my uncle thought" replied Mr..
Melton, composedly, "and he was, there
fore, particular in the building and fin
ishing of the ground floor and cellars.
The closet is perfectly dry-perhaps, in
deed, the dryest spot in the house.
There is no necessity for airing it, as,
sure you."
Thenceforth, Mrs. Palfrey daily pom
dered upon the locked closet. door,
Why should it be kept fastened, and
tho key in Mr.. Melton's possession, un-
less it contained something which he
particularly desired to keep secret2
'Perhaps it is family papers," she
thought. 81 always fancied there must
be some mystery about the Meltons-
some of them have been so queer. May
be there's insanity in the family; or they
got their money in some odd way which
they wouldn't like to have known. For
Matilda's sake ought to look over those
papers"
So with this wish strong in her mind,
Mrs. Palfrey one day, when her daughter
was out, collected all the keys of the
house, and repairing to the ground floor
tried them on the lock of the mysterious
closet.
BY good fortune one of them fitted.
She heard the bolt shoot back, and then,
attempting to open the door, she dis
covered that it was secured by couple
of nails.
Here was heightening of the mystery.
Not satisfied with locking the closet, he
had actually nailed it up! There must
be something there of more importance
than old letters and papers-something
which her son-in-law was particularly
anxious to conceal, and which he had
never limited of even to his wife.
Who knew but that something dread.
full had been done in that house by thai
strange old man, who had lived alone
and led such secluded sort of life
And Mrs. Palfrey firmly made up hel
mind to discover the whole mystery be
fore she was many days older. There
should be no secrets in her daughter
house kept from her knowledge; and al
it was, the whole thing was wrong anC
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