The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1886-05-29

! sure there's something very wrong about
that poor girl
"tWhat nowP inquired.
A their room to-day after luncheon, when
heard great noise. Somebody was scold-
4 ing and somebody was crying. Then the
4 door opened and the old lady came out.
\ happened to look into the room, and there
sat Miss Emily at her writing desk. The
tears were streaming down her checks, and
her pen was going like wild-fire. The room
| looked very queer. 1t was full of books,
and newspapers and magazines were lying
| all over the floor / heard Miss Emily talk
| ing to herself What she said / couldn't
| for a nap. Presently heard a queer noise.
| First couldn't think what it was, but it
| seemed to come from the gas fixture.
listened again, and then made up my
mind that somebody was playing on the
bracket below as if it were a piano. I've
always said her actions were very strange,
and Mrs. Smith says so, too. Fancy it
quaIreling with her mother, and writing
like wild-fire, talking to herself, and play
ing tunes ON gas fixture / tell you, that's
it, Ted. tell you, Edward. that that
beautiful young girl, with golden hair,
great open blue eyes, and forehead just
like that of a Roman Catholic saint, is crazy
stark, staring crazyw
'Fiddlesticks, Elizap I cried. YOU'RE
razy. l tell you there's nothing wrong
about that girls mind any more than there
is about mine We argued, and argued,
an. argued. But of course didn't convince
Elm a, and she didn't convince me.
ssN ow must tell you, Bradford, how our
room. swere situated in that boarding house.
Old la dy Marvin, being an invalid, couldn't
90 no md down stairs, so our landlady had
given Ter back room on the first floor.
Eliza ar d / occupied the back room on the
second floor Above our heads, on the
m ol.r,a 30 a
had of en- seen him going in and out Of the
door in st at the head of the staircase, and
Eliza al ways brought up as an evidence OF
his love Cor Miss Emily the way he tramped
up and d, ,wn that room at all hours OF the
night with his boots on.
"As a ma tier of course paid no further
attention to what felt certain was Eliza's
nonsense about Miss Emily's mind being
out of order. But one evening l went hur-
riedly up to MY room after dinner. / had
lust seen Miss Emily leave her mother at
the table and disappear upstairs. The
moment / got into our room heard most
peculiar noise. What on earth was it, 1t
sounded like Tick tick tick-tick-tick tick
-tick-tick tick tick-tick tick tick and
it came from the gas pipe. 'Ohor thought
], there's Eliza's notion. She did hear
something after all Somebody is knock
ing on that gas FIXTURE Playing a tune,
Eliza called it. Then all of q sudden a
strange thought came over me. iPhewp
gasped. It's so-it's SO, just as sure as
you're born!
snow / must tell you, Bradford, that
among my earlier experiences in this life
was once a telegraph operator: didn't
work at the business long, and was ex-
tremely stupid at it; but l did learn the
sounds; knew them all, dots and dashes,
Just the horrid tick and succession of ticks,
and spaces between the ticks, that are
equivalent to the letters of the alphabet
And here heard them again. Yes, that
was it. / saw through the whole business
the bed and laughed until was afraid I'd
have every button off my waistcoat.
"Some one had told me once that Will
Graham was telegraph operator. He had
evidently taught Miss Emily the art, and
here they were communicating with each
other in the most satisfactory fashion,
while everybody imagined that they were
conducting themselves like perfect stran-
gers. o dear! oh dear! how did laugh
Then waited patiently to hear what was
being said. 1t was a kind of eaves-drop-
ping, certainly, but how could l help it!
The conversation had happened upon ran
as follows:
"tHow are you this EVENING"?
lawfully tired. And your
"'Tired too. Mamma has been particu-
larly exasperating.
"'Has she! Am / never to have talk
with you again.
"T don't know Keep up your spirits
al will, but it's dreadfully trying
az think somebody's coming
40 dearp
II heard a door open and shut and /
knew that somebody had entered the room
below Conversation by the way of the
gas-pipe had ceased-for that occasion, at
| least.
II can't tell you how many of these con-
versations listened to- Every time that
mysterious tick tick tick, tick tick would
begin, couldn't help pricking up my ears.
And o. the sweet things did hear! One
phrase that continually palpitated down
that gas-pipe was: Emily, you are just
perfectly lovely.
'rhe reply generally was: Now, Will,
don't be silly -.. i.
''Instead of producing any effect, this
| usually brought ont some such sentiment
as: i never saw you look SO pretty as you
did at dinner
"'Don't be foolish
az will; / can't help it. II any other
fellow gets you shall die.'
Don't talk nonsense. No other fellow
ever WILL
Tell me you love me-
az WON'T
after this, silence would generally en-
sue.
"Well, matters were going along in this
fashion when one day began to think that
| the lovers were giving a new turn to their
conversations. Was anything going to
happens Two or three things were said
that didn't understand One day heard
Miss Emily say to Will:
There's no use; I've got to do it."
"'What!'
"'Kill her.
"'All right
:" But hate to; and 1 can't think how
Shoot her.
'Nonsensep
''At this Point Eliza came into the room,
and she made such a noise that couldn't
hear anything more. But not long after
ward there were more serious communi-
cations:
Dear, dear WILL
"'What is itp
70 II halr Ill.