River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1886-10-14
THE BASILISK.
A STORY OF TODAY.
CHAPTER w
NV pEpAErrRF.

/ NEW DEPARTURE.
I was quite surprised, and not n little
touched, at the amount Of good feeling
elected by the news of my departure
from ST. Bartimeus 5. 1t was not al
together pleasant to realize that one
had been neglecting so many Possibili-
ties of friendship. and keeping seltishly
eicDf from people who were full OF
simple kindness. Not that friendly
manifestations are necessarily worth
much when bestowed to speed part
ing guest. It IS easy enough to show
q little extra civility to one whom you
never expect to sec again. And in our
little community there was a certain
Importance attached to going away,
which made me for tho time = person
4 age of some note, so that. possibly,
/ proportion of the interest manifested
7 By my worthy s'co-mates and brothers
in exile, in my pending departure was
due to a desire to be associated as
closely as possible with the involuntary
hero Of the hour. / remember how, at
school, the dignity of an unexpected
journey made any Of US feel consldera-
bly taller; and how boys with whom
we were, under ordinary circumstan-
ces, on terms Of a decidedly unsettled
kind, would gladly lend 4 hand
in the preparations for departure, to
help to carry bag or rug, if need were
to the station. Some such spirit as
this was abroad IN the Home, and
brought my schOol-dayS vividly back
70 nv mind. The care that had been
taken of me. and the little / could do
for myself 10 the matter Of my journey
took me back. indeed. to an earlier
period Of my schOOl-lile than l could
distinctly remember. Other feelings
also were working IN my breast which
were amusingly, If somewhat pitifully
childish. l was. during the last days
Of my sOiourn under DR.. Shaw 5 care,
III a state of suppressed excitement
and Impotence, such rs l used TO feel
as boy. when within measurable dis
lance Of the. holidays. l was almost
( fiercely eager TO mix in some sort with
7 the world again. l did not consider
how small that world must necessarily
be. I only realized THAI / was no
Z longer to be shut away into corner,
cias,ed with other sufferers, whose tel-
low in aifl.ction I could not Dear TO
think myself And above all there
was the strange aud growing charm OF
Miss Beaufov, with her power, of which
Shaw had 50 evil an opinion, and the
sympathetic chord struck 10y the gentle
voice and kindly words Of her quiet
cousin. To E1r. BcaufOy / did not give
much thought The human interest
Z was centred for me in the two women.
Z And so, living in q state of cOncen-
trated expectation, the hours went
slowly BY for me, till the time Of my
emancipation should arrive.
At last the eventfnl Saturday came.
T I awoke. feeling as if 1 were about to
/ begin a new life. leaving the helpless
nlss and suffering Of years behind me.
I Shaw. not for the first time, rather
rallied me on the Joy with which ! was
preparingtO leave the Homo, where, IN
truth. / had met nothing but kindness.
/ did not attempt to dissen. bic my joy,
J but / assured. him, In the most fOrcible
! words / could find, of my sense Of all
I his GOODNESS to me. and of al his adj
/ vantages Of st. Bartimeus s. Thought,
/ still ike schoolbOy, of the pleasure,
and even the triumph, of coming 20
visit him and my former associates
among the patients. with something OF
I the glory Of an old boy reyisitiug his
old comrades who are still in StGtu
I PapiHGri.
s.AIv dear DOCTOR, I said warmly, Il
can never forget all you have done for
I me"
II haven't done much. said Shaw,
who loved to be correct on professional
I points. You're neither better nor
[ worse than when YOU came, except
( that Won have picked up marvelOusiy
Z in spirits. and therefore in general
7 health. during the last few weeks"
- don't mean what you've done for
me professionally | answered.
THAT, no doubt. is all man could have
/ done. But you've kept me alive.
That's the long and short Of it.
1--WE kept YOU alive for Miss Beaufoy
to take you of, and Try some Of her
wiIcs on YOU"
"Yhat wiles can Miss Beaufoy try
on blind music mastcr?'
y don't know what She can do. You
7 can't see her Is l can. There IS moth
ing straightforward. nothing plainly
good about her. or any of her works.
i viii be on my guard. doctor,
I laid /, laughing. Il WIS really ridicu-
I lous. the way In which the mention, or
I even the idea Of Miss Beaufoy affected
Z the cool and kiud-heaTtcd Shaw. Il
viii cone and report progress soon,
and you shall judge whether things
/ are getting really desperate.
''1ou'l il ne-er GENE, said Shaw.
I 'sBeaufOy seems to have the strongest
objection TO letting anybody either in
I to or ont of his house now. Since his
wife's death they scarcely ever 60
out themselves, and no one, - Tar as |
I know. ever goes there
! well. l viii take care of myself,
/ but I certainly viii see You now and
then. He cant surely make any OBJ
! lection
'.He has had two or three patients
7 from here in various capacities where
/ they could he generally useful 10 him.
/ We never saw anything of them, and
when have made inquiries. OF invited
them here. be has always put me of.
Z No; it viii be good bye 20 us when you
I once get TO the BeaUfoys.
l was rsIher pleased at this. The
/ idea of being ovcT-riddcu in any law
/ fuI matter Of choice bv 5ir. Beaufoy,
or bY anyone else. now that my spirits
I had revived with the interest and hope
I of the new engagement, did not COM
mend itself 10 me for m instant. L
smiled nj Shaw's gloomy tone, and
I held my hand ont to him. saving no
more than. I'VE shall see. An eX-
preston which ! usl i from habit, but
I which sent 4 prophetic pleasure to my
+ heart whenever inadvertently uttered
t.
! 1t had been arranged, IN accordance
I with q letter which Mr.. Beaufoy had
written 70 Shaw. that should drive TO
my destination. which was situated IN
i 4 remote part Of q northwestern sub
Urb, round which the tide of railroads