Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1886-05-07
HOW n o IN.
a Boston Society Lady's Thrilling and
Novel Midnight Adventure.

AS q sMA
Novel Midnight Adventure.
1t is often q neat little scheme put
up by deep wives whose husbands stay
out later at night than is deemed
proper, to so thoroughly scare them
when they return that they will ever
after stay at home. Sometimes it is
successful. More often it is not. Gen
orally either the man or the woman
gains wisdom. The story of a similar
experience unwittingly enforced upon
two lovely people not far from Boston
is almost pathetic in the lack of dignity
it temporarily enforced. The husband
and wife, both of whom are middle
aged, were invited to one of the choicest
parties of the season. The gentleman,
who is q prominent educationalist and
literateur, was indisposed, and so the
Invitation was declined for him and &C,
cepted for the lady. About ten O'Clock
the carriage vas announced and Mrs.
p. said goodnight to Mr.. E. in his
library, bidding him not to sit up for
her, rs it would probably be very late
when she returned. Mr.. E. said all
right, he would not. 1t was late when
Mrs. b.. drove up in her private car
riage to her own door. 1t was after
two o'clock, so she dismissed the inn
patient Patrick, telling him to drive at
once to the stable. She gathered her
long skirts about her as she stood on
the steps for a moment enjoying
the absolute stiffness of the de-
serted street, then unlocked the
outer door, passed into the vestibule,
and attempted to unlock the inner door.
In vain she tried. Not only was the
latch down. but the heavy lock was
turned. She rang the bell and rang
and rang again. Mr.. E., she knew,
was a very sound sleeper and there was
evidently nothing on the consciences
of any of the servants. Opening the
outer door again she looked for Pat
rick. He had gladly awaited himself Of
her permission and was we'll on his way
to the stables. Then she knew some
thing desperate must be done. She
took off her long dress skirt and laid il
in the vestibule, locked the outer door
upon it and ran for dear life the length
of the block and half the width to the
alley, which is between each two streets
in that city. Down here she sped,
breathless and frightened half to death
as she aftcrward acknowledged, until
she came to her own back fence. Over
this she climbed with considerable diff
Guilty, the worst of it being not the get
ting up, but the letting down on the
other side. When at last she reached
the back door and tested it and the
windows it was to find these locked as
we'll. She took off her velvet cloak,
wrapped it around her hand, drew of
and smashed the glass in the door,
/! drew the lock and at last stood in her
/ own kitchen.
Tired and nervous, she then stopped
a moment to prepare some ice-water,
and then started on to go upstairs.
Worse and worse and more of it,! The
timid servants had cautiously locked
| the door at the foot of the stairs and
the poorwoman was once more a pris-
oner at her own portals. Having done
so much for liberty she was surely not
to be daunted now. If she had known
how to ''break and enter'' she would
certainly have done it, but not know.
ing how she did the next best thing
and "created a disturbance She
rolled the kitchen table across the
floor two or three times, then took the
broom, and, standing on the table,
swept back and forth, not the cob-webs
from the sky, but the chamber bells in
the corner. This she continued until
her tired arms refused their labor, and
and she stopped to rest. The servants
! heard the din and thought it was
"spirits, "and hid their frightened heads
beneath the clothes and prayed.
Mrs. E. began again; and by some
miracle Mr.. E. heard it and awakened.
Hastily dressing he was on his way
| downstairs when Mrs. E. stopped to
! rest. He thought, Of course, it was the
| front door, so he fastened to- draw the
bolt he had thoughtlessly turned down
before. He opened the daor and in the
| sweep of red satin thought he saw
the PROSTATE form of his dear wife.
He threw himself upon it only to find
| her dress alone. Visions of murder and
every other horrid thing flew through
his brain on the wings of fire. Hank!
the bells. He rushed below, opened
the door into the kitchen-softly-
there he saw his wife. She did not see
the door open and screamed when he
spoke to her.
s.In Heavens name, Eleanor, what
are you doing?"
She turned around. saw the door of
her dclivcrance open, and then, in her
little White petticoat at half past two
in the morning, she sat down in the
middle of the Kitchen table and cried.
Boston Record.