Weekly commercial herald. (Vicksburg, Miss.) 1884-18??, 1886-04-16
SELF OR BEARER
BY WALTER BEASANT.l
Author Of "All Sorts and Conditions OF
"The Captains Rome etc.
By WALTER BEAsANT]
Commence sunday, Mareh n

Mr.. Murridge grunted; but what he meant
is not known.
"She shut the door, but, as sometimes
happens, the lock did not catch, and the
door stood ajar. From the place where
vas sitting l could see through the door,
and could catch something of what she was
about | was not curious, but l looked, and
l observed that she was tearing something
out Of a book This was such a strange
thing to do that it caught my eye. Why
should she come to your Office, when you
were out in order to tear leaves out Of a
books 1t certainly seemed to be a book of
some kind, but from my place l was quite
unable to see what it was, or WHY she was
tearing it up. Then she folded the leaves
very carefully, and. so far as | could see,
put them in her pocket After a few minutes
she came out again. OF course l was, by
TINS time, very curious indeed, but / asked
no questions. A man does not like to seem
curious about O. thing which he has seen,
so TO speak, through a keyhole. l
noticed, however, that her breath
was quick, and that her hand trem-
bled. And she said a very strange
thing to me. Dick, sho said, when your
father comes back, do not tell him that |
came here. only came to get something
something which | forgot this morning,
nothing of any Importance She STAN
mered a great deal while she said this. l
told her that it was no business of mine
whether shs came or whether she stayed
away, because had nothing to do with her
or her work. Then she laid her hand on my
shoulder and looked into my face. But
promise, Dick she said. You see we are
such old friends, you and l, and Daft is
your DO 'om friend. We ought to be able
to depend on you. Promise, dear Dick; say
that you will never tell your father that |
came to his office any day when he was out
OF it NATURALLY promised. And she went
away. As soon as she was gone,I went into
your Office to find out what she had been
tearing, If l could, being still curious,
and not Lest satisfied with myself
for having made that promise. There
were two or three great books on the
table, your genealogical books. But she
would not he likely to tear my Of the leaves
out OF them, because they are not the only
copies. looked about, therefore, and pres
emily, poked away under some papers, l
found your check bo0k lying on the table. |
took it up and examined it. l do not know
why, because had no suspicion of this kind
OF thing. What was my establishment to
discover that six of the checks had been
taken out of the bookl Six; they were
scattered here and there, not taken out in
a lump. This, of course, was in order TO
lessen the Nance of immediate discovery
never before knew that YOU were in the
habit Of leaving your check book out. This
was the thing that l found. 1t was after
wards, when began to think about it, that
| connected the leaves torn OUT of the book,
and SO carefully folded, with the check
book
Mr.. Murridge's face, which had been at
first expectant and interested, was now as
black as Erebus.
&c on" he said. "Get on faster. Let
us finish with this.n