Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1888-07-20

train, mother running for the twelve,
and best of all. Charlotte safe at Uncle
! Henry's What can't we COZ"
Il shan't eat this hash, | know.
IT. three days that Anus made Us
swallow this Tell her to cook me
something else" commanded Julian,
the first delightful shock over. "Hur-
ry, Norah, Pm awfully hungry"
! You've eat it most up" said Nor
ah, grinning st the empty plates.
You're not TO talk" retorted Juli-
an, tipping back his chair and looking
at her, "only to carry out my ordeXs. F"
Orders, is ii?r said Norah, not so
fresh from the Green Isle but she had
few Boston ideas generously donat-
ed by her new housemaid friends.
81 amt hired by you, and l amt a.
going to take your jaw"
"Well, III dismiss YOU" said Jul
ian, quite grandIy arising from his
chair, and swelling up my father
and mothers away, and we're head
now, and, y
ooh, grcciousm cried Norah, her
big red face tilted up scornfully
Head? oh, gracious!''
You needn't stay till your weeks
out, either" declared Chris quickly,
anxious to do some of the ordering.
and getting out Of his chair to march
up and down the room as he had seen
his father do.
abe STILL" cried Julian hotIy; "I'm
attending to her. You've no busi-
ness to interfere"
"l'm the Oldest" said Chris, deter
mined to make a stand for his rights,
"aDd of course take fathers place. "
"Well, then, take mothers, +" said
Julian, accepting the situation quick
ly, and she always turns off the girls
Sol"
"I'm a,going any way" declared
Norah 81 wouldn't stay for two
days, nor for wan, in the house alone
with yez imps. and AIMS a-laying
too He-ee!"
"Ann must not CO." cried Chris,
rushing eff into the kitchen to meet
the presiding fuGctionary pulling in
her head from the buffers window.
"Who ever heard Of such thingl
Who's going to cook breakfast. say?"
Ann airily wiped her hands on the
first dish-towel that presented itself
and winked at Norab, who now lent
herself to the scene, leaning against
the door. The housemaid burst out
into a noisy laugh.
"Orders is it?' cried Norah shrilly.
"Oh the likes of it! B'yes is it, yez
are, or p'raps yez I'd like to make us
behave yez are min"
"We are the heads this house any
way" cried Chris in hot wrath,
while Julian pranced up and down
crying out pompously, "Wh ho is if we
aren't, say? Well, you sha'n't be
paid any wages if you run eff this
way. Now we've got the best of
you!"
"Stop your tongue, Norah." cried
the cook ia the midst, "aud leave
things to me- Your mother paid US
up last night" she vouchsafed to the
boys; then she tossed lazily away the
dish-towel, surveyed her face in
small mirror hanging for that purpose
under the clock-shelf, and hummed d
bar of climbing up the Golden
Stair"
"If Pm goin', catch me doin' up
them disbes," exclaimed the house.
maid, tearing herself away from the
supporting door, to come converse
tionally near the cook.
Ann now deserted the mirror 10 lay
her head close to Norah's, when
brisk and smothered conversation,
interlarded with much laughter Of
spasmodic character on the housmaid's
part, ensucd. Chris and Julian tired
of waiting, for signs pointing toward
general conversation, left the field,
rushed out to play. and in FIVE min
utes forgot all about it.
Six O'Clock brought them in speedi-
ly to the delights Of hot supper.
Peter the indoorman was just depart
ing through the back gaze as theboys
raced around the corner.
"Huloa, Pete!" they sang out try
ing to tell him that father and mother
were both away, but that individual
having private reasons of his own for
getting home early, preferred to show
no intimation Of hearing.
Chris and Julian therefore thrust back
on their own resources of converse
tion, whooped over the steps and into
the house, thanks to the latch key by
which Mrs. Eurania saved the steps
of her housemaids.
plague on that Norahl" exclaimed
Chris, opening the vestibule door.
"I'll give it to her for forgetting to
light the gas. Give Us light, Nor
ah!" he screamed out stumbling along
to the top Of the basement stairS
All was silent below in place of the
high revelrv that Norah's intermina-
ble cackIe and good spirits set in mo-
ton.
"You can't get anything out of
her" said Julian scornfully. "I'll
light the gas myself" which was
scarcely said before it was done.
And running through the different
rooms, the younger son of the Stebb
ins family speedily had the lower
part of the house ablaze There"
he aaid in satisfaction, "now We'll see
what's what" to turn full upon the
astonished face Of his brother. breath
less after an exploration below stairs.
They're gone!" gasped Chris, his
pale blue eyes rowing wildly. "and
eyerything's dropped just after din
ner; it's black as an old kettle down
there, the fires out in the stove,
and"-
"They're upstairs" said Julian,
coolly enough, though his heart
seemed to stand still in the face of
such declaration. Come on, let's
order 'em down"
But all the pounding on the door
of the domeatics' room, aud scream
ing by both boys of "Anu--An-n,
Moo rah" failed to bring any reply,
so L the boys marched to find indeed
.an empty apartment, as far as the
presence Of either servant was con-
cerned
"IIerc's a how'd 'ye.do," cried Juli-
an who generally took refuge in the