The Monitor. [volume] (Woodstown, N.J.) 1884-1892, 1889-12-13

RI lOiO Ohonl btIe iasG ntgnIs al ready
to be carried out. Hammer, 'ey you seen
them rags?"
NO." replied Hannah, the hired girl,
81 amt seen a solitary thing of EN-"
"That's queer, +" said Mrs. Huff. irrita-
bly,. "They never TUX legs and walked
off of their own accord. Sam, I don't
s'pose you've seen anything of my rags?''
Sam, the farm hand, happened to pass
the open window at that moment.
"Your rags, Mis- Huff What rags?''
"Why, my carpet rags"
Didn't know you had any," replied
Sam, briefly, as he went uneoncernedly on
his way.
Then began ar active search for the rags
Mr.. Huff was called in, and SO singular
was the disappearance of such bulky arti-
cles, that be joined in the search with con-
siderable interest.
sits the queerest thing!'' said Mrs. HUFF,
for the fifteenth time, as she looked INTO
places in which the bags of rags could not
possibly be. 'sIt's my opinion, . she said
at last, that somebody has stolen those
rags. They must have done it! They ney-
er got away alone; any one with common
sense knows that
No trace of a thief could be found, but
one could easily have COME and gone with
out the family knowing 1t, as the doors
and windows were seldom fastened. In
fact, some Of them had been left wide OPP
en- the night before to admit the cool air
at the close of a hot day.
Alter an hour of unavailing search Mrs.
Huff dropped YEARLY into a chair, and
said, in a choking voice, .sWell, they're
gone, and gone for good, and SOS my
chance of-getting the prize at the fair next
week. Somebody must have stole'em. l
reckon now that Calisty Horn will get the
premium with her carpet"
"Well, well, what If she does?'' said Mr..
Huff, consolingly. you've had it three
years hand r%unnin', and you'd ought to
give somebody else a chance, anyhow"
They all have just as good a chance as
I've had" replied Mrs. Huff. "And the
premium Amt nothing at all compared to
the loss of that carpet that I had callated
sure on putting down in the settin' room
this fall"
The rag were not foundin the days that
interviewed before the fair, and Mrs. Calls
ty Horns carpet did get the first premium.
"And such a looking carpet as it was"
said Mrs. HUFF, somewhat spitefnlly. "Tbe
rags was half an inch wide, and she'd got
too much copperas IN her coloring, and the
stripe was nothing to compare to what
mine would have been"
Her loss and defeat weighed heavily on
Mrs. Huff, and she lay awake a long time
thinking the whole matter over after she
had gone to bed, when she came home from
the fair.
Sometime after midnight Mr.. Huff awoke
to find himself alone in bed, and as he op-
ened his eyes he fancied he saw some one
pass the door leading into the hall.
Harriet, he called, lis that your
There was no reply.
L hVAAC4t HC Sa4Ay Al tAaS nOA1oA
has got up in the dead of the night to be-
gin on another carpet, She shan't do it,,
Harriet, what are you doing? You sick?''
Still Harriet did not answer Mr.. Huff
arose, wrapped a quilt around him, light
ed a candle and started out to investigate.
AS ne stepped into the hall he heard a
noise as of some one moving around in an
unused attic room above him, a room that
had not been entered for weeks, which was
now filled with all the odds and ends of
things that will collect in a house as the
years go on, and which a great many peo-
pie save, under the impression, usually a
delusion, that they viii sometime sscome
handy"
Among the useless rubbish slowed away
in Farmer Huf7s attic was the frame of an
old carpet loom on which Mrs. Huff had
woven many a carpet in her younger days;
but years had passed since the loom had
been in use. The moonlight streaming in
through a window showed Mr.. Huff that
the attic door was opened, but there was
no Other light in the room.
Harriet Huff he cried, what in Gre
alton air you doing up there at this time o
night? Hunting some more tormented old
rags? Come right back to bed. You'll get
your death o. cold roamin' FOUND at
night
She took no notice of his q%uerulous re-
marks, but he heard no more sounds in the
attic. But he was too much troubled to let
the matter rest as it was, and accordingly
mounted the stairs and entered the attic
room. There he saw something that eau
ed him to open both eyes and mouth with
amazement.
At the old loom sat Mrs. Huff in her
night clothes. In one hand she held an
old wooden shuttle, while with the other
she fumbled around in a grain bag full of
carpet rag balls leaning against a post of
the loom. Drawing forth a ball of the
shit-an'-miss rags she slowly began wind
ing it on the shuttle, which she then pass
ed to and fro through an imaginary warp.
The reed and batten bars were gone, but
Mrs. Huff went slowly through the mo-
lions of using them.
The amazed Mr.. Huff at once noticed
that her eyes we're closed, and his belief
Eaa..F -