Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1889-11-18

"Why, VIII 10 should see but my own face,
Master Fredi' she retorted snappishly; land
it he as good looking a face as the face of
many women who be ten years younger than
be- and l cs tell ZEE that it has been thought
good looking face by scores of men in its
time"
And herewi tn she bridled considerably, and
drew herself up.
land do you see nothing there besides Your
face, then, Ma Trickeyr'
BLESS and ave us Master Fred, you must
be turning mazed, think, or else it be that
you be making regular fool Of me. / don't
see why you should make up such gammots
about my facs when you've a-knowed 1t these
last twenty years l calls it very disrespect-
full, do"
And with a hounce and a bounce Mrs
Triekey turned and disappeared from the
room, leaving me alone with the house in the
mirror. which she certainly had not seen.
was musing uncomfortably on this fact,
with my eyes fixed on the vision, which to
me was as distinct as ever, when the clock on
the chimney p zee struck quarter to o. Then
suddenly, as il wiped out by spirits wing.
Just when the little silver chime of the clock
was ringing, house, garden, summer house,
moonlight, yellow CLEAN, vanished from the
mirror, and ,aw nothing there save the re-
Election OF the familiar room.
1t WIS certainly Il more wonderful phe-
nomenon than any which my medical books
and medical knowledge had taught me, and
l sat up late that night thinking 1t over and
trying vainly TO account for it. As, how
ever, could not gain the slightest light on
the subject, turn the matter up and down as
/ might in my brain, came TO a resolution
on two points, and then went TO bed One of
these resolves was, that | would not reveal
the Circumstance TO any one, because l had
always a most hearty dislike of gossip and
ridicule at my expense; and the other was,
that would not allow the inexphcable vision
10 trouble my mind 50 as to make me incapa-
BILE of the daily work and duty Of life Ny
natural calmn,ss of temperament and my
active, busy &C urse OF existence, made me
more able to make these determinations, with
some chance OF keeping to them, than most
people In my place.
slept well that night, and did not see the
house In the mil ror once in my dreams. Next
day was sent for In haste to attend danger
Gus, difficult cass, which required all my skill
and energy. B. the time the evening was
again come tbs impression made by the
strange circums ance of last night, had in a
greet measure flded out of my mind.
IL 30 happened that was engaged to spend
that evening with my friends, Mr.. and Mrs.
Woodland. Mr. Woodland was a banker,
and his wife was pretty, sparkling woman
tho queen OF cciety in our town. She and
were always close allies; she would chatter to
me of all her family affairs, and in a certain
way made me her coufidant. On the occasion
In question wss Mr.. and Mrs. Woodlands
! only guest The banker slurnbered In his arm
chair, the lady b nd two or three bits of gossip
/ to tell me about he neighborhood, and two
| or three new boo to discuss with me, and a
| deal TO say besides about the first appearance
! OF tooth in Mis- Baby's little rosy mouth.
| That young her pine was brought down in
state in her night dress, and had to examine
the prodigy with much circumstance and
| Solemnity
Baby had retired again to the nursery, and
had ceased her so newhat loud remonstrances
with regard to The Inconvenience of being
brought downstairs 10 appear in the drawing
room in such a cos ums and at such an hour
Mrs. Woodland vas standing on the hearth
| rug looking In tile mirror when the town
| clock in the mark 4 place hard by struck s.
| / was looking at the reflection of my hostess
face in the mirror and thinking it was GER
tainly a very pretty one, when suddenly at
/ the side OF the lively brown eyes appeared
! precisely the very same house, line for line,
which had seen Ia my dining room mirror
! yesterday at this same hour; garden, pagoda
| like summer house silvery moonlight, yellow
lamplight glsam-all were there.
| could not help start and a murmured
| expression OF wonder. Mrs. Woodland turned
round quickly at the sound.
What Is the rlatterf' she asked in sur
prise.
| oh, Just a twin ge of rheumatism 10 my
shoulder answered csrelessly. Il caught
rhr..
MIR. Hsathcote what do you see so won
dertul in the looliug glass to-nightYn she
asked, few minutes after, noticing with
feminine quickness the direction In which
my eyes, in spite Of myself, were so fire.
quently turned
Il was thinking that II / were a little
handsOmer man than | am, should try and
| get wife made exactly on your pattern" !
| replied lightly.
| With these and a few more testing words
| l contrived TO put Mrs Woodlands curl
| osity TO sleep aga n, while, from time 70
time, / watched the visionary house. II was
just as / had expected: when the clock
Skinned quarter to it vanished exactly as
1t had done on the 'evious night.
From that time forward, wherever !
might be. if | was In the room with a look
ing glass, l saw evsry evening from s TO
| quarter OF o, for the next month TO come, the
house in the mirror. Sometimes it met my
view in the hooking glass ON cottage wall,
where was tending a poor patient, some
times in the pier glass Of q fine lady's apart
ments sometimes In he mirror Of a friends
dining room as I sat at dinner
There was never the faintest change In the
vision; 1t was always marked by exactly the
same features. cannot say but that this
perpetual haunting q my life by 80 mysteri-
Gus an apparttion did make a vaguely uncom-
Portable and painful impression on my mind
But by strength OF W II, and By clinging reso-
lutely aud ceaselessly to all my active duties,
prevented its havin, a morbid. unhealthy
effect upon me. rev ealed the circumstances
| TO no one, but appear ID to the outer world rs
II there was no stran ge page in my common
| place story.
| When, however, a month or 50 had passed
by, there came a great. sudden, real sorrow,
which most effectively thrust aside all inclina-
ton TO brood over gloomy, shadowy, fancilul
troubles. One morn ng there arrived a tele-
| gram from Lecco, on the Lake Como, in north
Italy, saying that my sister, on her way home
from India, had falleI dangerously I'll there,
and calling me at once to her side knew
that Lotties health had been delicate ever
since her baby was BORN, and that she was
about to return to En- gland for the sake Of a
cooler climate and the best medical advice
knew, too. that she m can't to return through
Italy, but was hardly aware that she had,
as yet, started from bombay, and had not
the faintest notion that her disease might
possibly take such dangerous turn No
wonder, then, that the tidings were O severe
| blow.
Lottie was far more 20 me than sisters gen
orally are to their brothers. She was sew
eral years younger than was, and she had
been first my playthinE, then my pupil and
! mad experienced palg Of real jealousy on
that day when, sitting ON a stool at my feet,
with her sweet face hidden ON my knees. she
confessed to me there vas one who was more
to her than | was, one who was more TO her
| than ali th0 world besiOes This foolish feel
ing, OF course, quickly passed away, and
reJoiced 10 See her n hap by bride; yet Lottie
vas still my pet, my pride and my darling
will not dwell upon the hurried journey.
I