The Hot Springs star. (Hot Spings [Hot Springs], Dakota [Dakota Territory, i.e. S.D.]) 1886-189?, 1889-09-20

AVA Ual0 6CC0uCT1C
individual by her side. They had NOT
converted very long, however. before
Mr.. Twizzleton fairly puzzled her.
Il hope. Mr.. Twizzleton,~ she no.
marked, soon otter they were settled in
their places, shat your sight is not 40
bed as to prevent your dancing this
EVENING""
Dancing, my dear madam!" REPLIED
MI. Iwixzleton; II fear my lnfirmity
OF sight is not the only obstacle to that.
IT. is thirty years since I considered nv.
self q dancing man, and to he asked to
dance was the last thing 1 expected
when I came here"
sIndeed?" returned the widow. will,
an arch glance. did you expect to I've
left in charge Of the hall while the rest
OF us disport ourselves at the Bumpine-
ton ball?"
"Ah. madam, I see that you are iok-
ing" replied the imperturbable Twiz-
zleton. MY engagement with our
charming hostess, whom lam agreeably
surprised to see looking SO we'll, is the
only occupation I can look forward to
tonight"
@Well," said Mrs. Carnegie, with a
little toss of the head. "of course you
will have to dance with Cicely, but it is
a little cool to inform me that you ill.,
tend to favor nobody else-even though
she be our hostess"
|. Mr.. Twizzleton assumed Nh air of as
constituent which would have done
credit to any actor on the boards.
II dance with her?" lie exclaimed.
sSurely,m adam, I misunderstood you
I cannot believe that a lady would
dream of dancing under such circum-
stances"
"And why not, pray?" inquired the
widow.
Because it would he the height of
imprudence-I had almost said mad
ness. So far from encouraging her, /
should feel bound to forbid anything of
the kind.
Mrs. Carnegie looked at Mr.. Twizzle-
toms unmoved features, and felt thor
oughly mystiied. She tried other lines
of conversati ons but had no better sue
cess in persuading him to drop his as
sumed character.
Before dinner she was more than half
convinced that he was not acting at all,
and that the real author of the farce was
Mr.. Reggie Bunkum, who had amused
himself by palming off this old fossil
upon his cousin for q drawing-room
comique.
When the ladies had retired the male
portion of the company tried their hands
at drawing out Mr.. T~wizzleton; but Us
they succeeded no betterth than Mrs. Car
negie in getting behind his disguise, the
opinion was very 20 formed that the
joke was a dismal failure, and that Mr..
Twizzleton was making an egregious
fool of himself. The last hope of get
ting any fun out of the thing expired
on their return to the drawing-room.
On being sounded respecting his banjo,
Reggie Bunkum's boosted chum vehe-
mently repudiated any knowledge OF
the instrument, while u request from
Mrs. Hardup for the "three dogs in O
barrel" produced a look of hopeless be.
wilderment upon his features which was
almost pathetic in its intensity.
In the meantime, however, the strik-
ing realism of Mr.. Twizzleton's per
Torrance had made an impression on
Jack Hardup somewhat similar to that
on Mrs. Carnegie, only jacks sus-
picions took q somewhat different direc-
ton from the widows. When the gen.
tlemen moved off to the drawing-room,
the master Of the house called Thomp-
son, his trusty butler, OH one side, and
Intercepted him closely as to Mr..
Twizzleton's appearance on his arrival.
The butler no sooner gathered that his
master was perplexed about his new
guest than he proceeded to unburden
his own mind.
BEG pardon, sir" he said, sbut do
understand as you think there is some
mistake about Mr.. Twizzleton?"
HE is not at all the kind of gentle
man I expected to see. Thompson.
But why do you ask?"
Because I see some things, sir, when
I was up packing the portmanteau ahat
I don't like the look of at all."
what sort of things?" inquired
Hardup.
well. sir, p'raps as the gentlemen
are all in the drawing-room now, you
wouldn't mind stepping upstairs and
seeing for yourself. I can lay my
hand on 'em in q moment
Jack reflected an instant, rejecting
between the obligations of hospitality
and anxiety to get to the bottom of the
mystery. The latter motive prevailed,
and he accordingly hurried up to Mr..
T~wizzleton's apartment. followed by
the butler.
Thompson ct once produced two
black leather cases. Opening the first.
Hardup found it to contain several
mysterious looking instruments Of the
nature and purpose of which he was
ignorant In the second, however, he
was startled to find q pair of desperate
looking knives. with long blades highly