Waterbury evening Democrat., 1889-10-14
LEiTHEkWOUD HOUyE.
A Romance of the Early Days
 iu Hoosierdom.
BT H. w. TAYLOR.

5x Ii- w. TAYLOR.
 clashing in sort of chant or song in
 an unknown tongue Spanish. the new
 Dr. May authoritatively said it was),
 made the most astonishing spectacle
 that had as yet been seen in all Sand
 town and its tributary regions. The
 second great spectacle was, perhaps,
 at that very moment preparing for it's
 presentation. But if so, the spectators
 were as completely unprepared for it
 as ever an audience was unprepared
 for denouement of the most startling
 drama
 Pushing into the circle at last, I
 was astonished to see that whatever this strange dance might be it was one
 which all the participators in it had
 practiced. But wherep Impossible
 that it could have been done in Sand
 town without being known and eyen
 supervised by the more enterprisihg g
 inhabitants. Then I thought of the
 steamer that we had seen in the bend
 of the river below the village. looked around for Buck. He was not to be seen. Across the circle stood Polly holding to the arm of Judge Barks. She was far moro richly dressed than had ever sesn her. But the dark, thin lace dress and the pale yellow ribbons in her hair gave her a wan and worn look. Judge Barks, too, looked disturbed and anxiGls. But Imust talk to somebody about this odd masquerade of Bogus Leather wood. And who could be more saIis- factory to me in a conversation of that nature than his daughter. For there had come into my mind a growing conviction that the man must be in sane.
 How quickly the memory can mar shal innumerable circumstances in cor roboration of the imputation of insan- ity! The sudden change in the land lords whole methods of life within the last ten days; his apparent neglect of the stern and uncompromising super vision of all the acts and movements of his wife and daughter, which he had enforced rigidly all the ten years of their residence in Sandtown, together with Bucks suspicious comment, came upon mo with the irresistible force of conviction. Undoubtedly the man must be insane! Then how much greater the need that I should at once take charge of the daughter. If ever there could be time that she would need my protection and advice and support in and through, said, proudly to myself, now is that time. If ever there was the possibility of an oppor- tunity for me to redeem the promises that had made to her by implication and to myself by multiplied direction, moaO was that time.
 Full of these thoughts, and prepos- sessed with the correctness of my con- clusions upon all tho points involved, it was with vastly more than my usual self-assertion-or Jack of it, rather that 1 pushed my way round tho outer edge of the admiring and highly-enter- tained circle to the spot just back of the station occupied by the chief object of my thoughts and my purpose.
 l remember in that brief interval how with amazing celcrity thought over the whole field of what was to be the next era of our lives. The mar riage; tho necessary residence at my fathers house until I could choose a location and make start in my pro- fession; the energy and tirelessness that l could and would put forth in this first bout with the actual world, with the burden of wife upon my hands; and this and all other burdens frightened by our overwhelming and enduring love for one another. A pleasing subject, dashed with little of the anxiety and uncertainty pertain ing to such subjects in their very nat pleasing, first and last.
 When under tho stimulus of the thoughts here briefly outlined I had pushed my way to the side of the ob- ject of my solicitude the remarkable dance of the mad landlord and his crew had come to climax, in which the dancers formed in two lines with