Waterbury evening Democrat., 1890-02-08

carried in my boxes.
Mr.. Reade helped me down and stood
by me, apparently examining the har-
ness. Then he seized a moment, when
Mr. Rayner was speaking to the serv-
ant, to stoop and say to me, in q low
voice:
"Don't let them put you near Mrs.
Rayner's room"
could not ask why, for the next mo-
ment he said goodbye and was walk
ing by the side of the dog cart up the
drive that led to the road. A distress
ing sense of loneliness came over me.
Mr.. Rayner, absorbed by his letters,
had gone into the house forgetting to
ask me in; the servant had disappeared
with my last box. Instead of follow
ing her, l stood watching the dog-cart
and its owner out of sight, until a harsh
woman 5 voice startled me.
Won't you come in? I'm to show
you to your room"
1T was the gaunt servant who adj
dressed me. l turned and followed
her into low long hall, dark, cool and
old-fashioned; up an oak-lined stair
case, through few short and incon-
venlent Passages, to corner room,
shabby, dark and bare-lookine, where
IL
down on one of these, the only friendly
thing l had with me, and began to crv.
Somebody might at least have come to
the door to meet me! Thought of Mr..
Kcade's words, and began to wonder
with new sense of dread what Mrs.
Rayner was like. Was she an invalid?
Was she-madP II not. why had she
left the correspondence about her
child's governness entirely to her hus-
band. My tears dried slowly, and l
was scarcely ready when the servant
returned to tell me that tea was wait
ing for me. But my curiosity was
only to be sharpened. Tea was pre-
pared for me alone, the servant SAYING
that Mr. Rayner was busy, and had
had his taken into the study. Not n
word about Mrs. Rayner-no sign Of a
pupil! So great was my anxiety that
forgot how hunger l was, and in few
minutes | had finished my tea, and
was standing by the window looking
out into the garden.
IL was not yet seven o'clock and a
hrirht summer evening. On the side
OF the dining-room q NOISY lawn
stretched right up to the French Win
do"s. l opened one of these and went
out. l had never seen sucl, a bcaiiti-
ful garden before. The house was
n';'it on the very border of the marsh,
at the bottom of a k:ll which sloped
down. covered with trees. toward tho
dining-roolH side of the house Imade
my way round to the front and the
moss-grown portico-from here one
caught glimpscs of the marsh
through the thick trees. l followed Il
gr;lss-path cut through them, facing
the front of the house, until I came to
the pond which had excited my admira-
ton from the dog-cart. Here the veg
citation grew unchecked. The. watar
was half covered with smooth green
duck-weed and water lilies. The path
l had followed continued through the
trees. within a few feet of the pond. to
the outer edge of the little wood which
Enclosed the house and garden; there !.
few rough steps over the fence con-
nected it with the footpath along the
borders Of the marsh, which Joined the
road at the descent of the HILL This
was the short cut by which Mr.. Ray
ner had reached the house before us
that afternoon.
had turned back toward the gar
den. and was close to the pond, when
heard a low grooming sound which
seemed to come out of the ground at
my feet. Looking about, l saw sitting
among the reeds, at the very edge Of
the water tiny eltish, looking chila,
about two years old, in Il dirty white
frock and pinafore, with a small pale
wrinkled face and thin straight red
hair, who went on with her monoton-
Gus chant without SEEMING at all dis
turbed by the appearance of a stranger.
She only stared at me, without alter
ing her position, when I told her that
she must not sit so near the water, or
she would fall in and be drowned; but,
when l stopped to lift her up, she
proved her humanity by screaming
loudly and representing me in baby |
language too indistinct for me to un- |
derstand. l supposed her to be the
child of the gardener or of some neigh
boring cottager, and, not quite know
ing what to do with her, 1 carried her,
still screaming, to the house, where I |
met the servant whom / had already |
seen.
- found this child sitting, with her
feet nearly in the pond!' said, trag-
ically.
"Oh, yes, miss. there's no keeping
pretty nearly all day by herself. Come |
bed. Dirty little girl, look at your pin
afore!''
She took the child from me, and, rs
there was nothing to invite me to stay
indoors. L went out again, this time on |
the side of the house which faced the |
marsh. Here the grass grew rankly to
the very walls, and my feet sank into |
little pools which wetted them up to |
the ankles. However, I went on Until |
within a few feet of window heavily |
shaded by gnarled and knotted ivy.
when I caught sight of woman's face
staring intently at me through the glass.
As soon as l saw the sunken face and |
argc lusterlcss gray eyes l knew,
oy her likeness to the child at the pond, |
hat this was Mrs. Rayner. 1 retreated
n as leisurely manner as l could,
5rying to look as if l had not seen her;
or there was something in the eager,
hopeless stare of her eyes as mine met
,hem which made me feel like spy.
l went back to my room and wrote q