The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-11-16
She Cooked the CORPSE.

! A curious incident happened some years age
in New England town. where eccsntricties Of
character are well developed says the Boston
Courier.
A willful old lady, who came of ancestors
who had held almost feudal sway in the village
in the old days, and who in the midst of her
flowers, of which she was ex tremely fond, ivet
for seventy years in virgin state, had pet
canary Of which she was very fond The bird
was old like his mistress, and was never con.
fined to his cage. He was to be found flying
about the house, or more often nestled in the
gray hair of his mistress, which was abundant
and crinky as that of an old negress The
affection of the old lady for her bird was the
one passion of her life. which she neither co a.
cealed nor checked She had been known ia
sty that if the bird died she would kill herself.
and her townspeople, VINO knew her pretty
well, held her quite capable of doing So
In the course OF time the old lady herself
after fighting death on her feet almost to the
last day, foo Id herself about to die When sne
was told by ner physician that she had but a
few hours II live the dying woman who even
then force herself to sit I'D in bed mad her
cook SUNNI med to her presence When that
parsonage arrived she found her mistress hold.
ing to her breast the ca aary-a thing wen-n nigh
as forlorn looking and as near death as herself.
For moment the old lady took no notice of
the servant, continuing to caress the bird Then
suddenly she seized the bird by the throat with
-. .,'..s ooAy 1insers ana strangled it before
We are at the eod,n she said laying the
little thing on her withered palm and looking at
it with dry eyes.
She kissed 1t and then held it out to thu cook
1T is to be cooked, she said
''Cooked:" the astonished servant calculated.
The girl had expected 10 be bold to bury it in
the garden, and while not understanding WHY
she should have been chosen for the oiice Of
undertaken, instead OF the maid or the butler
she was too well accustomed to her mistress to
be surprised at that. The command given her
however, was too much for even her.
LAS soon as possible, =" her mistress said. "I
have only three hours to live"
But what shall do with it!n the cook asked
helpessly.
Bring it to me as soon as it is ready"
The word of the old lady was law, and. al
though the servants decided that she was stark
mad, ner ORDERS we're carried out. The canary
was prepared and roasted, and in due tins ia ken
to the bedside of his dying mistress Toe poor
woman, whose forehead was already damp with
the dews of death, collected all her remaining
strength, and with an effort Of the will such as
she alone would have been capable of she began
to eat the bird. She swallowed rnorsel or two.
the attendants and those around loo King on with
amazement. and then the fork dropped from mar
fingers. She was as liteless as the bird she was
eating.
Whether the whim of the old lady was a re-
turn to the savagery of her ancestors let him
determine who is wise enough The idea that
by eating her pet she could take him with her
may have been in her mind, or at least it might
have been In the mind of some barbarian in
" .Aose VEINS nsr lie blood ran centuries ago.