New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-03-08


carpet and how the horsc-hair of the chairs was
sons connected with the Charlotte Russo, too, why
| she would have preferred that this medium should
stay away
Her face was now very strained and anxious.
Red Jacket had just jumped up and down on tie
noorcs place i'll the carpet If he did it again she
| was surc-hcrc her attention was diverted by the
| appearance of Madame Van Bcnthuyscn. That
| lady was plainly going into her second trance.
She sank into chair; the circle was broken; Mr..
| Thompson gradually disposed of Red Jacket and
seemed to be quite sully at the necessity for such
DISMISSAL. Madame began to murmur something
obont Flowers of heaven! Beautiful blooms OF
the spirit land! How beautiful
She went on in low voice which charmed
| Do,,oro,s oars The words flowed in an easy
,ido NOT meaning much, but seeming TO the girl
| 70 mean something extraordinarily lovely.
| Rowcna sat spclbound, eagerly bending forward
| in her chair, her eyes on Madame's lace, winch
| now did not seem swarthy nor 80 heshly.
| After few minutes Mrs. Jarvis rose ana NOISE
,csslv made request of Mr. Foster. who i'm
| mcdiatcy stood up and turned OIL thc gas from
| all the burners of the chandelier.
Rowcna was incxprcssibly astOnished. at first
tbc room seemed entirely dark, but presently the
licht from a street lamp dmly relieved the an
| solute darkness. No one spoke save that Madame
| won't on with her monologuc. Rowena was some
what subdued and somewhat alarmed.
Suddenly the girl was aware of the odor OF
flowers The odor made her think OF the per-
fumc from the bed of pinks in the frontSard Oh
the old house at home; and of warm summer days
when the birds were singing i'll the apple trees
She felt a singing of the eyes and hurrylns oil
the pulses.
Something cool and soft touched her hands,
which lay claspei tightly in her lap. The voice
went on Through the mist in her eyes she
dimly saw Fosters figure moving toward the
chandelier again The mOnotOnous voice OF
Madame ceased. There was the crack OF match
and then the glare of the gas again
All the people looked at each other; then they
looked at ROwena. who perceived on her lap /"
bunch of white carnation pinks.
With an exclamation she raised the ilowcrs to
her face As she did size saw Fosters eyes
upon her. and something in their expression made
her think of Philip Barrett. She heard one OF
the woman saying
They have been matcrializcd,' and she won
dcrcd what those words meant. She was sun
thinking of that bed Of pinks at home
1t was not for some time that she understood
that these were supposed TO be spirit flowers.
She was not quite clear whether they had been
made bv shirt influence out Of the air of the
room and had accidentally fallen IN her lap. or
whether they had dropped there directly from
She did not like to think they had been pro
cured by Mr.. Foster; one appeared TO suspect
him in the least. and he, after That hrst glance.
looked so mpresSiVcly innocent That KOWeha CAV
up all thought, save that of simple gratitude Iof
the blooms themselves.
Then there was the collation. which was brought
round on plates by Mrs. Jarvis and one Of her
friends There was cake, and bread. ana cou
| ham: but there were no charlottee. Mr.
Thompson spoke somewhat icehnGN oi inc az
scnce of this dclcacy. and Madame van Zen
thuysen said that she always conscious oil Il
great sense Of sinking after beng under influence
and clarlottes removed this sinking more rapidly
than anything she had ever tried. Rowena judged
from appearances that perhaps ham might IN time
have an effect on that sensation III Madame III
ternal organization.
Mrs Jarvis seemed very much worried: she cN-
planned that al the last moment hcr bakeF nad
disappointed her. and she had always found
charlOttcs from every other BAKER 10 De Tahcid.
This was sweeping libel on other bakers, Dut tnc
company seemed 10 accept II and tired 10 mae
their disappointment. The little woman sad EN-,
phatically that nothing in this world took hurt
so quickly as charlottes. You might get n mess
and think they were good as they could be, and
all TO once they taken hurt. She didn't KNOW
why twas they were 50 pcrishabic
Very soon after tle collation. the company broke
up The person whom Red Jacket controlled
went away in very clum manner Perhaps he
had rcckoncd damaging Mrs. Jarvlss furniture
more seriously, and disappointed.
Madame Van Benthuysen took very affection
ate farewell Of Rowena. The great circular again
partially enwrappcd the girl lis owner whi>-
pcrcd that she was longing 10 know her better, ana
that she should call on her upon the first spare
moment that the spirits gave her. She spoke as
if the spirits worked her very hard.
At last the street door had shut on the last
woman. Mrs. Jarvis looked 50 weary as she
began to set back the chairs that Rowena stopped
Il shan't have no chance in the morning. said
Mrs. Jarvis: the rcglars begin to come 50 early.
and can't trust anybody else to take the tickets
| sh'll have to pick up and wash these dishes
before | 20 10 bed. | can't ask the servant girls
10 do it, Sometimes l thinl, it don't pay to try
TO have a good time. That old Thompson set
Rowena packed up the dishes and hurried down
into the kitchen with them. The watcrbugi
The small gasjct revealed their hurrying forms
The country girl had never seen waicr-hug
before If they had not rctrcatcd before She
could possible turn her back, she would have run
She had never any place so dcsolate a.
that kitchen 1t different from that
cosey place where one might live in thrifty COM
fort in her own home.
to the pile of dishes in the pan. Mrs. Jarvis
that She had very little to do Her thin, worn
face lighted up
II declare, you do know how TO take hold" she
AZ last the furnace was attended to and the
two women slowly mounted the dingy basement
stairs. 1t was after midnight Rowcna went
into the parOr for the bunch Of pinks She had left
there that She might work.
Mrs Jarvis paused an instant to look at them
She glanced up in the girls face but ROwcna was
bending over the blooms.
Il should think n sight Of them. if I'd had
them" remarked the elder. "'Tain't often the
conditions are all right. do almost think you'd
develop lrSt-ratc."
Rowena hurricdly said good night But before
Mrs. Jarvis could lay herself down - rest, she
must pull out the bed lounge in the back parlor
and arrange il that she might rep0Sc upon il
BY that time the arrival Of the earliest REG lars
seemed 50 near that Mrs Jarvis almost asked her
self whether not il paid 10 have sca-ants, par
/ ticularly if old Thompson coming.