The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1891-04-06

uuor ne must nave dropped them. what
on earth was to be done now? he asked
himself in sickening dismay. Sbould he
hasten back and make desperate effort
to recover them? Mol His courage
failed him at the thought. He should
probably run into his aunt while doing
SO, and that would put the finishing
stroke to everything. There was moth
ing for 1t but to let matters take their
course. And wherever the trousers were
picked up, whether behind the door or
IN the passage outside, there was, thank
heaven! no evidence to connect their
presence there with himself.
But IN his existing uneasy and forebod-
ing frame ofmind he felt it would bequite
impossible for him to face the company
again that night without exciting sus-
plcaen by his demeanor. So he locked
himself into his room and retired straight
to bed, though not to sleep, for he lay
awake most of the night brooding mis-
erably over this unhappy affair. Even
the brief spells of slumber he enjoyed
were disturbed by awful Nightmares, in
which pair of black trousers, with a
huge rent in them, were always the
prominent feature.
Next morning it was with the great
est difficulty that he could force himself
to go down to breakfast For if the
discovery of those wretched trousers, in
their torn condition, was mentioned-as
it was, of course, certain to be-he knew
he should betray himself to the others
by his guilty bushes. He therefore ex-
perienced the most relieved surprise
when the meal passed without any allu-
sion being made to them. No one even
appeared to notice that his face looked
pale and haggard, except, perhaps, Lily,
whose eyes he several times met fixed
upon himself, with certain anxious in
terest expressed in them.
The day dragged on with leaden
wings, and at every minute, in his I'M
easy outlines of conscience, Jack ex-
pected to be summoned by his Uncle
Tester and ordered to explain his scan
dalous and deceitful conduct, but no
such summons came, and at last dinner
time was reached. That, of course, was
certain to bring the subject of the dress
trousers upon the taps, and it was with
heavy, miserable heart that Jack en-
tered the drawing room at the sounding
of the gong.
What, then, was his surprise to see his
uncle standing on the hearthrug, in
cased as to his neither limbs in evening
inexpressibles, and to hear him say to a
guest, who had made a jocular inquiry
on the subject: eyes, a most extraor-
binary thing. They had somehow got
folded away by mistake inside Lily's
riding habit, and sent up to her room.
She found them there this morning.
y
After dinner, in the drawing room,
while Jack was sitting by himself apart
from the others, pretending to read, but
really specializing on the extraordinary
and inexplicable result of the trousers
episode, Lily strolled across to him, and
said in low voice, with an amused
twinkle in her soft, bright eyes:
tJack, it was an awfully bold stroke
of yours to leave those-those-wel
suppose there is no harm in the word
those trousers in my bedroom last night.
ooh, say, it was an accident really"
grasped Jack, seeing that the girl had
somehow mastered his secret, and that
denial would be useless. "But was it
your room where left them? And how
did you find out it was me?'
''By guess work." she replied, laugh
ing. 81 am rather sharp in putting two
and two together. Why and
how you managed to split the articles I
failed to conjecture; but that you were
the culprit your demeanor last night
and today has sufficiently shown me.
When found them last night on the
floor behind the door of my bedroom I
did not quite know what to do. But
having slept upon the matter and con-
firmed my over night suspicious of
you by observation at breakfast this
morning determined with an arch
look) to take the hint given me d
In so pronounced a manner. 1 thre-
fore stitched up the split seam and
took the garments to fathers room, tell
ing him that harmless little fb which
you have heard him unsuspiciously re-
peat tonight. Now, Jack, don't you
think have repaid you for your kind
ness in fetching me that novel yester-
dayf"
ga hundred times over!" exclaimed
Jack, his face beaming with gratitude
and relief. Upon my word, you're a
real brick, Lilyr'
We may add that this episode of the
inexpressibles, which had come so near
doing for Jack with his uncle, really be-
came the making Of him, for it origi-
mated the good understanding which sub
sequently sprang up between the lad
and his cousin, and in after years, when
he had married Lily and succeeded to
the bulk of the old mans fortune, he
was always telling his friends the above
story and impressing on them how he
owed his prosperity entirely to "Uncle