The Sunday morning news. [volume] (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1886-1891, 1891-08-16


the kitchen where the outer door stood
open, and slight movement and rus
ting of garments betrayed itself near the
table where the lamp stood.
It seemed to Ruby that her heart
stopped beating. She crept a step near
er the door, and her eyes fell on figure
with a long, white, trailing robe, big
Powered shawl thrown over its shout
ders and wreath of red artihcials on
its tangled elf locks. It was moving
about between the window and the
table with a fantastic motion, kind OF
dance step, light as feather, and close
to her heels was a great tortoise shell
cat looking up with winkless green eyes.
Ruby saw in moment it was her sister
Jane with their household pet Crumpet.
Jane had slipped out, as sometimes hap
pened in the night, and was making one
Of her characteristic prowls about the
town in the small hours, which had Civ
en- rise to more than one ghost story
among the neighbors' children.
Ruby, afraid Of startling the old man
from his placid sleep, crouched down and
watched, in the shadow of the doorway,
the crazy woman's fantastic motions as
she moved with stealthy tread about the
room. Presently she saw her draw from
under her shawl a tin box, and peer about
with cunning smile on her face to see
if she was observed. She opened the box
and took out what looked like bundle
of legal papers and turned it over in her
long, yellow, skinny fingers, while her
thin lips moved in aninward mutter, end
ing in allow laugh. Suddenly iteame over
Ruby like an electric shock what those
papers must be. and just at that moment
old Jane had gathered them up in her
hand and was holding them over the
lamp chimney. Ruby gave stihed cry
and tried to rush forward, but Jane had
heard the sound, and examining the pa
pers back in the box she sped out of the
kitchen door with the swiftness of a
swallow, the long tail of her nightgown
making white streak in the misty
dawn, and with Crumpet galloping mad
ly at her heels.
Ruby ran after her, leaving all the
doors open, as fast as her weight and
temperamental slowness would permit
shedding shawls and worsted fascinators
all the way between Hannah's house and
her own. She was sadly hampered in
the race by her clumsy worsted slippers,
but these she soon lost, and then she ran
painting in her stocking feet. She had
no feeling of the damp ground and could
but dimly make out the forms of things,
for the first pale rays of dawn had only
just turned the gibbous moon pallid over
her head. However, she was no match
for the arrowy Jane, and when she
reached the front door she found it bolt
ed and all the windows securely locked.
Jane had slipped in and out of low
pantry window, but such feats were i'm
possible to the stout Ruby. She knocked
passionately front and back. but old
Jane had gone into bed with her drag
gled shawl and crumpled artifcials, and
was chuckling to herself as she pretend
ed to be fast asleep.
Ruby had the house key in her pocket,
but Jane had pushed the bolt, and she
knew it was useless to try to coax her to
open the door until the within came for
opening. She wandered about the house
bareheaded and in her wet stockings,
half sobbing and wringing her hands at
the thought that Jane might have torn
the precious papers into fragments or
otherwise have destroyed them. The
poor woman stood there in the chill
morning air utterly desperate and st her
wits end. But something was rubbing
up against her double gown, something
warm and comfortable, and softly pur-
ring with sympathy at her distress. She
looked down and saw that the great tor
toise she'll cat which Jane in her haste
had shut out was trying to show his af-
lection with mute caresses.
The creature arched his back and cast
his greenish yellow eyes Up at Ruby's
face with knowing glance. Then he
mewed loudly, and stepping along the
moist path with his dainty white paws,
led the way down TO the end of the old
neglected garden toward the great crook
ed sweeting apple tree that shaded a bit
of turf grown up to barberry bushes
The old tree was rugged and gnarled
and bent, with onlya thin shell Of rufous
bark remaining, yellow with hchen and
green with tree moss, but still crowned
in May with abundant blossoms. Crum-
pet, as he stepped along, kept looking
back to see if he was followed, and Ruby
plodded on after him hardly knowing
why, but feeling that nothing short of
a miracle could reveal the papers.
Near the old tree Crumpet stopped and
gazed up in her face, mewing more pite-
ously than before. The earth had been
trodden about the roots by fresh foot
steps and the dead weeds broken down,
revealing large, black cavity in the
veterans trunk close to the ground.
Ruby fell on her rheumatic knees in the
wet grass and thrust her hand into the
hole until her fingers came in contact
with q smooth, hard object. She pulled
it out, painting and dizzy from her emo
tons. It was the tin box she had seen
in James hand, and the papers were all
intact, though yellowed and rumpled and
little torn at the edges. She turned
them over as in a dream and read casually,
"Anson Fearing in account with j. Fear
ing" Yes yes! it was just as she had
thought; the mystery was cleared at last.
A little further examination Of old James
hiding place brought to light lace scarf
she had lost the year before, two table
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