The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1893-07-13

| idQ DCCU OHCilS0 ehCA a L'
there, all subsequent trouble in regar'
to it would have been avoided; but Mr.
Rapelye allowed himself to be infiu
enced by Caroline's fears, and, indeed
the box itself and the circumstances o
its appearance We're, to say the least
peculiar. However, he positively re
fused to throw it into the street, or t.
call in the police, or to send for the fir
company or the family physician o,
which Caroline implored him to appeal
What he did was to carry the thint
very gingerly down the cellar stairs ans
to a far-ba ck Enclosure which formed
the foundation of large chimney. Blu
he really was more afraid that reporter:
would get hold Of the story and proceed
to interview him, than he was that any
| harm she aid come TO them from The
I; mysteriou box.
! Now, Carrie" he observed, 81 think
it is safe for the present If it chance
to be a gift, 1 shall doubtless hear
from the donor before very long"
''But promise me- cried his wife
| now certain that the package could
contain nothing but dynamite,
promise me that you will never touch
it again without my permission"
| To assuage her terror he readily
! promised. thinking that the mystery
would of course be solved in a few
days. But the days slipped into weeks
until two months had gone by, and
still the box, undisturbed, occupied the
inclosure The children had been sol
emily warned to keep away from that
end of the cellar, and the housemaids
were forbidden to touch the inclosure
with broom or buster; and SO it came
to pass that the place was feared and
avoided by the whole family. Mr..
Rapelye fretted under this condition of
affairs, but his promise to his wife pre-
vented him from taking any steps to
improve matters; and whenever he
preached the subject to her she turned
pale and trcmbled SO that he was COM
peeled to repeat his promise and let tho
matter rest.
But one day. without Mrs. Rapleye's
knowledge, Michael, the stableman,
was sent to clean the ashes from the
furnace Now Michael was an indi-
vidual with a great fondness for d
broom; and looking about the cellar he
decided that it required sweeping.
THAT DIRTY little hole amt seen a
broom in six months" he soliloquized.
rs he approached the forbidden ground;
land Mike O'COnnor is the man to clane
1t out What's the box, | wonder?" he
went on, for in the semi-darkness he
had hit his foot against it. Sure the
masters been gittin' in some foine new
wine; I'll take g LUX ut it,
Near by lay small Ratchet. Michael
cut the cords of the box with his
knife. and then began to use the hatch
ct to pry up the cover. He worked care
fully, at first; but growing holder as he
proceeded, he gave the side smart
rap A moment later Mrs Rapelye was
startled by having Michael dash into
the sitting-room, with cobwebs in his
hair, dust On his trousers, and unmis-
taxable fear on his expressive coun-
tenance.
''Ma'am," he gasped, 81 do be clanin'
the suller and there do be box all tied
oop, and gev him touch, and d nize
loikc gun whit arf foor tonnes, and,
savin' your presence, there KEN q most
awful shmell!''
''Michaelr' screamed Mrs. Rapelye,
what have you done?" There had
flashed through her mind at that mo-
ment portion of Mr.. Stevenson's story
of THE Dynamiters, and she recalled
the fact that in the machines they made
explosions were always followed by
bad odors.
Almost beside herself with terror, she
remanded Michael to the stable and
sent servant for a carpenter. Then
she stood by the latter while he fitted
and hung a door to the Enclosure. Put
On good. strong lock-" she directed,
"for shall put preserves in there"
YOU'D better get the dead rats out
first, ma'am," he remarked, senten-
tiously.
The place having thus been made Sc
cure from meddlers, some time elapsed
before there were any new develop
mcnts. 1t was never spoken of by Mr..
or Mrs. Rape1ye, but ere long it began
to speak for itself-and in way not
anticipated.
II am afraid, my DEAR" said Mr..
Rapefye one evening, that our drain
age is defective. There is a most disa-
greeeble odor in the hall, especially
when one comes in from the
fresh air. Have you detected it?'
His wife had detected it; moreover,
she Knew that the drainage had moth
ing to do with the smell; but she did
not communicate this latter fact to her
husband. He noticed, though, that the
odor increased day by day, until to his
sensitive olfactories it became a posi-
tive torture.
81 must attend to this myself he at
last declared. II shall go over the
house and make complete examina-
ton
He chose to begin at the cellar, and
Mrs. Rapelye tremblingly followed
him down the stairway.
"By Jove!'' he exclaimed. "there must
be something dead down here. Those
are not half particular
enough" Then he proceeded literally
to follow his nose. and that unerring |
guide brought him straight to the door
Of the Enclosure.
What have you here, all shut up
like this?" he cried.
The box" she said IN low whisper;
don't you remember, George, the box |
Of dynamite?'
Bother take the box, Omen that |
door right away and let US have done |
with this business"
He might have used stronger Ian