The Dickinson press., 1894-09-29
CHAPTER VIII.
Ont of the Deems.

once, she said-all except Mr.. Stein
hardt. He had come home late and
told them they must pack that night.
to be ready to set off in the morning
to the seaside somewhere-where she
did not know yet, but she would write
to me as soon as she had an address to
give, SO that l might send her any
news. How I treasured that little
note! It was the first bit Of writing I
had had from her, and I read 1t again
and again that day, and for many
days. and tried to c~onjure a hidden
meaning, q lurking touch Of tender
ness or concern out Of its ordinary
words. A strange feeling Of being alone
and forsaken seized me-a foolish feel
ing, which I could not shake of for
some days.
1 looked in upon old jacques. as U.s.
ual. He had been recovering himself
since I had seen him first; Mt least, re-
gaining a consciousness of his own ex-
istence and of the existence Of things
about him. I thought that day 1 could
see a something in his eyes, and
in the twitching Of his mouth, which
told that he missed the presence Of
his niece. He gazed at me long
and keenly, till l felt rather d~isconcere-
ed, looked down at the hands (the fin
gers of the right hand trembled a little,)
and uttered some cultural sounds,
as IL In an effort to %articulate. talked
to him a little. though l was not sure
he could hear me; or, hearing, could
understand; I told him his niece had
gone away to the seaside; I hoped it
would do her good, for she had been in
n rnvv, o~vlo,,o ct0fo If mind Sfncn hArs
fathers loss. 1t gave myself some re-
lief to speak of these things. When I
rose to go away he looked me shrewdly
up and down and watched me to the
door. A week or two passed before
I saw him again.
Ny time was taken up with attempts
to provide Il post for myself against
the day when l should leave that Mt
Timperlcy. Under ordinary ctrcum-
stances l would have taken the oppor-
tunity of the season of the year, and
such a juncture in my affairs, to spend
a holiday among my friends, but l was
now convinced the mystery 1 was
pledged to clear up was in Tfmperley,
and I was resolved to sit down and be-
siege it tllcrc-thc more ~obstinately re-
solved since I knew Stcinllardt so
heartily wished me away.
I wrote letters; [ made journeys to
this vicar and that rector III the neigh
borhood, who then needed, or soon
would need, a curate, with the same re-
suit in all cases. l would not do; l
was not just the kind Of Il man they
wanted; they were not sure that my
opinions were quite as they would wish
the opinions Of their curate to be. 1t
became plain to me that I was to be
~"boycotted;;" the word had been passed
round, apparently, and by whom II
not by Steinhardt?
The situation was, indeed, becoming
like a duel between %Steinhardt and me,
in which, for the time, he certainly had
the best Of it. I rambled all about the
valley, prying even into the confines of
Timperley hall; I talked with the vii
layers! I even risked my reputation
by sitting for an hour in a tap-room,
listening to the dull, berry talk of its
frequenters; 1 sat in my solitary sitting
room, and I smoked and racked my
brain; 1 Travelled into the town to its
free library. and read for hours till
my head ached, and I seemed entirely
bereft of ideas Of my own books which
were not written by %theologians or
divines, and which the attendants
seemed surprlsed l snollu c0nunualy
ask for. All these things I did, SO
that by any means 1 might discover to-
ken or hint to guide me on my way to-
ward the solution of the Lacroix mys.
terry. But I found none, and I could
thing Of none, and I was discouraged.
I became sometimes SO bewildered
VIII suesses sna. ! leu " not ~ sn.s .aa'
hao 70 resta'T tns. case ~ nayse.1
Inc neAt tninE ! Must nave was con
cluslve pro0a tnat MI EasrolA nau le.
tuineu 10 illnpei!ey. .aat
1ouho, was ne; OF was ne not, sunoeas'
eu las l haG aLlnost Deen III seat1eu
y ne mac 1allen mo q not Iqulo! wa
nis ueaen OWING 10 aesaue1t oE ues.sn
ls,n &c NY vWn at ~ n4s ! a,1 "a ~ a .ssatl.
su ny uoup.s llat, antel AL ~ niisn'
nave peen however
nis oeatl nau Deen Drougns MDout
Wnsre hau S.eil.,al lu y" tue Re
nlalns ahu II ,nese snoulu pe AouIu
woula !ney pe reSosnizaole as tnose
~ WI. AactolA: a.. tnese Poluts mus,
oe clearea tuMu ! snuuasreo assln une
agaln as l trleu u tnlnk tnelh owe
calMiyl Deiore tue mystery couiu OF
uec!areu solveu,DsIore = coulu venturt
10 turn llouises thousnts away IRON
ner 1atner 10 myself.
Ihus 1ully three weeks passed, bur
denlng me with the aodltlonal ana ever
increasing anxiety OF Louise's silence
l had NOT received q hhe SINCE I'M
DAY b a gone away. l oid no
know Where n nad gone, n 1 coult
only guess what designs wa