The Bottineau pioneer. (Bottineau, N.D.) 1885-1895, 1894-03-17
2. 5uSba2d'S
~CriMQ.
BY WARDEN.

SE "AhDE
time forgotten Cicely, when the sount
Of a door being softly opened and shu1
attracted her attention. Cicely wa
starting on another mysterious noctur
nal expeditions; and her sister-in-laW
with very little hesitation, resolved tt
follow her.
After waiting until she judged tha1
Cicely would have reached the hall
Minna opened her own door Wlthou'
noise, and dimly seeing a figure moving
below, carrying a small shaded nlSht'
lamp, she cautiously followed. Cicely
went straight down the stone staircase
to the cellar; and Minna, not without a
few tremors and nervous glances tc
right and left in the darkness, went
too. Where could Cicely be going:
The young girl stopped short in fright
as the clank of the big cellar key in Its
lock suddenly startled her. She uttered
a hOarse cry-nOt so loud as to make
the other woman aware that she was
being followed, yet loud enough to
make her pause, listening, before she
| shut herself in the cellar and turned
the key.
Minna heard this last SCUM Il, and
| grow ulSC lIOC luSl Nv SoASA VAN W.
ror then she descended the rest Of the
| stone steps, fumbled in the darkness
until she found the cellar door, assured
herself that it was really locked, and
listened outside.
At first she heard nothing; but after
a time, she heard strange noises; NUT
| fed by distance, of heavy weights be-
ing dragged about, and stealthy knock
irg, came to her ear. Full of underlined
| ~terrors, Minna shook the cellar door
and knocked at it, calling to Cicely.
But there was no answer II the
| noises still went on. So Minna desisted
from her own vain attempts to be
heard, and her mind being full of fears,
none the less ugly for being vague, she
crept up into the hall and chung in a
limp and helpless fashion to the bot
tom banister, frightened to death"
as she would have expressed it, yet de-
termined to wait until Ciecly came up
again. She wrapped the folds Of her
dressing gown tightly around her-for
it was cold down there at l o'clock in
the morning, and sat on the bottom
stair, so that nobody should pass with
out her knowledge. Nobody, for to add
to her terror there was the possibility
SllCc Suo lldSl AOC plOpSl1J oCSA IN AS
ure she followed, that it might not be
Cicely at all.
Minna sat waiting so long that at last
she dozed off to sleep.
She woke as somebody tried to pass
her. Starting up, only h~alf-conscious,
in her droWsy state, Of what she was
doing. the girl threw up her arms to
stop her disturber. 1t was Cicely.
A bright stream of summer morning
sunlight was flooding the hall with light
and Minna, now wide awake. was able
to take in every detail of the appear
ance of the Oma she was embracing.
Cicely was as pale as the dead, her
hands and her dress were covered with
dirt and dust: even her brown hair was
disordered and begrimed with cobwebs.
But the circumstance which most of
all attracted Minna's attention was
that Cicely's eyes were shut.
Minna watched her. trembling. Was
she really asleep? she wondered, keep
ing her eyes fixed On Cicely's tottering
figure as the latter assembled the stairs
and shut herself into her bedroom.
Next morning Minna, who, to tell
the truth. was too much alarmed by
what she had seen to be quite candid.
affected to laugh at her sister-in-law,
telling her she had taken to sleep-walk-
ing.
Yes" went on Minna, laughing, you
gave me a nice fright, 1 can tell you!
1 heard a noise down stairs, went
down, got frightened, and fell asleep
in the hall, and you woke me as you
tried to walk past me in your sleep.
I wonder what you had been doing?'
II wonder!!" echoed Cicely, who look
ed indeed very white. but with a pallor
which Minna thought was rather the
result of terror than of establishment.
Don't tell anybody that I walk in
my Sleep" Cicely said ~nervously as
they rose from their chairs. Il should
be SO laughed at, you know. I shall
be all right when Duke ONE home,
and they tell me they hope to be able
to let him be moved in ten days or a
fortnight, if all goes on WELL"
Minna had heard all this the day
before, but she assented without COM
ment, and the two ladies went their
separate ways, each under some re-
straint. In the afternoon Cicely drove
off alone to the hospital. and Nina,
whom the mystery she felt but did lot
understand was working up into a high
ly nervous state, was left to her own
reflections.
The young girl felt intensely relieved
when the front door bell rang. Any
visitor, no matter how much of a bore
he or she might be considered at anoth-
err time. would be welcome to break
the painful monotony of the thoughts
which oppressed her. 1t was with an
exclamation of surprise, not mingled
with dismay, however. that she saw
the door open to admit her uncle, Mr..
William Bennington and Algy Hurst.
The meeting with the former proved
much less embarrassing than Minna
had expected. Mr.. Bennington seemed
relieved rather than disappointed to
hear that Cicely was out; and as Minna
was not above the meanness of fiatter-
ing him, they got on extremely well
together.
II am quite glad to have this oppor-
tunity of consulting you about Cicely,"
said the young girl with polite defer
had resolved upon the bold step of tax
ing her uncle fully into her confidence.
And forthwith she gave him a descrip-
ton of her experience of the last two
nights; her following Cicely downstairs,
the strange noises she had heard in the
cellar, and lastly her meeting with
Cicely, when the latter appeared to
be in a somnambulistic condition. She
had argued with herself rapidly before
giving this account. that it could do nc
harm, since her uncle. as a member
Of the family, would certainly be silent
concerning anything discredtable to it;
while, on the other hand, thfa proof OF
Cicely'S distress of mind would in any
case soften him toward her.
But her narration had a much strong
er effect upon him than she had expect
ed. Mr.. Bennington was shrewd enough
to couple it instantly with the fact Of