San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1895-11-03
CHAPTER Xxx

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prise was past. my own sweet Mol
come hither TO warm her old father
hearth"
"And my own," says she tenderly
(which fear hath grown little want
ing in love for ye since l have beer
mated But, though my dear Dick draws
so deeply from my well of affection
there is still somewhere down here
(clapping her hand upon her hearty, ga
source that first sprang for you and car
never dry"
faye, and tits a proof" says he,
"your coming here where we may speak
and act without restraint, though it be
but for five minutes. 4"
Give minutes" cries she, springinf
up with her natural vivacity. "Why
I'll not leave you before the morning,
unless you weary of me" And then,
with infinite relish and sly humOr, she
told of her device for leaving the court
without suspicion.
do confess I was at first greatly
alarmed for the safe issue Of this esca-
pade, but she assuring me twas q dirty
night, and she had passed no one ON the
road, felt a little treasured. To be
sure, thinks /, Mr.. Goodwin, by some ac-
cident, may return, but finding her gone
and hearing Captain Evans keeps me to
my house he must conclude she has come
hither and think no harm of her for that
neither, seeing we are old friends and
sobered with years, for tits the most
natural thing in the world that, feeling
lonely and detected for the loss of her
husband, she should seek such harmless
diversion as may be had in our society
However, for the sake of appearances,
l thought it would be wise to get this
provision of ham and birds out, for fear
of misadventure, and also l took instant
precaution to turn the key in my street
door. Being but two men, and neither
of us overnice in the formalities, had
set a cheese, loaf and bottle betwixt
us on the bare table of my office room,
for each to serve himself as he would,
but l now proposed that, having lady
in our company, we should pay more re-
gard to the decencies by going up stairs
to my parlor, and there laying q table
cloth and napkins for our repast.
"Aye, certainly p cries Moll, who had
grown mighty fastidious in these par
ticulars since she had been mistress of
Hurst Court. ''This dirty table would
spoil the best appetite in the world"
So carried fagot and some apple
logs up stairs and soon had brave fire
leaping up the chimney, by which time
Mon and her father, with abundant
mirth, had set forth our victuals on
clean white cloth, and to each of us
clean plate, knife and fork, most proper.
Then, all things being to our hand, we
sat down and made a most hearty meal
of Mrs. Butterby's good cheer, and all
three OF us as merry as grigs, with not
a shadow of misgiving.
There had seemed something piteous
to me in that appeal of Moll's that she
might be herself for this night, and in
deed L marveled now how she could have
so trained her natural disposition to an
artificial manner and could no longer
wonder at the look of fatigue and wea-
riness in her face on her return from
London.
For the old reckless, careless, dare
devil spirit was still alive in her, as /
could plainly see now that she aban-
doned herself entirely to the free sway
of impulse. The old twinkle of mirth
and mischief was in her eyes, she was
no longer fine lady, but merry vaga-
bond again, and when she laughed twas
with her hands clasping her sides, her
head thrown back and all her white
teeth cleaning in the light.
"Now," says l, when at length our
meal was finished, Il will clear the ia
BILE -
Hoop" cries she, catching up the
corners of the tablecloth and flinging
them over the fragments. " IT'S done.
Let us draw round the fire and tell old
tales. Here's pipe, dear dad. love
the smell of tobacco, and you, to me,
edo fetch me pipllin that 1 may brew
a good drink to keep our tongues 60
ing"
About the time this drink was brew
ed Simon, leading Mr.. Goodwin by cir
cuitous way, came through the garden
to the back of the house, where was a
door, which had never opened for lack
of a key to fit the lock. This key was
now in Simon's hand, and putting it
with infinite care into the hole he softly
turned the wards. Then, with the like
precaution, he lifts the latch and gently
thrusts the door open, listening at every
inch to catch the sounds within. At
length tits opened wide. Then, turn
ing his face to Mr.. Goodwin, who waits
behind, sick with mingled shame and
creeping dread, he beckons him to fol-
low.
Above Dawson was singing at the top
of his voice a sea song he had learned
of mariner at the inn he frequented at
Greenwich, with a troll at the end, tax
en- up by Moll and me, and to hear his
wife's voice bearing part in this rude
song made Mr.. Godwin's heart to sink