Bennington semi-weekly banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 1894-1902, 1895-05-24

men in green baize aprons. wondered
who "he' was, and then looked up and
saw him. He certainly had anything but
a prepossessing face. 1 think the peculiar
offense was in the irregular teeth the
dropping, everted neither lip and the pink
eyes, but, I must confess, cannot describe
his visage in detail. He was watching our
move in with grin upon his face slob-
bering leer that was certainly not engag-
ing.
will adDii 1 felt what our little serv-
ant would dou 5tless call q turn" Posi-
bly,, too, had a flash of irritation ar our
affairs being spied upon. Then was
ashamed of myself for grudging the poor
.demented outcast creature the petty salts
faction he had in our arrival. By way Of
PREPARATION for my first sensations, turned
toward him and waved my hat, as one
might do to a child.
He grinned, anything but prettily, and
waved his arms in reply. They were very
long arms-at least, in proportion to his
little body. And he began a brutal traves-
ty of speech by way of greeting.
When l heard his inarticulate mouth
ings, turned and followed the sideboard
into the house.
When came out again, looked at him
out of the corner of my eye, and he was
still gesticulating. 1t occurred to mo that
it was rather foolish to encourage him
overmuch, and l affected to be unaware of
his presence.
Yet all day the thought was in my mind
of the poor darkened, inarticulate creature
hanging over the fence along the top of the
wall and trying to express his dim thoughts
to me, trying to signal something-heayen
knows what-and l felt little sorry for
having turned my back on him. To tell
the truth, his grotesque appearance and
the conditions under which he was living
had laid hold of my Imagination. l
thought of him wandering about the mar
row garden between the spiked palings
which constituted his world, and, reading
my own feelings into him, imagined the
horrible monotony of his existence. That
evening he was gone to Mariana's great
relief, but the next morning he was back
at his post, and in the excess of my philan-
tropy 1 waved my hand to him.
/ made the acquaintance of Morton, the
village doctor, that day.
you'll be having that Hanotaux boyle
for neighbour, said he. "Have you seen
. a
ing over the wall at you, man."
He always spoke Of our little neighbor MS
it. $50 far rs can ascertain" said he,
the thing is 80 or "a years old, but it
looked precisely the same five or six years
ago. I've attended it twice for fits. Hano.
taux cannot be just right, or he would not
have the thing about him. II" would send
it to an asylum. Something wrong up
above is congenital with both of them, I'm
thinking. It's got nasty temper too, for
once it bit my finger Bit its medical 1t
tendant, mani"
"Hanotaux, " continued the doctor, after
pause, "has given it n room opening ont
upon the garden, and the whole of the Ea"
den, except a part behind the kitchen he
has fenced off, for it to disport itself in. !
demonstrated with him about it once and
says he, He's good Hanotaux blood any.
how, and I'm not going to have him i'm
prisOned in an asylum to be tyranni2cd
over by doctors and attendants, and to be
experimental upon for Che good of sci
ence.' And he began to provoke me tC
argue about the medical profession and
hospitals and vivisection, and so got away
from the boyle"
81 suppose" said I, catching his mode
of expression, "the things as happy where
1t is as it could be anywhere. "
"That's not it," said Morton. cts my
belief the things dangerous.
"Nonsense" said l, though his tone OF
conviction made me uncomfortable. "It's
never done anything-in that way, has it?"
"No," said Morton. cts pure suppose
ton on my part. But, you see-well, it
To in ha vii 7
it was younger, and the boys leased it, and
it used to get into curious passions and so
came by its first fit. And after it was Sc
cluded in the house it made dead set at
one Of the servants, and she had to leave.
It's queer brute, and there's no counting
on it. Partly it's as it is because it's
albino, but chiefly it's ativism.
It's one Of those cases where nature tries
back and fetches up the ancestral savage
out of the past to trouble us. People think |
q creature like that just goes about glib
boring; but, depend upon it, that boyle |
has mind of its own that works-in its |
as much as ours do. 1t has-it |
must have-hopes and desires of its own,
though they are as crippled and repulsive |
rs it's body. They won't all be satisfied, |
I'm thinking, by high fence with spikes
and garden"
"No," said I, missing his drift IT dare
say the thing-the poor little wretch lis |
dismal enough"
l saw the unhappy subject of our con-
on my return at his post of OBJ
'ervation. 1 waved my hat at him, but |
he made no response. He had his head |
,raned out, as if he was trying to see into
our drawing room.
I found Mariana in the hall. "How do
jhe pictures look?" said l.
She looked quite worried. "Do get him
20 go away" she said. HE has been up
here all the morning."
"He means no HARM" said I. You're
"I'm not, George. Really can't bear
him. He has been hopping and moving
Up there
1 saw the tears standing in her eyes, At
hat 1 turned and opened the front door,
With the idea of shaking my fist at him.
But our little neighbor had gone.
So much happened in the first two days
# our tenancy. thought that we should
ret used to him, and That he would tire of
us. l thought, too, that Mariana
would find that he meant no harm, and
or my own part maintained friendly re-
alton by means of waved hat and hand.
But things became worse in the course Of
fortnight rather than better, and at last
began to think that the annoyance she
cit was affecting her nerves. She kept