The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1895-10-17

suade herself that she had been the vic
tim of an hallucination when she hap
pened to cast her eyes upon the bureau.
where she had left her jewels.
They were gone! It had truly been a
robber!
The laughing suddenly ceased, and
they looked at one another in consterna-
| tion.
| All at once another cry was heard, a
piercing shrek coming through the still
ness of the night. 1t appeared to ema-
nate from Miss Hawthorne's chamber.
There was rush for her apartment,
and the English lady was found stand
ing in the middle of the room, with
frightened eyes.
''There, therep' she cried, pointing
to the window. "a mani He escaped.
but | recognized him.
"Who was it?''
cdr. Cornabuc!'
The doctor againl This time nobody
laughed. Cornabuc was looked for
among the persons who had been at.
tracted by the excitement, but he was
not there. He was the only occupant of
the chateau who was missing.
"Come, let US go to the doctors
room," said the marquis, knitting his
brows He will doubtless solve the
mystery for u.s."
All followed Kerdall, the men half
dressed, the women in their white night
robes, all carrying candles-a weird
procession. Upon. the entrance of the
| +La
himself in the bedclothes, his wrinkled
countenance alone being visible over
the top, and this convulsed by anger in
to a comical grimace The candle light
was reflected from his bald pate, which
shone like old ivory.
SIS this some i'll timed joker" he
stormed. ''What is going on? Is the
chateau on fire? / heard terrible out
cry and was about to inquire into it. "
| "You must come and join us, doc
tor" said Kerdall.
"And how shall l do it?" cried the
doctor furiously. "Some rascal has run
off with my clothing, and in exchange
has left me this, and he savagely hurl-
ed white object into the middle of the
room.
my corsetsl'' murmured Miss Haw-
thorne, modestly lowering her eyes.
"Antl thisr' continued the doctor;
wildly brandishing another article.
my hat!' cried Nine. de Lartigues
''This railery passes all bounds, F."
howled the doctor, whose shining head,
with one final grimace, ducked beneath
the bedclothing. like the clown going
through a trapdoor in the marionette
theater.
They knew not what to think. The
mystery was growing more complicated.
1t certainly looked as though a robber
had entered the chateau perhaps a
whole band of burglars and assassins.
Mime. de Lartigues imagined troop OF
brigands armed to the teeth.
LET us hope they have no guns, -
said the marquis, to raise the hopes OF
his guests.
There was no echo to the pleasantly.
Suddenly a strange sound was heard
coming from the ground floor. It was
certainly the piano in the reception
salon, but it was surely being played by
i goblin fingers, and SO furiously that il
seemed as though the keys must be bro
ken.
''This is too muchi" cried the mar.
quis, rushing toward the staircase, with
all the crowd except DR.. Cornabuc,
close behind him.
They hastily penetrated the salon. II
was empty. The mysterious visitor was
gone, but he could not be far away. The
crash of china and glass announced his
presence in the dining room. Every body
rushed thither,s and the marquis, who
was in the lead, dimly saw form es.
Gaping through the window into the
garden.
'"This time we've got himr' he cried
The men seized guns and knives from
hunting rack in the vestibule and start
ed across the garden and park in pur.
suit of the fugitive, while the women
barricaded themselves in the salon and
anxiously awaited the result of the
chase. 1t was about an hour later, in
the uncertain light which precedes the
rising of the sun, that a servant discov.
cred the mysterious stranger ensconced
among the branches of large oak. Al
his call the marquis and his guests has.
tened to the spot.
Kerdall, but the bandit only settled
himself deeper among the foliage and
made no response.
"Come down, or will shootl''
And, as there was still no reply. he
lifted his gun and already had his fin.
ger upon the trigger when the domestic
huriedly pulled his arm and said:
"Do not fire, monsieur. 1t is DR.. Cor
nabucP'
And, sure enough, the blond wig and
long redingote could now be seen among
the leaves. But at this moment the first
ray of sunlight cleaned in from the
east, and the oak was illuminated. The
marquis suddenly broke into fit of ex
plosive laughter and, as his guests gazed
up into the tree they could not keeI
from following his example.
''The apep'
4, Everything was explained. The ami
NAL had escaped from his cage the pre-