The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1896-02-26

the empty fireplace. In another mo
ment | was scrambling up the sooty
chimney after the manner of a finished
chimney sweep.
What went on down below l did
not know. In the cessation Of the
rain [ could hear the heavy tread
passing to and fro, I knew, on a dead
hunt for that money. But I from my
lofty vantage ground could only thank
Heaven over and over again for my
blessed deliveraDce. l was so be-
numbed with cold and fright I think
I lost consciousness, and would have
probably come tumbling down the
chimney except that / was so rigid and
walled in I could not.
The next thing l remember was
opening my eyes and seeing the square
Of dim light above me. Then %realiz-
ing all, my strength or something gave
way and I fell heavily, striking my
head against something which left me
senseless for hours.
When | came to myself l was in the
arms Of half-clothed young man that
I had never seer before. He sat upon
the floor and held my head across his
knees while he wiped the blood from
my cut forehead with his pocket hand.
kerchief, which every now and then
he squeezed out in a basin of water at
his elbow. 1 don't suppose there was
ever a more terrified young man upon
this earth Of ours. Imagine an inof-
f%ensive young man turning up in a
town where an intimate friend lives.
| Coming in on the very train that takes
the intimate friend out. Imagine the
intimate friend cordially inviting the
new conner to his house, telling him
that there was nobody at home, but
that he could turn in there, make
himself at home, find plenty to eat by
~foraging around, and get a good bed
fer the night; then, to make the thing
complete, give him the wrong keys by
| which to let himself in.
Imagine this new IN loa6ng
about town till bedtime, then setting
out for hisfriend' quarters. overtaken
in the rain, at last to arrive at his
intended abiding place to discover
that he has brought off the wrong
keys, thus being compelled to let him
aelf into the house like a burglar.
Imagine him piling into the first bed
he came to, dropping into the untrou-
bled sleep of the guileless to be awak-
ened at the peep of day by q something
down his chimney. Not a hob-goblin
| either-that were better-but q young
woman, bespattered and grimy and
bloody, but a young woman for all
that, and one probably more dead than
alive. Imagine it all if you can, for
this is what happened to the misguided
young man that held me across his lap
and wiped my broken head on that
memorable St. Valentines morning.
Imagine it all, and tell me if men,
through stupidity, don't cause half Of
all the trouble in the world. I e1-
planned it to him as I could, for [ was
really i'll !; and when the servant girl
came he went off for the doctor while
Mary helped me to bed.
Dick came ct noon, and was horri.
fed at what happened. But the doc
tor had pronounced me more brighten
ed than hurt, and really but for the
! dreadful cold I caught and the cut
on my forehead it did not amount to
ANYTHING. and soon became q tremend-
GUS joke.
And it turned out that this friend
of Dicks, whose acquaintance l made
in such very unconventional fashion,
was the very client whose money
had defended. And it also came about
that-that he-that THAT we have
grown to love each other and Dick
| Dick is to look out for another CO.
operator before next fall, because.
| we'll for reasons best known to myself.
REssIE MAY TOBIN-MONTAGUE.