The Somerset reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1868-1909, 1897-04-22
WARNED II VAIN.

toy.
Laws Mercy sakesl Waal never
in all my life! If that don't beat the
Dutch!'
Aunt Je1usha's vis-a-vis at the table
near the window she had so unceremo-
niously flung upwas handsome young
man-an artist, in fact-who had come
to Soedville To sketch. lie took 10 trou-
bic to explain himself to its villagers.
but dropped as simply as possible into
the simplicity of its life
Mrs. Spearmint, he said mildly.
"if you will close that window my
buckwheats and sausage will be much
warmer.
ooh, but sakes aliyem she responded
do look quick and never mind your
buckwheats. Amt that the curioustest
thing yen yer did see in all your born
days-and there ain t the shadder of Il
horse to it. -
Villas Stansfield grew interested He
tore himself from his buckwheats and
projected his head from the window.
staring down the narrow by street on
which Aunt Jerusha lived with the
true SeedyiIle stare.
Caesars ghostl"
"What BE it ghost?' asked Aunt
Jerusha, yanking i'll her head and look.
ing keenly at him, as if one or the 9th.
er Of them might be growing crazy.
81 might havc known that no one but
Miss Waterloo would have veutured III
to this region with an automobile til
bury. That bridge will never hold her y
And seizing his hat, he rushed out oil
the house and down the narrow elm
shaded street after the horseiess carriage
Whatever has struck that MANI"
cried Aunt .Ierusha, bringing down the
window with bang, now that the show
was out of sight. what did he call It'll
Waterloo was it? Wait till go tell Su-
san Sparrerhawk I've seen "A waterloo, "
and she hurried next door with this
Wellingtonian or NapoIeonic piece OF
news.
The news affected the Sparrerhawks
as it had Aunt Jerusha. They threw NJ
the window and elected their heads,
but with 10 satisfactory result Sam
caught up his hat and rushed down the
street after Mr.. Villas Staniield, who
sprang along in the wake of the auto
mobile tilbury at a college acquired gait.
1t was very choice vehicle, enamel.
ed i'll dark green and upholstered III
russet leather. In the middle of the
sea-, dressed in dark green and russell,
to match the tilbury, was a very young
woman maueuvcring the motor as il
her only desire was to keep her turnout
at the top of its speed.
Villas Stanticld could not overtake it
He called He flung pebbles at it. He
whistled 1t splashed through the pud-
dies and bumped over the inequalities
of the village byroad as if nothing
would be allowed to stop it, In a mo.
ment 1t would be upon bridge, a
crumbling bit of antique architecture
that Seedyille had clung To as foot.
way long after they knew it was unable
to hold even the doctol CLaiso Re.
cent heavy rams had nov all hut wash
ed away its supports. Tie automobile
tilbury was as surely headed for an &c.
cident as any Whirring eNmcss with a
bOwlder on the tracks IL turned white
and whistlod again, this tmc tic tune
he and she bad sung iii duet, us with
this same hursclC-s tilbury they Lad
rolled along the hard, broad roads III
southwest England
She still Whirled on.
He put his fingers to his lips and in.
creased the strength Of the whistle
She stopped, the wheels of her Ger.
riage on the very edge Of the dccrepit
bridge-turning white, too, but not be.
cause of the danger
Mr.. Stanficld, she said severely as
he came up, may ask what this
means?"
Certainly" he said, touching his
hat You can't cross that bridge. It's
not safe even for foot passengers. | saw
you from my boarding house window,
and came to tell you. =
Very kind, I'm sure" she said,
with little toss of her russell feathers,
"but I've no wish to have you save my
life second time. We had enough OF
that melodrama at Dude, " and she put
her hands on the motor handles again
I'm in earnest, Miss Waterloo YoI
must not cross that bridge unless you
want to be drowned.
Pm in earnest too. ! shall cross
that bridge, and | wont have you save
my life. The obligations of having you
save me at Budc is enough. -
Very well, he replied in hard
crisp tone. II won't save it, then. But
here comes a man whom | know Sam .
he called, show this lady how to get
across by the other bridge, and, resum-
ing his hat he walked rapidly back to
the village
Its nonsense, cried Miss Waterloo
as soon AZ Villas Stanfield was out Of
sight "Of course | can go over this
bridge. ] hayc crossed two this morning
that were qulte as bad. -
ITO tell the truth, now,' said Sam
slowly hos about right l wouldn I
drive our cCy over the bridge since the
rain WY, it rte the mortar right out
tween the stones Ill show you the
way round y the other one.
Il haven time, She said glancing at
the tiny elalclaiuc watch at her jacket
lapel. I've lost over five minutes now,
and I'm racing and must get back to
Steepleton 8~ fast as | can. And once
more taking me motor she shot across
the hrr2e Almost to the other side,