The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-12-24
z Guest at Christmas
BY JOHN STRANGE WINTER.

lTS0l
any Of your relatives without an invita-
| ton; You are bound by none of the Or
binary conventionalities Of society"
| And, by JoVe!" muttered Jack Jex to
Daisy, who sat behind him, 80 the
mater'll find when she comes to tackle
Aunt Mary Anne Parker"
Aunt Mary Anne arrived at Adding
| ham the day previous to Christmas AS
1t fell out, two Of the Parker boys-Geof-
fry, from the Lodge, and Lionel, from the
Rectory-traVeled down by the same
| train. Miss Parker, who hated crowds
and could not endure being hustled or
1ncommcded In any way, had engaged q
compartment for her own use; but, with
| characteristic prudence, she consigned
her maid to q third-claSs carriage. This
carriage happened to be the one chosen
by the two boys bound for Addingham,
| and when Aunt Mary Anne, with be-
| coming dignity, descended from her re-
served compartment at her destination,
| she beheld a very fearful and trembling
4 French woman coming toward her. hang
| ing on the arm of a fine young man.
standing well over six feet in his socks.
In moment Aunt Mary Anne forgot
l
| known tongue, dema1ed the cause of
her grief The youg man took off his
/ cap: ~,
'Is this poor lady a friend of yours,
madam" he asked. I'm sorry I can't
speak anything but English and little
! bad French"
BLESS me, young gentleman, I'm an
English woman myself" burst out Aunt
Mary Anne, rather indignantly.
| f'Well I thought YOU looked English
said the lad, ingenuously. But this poor
lady is terribly out of 1t.
She's not a lady; she's my maid said
| Aunt Mary Anne then went on TO say
| few forcible words to the shuddering
| waiting woman, who replied with flashing
| eyes and gestures of .unconcealed fury.
"a harmless creature-a Corsican by
birth. She says she has been grossly in
suited, and that you are her salvation.
| What has happened7"
"Well, it was really not much. There
were some holiday-making cads in the
carriage, and when they found she.
| couldn't speak a word of English they be-
gan to pull her about bit that was all"
=. H m. And where did you come in?"
demanded Aunt Mary Anne. - -,
| The lad laughed. 'I?eOh, we'll, I just
told EN- I'd chuck 'em out of the window
If they didn't drop it; that was all.
Nothing, L assure you But you are
standing in a full draught. Can't I do
anything to assist your
Anne, holding out her hand to the lad,
81 am obliged to you, exceedingly
| obliged. My name is Parker
well, oddly enough, SOS mine," said
he, smiling at her.
care you going home?" Aunt Mary
Anne demanded.
Eyes, to the Lodge"
| ply ~ Io in,
creduously.
81 am," wondering what she meant
''Bless me! Why, is this your father?
| Bless me! You must have taken after
your mothers family. never saw her"
The next moment the squire had hur-
ried up, full of apologies for being so
tardy. my dear Aunt Mary Anne. I'm
afraid you've been waiting
mot at all. At least, we have been
| here a few minutes, but only long enough
! to become acquainted. I hear this is one
of your boys, Thomas?'
Yes, this is Geoffry, my second boy.
And this is Dicks boy Lionel" indicating
! his nephew.
For a moment Geoffry Parker stared at
the old lady, a surprised smile gradually.
overspreading his countenance. ''Why,
| are you Aunt Mary Anne?" he exclaimed.
''Why shouldn't be?" she. demanded.
- Il don t k9eWs " by geu shoul tss.but
I sdfdn t. expect YOU were he replied:
| Then ne audactous1y bent his head down;
and kissed her on either cheek. "Wel-
come to Ad6inghanl, anyway, Aunt Mary
Anne" he said. And now think we've
been standing here long enough"
Aunt Mary Anne allowed herself to be
| hurried off to the carriage which was
waiting at the gate Of the little country
| station Here she was comfortably in
| stalled in the Warmest corner of the
eloo -
| Geoffry tucked her in with rugs and cush-
| ions until she had no chance of getting
| the smallest chill.
| Oh! what a fortnight it was that fol-
| lowed. Probably never before had the
lodge been SO thoroughly disorganized and
| turned upside down. Aunt Mary Anne
| was revelation in more ways than one,
and amid all their Christmas festivities
| the Jex-Parkers felt as If they were sit
| ting on the top of barrel of gunpow-
| der, aye, and with lighted torches in their
| hands For Aunt Mary Anne, who was
| certainly eighty years old, was the di-
| rect opposite. of all their preconceived no.
| TONS both of her as she was and of her
| as they believed she ought to be. She
| was not old in their conception of the
| word; indeed, as Eva remarked in the
| privacy Of their chamber to Daisy she
was only old in wickedness. She was
up first thing in the morning. She was
awake the last Of any one at night She
was here, there and everywhere. She
| scoffed at old superstitions which they
held sacred. She declined to go to church,
| and she smoked choice little cigarettes
all day long, no matter who was pres
| ent.
Try one of my cigarettes, Dick" she
said to the portly rector of Addtngham
on the evening Of Christmas day, when
everybody had eaten too much, and the
noisy party had separated, the youngsters
to clear the drawing room for a dance
What! Are you afraid Of your wife? Is
that why you look across at her? You
look to me as if you smoked a church
arden in the DriVaCU Of uo,7,- o,,,,,