Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1899-11-18
MONICA.
, LOVE sronY OF moDERN DAYS.

As to what was evidently supposed not to
We Fall right" up TO this, the Misses Blake
| lave no time 70 decide upon before fresh
| lephew and niece present themselves TO
heir view. They come In quite gayly,-
,eassured, no doubt, by Monica's tone;
Ference, n .all slim lad Of about sixteen and
little girl somewhat like Monica, but more
restless In features, and even degree more
oalnd.
''My dear children, why didn't you come
N bef1re?' says Miss Priscilla, aghast at
he inhospitable thought that they had been
| ,hiveiing with needless nervousness in the
iall for the last five minutes.
"They said they wouldn't come in until |
paved the way for them" says Monica, with
slight shrug Of her shoulders that Is a trick
)f hers. "Tney always put eyerythin2upon
any shoulders; little shabby Of them 1
,all it,"
81 am afraid you must have pictured us
Is ogres," says Miss Priscilla, which idea
| ,trlkes the old ladies as such delicious
light Of fancy that they laugh outright, and
ook at each other with intense enjoyment
)f their little joke.
| swell, OK course we conldn'ttc what you
would be like" say Monica, gravely. "Iou
might have been people likely to Impress
one with ate; Dut, as 70 Is This Is Ter
ry," laying her hand upon her brothers
arm; "and this Is Kit. She isreally Rather
n, you know, bu. no one ever calls her by
go long name. She isn't worth It,:
At this the three Dcresfords laugh among
themselves, as children Will, at time-worn
fun, knowing no fatigue; after which Kath-
crime and Terence are embraced and made
much Of By their new-found relatives, and
freely commented upon.
Bat ever and anon the eyes Of both old
ladies wander tloughtfully, admiringly, to
where the lissome Monica stands like a
pale. pensiye lly.
"But how have you managed TO be here so
,oon?' asks MS Priscilla, when the i'm
promptu luncheon, improvised by the start
| ied Timothy, las come TO an end. The chill
lren were all hungry, and have eaten a
great DEAL ard have talked more. Indeed,
| hough Miss PRISCILLA has been dying to ask
his question for 4 long time, it has been
| impossible for her to do so, as there has not
Deen so much rs a comma In the converse
| ton for the last hour.
| The BereSfords are like 80 many clocks
wound up, and bound to go for a certain
| time whether they like 1t or not and, APP
parently, they do like IT.. Now they have
run down little TeIence being exhausted
after his last laughing attack, and Kit wrap
| ped in contemplation of an old-fashioned
hair brooch that Is fastening an equally old
| fashioned piece Of priceless lace that adorns
| Miss Prlscilla's throat.
ave came by the wrong traln," says Ter
~. "We generally do. Ever since we left
| the South Of France-where we were stay
ing with the Bohuns, you know, on our way
here-wc have been missing our trains right
and left, and turning up at all sorts OF uneX-
pected places. Haven't we, Kit?'
you have" says Kit,with suspicious en-
phasis. you have such pretty trick or
rushing into the first train you see, without
ever asking any one where II Is going. No
wonder we always turned up at the wrong
end" -
"YoI'pc a pretty trick Of putting every.
thing down on other peoples shoulders,
says Terence, with open disgust. Whose
| fault was it we were always so late ut the
stations that we hadn't time to make In
quir.es, I'd like to know? Could YOU" with
fine irony, "tcl us?'
Certainly; it was nurse" replies Kit,
with dignity.
Dear me and where Is your nurse now"'
asks Miss Priscilla, anXiouSly. The query
Is a fortunate one, In that 1t turns the con-
| versation into n different channel, and
checks the eloquciice Of Kit and Terry, who
are plainly oh the brink OF an open war.
"When last / saw her." says Terence
''she was sitting on the top of our biggest
box, with everything else strewn around her
and her feet resting on two brown-papei
parcels. ] wonder says Mr.. Beresf0rd,
addressing Monica, what on earth she had
| In those browil-paper parcels. She has beer
lugging them night and day ever since she
| left Jerusalem"
dynamite" suggests Monica, lightly;
whereupOn the two Misses Blake turn pale
AT that rate, Aunt Priscilla, we ncedn' I
| trouble about her." says Terence, pleasantly
'aS she must be blown up by this. None
Oh those clockwork affairs could be arrang
ed to go on much longer. Poor thing wher
in the flesh she wasn't half bad. l forgive
her cyerythlng-even her undying hatred tC
myself"
IF she Is In fragments, so are our things,
says Kit. IL think she needn't have elected
to sit on them ut the supreme moment"
You don'treally think" says Miss Pencil
ope In somewhat troubled tone, remem
befing how an innocent baker, in Rossmoynt
had had some of the explosive matter IN
question thrown into his kitchen the night
before last,-'you don't really think thai
these parcels you speak Of contain Internal
machines?-Ycs, that Is what they cal
them, my dear Priscilla" turning to her sis
ter, rs though anxious TO apologize for hav
Ing used word calculated to lead the mlnC
to the lower regions.
BY this time both Kit and Terence are con
vulsed with delight at the sensation they
havs created, and would probably have gone
on To declare the innocent Mrs. Mitchell ar
advanced Nihilist vf the most dangerous
type, but for MOnica's coming to the rescue
and explaining matters satisfactorily.
"Still, cannot understand how you got
up here so quickly" says Miss Penelope
you know Moyne-homc l hope you viii
cGll ii for the future, my dears, with lit
tie fond pat on Monica'S hand, "is quite
three miles from the station"
1--WE should have thought nothing Of that,
says Tererce "but for KIT; she has had
fever, you know" pointing to the child's
closely-cropped, dark little head; $50 W.
said we would Just stroll on little and see
what the country was like"
"And lovely it t." puts i'm Kit, osthusi
dSllCdlly. we SOi up oH h'eu Hii', oiiN
saw the sea lying like great quiet lake be
meath us. There was scarcely ripple OF
It, and only q soft sound like sob" Hel
Eyes, that arc almost too big for her small
face, glow brilliantly.
And then there came by man with
cart filed with hay, and he nodded to us
and said, 'Good-morow, sir;' and so l nod
ded back, and said, How dye do" to him
and asked him was it far to Moyne House
A good step he said three miles ut thu
very least"
80 up we got says Kit, gayly, zane
away we went in the nice sweet hay, jog
trot, jog trot, and so comfortable"
ave got on sp.endidly," Terence says
"and might indeed have finished our jour
ney respectfully, but for Monica. She lait
our reputation in the dust"
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