Omaha daily bee., 1899-11-19

observing as climbed inside that there was
no one in the drivers seat. Doubtless he
was tippling animal, and had stepped
across the way to that cosy little saloon
saw there. Another time | would not have
grudged him his little fling, but l was
growing decidedly ill-tempered and meanly
plotted how / should disconcert him on his
return.
1t was a gratifying thought as | huddled
myself upon the seat to wait his coming.
l had been so ANONYMOUSLY handled my
self that the consciousness OF the power ]
held over Gny sisters hireling elevated me
almost to where l had stood in my own
mind before the occurrence of this affair
of the boil! Petty? or course 1t was; naked
human nature is horrid thing to look at
under the scourge of bodily aflictions.
had sat for some moments and was just
getting warm and comfortable under the
robes when l heard the coachman mount
hurriedly to his seat. l began gathering
myself to give him a surprise, when the
| carriage door was flung open by rude hand
and tall, muffled figure bounded in like
| some captured animal forced behind the bars
| by keepers lash.
In my surprise l sat passive, so might or
! might not have been observed. Anyway, I
got no greeting, and my informal friend
was just settling himself into the seat oppo-
site when, muttering in a voice muffled by
many wrappings I've forgotten the other
case he bounded to his feet, and reopening
the door, framed his lips for peevsh call
to the driver. AT least, to be perfectly ex-
act, that is what / think this intruder de-
signed doing, but, owing to certain circum-
stances, shall never know to an exact GER
! tainty, for at that moment there came a
| loud, impatient crack of the whip, the
horses bounded forward Into the night, while
l. well, | was dazed and bewildered, my
| jaw was still racked with the pain of the
late operation, an uncomfortable sensation
of coagulated blood lay about my teeth and
when you add to this my injured self-love,
as well as my annoyance at the glarng in
subordination of the driver, 1t would seem
| to me there sufficient excuse for what
followed. 1t is true, and l have never de-
MED it, that the check k-strap was at that
moment within easy reach of my hand, and
| bloodless critics now claim that reason de-
manded l should pull 1t, stop the carriage,
| denounce the coachman, confront the in
truder, and otherwise air the various items
Of the mystery in which 1 thought myself
involved, but / scorn their logic.
AS l have before explained, the city in
which my sister lived was in the fermenting
state of growth; it was gorged with picked
up gold and d-handed with strife as to
who should own it. l am a full blooded
| person myself and the suspicion that / was
being made the victim of some rascaity
acted on me like pleasing intoxcant All
seemed then explained; the temporary abb
sence of the coachman from his box, the
insolent freedom Of the intruder-all pointed
as clear as monday down the road to dark
suspicion. Acting my first impulse,
| tic lol
carriage and had my companion by the
throat, nor did 1 relax my grip upon the
scrawny thing until the sudden flash OF
street light revealed to me in the horror
stricken face peerng at me above my rigid
knuckles the ill-favored features of DR.. A.,
now twned about and darkly framed by
| huge muffler, scarcely less in dimensions
| than the one twisted about my swollen jaw.
1t was like a sudden thunder clap, and,
though, when you considered the mans dis
position and his standing in society, my
throttling him like common thief was an
act for which there would be no pardon
granted, yet it was my plain duty to let go
and apologize. l did let go. but with what
sickening results l hardly have the courage
to record.
Remember, please, that the carriage door
was still open, that Dr. A. was already half
way out and that the horses were going at
full speed sudden jerk was all that was
ueeded-and the jerk came. For one instant
the unfortunate man topped where he stood,
while his eyes glared into mine with rage
and fear, and his lean throat struggled
hoarsely with sound, and with a little
involuntary shrek l saw him make a dread
full plunge, stand fairly upright on his head
and shoulders and collapse in a mashed,
sickening fashion into the shallow gutter.
Now, indeed, the carriage should have been
stopped and no farther triiing about 1t, but
strange stupidity crept over me as stood
craning my head back to the spot We were
fast leaving in our wake, until a second
flash of light revealed a fact to me which
brought me down upon the carriage seat,
very mild and limp. my mind filled with
serious speculations about the awkwardness
of the scrape had got myself into.
/ was not in my sisters carriage-and
more, there now foated before me the dis
tinct remembrance of having dismissed the
coachman at the Doctors door. "Yes," ran
on my mind in morbid detail, 81 had dis
missed my driver had sought out the great
man with my sordid complaint, had
fingered In his passageway, had
huddled in his carriage had flown
at him like an avenging tiger cat and now
he lay dead man by the roadside, with
heaven knows how many witnesses to our
death struggle, in full tilt to set the legal
bloodhounds on my trail. And there was my
coachman still at large with his tale to tell, |
and there was the possibility of last words
which my victim might falter forth upon
some official breast stamping me as his
assaiant." That the man was dead seemed |
my only hope and I sat and nursed my
l,opn ,,,,,
house of CHASTITY speculation. How far re-
moved l seemed from the peaceful SORROWS
of yesterday and how / cursed my stupid |
forgetfulness about the carriage and my un-
seemly haste to throttle an innocent man on |
whose privacy | had intruded!
In the meantime the carriage sped on, on,
and on, faster and yet faster, and still sat |
there dull and lumpish, trying to form my |
yapid plans as to what should do when 1t |
should step. Then think that the real folly |
of my actions began for 1t occurred to me