The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1899-07-11

vcuA bei { d3&a6t 1SsAtioa my fors-
bodings 70 mother leSeI 'Sfonld brighten
her, but ! spoks to Percy. who said he
had felt the very same fears.
Then came Borofsky's third letter,
very short one. but a letter that glad
dened our hearts and caused us to feel
that all Was well, or nearly 80.
II have persuaded the count to
come" hs wrote, land We shall start
tomorrow. shall telegraph ON Tues
day from the frontier II we shall have
arrived 90 far in safety. Meanwhile. a
few words of caution: Treat the count
a. though nothing had happened DO
not allude to bis deiusion. Further. he
has expressed a hope more than once
that you will not speak Of his return.
He would rather see and be seen by
none but his own household. and the
servants should be warned TO say moth.
ing Of his absence or of his home com.
ing He imagines, you will bear in
mind. that he has many enemies. These,
says the count should be left to sup
pose he Is still absent from st. Peters,
burg; otherwise be will not be allowed
to dwell in peace
Alas. poor old father Well, at any
rate, he.was coming home. The future
was in wiser hands than ours.
Tuesday found us all in a condition
of unspeakable excitement. The Berlin
express would reach the frontier early
in the afternoon, and our te1egEam
should arrive at about or ea
How we got through the Ihg,
mother and l, cannot remember.
can recall nothing Of that day except
ing that Percy almost compelled me to
20 with him for walk and tried to
talk cricket to me and Oxford and
Toddlestone and all manner Of subjects.
but that I would have none Of them
and could only speak Of kilograms and
the frontier and the time Of day, and
20 on.
Luncheon time came and passed and
the afternoon slowly wore Three
o'clock was reached and done with;
then half past and then 4, and still the
telegram had not arrived Had Borofsky
failed. after ALI
Then 1t came
The message was placed In my hands
by one Of the men. I tore the envelope
open and read
vseo blagopoluchno. tAll well.)
BoRoBKY.
And with the document rushed to
my mother.
"It's all right, dearest, I blurted.
''Borofsky has got him. Tomorrow
evening dad will dine with usl'
think we cried together over that
telegram-tears Of pure relief and rest
from anxiety.
This was the happiest afternoon and
evening we had spent for two months
True, tomorrows meeting would be
painful no doubt; but, oh, the differ.
ence to have father with us, ill though
BIO might be, rather than to think Of
him as poor lost soul alone in London,
helpless and friendless and demented
/ thought the evening Of that
Wednesday would never come. How
slowly the wingless moments crawled!
We prepared everything for fathers
comfort; we made his rooms look as in
citing a. loving hands could render
them; we adorned them with flowers
and pretty hangings and photographs;
we spent hours in doing gil this, and
yet the time would not move on quick
ly enough for us.
The train was due at or about the
dinner hour, and Percy and I were at
the station half an hour before time.
Now that the supreme moment had
arrived I felt unaccountably nervous
and somewhat depressed. Percy rallied
me upon my foolishnesa
"Why, hang It, old man." he said,
"this ought to be one Of the happiest
moments of your lifel'
$50 1t is," murmured. II am aw-
fully happy. But I don't know whatit
isl feel as though even now father
will disappoint US somehow, as though
all this were not reality. What il
this man should turn out to be not fa-
ther, after all, but
"Oh, rotl" said Percy rudely. "Let's
talk Of something else. If you get think
ing that kind Of thing, you'll force
yourself to believe that he isn't he. even
when you see him with your own eyes. "
"Oh, mol shall know father"
murmured, "if he really comes"
"Of course he'll really come, said
Percy. "Whom do you expectf Come
now, don't be an old ass. Boris. Your
nerves are playing old Harry with you"
Then, almost as we spoke, the train
came groaning and creaking in. 1t
pulled up, and the passengers began to
get out and walk on the platform, and
the usual crowd formed.
In the crowd, as we went to and fro
looking for our travellers, saw sud-
denly Borofsky and another.
At the first glance l thought it was
my father, and my heart gave great
bound for joy. Then I looked closer.
and
"Percy," I whispered-"Percy, for
the love Of heaven, tell Borofsky"-
swell, tell him what9 Where is her
Do you see themS What's up, old
man?' said Percy
''Tell Borofsky to wait I must get
home and prepare my mother. Tell him
come behind these boxes 80 that they
don tsee us--tell him it isn't father,
Percy. I'd swear with my last breath
1t isn't"
GOOD heavens, manr' began Percy.
''See If you can avoid bringing him
home at all, I continued. "But in any
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