The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1899-11-23

nights visitor and slipped down as
noiselessly as a mouse. But what was
her horror TO see by the faint morning
light, at the half-open dining-room
door, q figure movingl Miss Mary,
as she sti6ed shrek, recognized the
man she had befrionded. He was
holding her silver teapot up to the
light and inspecting it carefully--the
same silver teapot bought by it's poor
cwner during her brief period Of
happiness. forty years ago. She had
invested her savings in it, prior to her
expected marriage.
"What, would you rob me?"
thought Miss Mary, and her heart
waxed fierce.
Rob her, who had so long be.
friended the needy and the destitutel
But, like Bishop Myriel, with his
silver candlesticks, her anger was Of
short duration. She would let the
man go. Probably he needed the sill
yer more than she, and so strange are
the workings of the human mind. that
she remembered, even IN that moment
OF fear, how her mother had always
said that brown fourpenny teapots
made the best tea.
She was still standing as il SPELL
bound, afraid to move, when the mau
happened to turn his head, and tue
light fell full on to his face. 1t was
only an old mans face, worn, gaunt,
surrounded by grizzled hair and beard,
and marked by sin and crime, with
something, perhaps, as many crimi-
nails faces have, that seemed to recall
better days:
"In the morning light his face for mo.
Seemed to assume once more the forms Of
its earlier manhood"
Miss Mary looked, looked again,
and, like Phineus of old with the
Medusa's head, she seemed to turn to
stone. Then her legs tottered under
her, the dawn became black before
her eyes, and she fell down on the
rickoty stairs in dead faint.
Betsy, coming cautiously down
stairs few hours later, and prepar.
ing to scold her mistress for forget
ting to fasten The shutters, nearly
tripped over little fragile, shrivelled
heap, cold and unconscious, wrapped
in its well-known darned dressing
gown.
Miss Mary recovered with Betsy's
loving care. Her visitor of last night
had made himself scarce, and, whether
startled by the noise of Miss Mary's fall
or by few rays of lingering grace in
his own conscience, had left the pre-
cious silver teapot. So, beyond saying
that she had had fright last night
and being reprimanded for not putting
the teapot away, nothing further, tc
all appearance at least, resulted to
Miss Mary.
But the bright old lady faded and
became older from that day. Her stel
sounded less alert, her voice less
brisk. The children in the streets
sc arcely recognized their benefactress
she seemed to have lost the Joy o
life. Betsy was in despair; she alter
nately coaxed and scolded her darling
"Do you want to die" she com
planned. "and leave yer poor old Bet
sy? You can ave the kitchen brim
full O. tramps, my sweet, if you'll only
git we'll an laugh again"
Miss Mary looked at her sadly.
, mo, Betsy" she said, "don't want
me to live. I'm sorry to leave you
, dear, but it seems as il something had
: gone hore." pointing to her heart will
pathetic gesture. Something seems
to have snapped inside me. Life
doesn't seem the same to me any NOR,
now. 1 don't know how it is"
= Miss Mary did not know, but it hat
only happened to her as 1t happens t.
( many. She had lost her romance-th,
= love-story which had boen the life o
/ her life was gone
1t had for so long been part o
her, entwined with her very being
that, like the ivy parasite with the oak
it had involved III its destruction tn
life beneath it.
Miss Mary sickened and died, thu
local physician said of languor. No
, even old Betsy Mills, who mournec
for her more than the children and thu
beggars themselves, could have
, guessed at another reason.