Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-03-22
CHAPTER VII,
"A WARNING UNHEEDED.


stood wide open. Mother" Spillman
sat just inside of it. Her tall figure,
crowned with mass of snowy white
hair and the bright figured chintz Of
her big armchair, made a conspicuous
spot Of color visible from the public
road.
She had made Malviha locate her so
that she could smell the mignonette
and keep an eye on the front gate.
She had never yet brought herself to
the point Of admitting that her small
establishment could be successfully
managed without her personal super
vision. Miss Malvina had stepped up
to the Matthews to see how Olivia was
getting on after the unusual excite
Inent and fatigue of the day before.
She rather enjoyed "mothering" the
pretty thing. She was not to be gone
long, and before starting she extracted
a promise from her mother that she
would not leave the house. She quoted
from the manual upon which her own
infant mind had been trained.
II know can trust you, mother, for
you never deceived me in all your life"
Then she had kissed the withered
forehead and gone briskly down the
front walk, quite unconscious Of the
remarkable tumult she had stirred be-
meath the fresh white kerchief she had
folded over her mothers bosom when
assisting her to dress that morning.
When she was sure she was quite
alone, the old woman developed unsus-
pected capacity. She got up and made
the tour of her small home experiment.
ally, first with her cane and then with
out it. Presently she flung herself
back into her chair with a petulant
sigh.
"She doesn't know me-. Ny. daughter
does not know me. Isham used to say
when I got my head turned in one di-
rection there was no power on earth
that could make me look ID another.
But know I've got it turned at the
right angle. Pm not called on to tell
;Malvina every thing. I know what NAL
VIVA thinks, I know what they all think
the old woman has gone daft. AS
like as not, il was to tell Malvina,
she would so to Matthews the first one
with apologies for poor mother It
won't do. 1t shan't be done. I wanted
them for Tom, wanted them for Hen
rietta and Rufus Bro1ton's boy, and if
he can't have them nobody shall.
Where did put them? What did 1 do
with them? oh, my poor head! Are
you really going to fail me when I
lave so much to do?"
Tears flow sluggishly from the eyes
of old age. The fountain Of that re-
lief supply dries up quickly under the
scorching fires Of life's passionate
years. Mother" Spillman pressed one
corner of her white kerchief to her dim
eyes. Her withered bosom rose and
fell convulsively. She was sobbing,
whether because she was deceiying
Malvina systematically and purposely
as to the condition of her sprained
ankle and other matters or because she
was not carrying out a cherished plan
very satisfactorily perhaps she scarce
" knew herself. Lying back in her
big chair, she lifted red lidded eyes to
the ceiling and frowned..
IF I could just leave Ma1vina entire
" out Of the question and, think exclu-
sively about him, could straighten
out this snarl much quicker and easier.
Some of these days I'll make it all
right with her. Now I've got to work
for him.
The papers which Jimmy Martin had
found in the garden and brought to her
had disappeared again in the most
mysterious manner. Either, she re-
fected mournfully, her memory was
getting SO treacherous that she could
not recollect where she had originally
hidden them to keep them from falling
into Miss Malvina's hands or else they
had been stolen from her.
She had three theories touching their
disappearance, either of which was
sufficient to fill her soul with bitter
ness-Malvina had found them and re-
stored them to Horace Matthews with
out ever a word to her about the
transaction, Jimmy Martin had been
bought by the lawyer at an advance
price over the one she had paid him to
hold his tongue and had burgla-
riously secured the package while she
slept, or she had herself carelessly in
Guided them among some papers she
had recently destroyed. !.
But know them by heart. could
swear to every word in them If only
some one would believe in me. If I'm
Failing SO fast that I don't know a legal
document from a pudding recipe, if
I'm grown such witless body that a
clodhopper like Jimmy, Martin can
Dyerreach me, if I'm of SO little impor-
lance In the world that my own daugh-
ter Will make common cause with a
bad man against me. the sooner 1 go
the better"
Mother" Spillman had not yet
reached the sluggish point which
comes as compensation for failure,
She had not been shelyed long enough