The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-12-02
The Pool of Salt Water.


! apartment, darkened by closed shutters
/ and heavy with a strong, pungent odor.
! As our guide raised a window and open
ed the blinds there was a rustiiug all
about Us Of the fight Of pigeons. THIS
| was caused by the f1utterlng OF quaint
1 ties of dry seaweed which were fes-
TONED upon the walls and over the
/ doors and windows.
That's nothing but common seaweed,
said the good woman noticing our in
/ terested glancesA ITS used only as an
ornament and TO give character TO the
/ room. All the choice varieties are in
these glass cases, and pressed in this
/ pile OF scrapbooks. with notes and ex-
! plantations under EN-.
/ Did Professor Linwood collect these
! specimens HIMSELF" I asked
Il suppose so. He used to 90 on long
voyages to the tropics and come home
laden with new varieties, and then he
! spend months classifying and arranging
them He was a diver in his younger
! DAYS That's how he first took 10 col
! Iecting seGweeds; he ransacked the bot
! tom of the sea to get specimens But
4 after his marriage he never seemed 70
care for It any more, but perhaps al
1 this don't interest you-it's the seaweed
you want You can examine 1t as much
as you like"
wreath Of it surrounded the only
! portrait in the room-that OF a young
! girl, with frank, pleasing eyes and
sweet mouth.
Mrs. Linwood. the professors wife, .
/ explained the woman.
Then" replied my companion its no
wonder the professor took no more voy-
| ages after his MARRIAGE
/ i said he collected no more seawe6d.
| sir" responded the housekeeper. 'He
made enc voyage directly after MS mar
/ raige. and took his bride with him The
4 vessel was wrecked IN a terrific storm
! and only a few of the passengers were
saved Mrs Linwood was among the lost.
1T was not until the professor was
/ nearly 60 that ne thought of taking a
/ wife Then he was very foolish, If L
may be allowed to say it, for he fell
in love with a little girl only IS, and ne
/ being rich, her parents favored the
match, though she was much attached
/ to a second cousin of hers, a young fei-
! low in an importing house, poor, but
with good prospects; and as luck would
have il this cousin was on the same
I steamer that took the professor and his
bride TO China, he going there on bust
ness for his firm.
But as 1 said, the vessel ran aground
/ in . storm and sank almost immedl-
ateiy Mrs Linwood was drowned, and
/ broken in mind and body. He had even
/ lost his interest in his particular fad.
and I have seen him shudder at the
( sight Of a piece of seaweed. He locked
, up his room, and 1 never saw him enter
/ it again except on one notable occa-
sion"
What was that?" inquired my COM
panion.
I hi Ind ~
| poor man became very lonesome and
poor man became very lonesome
"One Christmas Eve, his favorite
1 nephew, Jack Newton, came late in the
evening, and to save my soul l didn't
know where TO put him to sleep he
was merry, rollicking lad of II, and
/ he said he'd sleep in the attic.
I THE attic was out of the question.
| Suddenly a thought came 20 me, and
asked him if he'd mind sleeping in the
/ seaweed room.
the boy
so. | fixed him up on this ere couch
we're a-sitting on, and as ii was bitter
| cold, started a bit of fire in the CRATE
| Then 1 locked him in and carried away
| the KEY. so that If by some strange
! chance the professor should stray up
/ there late in the evening he would ma
the key gone. and probably think it had
been mislaid for fl usually hung on
nail beside the door.
What happened during that night
got straight from Jack myself. It seems
ne went straight to sleep. and never
woke tin the faintest bit of daylight was
stealing into his window. Then ne was
aroused poor chap by a low murmur Of
voices. and sitting up he saw on the
/ hearth two figures talking together-one
a girl with long, black hair and the other
a young man who held her hands and
was bending his face down to hers. Both
of EN- was dripping wet and he could
hear the trickIe Of water as it fell on
the big stone hearth they were standing
on. Their faces were turned from him,
but in the girls hair was tangled
quantity of seaweed.
He said 10 himself that what he saw
1 was an optical delusion, 1 believe he
I called it. that there was nobody but
/ himself in the room-there couldn't be,
/ because the door was locked. What do
YOU want-who are you? he cried and
with that jumped ont Of bed and came
straight toward the two figures. As he
advanced they retreated toward the win
dow. and when he reached the window
there wasn't anything there, though the
window was shut except for little space
at the TOP.
But now comes the strange part Of
it-for as he was dressing the next
morning what did the boy find but
pool Of salt water on the stone hearth,
in that little hollow you can see from
here that has been worn in it. and lying
in it a bit Of fresh seaweed. I'm which
was tangled a long, black hair. Then.
as Jack told me. his own nair began 10
rise In good earnest, and ne was scared.
so that morning after breakfast he
takes the bit of seaweed to his uncle
ard asks him il he'd ever seen any Ike
it.
The professor looked at the piece Of
wet weed and his color went Ike the
going out OF a lighted taper. It's un-
common variety, he said. as it's never
found except on the bodies o[s drowned
people Where did You get it, Jack?'
Il found il in my room. blurted out
me boy. There was a couple Of poop
in there last night, uncle, dripping wet
i" What dc you mean2 gaspe3 d
uncle. looking at MIN strangely.
Come and IN show you, ne SAYS.
in snita OF the fact that 7 was shaking
my FIST at him from the hallway. So,
together they went up 70 the seaweed-
room. I following 10 explain why r.
taken the liberty to lodge Jack there
But the professor never noticed me He
followed lack into the room, White 20
the lips and kneel.ng down. examine
the IttIe pool Of water or the hearth
ITS sea water he whispered after
moment 'What did you see. bof2 Tel
me everything
There's nothing much 70 tell. uncle.
went on Jack in his stEaiEltloraarf
way The girls hair was Gown 5sr
hack l Wet ana fun Of sssweed And.
see Here's long black aalr ia tae
sea weed 7 found
The professor looked then Eass
a-s- sffrb AZ r1ue never - Rear again