Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1900-08-03

l did not much like the arrangement
of James new house when came to stay
in it. The way the two bedrooms, hers
and mine, Were shut off from the rest Of
the house by door, barred and locked
at night for fear of burglars, was.
thought, unpleasant, especially as once
in my room for the night there was no
possibility of getting out of it, the key
of the door of the passage not being even
allowed to remain i'll the lock, but retir-
ing with Jane, the canary cage and
other valuables into her own apartment.
| demonstrated, but | soon found that
Jane had not remained unmarried for
nothing. She was decided on the point.
The outer door would be locked as usual,
and the key would be deposited under
the pincushion in her room as usual, and
1t was so.
The next morning, as Jane and ! went
out for stroll before luncheon, we had
to pass the house to which | had driven
by mistake the day before. To our as
constituent there was a crowd before
the door, and policeman with his back
to it was guarding the entrance. The
blinds We're all drawn down. The image
of the pale, lonely woman sitting by her
little fire, whom had disturbed the day
before, came suddenly back to me with
strange qualm.
"What is it," I hurriedly asked a
bakers boy who was standing at an
area railing rubbing his chin against the
loaf he was waiting to deliver. The boy
grinned.
Its murder he said, with relish.
BURGLARS in the night I've supplied
her regular these two months. One quar-
tern best white, one-half quartern brown
every morni1 :, French rolls occasional;
but it's all Up now" And he went off
whistling tune which all bakers boys
whistled about that time, called MY
Grandfather's Timepiece," or something
similar.
A second policeman came up the street
at this moment, and from him | learned
all the little there was to know This
poor lady had not been murdered, il
seemed. but being subject to heart com
plant had died in the night of an acute
attack, evidently brought on by fright.
The maid, the only other person in the
house, sleeping as maids of all work only
can, had heard nothing, and awoke in
the morning to find her mistress dead in
her bed, with the window and door open
Strangely enough, the policeman added
although nothing in the house had beer
touched, the lock of an unused bedroom
had been forced and the room evidently
searched.
Poor Jane was quite overcome Sht
feemed convinced that it was only by
special intervention of Providence thai
she had changed her house, and that hel
successor had been sacrificed instead o.
herself.
at might have been mel" she said ovel
and over again that afternoon.
Wishing to give turn to her thought
began to talk about Sir Johns legacy
in which she had evinced the creates
interest the night before, and greatly t.
her delight showed her the jewels. ha,
not looked at them since Sir John ha,
given them to me, and | was myself as
tonished at their magnifcence as sprea
them out ON the table under the "a
lamp.
Jane exhausted herself in admiration
but as | was putting them away again
saying it was time for me to be dressin
and going to meet Carr, who was to joi
me at the Criterion, she begged me o
no account to take them with me, affirm
ing that it would be much safer to leav
them at home. was firm, but she wa
tirmer, and in the end | allowed her t
lock them up in the tea caddy, whel
her small stock of ready money repose(
met Carr as we had arranged an
we had a very pleasant evening. Poe
Carr, who had seen the papers, ha
hardly expected that | should turn NJ
knowing the catastrophe Of the previor
night had taken place at the house / w;
going to, and was much relieved to he;
that my sister had moved and had thu
been spared all the horror of the even
The dinner was good, the play bette
/ should have come home feeling that
had enjoyed myself thoroughly if it ha
not been for little adventure with OF
cab driver that very nearly proved SCI
Gus. We got a hanson directly we can
out of the theatre but instead Of takil
us to the direction we gave him, aft
we had driven for some distance begs
to make out that the cabman was goir