The suburban citizen., 1901-03-09

HNNt'Na Aooh mas over tine INSANE. Cne
looked at him calmly and steadily,
though her face, she felt was growing
white with terror The trouble was
that he would not look at her, but con
tinued to wrestle with his boot
AT last an energetic wrench brought
the boot Off and the madman thrust
his arm in It up to the elbow Then
he said; by iinksw and smiled in an
imbecile, self-reproachful sort of way.
How IS your married son in New
YorS:' inquired Mrs. Parker in a
fash Of aspiration, moistening her
parched lips with her tongue
"Him?" replied the maniac. ooh
he's all right-leastway he was when
l last heard from him"
He bent down and tackled the other
boot and Mrs. Parker once more rose
and tried to edge her way round the
table to pass him. He stopped and
looked up and she retreated to the
window and seated herself, with an
assumption of carelessness. on the sill
If the worst came to the worst she
might throw herself out and risk the
injury that she might sustain from
the broken glass and the fall. 1t was
not more than eight or ten feet TO the
ground and anything would be pref
erable to the horror Of being in the
clutches of a madnan.
Then another thought came to her.
Perhaps she could attract the atten-
tion of some passer-by and dumbly
summon assistance. She looked quick.
ly out.
A man was passing-a young man
with q quite noticeable dark mus.
tache, fashionably attired and holding
his arms gracefully bowed out from
HIS body. Mrs. Parker, who Is a good.
looking young woman, threw her
whole anguished soul into an implor-
ing look and beckoned stealthily but
imperatively to him. He smirkcd en-
gagingly at her in return and raised
his hat, hestated. then smirked again.
caressed his little mustache and passed
on.
"Therer' exclaimed the lunatic.
Mrs. Parker started. He had got the
other boot off, and, standing in his
stocking feet, was cropping inside Of it
as he had in the other.
Good joke on me-" he said. "I
clean forgot which one l put It in,
and couldn't tell nothing by thefeel."
Withdrawing his hand he drew out
a thin, fat package, and then, moisten-
ing his finger, separated from 1t a $40
bill, which he extended to Mrs. Par
ker, who looked at it wonderingly for
an instant and then dropped into
chair and began to sob Historically.
II appears that this is not the end.
The man from Waukegan who had
made a safety-deposit vault of his boot
tried for some minutes to soothe and
calm the agitated woman, but his gen
tie ministrations only seemed to make
her worse. lie stood and tugged
helplessly al his beard and then
rushed from the room in search of
help. Going down stairs he suddenly
came upon the servant who, in eonse-
quence of his bootless condition. had
not heard his approach. Before he
could explain his mission she screamed
and fell over against the gas stove in
a dead faint, and, as Parker says,
there was a dickens Of n time gener-
ally.
Another thing, there is a young man
with a slight, dark mustache who
passes the house quite frequently and
annOys Mrs. Parker by raising his hat
to her and sometimes kissing his hand.
Parker has not caught him as yet, but
he is biding his time and has eX-
pressed his intention of breaking that
young mans darned neck.
As for the Waukegan man, he called
at Parkers Office for his receipt, and
hesitatingly inquired after Mrs. Par
ker. you'll excuse me, Henry he
said "but amt she a-well, just lit
tie you know"
'Hey!' said Parker.
The Waukegan man tapped his fore
head significantly with his forcGnger.
Chicago Record