Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Benton County, Or.) 1900-1909, 1902-04-08

and glowed with a ferocious glare,
while weird tongues of lurid fame
f1ickered On the slope and ridge behind.
As I looked great repulsion seized
me. 1 recalled the Prophets descrip-
tion in the Old Testament of the Valley
of Hinnom or Tophet, in which men
sacrificed to strange gods, and caused
their sons and daughters to "pass
through the fires to Moloch." This,
surely, was one of the Tophets of mod
ern days, in which the sons and daugh-
ters of England are made to pass
through the fires of the boloch of
Wealth and the Baal of all-devouring
Industry.
And still as I looked and thought of
this the bell tower of the ruined mill
before me fell with loud cfang, and
there uprose into the air to mingle
with the other sounds the frantic
screaming of pigs and neighing Of
horses. 1 was not surprised; was
somehow prepared by the scene not to
be surprised at anything that might
happen in this strange region.
passed, however, hurriedly down the
slope by a rough path, and found the
road into the valley and the village. l
heard voices and saw a dim crowd of
people about the ruined mill, but the
stream, black and evil-smelling, was
between me and it, and had perforce
to let my curiosity wait. I continued
my way into the village, which, 1
found, lay behind the many-storeyed
mill toward the mouth of the valley and
close to the high road by which 1
should have entered it. I had, as it
were, let myself in by the back door.
Before was we'll into the village I
passed an arrangement of low buildings
with blank walls to the road, from
but, instead, the vilest and strangest
smells that ever offended the sense,
and from the midst of which rose a
towering chimney that smoked con-
sumedly. These, guessed, were part
of the chemical works of which had
heard. I found the rectory at the
other end of the village. I did not 60
the rector was in bed ill-but asked
to be directed to my lodgings.
had some tea and then prepared to
go to dinner at the house of MIR. EN-
manuel Steinhardt, one of the creators
and lords of the Tophet into which 1
had entered. He was rector's church
warden, and had corresponded with
him concerning the curacy, and had
made this dinner arrangement week
ago. I asked my landlady where
should find Timnerlev Hall
"Oh," said she, looking at me with
a comical eye of respect, "you'll be 60
ing to Muster Steenheart's2" ESQ she
pronounced the magnate's name).
"He's at tn other end O. tn village on
Shale Brow" (she called it "BrewD
"Stop a bit, mon." She went to the
door of the room and called, "Dick,
lad, you mum TAX the parson up to
Muster Steenheart's. Then turning
to me, she said, "He'll tax tina, mon, u
and witho drew.
was amused; and when a minute
or two later she called from the bottom
of the stairs,
cart ready, parson? TIL lads wait.
ing
l positively laughed to myself. My
amusement increased when 1 saw my
guide, a young Hercules in clogs, who
might easily have ''taken" me to Tim.
perley Hall and farther under his arm
Timperley Hall I discovered over,
looked the valley from the side oppo-
site to that from which I had first
viewed it. Soon was in it's drawing
room, shaking hands with Mr.. (ol
HERR Emmanuel Steinhardt; for saw
at once that he was of pure Teutonit
breed, and heard, when he had spoken
few words, that he must have spent
all his youth and part of his manhood
in the Fatherland: he spoke perfect
English, but with an indescribable
tell-tale accent. had just time tc
notice his burly figure, his somewhat
rounded shoulders, and his massive
bald head, when was introduced tt
his wife, tall, handsome, Lancashire
woman cher speech betrayed her), witt
grey hair, evidently good deal Older
than he; then to Miss Louise Lacroix
of whom I will only say at present tina
she looked refined and foreign-a rart
exotic in this region of surprises; and
| lastly, 10 iny SUI, TTduh, young
man of one or two-and-twenty, who
looked in every way and spoke like al
Englishman. These introductions over
we sat down to wait for the announce
ment of dinner. There was very littl'
said they seemed constrained, and
was, perhaps. shy. No one seemed t.
think of trying to set me at my ease
Mr.. Steinhardt sat watching the clock
and at intervals throwing question
over his shoulder to his wife. (On'
question I noted was, ''Is Jim comm!
at all?"-to which she answered, "Jin
said he might look in after dinner ano
smoke pipe"-and I wondered wh'
Jim was. was wishing had not &C
cepted this invitation for my first even
ing in Timperley, when the young lad'
edged her chair little nearer to me
and said, with the sweetest of smile
and the most musical of tones:
"You come from the south-fron
London; yes?''
Her accent was that most delightful
of all foreign accents-the accent of al
educated Frenchwoman. answered
that had come from London, thougl
[ was not native there.
81, Also" said she, ''come from tn
south; from London last, but iron
Paris before"
Here was common ground for pleas
ant reminiscence, and We becam
| frsarIs OF