The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1902-06-18
The Laurens Advertiser
SLIGO per Year in Advance.
1.-The Ghost of No.
Fifty-Nine...

tNhhN - hGNA pOSh
about Halifax all day. We had pulled
our feet from the asphalt pavements
for the sun was hot; we had toiled to
the wind. slapped citadel, and gazed at
Dartmouth, cleaning white across the
water, and watched the seething foam
the far haze at the harbor entrance.
We had sneered at the gowns of the
omen, and had been stared at by the
m~onkey-clad privates. We had prayed
ia the dusk of st. Mary's, and driven
through the gardens, and even out the
Bedford Basin road for a few miles.
1 had dragged Theodore to moth-eaten
shops and bought vile, candy and acted
generally in what Theodore calls my
American girl" manner. There was
a touch of the spring-time WEAKNESS
upon me when we got back to the
Halifax House, with spare time in
which to dress for dinner. 1t was
early IN May, much too soon for the
tourists, and every person, not a Troy
to their finger tips, was spotted in the
hotel. That is the reason hat Ted
and L, when we went into the dining
room were Immediately taken over to
a table where already two people sat
waiting for their dinner. The girl was
GIL ihab hluCh-huu ho
more-i knew. The man - Now,
Theodore had come to Canada on bust
ness, and L had accompanied him in
the hope of meeting the very man, who
sat talking in his most enticing style,
to an utter stranger, not five feet
away.
/ had meant to be so gentle with Tom
Merrill when L met him, for the last
time L had seen him, L had refused,
with great haughtiness, to accompany
him, as a loving wife and helpmate, to
this end of the world. After six
months of abject misery, though L was
quite .willing-to have him ask me
again. 1t gave me an unreasonable
pang to see how well he looked and 1
put on my most dignified air as he pre-
scented the girl, whose highly interest
ing conversation had been broken upon
by our entrance.
L loathed that girl before l met her.
l knew, before she opened her lips,
that she would talk through her nose
and she did. She was a native of
some mountain village in Pennsylvania
and her reason for being so far from
home was-business. In a few min
utes we had her history, and knew
that she was a ~bookkeeper in the most
%up.to.date hardware shop in Halifax.
She had met Tom ON one of his trips
to Halifax, and seemed to know him
very well indeed. AT least, she called
him "Tom," and looked at him as
though he belonged to her, and acted
- altogether disgracefully.
"Tom and L were Just discussing
the suicides" said Miss Reynolds as W.
began our soup. "You have heard OF
it, of course"
"No," L replied untruthfully.
knew all about it, but L wanted to hear
her talk some more. There was q
wild fascination for me in listening tc
her rasplng ais and awful RS. Tom
Merrill, New Yorker to the core, neve,
WINGED. He had indeed comforted
himself.
ats a horrid tale to GO with a meall'
she said. "You see, a woman, young
and an American at that, shot herself
here in the hotel, just three days ago
Poor thing L saw her the first day she
came. She came the first of the week
and haunted the telegraph and post
ofices from morning until night. She
was always beautifully dressed, ant
would have been handsome, if she
could but lose that terrible fixed gaze
She got n telegram on the evening o.
the fifth day, and that night she sho
herself through the heart in room No
so. She left absolutely nothing tina
would establish her identity. Burned
all her letters, and even her rings
Three magnificent diamonds wer,
found in the twisted gold among tht
ashes. They can't find out who sh,
10, and the police nave buried her il
the p%otter's field. But don't you thinl
it was sad, her waiting for that mes
sage, mt her despair when she got Ut
i used to hear her walking the floor u
night. Her room was just across thu
hall from nine. It's supposed to b'
haunted now"
1t must have unnerved you. Wer,
you here when she died2" asked Theo
dore, with the first glow of interest h,
had displayed. Dear old chicken. FL,
never bothers with-some girls.
60, dear nol' said Miss Reynolds
81 was at the office, and indeed, / hat
my Don changed at once. 1 couldn'
bear to be near the place. In fact,
couldn't sleep at all in my room"
1t was nothing except a spiteful de
bire 10 DeaI inc girl, 10 no something
she was afraid to do that made me re
ply like a boastful child: 81 shouldn'
be afraid to sleep in number so.
think pl have my things moved to
night
Tom Merrill raised his eyebrows
and looked at me steadily for a mo
ment. L saw by Teddie's expression
that he was plainly aware of my in
tentiOn, and also aware of his incom
patlbility to cope with his sdored ant
very much spoiled sister. "Well," a
last, j enquired, as Tom still stared a
me, edo you think Pm afraid, Mr.
Merrlll2"
"No,' said that young man slowly
and with emphasis. 81 don't thinl
you are"
Miss Reynolds looked her suprem,
scorn and unbelief. "Indeed, it's al
very well to talk that way" she said
/" but when II comes down to the thing
Pm quite sure you would back down
There isn't any woman / know VIII,
has nerve enough to sleep in No. 3d.
"Oh," 1 rippled out quite sweetly
"but you see you don't know me, O
49,, - -.