Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1902-09-04
q Woman S Faee
FLORENCE WARDEN

| define, but which re mad In vain at
tempted to resist Left to himself,
he at first thought he would counter
mand the order, as common sense
loudly suggested. This DR.. Peele,
] so far from being a very dear old
| friend of his, was man he had only
met a few times, and whom he scarce
| ly remembered; he was not seriously
| i'll, that he should need brother
| doctors services, but he was just Ill
| enough, according to report, to make
a visitor unwelcome. But, although
| by no means Unfortunately superstiti-
| Gus, Armathwaite began to feel acute
! curiosity concerning the series of I'M
accountable and apparently crazy ip-
pulses by which he had that day
| in spite of himself, he was inclined to
! impute to them some significance.
Besides this, he had to recognize that
the cosy evening by the Preside which
he had promised himself had now be-
come an impossibility He could not
sit still; his very limbs seemed no
longer to be controlled by his own
will, but to be under the command of
some unknown agency which decreed
that they should not rest. When he
placed himself, ready dressed for his
ride, again for a moment in the chair
he had occupied before the fire, be
was seized with dread of a repeti-
tion of the vision he had seen ten
minutes before; and jumping up hasti-
ly, he went out into the hall, where
the landlord, with a lantern in his
hand, met him, and accosted hin
obviously
TITS pity you have to go on to-
night, sir. What with the wind and
the snow 1t will be nasty ride.
suppose you know the road pretty
well, sir?"
mot very well, but it's fairly
| straight, as far as I remember" an
swered Armathwaite He had never
in his life before been In this part OF
| the world. but he would not confess
to this, being afraid lest some obstacle
should be put in the way of his pur-
pose.
"Ye-es, IL is straight enough, but
there are one or two places where
! you'll have to be careful on night
like this"
The front door had In the meantime
been opened by the waiter, and the
horse, a powerfully.built dapple-grey,
who looked as If he had been used
in the season for coach-work, was
standing close to the step, with the
/ ostler at his head. The front of the
! house escaped the full fury of the
| wind but even here the snow was
drifting into heaps and ridges in the
road. The landlord himself fastened
the lantern to the saddle before the
traveller mounted.
You'll put up at Branksome for the
night, suppose, sir?" he said, as ne
stepped back upon the doorstep.
Il suppose | shall have to. Plenty
of places there where can get bed
and put up the horse. suppore?"
Eyes. The George is the best,
think"
"All right. Thank you. shall be
back in time for the coach to Conis.
mere tomorrow morning. Good night"
Before Armathwaite could start.
however, the ostler. a wrinkled, white
haired man, saluted him, Siding up
rather mysteriously on the near side.
BEG pardon, sir" he said, in a
strong North-country dialect, rendered
still more unintelligible by the loss of
his teeth, "but ee'd best go by T. low
road and not oop past t loontic
/ sylum"
The landlord, who had been on the
alert, overheard these words, and
broke in with some asperity of tone:
John, what's that stuff you're talk
) ing. There hasn't been any asylum
about here since you were boy"
John. however, unabashed by the
snub, only gave a chuckle of superior
knowledge, and muttering his belief
that IL the gentleman went by the
high road he would "see summet," he
shambled of to the stables. The
landlord, shivering in the cold glanced
after him angrily. but felt that some
word of explanation was due to his
guest.
The fellows got tile loose. sill.
believe. But he's been ostler here
i for years before was born, and YOU
don't like to turn OFF an old hand like
that. He wouldn't p~e three months
away from his horses.
And he has delusions, you Think"
Full of them, sir"
And what's this about an asylum %
Il don't know, I'm sure. I've
lived here leven years. and I've never
heard anything about any asylums
within five miles of the place"
i "Ah, well. we've most of us got a
bee in the bonnet good many years
before we reach his age. And rye
had something TO do with lunatics, so
4 there's nothing less likely to brighten
me. won't keep you talking in the
cold any longer"
/ The landlord. however, as he was
stepping inside the door. changed his
mind, and ran out few steps in the
snow, calling to his guest as the latter
rode away. Armathwaite checked
his horse, and turned round in the
4