The daily morning journal and courier., 1903-06-02

ing just a little curious about-she would not allow herself to use the word anxious-was the question of re- mittance due now for over two months. Two days after the letting of the up- stairs back addition to the family Mrs Wicks had straightway rented a piano and Mary Anne could now be heard regularly picking out the scale of c with one finger, then with two, and so i forth on the much-coveted piano for the edificatiOn of a tolerant neighborhoOd. Did that fellow pay you to-day?" 1 How she dreaded that question and its accompanying look of scorn that was repeated with tormenting regularity by her husband evening after evening. l When at the. close of the first week , the question was put to her she resent ; ed it with righteous indignation.
 Now, John Henry, just give the man a chance, won'tye? I don't believe he's the cheap, to-settle-ev'ry-week i kind. He don't look that sort. You'll 1 see he's most likely been a-payin' his bills by the month
 ] But the months passed and brought | no pay, not even mention of it. It was i the same with the second month. The strumming on the piano began to make Mrs. Wicks nervous: she didn't ] quite see her way clear to meet the reg i ular dues for the same out of her week i ly allowance, An if things went on like this much longer-but of course he wUdld pay-she knew he would"
 John Henry, just you wait'' she would reply to her husbands threats and taunts, ''only wait; don't you see he's the kind that pays quarterly? It's i the real gentlemen as does that way" 1 Meanwhile two months and a half l had gone by. Mary Anne could play scales with both hands now and pick out Home, Sweet Home" and Annie Rooney" in funeral time. Mary Anne was prodigy!
 While thus musically employed one | afternoon MT. Montague entered the little sitting-room with an air of mys- ] ticism about him and asked for Mary Anne's mother. When this worthy lady appeared he stepped up to her with the mien of one sorry to be the bearer of unpleasant news.
 My dear Mrs. Wicks." he began with apparent hesitation. Tt is indeed 1 source of honest regret to me that I must come to you with a complaint, and would refrain from doing so now did I not wish to save you from an evil that might easily bring upon you all most fatal results"
 | (Mrs Wicks' heart actually stood still from fearsome apprehension.) l MT. Montague's features unbent and he looked confidential.
 Really, it's a funny thing to tell you, but do you know, during the last few 1 weeks have been almost tormented to i death by a pest that has taken posses l sion of my room which has made it al- most impossible for me to remain in it, but I'm so happy here otherwise that have had recourse to all sorts of meth 1 ods to make the evil bearable. I am so afraid that this pest might find it's way i down to you, too, and that you might be at a loss to know how to grapple with it, and, so, finally determined l to tell you all about it and to help you all I can.''
 Mr. Montagues flow of language ceased for an instant and made room for Mrs. Wicks' frightened, Mercy on us, what's happened?"
 My dear Mrs Wicks, why the whole room is full of earwigs!"
 "Earwigs!" repeated Mrs. Wicks with an expression of blank non-com- prehension upon her scared face.
 What! don't you know what ear wigs are?" he asked incredulously with raised eyebrows "They look much like thousand legs, run like a streak of lightning, and like to crawl into peoples ears when they are asleep. And when they do why, you get as deaf as post! That's an earwig for you"
 Mrs. Wicks involuntarily clapped both of her hands to her ears and Mary Anne shrieked.
 You may we'll be frightened" contin- ued the sympathetic lodger. T have such a horror of them myself that a have not gone to sleep for weeks with out first stuffing a wad of cotton into my ears; it appears to be the only safe guard and I would earnestly advise you and your dear family to follow my ex- ample if you want to avoid serious re-
 sults."
 With a few more admonitions, urg- ing greatest precaution, MT. Montague bowed himself out of the room, leaving the bewildered landlady alone with the dreadful discovery.
 John Henry" said Mrs. Wicks in a sepulchra1 voice of anxious confidence to her husband as they were preparing for bed (she had tried several times during the evening, but her courage had failed her when she attempted to break the news to MT. Wicks) here's some waddin to stuff in yer ears"
 "Waddfn', what fer?" shouted the astonished MT. Wicks with look at his
 wife that plainly said he thought her
 mentally unbalanced.
 "To-- to- to keep the--earwigs from crawlin' into 'em," stammered poor Mrs. Wicks.
 "Earwigs! an for the love of heaven,
 what's earwigs?" he inquired, as she had inquired in the afternoon. And
 then she repeated MT. Montague's viv- id description of the insects that had
 robbed them all of their peace of mind.
 Well, I never!" he exclaimed, dis