The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1903-09-02

|
daft about our young master. but re-
port often makes mistakes-but must
not digress. or you'll he clubbing me
tiresome old chatterboX.
About two months later we decided
to give n dinner party-and TO give 1t
in style, too. Just the day before 1t
was to come off an unlucl:y accident
befell the coachman. who was to assist
in waiting at table. He spralncd his
ankle. Mrs. Archibald "hshcd up" as
she expressed it, seemingly very
smart young man TO take his place.
So everything went off swimmingly.
What Il display of fine things! The old
family plate was all on show, and
made brave one.
Twas bright, happy gathering;
many young. fresh faces, too, amongst
| 1t. That pleased me; you see. when
one gets old It seems natural ike to
feel that way. Mr.. Archie told such
amusing anecdotes OF his life In the
colonies. and also some terrifying ones.
principally relating to his trip to a
! place called-something ending with
'dike." where gold was plentiful. l
fairly sh!vercd when l heard them
such hair.breadth escapes! And there
lie was, sitting amongst us. alive and
well. and as jolly-c"Come now, old
grandfather. get on; no hayerlng"D
But l must say. Mr. Archie had been
born with a silver spoon in his mouth.
A couple of days later I overheard
Mr. and Mrs. Archibald talking, as they
were coming down the stairs. arm in
arm-for they were always that low
ing" She seemed Wee bit put out,
for therc We're tears in her dark eyes,
and she looked different altogether. for
she was wearing black gown instead
OF the usual white one-a relative had
! died, I suppose.
II was the twelfth of August. ard
her husband was going away for n
weeks se.shooting, which begins
in Scotland on that day.
am scft.hCactrd. Those tears went
straight to my heart. They are the
solacc OF the old, but the young should
not gr.eve.
ITS my nose. Archie" she was say
ing. half laughing. half crying. IL
think l could make them love me If
only l had family nose arh could
look stately"
You should have heard Mr.. Archie
laugh. and he assured her she had the
dearest little nose In the world. 1t
was the feature of her face he'd first
fallen in love with, and then he quoted
some poetry about 1.-The petal Of q
fower" tlp-tllted, like the petal Of a
| flower" that was it.
They stopped beside me.
"They'll love you. never fear, some
day. sweetheart says he. Wont
they. old fellow" And I struck two
o'clock, which signlfied, "They will!
/ didn't think then that but I'll tell
you all about 1t.
| SO we were left alone-and some fine
| grouse from the mOors made their ap-
| pearGnce. Or course you know these
birds are always kept till they are
quite old so Susan took them down to
the cellar. I'm far away from heather
and sportsmep now. but ah me. tiny
sprlg of 1t affects me as nothing else
can, except. maybe, the bagpipes. l
dare say I'm very sentimental-but,
dear me! what would life be without
sentiment, which Is, after all, just love
and proper feeling, without which. I'm
| thinking, the pulse of this big. bustling
world would cease to beat.
| Nov what happened after this Is one
! Of the stirring incidents of my life.
| Ny body Is long, but so Is my head,
! and I'll always feel sure that twas
the new man who had taken our old
coachman's place for these few days
who was the culprlt. He was very far
removed from being n professional at
his work, but he meant business for
all that. and Mr.. Archie's absence from
home was a step In the right direc-
ton -'T''r2gt,,;: T'"7.''' .5.e ~ ~ &
About two O'Clock on the morning CT
the eighteenth OF August, when all
was quiet and asleep in the old house
l heard queer kind of fuzzllng in the
dining-room. Then light footsteps
seemed to come to and fro into the
hall. Everything was dark as pitch.
Even the harvest moon was tired OF
shining. and not ray from her fell
las usuaD on the tiled fioor of the lobby
Just then. Hark! What-who Is that
creeping nolselessly down the thlckly
carpeted stairs? My old eyes could
act see-and yet, is that not 4 white
figure. for all the world like q big
snowflake, drifting down, down. All!
n streak OF moonlight falls athwart 1t
and shows clear and distinct the figure
of Mr.. Archibald's little wife.
She stopped as If TO pick up or grope
for something, and heard her say. II
may have dropped 1t In the garden"
Then she gave kind OF stumble. and
a sort OF stified cry. Then--oh. my!
saw her lift our solid silver. richly
chased coffee-pot from the lowest step,
Just behind the knight in armor, who
had stood sentinel there. grim and
stern. for i1ng. long years. The moon,
always ~apriclous. hid her face again
behind cloud. but could see that
big snowflake standing stock still, as
II 1t had been frozen into a beautiful
statue.
She stopped towards the dining-room
as II listening. and then she crossed
swiftly over TO me. l was only q
couple o; yards away luckily. She
: pulled open my glass door and one
after another she pushed Inside OF me
, the collection Of silver plate that the
gentleman" at work now In the pan