Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1904-02-27

| tnat my essays appear TO increase our
| c!rculau ton. He made an odd. trou-
Died gesture as he went on: 'rhcy do
not seem TO read them here. although
MIR. Martin assures me that he care
fully reperuses my article on Chaldeap
decoration whenever he rearranyes his
rev PAGES. then turned irreSolutcly.
what is IL. Fisbee?" asked Harkless
Flsbee stood for a moment as though
about TO speak; then he smiled family.
shook his head and went his wov
HAIRLESS waved his hand to him in
farewell and, drawing a pencil and a
pad from his pocket, proceeded to in
Jure his eyes in the waning twilight by
the editorial perusal of the items his
staff had just left in his hands. He
glanced over them meditatively, max
ing alterations here and there.
The last one Fisbee had written 40
follows:
Miss Sherwood OF Rouen. whom Miss
Brlscoe knew at the Misses jennings fin
ishing school in New York. is a guest OF
Judge Briscoe's household
Fisbee's items were written in in,,
'oS a. piduh SDuce DpncdIn the
last. At the bottom of the page some
thing had been scrubbed in pencil.
Harkless vainly tried to decipher It:
but the twilight had fallen too deem.
and the writing was too faint. so he
struck match and held it close to the
paper. The action betokened only n
Ianguid interest. But when he caught
sight of the first of the four subscrib-
ed lines he sat up straight In his chair.
with sharp ejaculation. At the bot.
tom OF Fisbee's page was written in
dainty feminine hand of a type he
had not seen for years:
Inc time has come" the walrus said.
To talk of many things
VI shoes and ships and sealing wax
And cabbages and kings"
He put the paper in his pocket and
set of rapidly down the village street.
At his departure William Todd looked
up quickly. Then he got upon his feet
with yawn, and quietly followed the
editor. In the dusk a tattered little
figure rose up from the weeds across
the way and stole noiselessIy after
William. He was in his shirt sleeves
his waistcoat unbuttoned and loose. On
the nearest corner Mr. Todd encounter.
ed fellow townsman who had been
pacing up and down in front of n cot
tage grooming to protestive baby held
In lis arms. He had paused in his vigil
to stare after Harkless.
where's he bound fer. William Y
inquired the man with the baby.
"Briscoes'," answered William. Dur.
suing his way
II reckoned he would be-" observed
the other, turning to his wife. who sat
on the doorstep. 81 reckoned so when
l see that lady at the lecture last
night"
The woman rose to her feet eli.
Bill Todd" she said. What We got
on to the back of yer vest?" William
paused, put his hand behind him and
encountered paper pinned to the dam
Cling strap of his waistcoat The wom-
an ran 10 him and unpinned the paper.
1T bore writing. They took IL to where
The yellow lamplight shone out through
the open door and read:
DER Sr-FoLer harkls al yo pies an
gard him yoR best venagens is closteR
harkls not Got das TO hive We come In
wife.
What We think, William?" asked
the man with the baby anxiousiy. But
the woman gave the youth a sharp
push with her hand. "They never dast
to do it, she cried; never in the
world! You hurry, Bill Todd. Don't
leave him out Of your sight one sec
ond"