Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1905-04-11
CHAPTER xIu.-tcop.inu.d.,


nrst place then, you must remember that
there was great deal said about paid
or my silk stockings. Now / shrank par
ticularly from having an intimate matter
OF that sort made tb inject of public
gossip. 1t was neitner becoming nor
ladylike, to drag little questions of my
wardrobe into the eye of the nation so.
Already 1t was too much to know that a
pair of such articles had been found
bearing my initials. Most decidedly re-
fused, and | am sure any lady would do
the same, to go into hard cold witness
Dox and under the eyes of some scores
OF males proclaim my completely with
such things. If / had seen it my duty.
l would have endeavored to conquer my
feelings; but of course / took 1t all for
granted that everything was too clear al
ready. And my dear brother! thought
GA him; and thought OF every one. except
myself Could do more, Russell Over
shutter"
lhceed, my dear madam. do not see
now. But | thought that something had
occurred quite lately"
Oh. yes, to be sure. 1t was only to-
Gay. 1 meant to have told you that. first
OF all. was grossly insulted. pc
cuilariy insolent proceeding on the part
OF poor Mrs Sharp it appears-or, per-
maps, some one for her; for everybody
says that she really now has no mind of
her own. She did not write me one sin
gle line, although l had written politely
10 her; and she sent me a message-too
bad to be repeated. No one would tell
me what it was; which aggravates it to
the last degree. / assure you | have not
been SO upset for years; or, at any rate,
not since poor Grace was lost. And
about that, unless / am much mistaken,
that very low, selfish and plotting per-
son knows a great deal more than we
have ever dreamed. 1t would not surprise
me in the least, especially after what
happened to-day, to find Mrs. Sharp at
the bottom of all of it. At any rate, she
mas aroused my suspicion by her con-
temptible insolence. And am not a per-
son to drop a thing"
Why, what has she doneY asked
Overshute.
What she did was this. She sent me
back, not even packed in nice white pa
per, not even sprinkled with eau de CO.
logne, not even washed-what do you
think of that?-but rolled up anyhow in
brown paper, the same as a drayman
would use for his taps-oh, Russell would
you ever believe itr'
Certainly, it seems very impolite. But
what was it she sent back to your"
Not even the article / expected! Not
even that ingredient of costume which |
had lent poor Oracle, very nice and pref
ty ones-but an old grey pair of silken
hose, disgraceful even to look at. 1t is
true that they bear my initials; but l
had discarded them long ago."
What a strange thing" cried Over
shute, flushed with quick excitement.
How reckless we were at the inquest
We had made up our minds without evil
dence, on the mere faith of coincidence.
And you-you have never taken the trou-
BILE to look into this point until now
aud now, perhaps, quite by accident, We
were told that you had recognized the
stockings; and it turns out that you never
even saw them. 1t is strange and almost
wicked negligence"
Il have told you my motives. l can
say no more" exclaimed Mrs. Permit
age, with her fine fresh color heightened
by shame or anger. "Of course, | felt
sure-who coulG Fail to do so?-that the
stockings found with my name on them
must be the pair / had lont my niece.
1t seemed most absurd that / should have
to see them. 1t is more than my nerves
could bear; and the coroner was not so
unmanly as to force me. Pray, did you
go, and sec everything, sir?"
Mrs. hermitage, l am the very last
person who has any right to reproach
vol. | failed in my duty, far more than
you in yours. In a man, of course, it
was a thousand times worse. There is
no excuse for me. yielded to a poor,
unmanly weakness. | wished to keep my
memory of the poor dear, as | had seen
hsr last: J., ! should asys SqagiSsrsd THAT
tity---"
"Quite so, of course. And therefore,
what was the use of your going to see
1t? No no, you behaved very well, Rus
sci Overshute; and so did /, if it comes
to that"
Let us settle that we both have done
our best" said Russell very sadly: know
ing how far from the truth it was "And
now you will tell me what made you send
for those silk ingredients of costume so
suddenly"
with pleasure, dear Russell. 1 sent
for them, or at least for what l fully
expected to be the ones, because an I'm
pertinent young woman, foolishly trusted
with very good keys, gave me notice TO
go last evening. OF course she will Az
before | have a chance of finding ont
how much she has stolen-they all take
very good care to do that: and knowing
what the spirit Of the age is-dress.
dress, fal-lals, ribbons, heels in the air.
and so on made up my mind 10 have
turnout to-day, and see bow much they
had left me. Five pair and D half NJ
silk hose were missing, as we'll as n thou.
sand more important things, and they ali
backed up one another. They stood me
out TO my face that l never had more
than eight pair of Christchurch- Tom
stockings-excuse me for being so coarse
my dear; whereas l had got the recein,
for twelve pair from the man that sold
them. l happened TO remember that
had lent my darling Oracle pair No. 10
numbered, as all of them were, down.
right. And so to confound those false
tongued nassies, l came over here in
search of them. Finding that they wer,
not here-for the lawyers, of course. stea
everything ives not going to be beateI
so. | sent as polite letter as, after hel
shameful rudeness. any lady could write
10 Mrs. Luke Sharp-a poor lady VIII,
expected every halfpenny of my deai
husbands savings. How far she deserves
them you have seen to-day. And sooner
would | burn myself, like a sooty widow
with all my goods evaporating. than eve
leave a sixpenee for her to clutch. afte
such behavior. Russell you will remem
Der this. You are my executor"
my dear Mrs. Ferm,tage. l pray 70,
IN no way TO be excited. We have no
heard all of the story, aud we know tina
servants who are of faithful kind en-
aggerate Sights TO their masters
was one of the Squire's old servants VIII
went. Youf own would. perhaps. hav
known better. But now. may l see tn
things Mrs. Sharp sent youT'
''You may. And you may take them
IL you like. Or rather. l should sa,
that beg you TO take them. They ough
10 be in your custody. VIII you oblig