The midland journal., 1906-10-12

the rest" replied Mrs. Battersley, In
dixnantly. ST never saw the creature
but once, though 1 heard all about
;lAar. She was getting very stout,
losing her beauty, and taking to
drink: and she married foolish old
man to have home and behave ex-
actly as she liked. Well, she drank
more and more, spent and gambled,
beat him and knocked him about II
he Gxpostulated-and then died in
fit one week before he did. There
was an inquest and scandal without
end; and very. little of the Arlington
fortune came to my mother, who was
the second wifes daughter! So un-
fair too, that of three wives, the last
and worst should make the title OF
Lady Arlington one to be remem-
bered."
The mother quilted the room, and
the daughter was left alone. Though
free from bodily pain, Alice was still
feeble; and she feared that months
/ might pass before she could be
about again. She would have to lie
there with dingy wall paper to look
at as she turned to her right, whlle
on the left stood the large, old ward
robe which had been her mothers so
many years.
Coming along the narrow garden
path were four persons: Mrs. Jay
wife of the chaplain to the county
asylum; the chaplain himself; MS
brother, the naval officer who had
so admired poor Alice some three
years ago, and a young Jay, a youth
at home for his holidays.
Maria had warmly welcomed them,
and insisted they must come In ana
see her mother. It was worth Wnlle,
after ALL to keep up with nice people
who had known them in better days.
Mrs. Jay was one of those women
who depart slowly, and her leavetak-
ing had not quite f1nished-her nus
band, son and brother-in-law waiting
patiently the while-when loud
scream rang through the cottage, fol-
lowed by calls for "Mother!" in
Alice's voice.
Mrs. Battersley, Mrs. Jay and
Maria ran up the stairs, and found
the ailing girl in dazed, half-fainting
condition, trembling and hardly
awake.
"Oh, the horrible woman!" she
gasped. "The great, bloated creature
who crawled out of the wardrobe and
then lay across my chest! Make her
go, mother, or l must die!"
"a DREAM Mrs. Jay CALCULATED; "or
perhaps touch of Mysteries! Well
stay with you, my dear, and nothing
shall hurt you! Plenty of men down
stairs to drive anything away. She
will be herself soon, though, Mrs. Bat
tersley!"
81 am myself now," sobbed the IN
valid somewhat angrily; "but l know
that woman is hiding somewhere, ana
will come back to me if you go. For
days and nights I have heard her
rustling and feeling about, counting
money, too, over and over again
She's Lovely Betty, I'm sure, and sne
hides in that wardrobe!"
"She must be humored, the same as
lunatics have to be-" whispered Mrs.
Jay to the mother. "Let us open the
cupboard and pretend to search, and
then show her nobody is there!"
| Some dresses and bandboxes were
accordingly removed from the myster-
ious piece of furniture and piled on
Mrs. Battersley's bed till very little
seemed left behind. With great as
sumption of cheerfulness, Mrs. Jay
affected to listen for possible sounds
when. to her astonishment and, that
of Mrs. Battersley and Maria graf
ing noise was plainly heard for
moment or two, then a rattle of small
metallic objects falling IN shower.
plaster or mice!" exclaimed the
visitor, somewhat startled at the
sounds.
Lovely Betty!' answered Alice,
now we'll awake and recovered from
her previous alarm. "You are all
here, three of you, and can bear wit
ness to her noises. She began max
ing them as soon as my bed was
moved to this corner and the ward
robe dragged nearer the door,"
''My dear, let Mr.. Jay come up and
see YOU" asked the chaplain's wife,
soothingly His holy Office, you know
and then, he is so against spirit
rapping and such things, and could
explain away anything queer. And
if it is mice, you must have cat
in the room with you!"
The Rev. John Jsy willingly came
at his wife's request, gave Alice a
few cherry words, laughed at the idea
of a ghost haunting the premises
tapped the walls, and finally gave the
wardrobe a good shake.
"Of course there is noise!" he
cried. ut is Miss Maria's black head
necklace, broken and rafting about
the cupboard, or the dish running
away with the spoons. Any movement
in this little old house will help these
sounds!"
On being assured that no necklace