Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1906-10-13
CHAPTER V.

CHAPTER V.
1t was growing late-11 o'clock had
Just doomed forth in sonorous tones from
the old eight-day clock in the gallery
I'd Phyllis, having made her usual search
trough her bedroom for any chance bur
Ik.r who might be lurking behind the
window curtains, in the wardrobe, or I'M
der the venerable four poster, had drawn
a chair before the fire and had given her
self up to a few moments of undisturbed
reverie.
As was generally the case now--per-
haps because events Of any kind had been
so few and far between during the past
four or five weeks-her thoughts went
back to the evening of Sir Ughtred's I'M
ceremonious visit, now more than ten
days past
How he had surprised her! He was so
unlike the typical guardian, the guardian
whose one aim and object is apparently
to make life simply unbearable for his
luckless ward. And yet how was it that
she had found such difficulty in describ-
ing him, in answering the questions with
which Miss Dare had repeatedly piled
her? 1t is true that Phyllis had told her
that if she could only imagine the por-
trait of ole of his ancestors in the pic
ture gallery, and could at the same time
mentally substitute for the powdered
peruke and richly embroidered coat a
closely cropped head and a modern rid
ing suit of drab corduroy, Sir Ughtred
would stand before her in propria per-
soma. But there her powers OF descrip-
ton seemed to end.
She could say nothing more-nothing
respecting his characteristics or her gen
eral impression of him. nor even say
whether she was pleased or not with the
little she had seen of her guardian
Il should have liked to catch glimpse
of him." Miss Dare had more than once
remarked, in tones of evident significance.
Il am such a good reader of character;
l should have known at once the kind of
a man he was"
But Phyllis had been only too quick to
see in which direction her companions
thoughts lay. She instantly realized the
drift of the others questions, and the
reason for her unusual curiosity, or, as
Miss Dare was wont to describe any
such little weakness upon her part, her
thirst for information" 1t was all so
plain-the housekeeper's horrible insinua-
tions respecting Sir Ughtred Wharf and
the mysterious nature of the late bar
onet's death had not been received by the
elder lady with the contempt they de-
served, and, knowing this, Phyllis re-
solved not to utter a syllable which
might influence her companion one way
or the other.
V,frshL ha,~ J. 10
far away from Miss Dare and her foolish
fancies. Only that morning she had re-
ceived letter from Sir Ughtred, short,
concise note, telling her of the purchase
of cob. which would shortly be arriving
at the manor, and adding as a postscript
that on Thursday-which was now the
morrow-he was going south again.
There was therefore no likelihood Of an
other visit from him; and when Phyllis
had given this piece of information to
Mrs. Mathews, in addition to a message
which he had asked his ward to deliver,
the housekeeper had answered with a
sigh, suggestive rather of relief than of
anything else
'Oh, then that means it will be a
couple of years or more before we see
him down here again!"
Phyllis was just wondering sadly
what might not have happened before
those two years had come and gone,
when the death like stiffness of the
manor was suddenly broken by loud
ring. which echoed through the hall and
corridors with startling distinctness.
"The hall door belt" calculated Phyl-
lis, looking up in alarm. At the best of
times visitors were rare, but at this time
OF the night what could it mean?
Even as she stood startled and incrcd-
ulous, the bell rang again, this time with
violence which quickly dispelled any
douD'3.
The next instant she sank back into
her chair with a sigh of relief No doubt
it was only the policeman, who had hap
peped to find a door or n window I'M
fastencd-it never struck her until some
minutes later how unlikely it was that
50 civilized a being would frequent this
lonely spot. 1t was Benedict's strange
uneasiness-the dog absolutely refused to
retire to his own particular rug in her
dressing room-which suddenly reused
her suspicious.
What was her amazement upon open
ing the door to hear a confused mmmur.
accompanied by the sound of footsteps,
in the hall below! She stopped short and
listened in bewilderment.
What in the world could be the mat
ter? An accident? Yes, the words were
distinctly borne to her ears. A horse had
shield somebody-designated as "he"-
had been thrown out of dog cart, and a
dislocation of the should,r had been the
result This was all 81 g could gather
from the few disjointed sentences which
she heard above the tumult which
reigned; but clearly the whole gist of the
matter was contained in those brief sen.
fences; and scarcely a moment had
elapsed ere Phyllis was standing at the
top of the staircase. gazing down with
pale face into the hall below.
Certainly it wore strange aspect
There had been no time to light the
lamps, and couple Of candles. burning
low in their sockets, were attempting to
illuminate the large space, and only sue
l.