The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1908-02-11
THE HOUSE OF
A
CANDLES
By MEREDITH NICHOLSON
Author Of THE MAIN CHANCE" ZELDA
CAMERON" Eie.
lopyrsht 1905 BY Bob6s-llenm %.
cHAPTER V.-contInued.

iQMAiu Aitllhlius MY bldluldlutl lhu
left me a cheerful legacy of d~istrust
among my %neighbors, the result, prob
ably. of importing foreign labor to
work on his house. The surly Morgan
had inumated as much; but IL did not
greatly matter. / had not come to
Glenarm to cultivate the ~rustics, but
to fulfil certain obligations laid down
In my grandfather's will. / was, so to
speak, on duty, and ! much preferred
that the villagers should let me alone.
Comforting myself with these reflec-
lions | reached the wharf, where / saw
Morgan sitting with his feet dangling
over the water. smoking a pipe.
| nodded in his direction, but he
feigned not to see me. A moment later
he jumped into his boat and rowed out
upon the lake.
When | returned to the house Bates
was at work In the kitchen. This was
a large square room with heavy tim.
bers showing in the walls and low
ceiling. There was a great fireplace
in an enormous chimney, fitted with
a crane and hobs, but for practical pur-
poses a small range was provided.
Bates received me placidly.
yes; it's an unusual room, sir. Mr..
Glenarm copied It from an old kitchen
in England. He took quite a pride in
1t. It's a pleasant place to sit In the
evening, sir"
He showed me the way below, where
l found that the cellar extended under
every part of the house. and was dl
vided into large chambers. The door
OF n of them was OF heavy oak,
bound in iron, with a barred opening
at the top. A great iron hasp with a
heavy paddock and drilled area win
dows gave further the impression of
a cell, and | fear that at this, as at
many other things in the curious
house, | swore-if / did not laugh
thinking Of the money my grandfather
had expended In realizing his whims
The room was used, l noted with
pleasure, as a depository for potatoes.
In another OF these rooms / found a
curious collection of lanterns of every
conceivable description, grouped on
shelves; and next door to this apart.
ment was another store-room filed
with brass candle-sticks of many odd
designs.
l returned to the main fioor and
sought the comforts of the library,
where l smoked a pipe over a very
tedious chapter In an exceedingly dull
book on Norman Revivals and InHu-
ences." Then l went .out. assuring
myself that | should get steadily to
work in a day OF two.
Bates was soberly chopping wood at
a rough pile of timber at the rear of
the house. His industry had already
Impressed ne. He had the quiet ways
OF an ideal serving man.
Well, Bates, you don't intend to let
me freeze to death, do you? There
must be enough wood in the pile there
to last all winter"
Eyes, sir; / am just cutting a little
more OF the hickory, sir. Mr.. Glenarm
always preferred II to beech or maple
| turned toward the unfinished tower
In the meadow. from which a windmill
pumped water to the house. The iron
frame was not wholly covered with
stone. but material for the remainder
OF the work lay scattered at the base,
1 went on through the wood to the
lake and inspected the boat house;
then l followed the pebbly shore to
the stone wan where It marked the
line OF the school-grounds. The wall,
l observed. was of the same solid
character here as along the road. l
tramped beside II, rejecting that my
grandfather's estate. In the heart OF
the Republic. would some day give the
lie to foreign complaints that we have
nj ruins in America.
The buildings of st. Agatha's were
well hidden by the intervening wood.
and l climbed upon the wall at the
iron gate for an ampler view. The
pillars at either side of the gate were
of huge dimensions and were higher
than | could reach. The little Gothic
church near at hand was built of stone
similar to that used In Glenarm house,
As surveyed the cen a number of
young women appeared, and, forming
in twos and fours, walked back and
forth before the chapel. A sister clad
In a brown habit fingered near or
walked first with one and her an.
OluGE btOuD VI oluutuih. IL was ali
very pretty and interesting and not
at all the ugly school for paupers !
had expected to find. The students
were not the charity children l had
carelessly pictured; they were not SC
young. for one thing, and they seemed
TO be appareled decently enough.
[ smiled to find myself adjusting my
scarf and Strengthening my collar as
beheld my neighbors for the first time
AS sat thus on the wall | heard the
sound of angry voices back of me Oh
the Glenarm side, and a crash of un
derbrush marked a fight and pursuit
I crouched down on the wall and wait
ed. In a moment a man plunged
through the wood and stumbled I've
a low hanging vine and fell, not 20 fee
away from me. To my great surprise
1t was Morgan, my acquaintance of the
morning. He rose, cursed his Ill lucl