Devils Lake inter-ocean and Devils Lake free press. (Devils Lake, Ramsey County, N.D.) 1905-1909, 1908-09-04

When BETTY
Came Home,
By c. B. LEWIS.
Copyrighted. 1908, by Associated
Literary Press

mother, accompanied by her daughter
Betty and maid, was to spend July and
August at seashore resort Will
@ardin, the son, and his college chum,
Frank Archer, were to keep bachelors
hall in the Long Island manor house.
The faithful old servant who had
acted as cook for many years past
was willing to remain, to care for their
wants and keep the house from being
earned into stable, but she was given
ewo months of with wages and told 30
make herself scarce.
All went we'll at home and at the
@aashore for a month. Then the time
vas ripe for something to happen, and
something did happen. The mother
met with a fall, Miss Betty lost the
@nly young man worth flirting with,
and the maid came so near being
Crowned in the surf that she threat
@ned to quit her job unless the family
retired to a safe distance from the
Raging sea.
Miss Betty wrote her brother Will
that they would arrive home on Ger
tain date, and the date was put far
enough ahead to enable the two camp
eEs to get the dishes washed up and
their fish poles removed from the par
Tor. But what Is the use Of writing
estters to brother who doesn't 60 to
Che postofice for mail7 The letter ar
g9ved all right. but was not called for
Then, on the afternoon or the even
ing on which the family were to ar
E1ve home, Will had to go up to Brook
ON on pressing business. 1t was mid
D1ght before the young lady gave an
@nswer to his pressing question, and
at was two hours later before be
dropped of freight train at the coun-
sTy station half mile from home.
Archer was left to fish the time
away, cook his own dinner and go to
bed at any hour that suited his con-
venience. That hour was 9 o'clock,
end he had sixty minutes to get to
sleep when the family arrived. No
Will appeared at the depot to meet
Them, but fortunately they found a
conveyance, and fortunately Miss
Betty had carried her latchkey away
With her and could now make use Of it.
AS the hour was late no time was
wasted looking around-just enough to
be satisfied that brother Will wasn't in
ais bed and that it would take two
EObust women two weeks to put the
house in its former tidy shape. The
arrivals had been abed for two hours
when Archer woke up. He was dream
ing that he had hooked fish five feet
bong and was playing 1t, when be
found himself sitting up in bed with
his eyes wide open.
He felt that some noise had disturbed
him. There had been a great deal Of
Che "RafHes' business In the country.
The chums had talked the matter over
and decided what was to he done IL
case he invaded the house under their
guardianship.
They were armed. and they were to
do their best to kill or capture him
One chum and one revolver being ab
sent on this occasion made Il differ
ence. but nevertheless thA chm ut.
the spo: prepared to die for his host
Ge:'i. sr@tly ont Of bel A.. ! partiy
dressing. Il ~u'A ASSURED Ia: t ;.-:.t
viii h:.,l mt ut returned! I'i:l ill-l,
he t.is ilvtiy heard Il noise Ia ,..e ;,,',,t
part OF the hOust-the fau ot some
thing
Ratfies had effected All eutra2ct and
blun,ered o:er chair The student OF
chemistry hesi:atel 40 lonce, Hs
softly opened his door. and With a
lamp in one hand anA il revo!ret in the
other. he stepped ont into The nal! 10
descend the stairs
There had certainly been noise
two noises in fact Mother and dangh-
ter occupied rooms al the front of the
house. After sleeping for d couple Of
hours the mother had awakened in a
nervous condition and called her
daughter. This was number one
The daughter had answered, mixed
sleeping draft and knocked the
bottle off the stand to the floor This
noise had brought young Archer from
els room into the hail. and he was jus,
30 time to encounter Miss Betty as she
was returning to her own room.
OF course she was startled OF
course he was startled as we'll. They
were not ten feet apart. and as they
stood there staring at each other she
! forgot that VIII was to have his chum
with him, and 1t went clean out Of his
mead that VIII had q mother and sister
anywhere on earth.
Some girls. under the circumstances,
might not have been the FIRST to re-
cover their wits. Miss Betty was.
She >naotioned the young man down the
hail, and when he could back up no
farther she advanced quite close e
Rim and whispered: -.
Mother is very nervous. and II she
knew you were in the house the shock
might kill her"
s'Y-e-s," replied Archer in some Won.
farment- ~ Ii; Z. r.. : 80 5s'-
There Is some silver plate down.
stairs, but I'm afraid it's not very
good Do you take brfc-a-brae7 II 60,
there are a few pieces In the parioF
worth your bother Won't you please
gtef, down and take what Won syarsf