The Democratic advocate., 1908-08-14

LII MISS HarQ1n.
"Great Scottsw with gasp. .sThen
you must be Wills sister. Let me say
to you that am
Hush! You are Raff1es-Mr. Raj.
f1es, of course. Please, please go away
l wish we had twice as much to be
robbed of, but you will have to be sat
isfied. Here-I'u put the things in your
coat pocket. Now go on tiptoe. YOU
may leave the lamp burning after you
get through robbing downstairs, and
I'll come down after it. Hush! Softlyr'
Young Archer wanted to stop and
explain, but she laid one hand on his
shoulder and urged him along, and the
first thing he knew he was at the foot
Of the stairs and white hand was be-
ing waved to him from the top. Where
should he go? What should he do?
There was an awful mistake. but how
was it to be rectifed?
Will had said that he would be back
on the o'clock train. He had missed
it, but might be expected at any min
ute now. The first thought was to go
outdoors and wait for him. The Sec
ond was to turn out the lamp and sit
down in the library and wait for Will
or daylight or something or somebody
to come along and befriend him.
This second decision was final. He
stood in the hall, turned the light out,
and somehow he felt that eyes were
upon his movements. Ensconced in q
big leather chair, he had passed away
half an hour in calling himself names
and hankering after his chum's scalp
when he heard a faint rustic outside
the window near which he sat.
He cooked his ear toward 1t, and a
moment later he knew that some one
outside had his hands on the sash.
Sixty seconds had not gone past when
the catch was thrust over with click,
and the sash was carefully and slowly
raised. ...- -....-.E
Young Archer was excited, but he
was game. 1t looked as If kind
ovidence was sending Rafies to
hip him out of his fix. He rose and
stood beside the window with his pis-
tol in hand. He meant to shoot the
intruder if he stepped into the room,
but a sudden thought made him
change the weapon end for end. The
report of the pistol would arouse the
whole house and he had tacitly prom
ised the girl upstairs to keep very
quiet The man who had raised the
sash waited thirty seconds and then
stepped over the sill to meet a blow
that dropped him like log. -e-sE<*.
He had just fallen when Will Hardin
opened the front door and entered. AS
he scratched a match to see his way
upstairs he noticed the lamp on the
hall tree and lighted it, and next in
slant his sister Betty came running
downstairs to gasp out:
"Oh, Will, we had to come home
and you didn't meet us-and mother is
very bad-and Raf1es has been here
and robbed the house-and"-
"Rats" interrupted the brother.
'But it surely was Raff1es. I called
him Mr. Raf1es, and he didn't deny his
identity. I gave him all our jewelry,
and then he came down for the plate.
He acted real nice on mothers ac-
count"
The library door stood partly open,
and of course young Archer had heard
all. Now was the dramatic moment,
and he came forward and showed him
self. AS the girl uttered an exclama-
ton and shrank back he said:
"Will, there has been a comedy of
errors, with something like tragedy
to end up with. If your sister will go
upstairs and you will come in here, l
think that all can be satisfactorily ex-
planned"
And all was. 1t was done in Sec
tons and methodically. AS a first
move the arms and legs Of the man
ON the floor, who was beginning to re-
vive, were bound. When the mask
was torn from his face, they saw that
he was indeed the Raffies who had ter
rorized the manor houses for long
weeks.
Then Miss Betty was brought down
and formally introduced to Archer.
By this time she had exchanged her
wrapper for something more appro-
pirate for receiving company. Then
the stolen jewelry was restored. Then
the nearest country police station was
telephoned to and Raffles was re-
moved. Then the mother awoke and
said she had had good nights sleep
and felt we'll enough to come down to
breakfast, and she didn't faint away
when told of the doings of the night.
Then, as sort Of closing chapter to
the events, brother Will beckoned his
sister to follow him out into the shrub
berry, and when they were hidden from
sight of the house he turned on her
and said:
isis, you ARE a brick-a regular
brick"
"YesY she smiled.
"And Frank is brick-a regular
orick."
"YesY'
"And by the great horn spoon, if
you two bricks don't fall in love with
each other and give him to me for a
brother-in-law I'll-I'll'-
And then Betty blushed and laughed
and ran away. i4-rF
u l-.xv