Rock Island Argus., 1909-08-19
The Argus Daily Short Story
Cupid and Ghosts-By Donald Allen.
Copyrighted. 1909 by Associated Literary Press

1t nad been decided IN family cou-
clave to send Hida to the country
for the summer.
Hilda was not in 4 decline. Her ap-
petite was good. What troubled her
father and mother was TO find that
Hilda was in love.
John Wayne. her father, was law
yer of note. and when the case" was
put into his hands by the mother he
handled it like lawyer. In this in
stance he constituted himself counsel.
Judge and jury, and the verdict was
that Miss Hilda was TO be packed off
to the home of a maiden aunt in the
country for three months.
The mother doubted. but the father,
was confident. Hilda had only reach
ed the childish age of nineteen. This
affair was only Il trihe. Aunt Judith
was an old maid and had no sympathy
with sucn nonsense and would give
the girl sage advice That conclave.
consisting mostly of the father. set
tied things in half an hour. There is
popular complaint about the laws de-
lay. but there are times when i: moves
very swiftly.
HiIda was not told in so many words
why she was packed off TO summer
with the geese and bumbebees and
milk weeds. but she had her suspicious.
She knew nothing whatever of law.
but she at once set 10 work to beat
the lawyer. Aunt Judith was grim
and watchful and unsympathetic and
held Cupid in contempt. and that was
where her ease was weak. Within Il
week of Hi!da's arrival by means of
the towheaded boy on the next farm,
the girl WAS receiving and sending let
ters.
The aunt had figured it out to her
self that her niece would suik Tor
about four weeks and that she would
| have to read her at least dozen lee
lures. She was thus agreeably dis
appointed when Hilda did not sulk.
Out in the orchard. under an apple
| tree. rested an old soap box. Twice 4
week the towheaded boy came skulk-
| ing across the fields TO leave letters
under that box and take away those
| he found there. He was receiving ~
! cents n letter. and he had career be
fore him. The soap box was not quite
| as romantic as silver chest would
| have been. but it was fairly safe
| postofiice.
BY and by a letter told that Walter
| Allen would have his two weeks vaca-
tion beginning Mt Il certain date and
that certain event might be expected
| to happen. This letter was worth an
extra dime to Hilda. and she conscien
tiously left the same under the box
| when she replied She also sang sc
often and was so cheerful in and out
| of the house that Aunt Judith held 4
| conclave with herself and amusinSly
| announced TO the audience that wasn't
there:
| ~ have delivered only three lectures
on the foOlishness of calf love and the
duty of children to their parents. b7'
| they have been sufficient 10 open thu
dear girls eyes and make a different
being of her"
| An hour before dark one summer even
! ing Hilda was asked if she wanted tC
carry berry pie TO poor old woman
| living i'm cottage half a mile down the
road. Hi!da did. and she was hum
ming to herself as she set out. 1t was
by this very road that within day OIL
| two she might expect -. But shS
had to carry that berry pie very care
/ fully and not expect TOO much.
/ Between her aunt's home and the ole
! woman's was a deserted farmhouse
standing close to the highway Win
dows and doors were gone. the roo
falling In and the yard grown up t.
weeds. The towheaded boy could have
told Hilda that it was a haunted house
and that ghosts had been seen troop
ing in and out.
One can't simply hand In berry pi'
to poor old woman and then rusl
away. She must be questioned abou