The Charles Mix new era. (Wagner, Charles Mix County, S.D.) 1???-1911, 1910-07-08
nlECIRCULAR
CHAPTER 1.
III TAKE ! County House.

IKE 4 Country House.
tbs II TIC ssssry 81 Eow D middle
M ID siyssastar lost her mind. deserted
kss Domestic gods ia the city. took
y furnished house for the sufDnser out
0g tos d. ard found herself involved In
OEs 0f those mysterious aYisnes that
keep gu newspapers and detective
Agencies happy aud prosperous. For
70 PEARS ! had been perfectly ON.
Portable: for 20 years | had had the
Nifs.Ow boxes filled In the spying. tie
carpets lifted. tho awnings put UP and
The furniture covered With brown
Linen for ~ fnany summers | had said
good-by To my friends, and. after
watching their peYspifsng hegira, had
settled Down to q delicious quiet In
town. where the mail comes three
times \ day. and the water supply
does not depend on . tank on the
fOof.
And then-ihe madness seized me.
When ! look back over the months I
spent In Sunnyside, | wonder that /
survived II all An II liz. ! chow the
weAr and tear OF my narrowing ex-
D1ftences- | have turned very gray
Liddy reminded me Of ii only yester-
day ~ saying that 4 little bluing In
the rinse water would make my hair
silvery instead Of q yellow white. I
hate 70 be reminded OF unpleasant
things and ] snapped her on.
No" said sharply. I'm not going
70 use bluing 1T my time OF life, or
starch. either"
Ldddgs serves are gone. she says.
since that awful summer, but she has
enough left. goodness knows And
when she begins To 20 around with a
lump In her throat, all | have TO do
~ IN threaten to return To Sunnyside,
and she tn frightened into a sembIance
Of cheerfulness-from which you may
Judge that the summer there was any
thing but d success.
The newspaper accounts have been
% garbled and in~complcte-one of
them mentioned me but once, and
then only an the Tenant at the time
the thing happened-thas | feel II my
due to tell what | know. Mr.. jamie
son.. the detective, said himself he
could v have done without me,
although he gave me little enough
credit. In print.
shall have to go back several
~years--l3. II be exacf-to start my
story. AT that time my brother died.
leaving me his two children. Halsey
VAS ii then and Gertrude was seven.
When Halsey had finished his cleo
trical course and Gertrude her board.
ing school both came home To stay.
The winter Gertrude came out was
nothing but q succession OF sitting up
late Ut night 10 bring her home from
things, taking her To the dresgmakers
between maps the next day, and dis.
c~ouraging ineligible youths with either
more money than brains or more
brains than money. by spring I was
quite tractable. fo when Halsey sur.
gested camping In the Adirondacks
and Gertrude wanted Bar Harbor, we
compromised on q good country house
with links near. within motor dis
lance Of town and telephone distance
Of the doctor. That was how We wen
70 Gunnyside.
We went GU to inspect the property.
and II seemed 10 deserve its name.
II cheerful appearance gave no indi-
cation whatever Of anything out of
the ordinary. Only one thing seemed
unusual To me-: The ~h0usekeeper. who
had been left In charge. had moved
from the house tn the gardeners lodge
. lew days before. An the lodge was
far enough away from the house, ii
eeemeA TO me that either fire or
thieves could complete their work oil
destruction ~undisturbed. The proper
~ WA ri extensive one; the house ON
the top Of a hill. which sloped away In
great stretches Of green lawn and
clipped hedges. To the road, and across
the valley, perhaps a couple OF miles
away. was the Greenwood Club house.
Gertrude and Halsey we're infatuated.
The property WAS owned by Paul
Armstrong. the president OF the
Traders' hank, who At the time we
took the house was In the west with
his wife and daughter. and a DIR.
Walker. the Armstrong family ply.
sician- Haisey knew Louise Arm.
Stronghold been rather attentive To
hsr the winter before. but As Haisey
va always attentive 10 somebody. /
had not thought Of II seriously, al
though she vas . charming girl. /
knew 0f Mr.. Armstrong only through
his connection with this bank, where
The chitdren's money was largely In
wasted, and through an ugly story
about tbs sOn, Arnold Armstrong. who
was reported To have forged his ia.
rhers name for q considerable amount
- sOms hank pspsr. However. the
etOsy haA hsd no interest for me.
cleared Haisey and Gertrude
owey - : house party. and moved out
q e~unnysi1e the iirst Of May.
The arnt night passed quietly
enough. have always been grateful
for that Ons night's peace; II shows
what the country might be under Ia
vCTable circumstances. Nayer after