Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1910-08-16

your kind invitation, butt will he
impossible for us to accept | had in
tended to break the good news earlier,
but this little game of burglar in a
corner prevented me. The fact is, your
Jap has been discovered to have moth
ing more serious than chicken-poX,
and-if YOU will forgive poultry yard
Joke, there is no longer any necessity
for your being cooped up"
Then he retired, quite pleased with
himself.
one would have thought we had eX-
hausted our capacity for emotion, but
Jim said a joyful emotion was so new
that we hardly knew how to receive IT,.
Every one shook hands with every one
else, and even the nurse shared in the
excitement and gave Jim the medicine
she had prepared for Tom.
Then we all sat down and had some
champagne, and while they were wait
ing for the police wagon, they gave
some to poor McGuirk. He was still
quite shaken from his experience when
the dumbwaiter stuck. The wine
cheered him a little, and he told his
story. i'm a voice that was creaky from
disuse. while Tom held my hand under
the table.
He had had a dreadful week. he said;
he spent his days in closet in one OF
the maids rooms-the one where we
had put Jim. 1t was Jim waking out
of q nap and declaring that the closet
door had moved by itself and that
something had crawled under his bed
and out of the door, that had reused
the suspicious of the men in the house
and he slept at night on the coal in
the cellar. He was actually fearful
when he rubbed his hand over his
scrubby chin, and said he hadn't had
a shave for a week. He took some
body's razor, he said but he couldn't
get hold of a portable mirror, and every
time he lathered up and stood in front
Of the glass i'm the dining room side
board, some one came and he had had
to run and hide. He told, too, of his
attempts to escape, of the board on the
roof, of the home made rope and the
hole in the cellar and he spoke feel
ingly of the pearl collar and the strug-
gle he had made to hide it. He said
that for three days it was concealed in
the pocket of Jims old smoking coat
in the studio.
We were all rather sorry for him,
but if we had made him uncomforta-
BILE. think of what he had done to us.
And for him to TELL as he did later in
court, that if that was high society he
would rather be burglar, and that we
starved him, and that the women had
to dress each other because they had
no lady's- maids, and that the whole
it was downright malicious.
The wagon came for him just as he
finished his story, and we all went to
the door. In the vestibule Aunt Selma
suddenly remembered something, and
she stepped forward and caught the
poor fellow by the arm.
Young man." she said grimly. III
thank YOU TO return what you took
from me last Tuesday night"
McGuirk stared, then shuddered and
turned suddenly pale.
Good Lord" he calculated. "On
the stairs to the roof. YOU"
They led him away then, quite brok-
en-, with Aunt Selma staring after him.
She never did understand. | could
have explained but it was too awful.
ON the steps McGuirk turned and
took n farewell glance at us. Then he
waved his hand To the policemen and
reporters who had gathered around.
"Good-by, fellows" he called feebly.
I amt sorry, amt. Jail'll be par
adise after this"
And then we went to pack our
trunks.
Note from Max which came the next
day with it's enclosure.
My Dear Kit-The enclosed trunk
tag was used on my trunk, evidently by
mistake. Higgins discovered it when
he was unpacking and returned it to
me under the misapprehcnsion that
had written it. | wish | had. l sup
pose there must be something attrac-
tive about a fellow who has the cour-
age to write love letter on the back
of a trunk tag, and who doesn't give
tinker's damn who finds ii. But for
my peace of mind, ask him not To leave
another one around where | will come
across it. Max.
Written on the back of the trunk tag.
Don't YOU know that | won't see YOU
until tomorrow? For Heavens sake,
get away from this crowd and come
into the den. If YOU don't | will kiss
YOU before everybody. Are You COM
ing. n.
Written below
No indeed. X.
This was scratched out and beneath.
Coming,