Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1910-07-15

cuse for avoiding Aunt Selma all day,
and she had not sent for me. Bella
was really quite extraordinary. She
was never in the habit of putting her
| self out for any one, and she always
| declared that the very odor of a sick
room drove her to Scotch and soda.
But here she was, rubbing Aunt Sc
| linas back with chloroform liniment-
and you know how that smells-get-
| ting her up in a chair, dressed in one
of Bella's wadded silk robes, with pill
lows under her feet, and then doing
| her hair in elaborate puffs-braidng
| her gray switch and bringing it, cor
onet fashion, around the top Of her
| head. She even put rice powder on
Aunt Selina's nose, and dabbed violet
I water behind her ears, and said she
couldn't understand why she (Aunt
Selina) had never married, but, Of
course she probably would some day!
The result was, naturally, that the
| old lady wouldn't let Bella out of sight,
except to go to the kitchen for some-
|
Bella got the doctor to order ale for
Aunt Selma Ooh, yes: the doctor could
| come in; Dal said ut was all a-coming
| in, and nothing going out') and she
| had three pints of Bass, and learned to
eat anchovies and caviare-all in one
| day.
"Bella's conduct to Jim was dis
, graceful. She snubbed him, ignored
him. tramped on him, and Jim
was growing positively nabby. He
spent most of his time writing letters
to the board of health and playing SOL
itaire He was a pathetic figure.
Well, we went to bed fairly early.
Bella had massaged Aunt Selina's face
and rubbed i'm cold cream. Anne and
Dallas had compromised on which
window should be open in their bed
room, and the men had matched tn sec
who should look at the furnace. | did
not expect to sleep, but the cold night
air had done it's work, and | was asleep
almost Immediately.
Some time during the early rart of
! the night | wakened. and, after turning
and twisting uneasily, | realized that
i was cold The couch in Brlla's dress
! ing-room was comfortable enough, but
narrow and low. l remember distinct
" Uhat was what was So maddening:
everybody thought dreamed iD-i re-
member getting an eiderdown comfort
that was folded at my feet, and pull
| ing il up around me. In the luxury
of it's warmth | snugglcd down ana
| went To sleep almost instantly. IL
| seemed to me l had slept for hours
but it was probably an hour or less.
when something reused me. The room
was perfectly dark, and there was not
sound save the faint ticking Of the
clock, but | was wide awake.
And then came the incident that IN
: its ghastly, horrible absurdity made the
rest of the people shout with laughter
the next day. 1t was not funny theh.
For suddenly the eiderdown comfort
began to slip. heard no footsteps, not
the slightest sound approaching me,
| but tne comfort HliNNu' ii''' 49,
inch by inch. it slipped To my sh"ul-
dcrs: awfully, inevitably, hair-raisng-
" it moved. | could feel my blood
gather around my heart, leaving me
cold and nervelcss. AS it passed my
hands | gave an involuntary Gluten Tor
1t. to feel it slip away from my mn
gers. Then the full horror of the sit
uation took hold of me; as the comfort
slid past my feet l sat up and scream
ed at the top of my voice.
OF course, people came running IN III
all sorts of things. | was still sitting
I'D, declaring l had seen ghost ana
that the house was haunted. Dallas
was struggling for the second armh"le
of his dressing gown, and Rella nad
already turned on the lights lh"E
said | had had n nightmare. ana not
to sleep on my back, and perhaps
was taking grippe.
| And Just then we heard Jimmy run
down the stairs. and fall over some
thing. almost breaking his wrist. IL
was the eidcrdnwn comfort, halfway
I'D the studio staircase!
| To be Continued.