Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1911-03-22

necklace naQ Deen nIoUen, anu MAX
examined all the bars of soap for
thumb prints.
Mr.. HARRISON did not appear. Max
commented on the fact caustically,
but Dial hushed him up. And so, Anne
hugging her pearls, and Aunt Selma
having put a final seasoning of wash
ing powder on the clothes in the tub,
we all went upstairs to bed. 1t had
been a long day, and the morning
would at least bring bridge.
was almost ready for bed when
jim tapped at my door. l had been
very cool to him since the night in
the library when l was publicly staked
and martyred, and he was almost
cringing when I opened the door.
What is it now?" l asked cruelty.
HAS Bella tired of 1t already, or has
somebody else a rash?"
Don't be shrew, Kit" he said. Il
don't want you to do anything. I
only-when did you See HARRISON
last?"
IF you mean last" retorted, I'm
afraid 1 haven't seen the last or him
yet" Then I saw that he was really
worried. "Betty was leading him to
the roof" l added. why? Is he
missing?"
HE isn't anywhere in the house.
Dial and l have been over every inch
of it." Max had come up, in dress
ing gown, and was watching me in
solently.
Il think we have seen the last of
him." he said. I'm sorry, Kit, to nip
the little romance in the bud. The
fellow was crazy about you-there's
no doubt of it. But I've been watch
ing him from the beginning, and
think I'm upheld. Whether he went
down the water-spout, or across a
board to the next house"
II dislike him intensely" said
angrily, "but you would not dare to
say that to his face. He could stran-
gle you with one hand"
Max laughed disag~eeably.
well, l only hope he is gone,' he
threw at me over his shoulder, st
wouldn't want to be responsible to
your father If he had stayed" l was
speeches. with wrath.
They went away then, and l could
hear them going over the house. At
one o'clock Jim went up to bed, the
last. and Mr.. HARRISON had not been
found I did not see how they could
go to bed at all. If he had escaped
then Max was right and the whole
thing was heart breaking. And if he
had not, then he might be lying"
I got up and dressed.
The early part of the night had
been cloudy, but when l got to the
roof it was clear starlight. The wind
blew through the electric wires strung
across and set them singing. The &C.
casional hleat of belated automobile
on the drive below came up to me
raucously. The tent cleaned, star
lit ghost of itself, and the boxwoods
bent in the breeze. I went over to he
parapet and leaned my elbows on 1t.
I had done the same thing so often
before; / had carried all my times of
stress so infallibly to that particular
place, that instinctively my feet turn
ed there.
And there in the starlight, I went
over the whole serio-comedy, and
loathed my part in it. He had been
perfectly right to be angry with me
and with all Of US. And | had been
a hypocrite and a Pharisee, and had
thanked God that I was not as
other D0On1e when thn fact was that
| was worse than the worst. And
although it wasn't dignified to think
Of him going down the drain pipe
still--no one could blame him for
wanting to get away from us, and he
was quite muscular enough to do it.
1 was in the depths of self-abase-
ment when | heard a sound behind
me. 1t was long breath, quite audi
BILE, that ended in a groan. I gripped
the parapet and listened. while my
heart pounded, and in a minute it
came again.
l was terribly frightened. Them
don't know how l did it, but / was
across the roof, kneeling beside the
tent, where it stood against the chin
| ney. And thore, lying prone among
the fower-pots, and almost entirely
hidden, lay the man we had been look
ing for.
His head was toward me, and
reached out shakingly and touched his
face. It was cold, and my hand, when
I drew it back, was covered with
blood