Graham guardian., 1913-09-05

tit DOohitt, uhTuiy uch'icI tuuu phpSt
itself, may have been brushed OF with
out your seeing it2"
"It Is possible, must admit that II
Is possible. butt
'1The well trained maid who cares
for your room, seeing scraps OF paper
10 the basket by your desk, naturally
carried It of. When accepted your
commission last night went directly
to the cellar, sought the bin into which
waste paper is thrown and found
among old envelopes and other litter
this small trinket. which but for my
promptness might hive been lost for
ever"
at doesn't seem possible" she fal.
| tered.
"oh" | laughed easily. Possible
or impossible, you could not on the
witness stand swear that the book had
not dropped into the waste paper bas-
ket precisely as have described?"
"No. ! suppose couldn't" she an-
swered slowly.
My powers OF mendacity were Inn
proving. but her relief at holding the
book again In her hand was so great
that she would probably have believed
anything.
"You see." she said. clasplng the
book tight. ''this was given me for s
particular purpose. and 1t contains a
memorandum Of greatest Importance.
And was IN panic when found
that II was gone. for my recollection
Of certain items | had recorded here
was confused. and there was no possi-
BILE way Of setting myself straight.
Now all is clear again. feel that
make poor acknowledgment OF your
service, but II at any time
"Prny think no more Of It." I re-
piled. And at this moment Miss Hol-
lister appeared and called us to break
fast.
"lf II Is perfectly agreeable to you,
Arnold. | will hear tho story of the
finding of the ghost at o'clock, or
Just before tea. have sent tcle-
gram to Mr.. Pepperton asking him to
be present He's at his country home
in Redding and can very easily motor
down. AS no motors are allowed on
my premises, he shall be met at the
gate with a trap"
"You have sent for Peppertonr ]
exclaimed.
"rhat is exactly what I have done.
and as he knows that | never accept
apologies under any circumstances he
will not disappoint me. In addition
to reprimanding him for not telling
me OF the secret passage In this house.
| have another matter that concerns
you, Arnold. which wish to lay be-
fore him. The new cook that Provi-
dence sent to my kitchen yesterday is
the best we have had, Cecilia. and I
beg that you both indulge yourselves
In second helping Of country serum
bled eggs"
A little later | met Miss Holister In
the hall dressed for her ride.
"Arnold, you may ride whenever you
like may have forgotten to men
tion It What have you on hand this
morning?"
can appointment with lady" re-
piled.
"If you are about to meet the owner
OF that Beacon street slipper I wish
yon good luck"
She was drawing on her gauntlets
and turned away to hide a smile. |
thought Then she tapped me lightly
with her gliding crop.
"Cecilia's silver notebook was miss
ing last night She told me Of her loss
with tears. She has II again this morn
ing, Did you restore it?"
"It was my good fortune to do So"
"Then allow me to add my thanks to
hers You ore an unusually practical
person, Arnold Ames, as well as the
possessor of an Imagination that
pleases me. You are becoming more
and more essential to me. Cecilia ap-
proaches, and cannot say more at
this time"
When they had ridden out Of the
porte cochere set of across the fields
to keep my tryst with Hezekiah. The
mir had been washed sweet and clean
by the rain OF the night. and sky was
never bluer. was surprised at my
own increasing detachment from the
world, My days at HopeHeld were the
happiest OF my life.
reached the fallen tree that Heze-
kiah had appointed az our trysting
| place little ahead Of time and indulg-
ed In pleasant speculations while I
waited. was looking toward the hills
expecting her to come skimming along
the highway on her bicycle, when n
splash caused me to turn to the lake.
Dull OF me not to have known that
Hezekiah would contriye new en-
trance for scene so charmingly set
as thisl She had stolen upon me In n
light skin and laughed to see how her
silent approach startled me. She drop
ped one oar and used the other as a
paddle, driving the boat with a sure
hand through the reeds into the bank.
'Tis morning. and the days are long!
Such was Hezekiah's greeting MS she
jumped ashore. She wore dark green
skirt and coat and narrow four-in
hand crnvnt tied under a flannel collar
that clasped her throat snugly.
boys felt hat, with the brlm pinned