The diamond drill. (Crystal Falls, Iron County, Mich.) 1887-1996, 1914-10-10
"A Halloween
Party
AT Which There Was an
Episode
BY ESTHER v%ANDEvEER


Papa" said my daughter, Helen,
"two weeks from today VIII be Hal
loween."
whats Halloween
"Oh. papa, how ignorant you areI
Halloween is the evening when young
folk bob for apples blindfolded, strike
at suspended bags full OF nuts or can
dy and throw Feelings over their shout
ders."
what do they throw the peelings
over their shoulders fort"
"Why, the skins In falling will take
the shape OF a letter. That letter Is
the initial OF the person the one throw
ing II will marry. IL n girl looks into
a mirror she'll sec the face OF her fu-
ture husband"
halloween Is for girls, l presume"
"Not at all. It's for boys the same as
for girls
"Well, what about your party?"
Mamma says that II you consent
we will give it at the Cedars."
The Cedars is our country camp. We
had returned to the city after Labor
day, a month before, and now IL was
proposed to go back for Helen's party.
She looked at me wistfully. ! remem
bered what such things were TO me
when 1 was a youngster and melted
before that look. Indeed, l always melt
before that look. ! gave my consent
This Is what happened at the Hal
loween party. 1t came under my OBJ
s~ervation; but, not having woman's
~perceptive faculties. i saw nothing in
1t. The story was told me by my wife.
and / tell It here al she told It TO me.
The young persons assembled for
Halloween at the Cedars were between
sixteen and twenty-five years OF age,
though those above twenty were men.
Some OF them being too old 10 bob for
apples or knock down bags when blind
folded, 1t occurred to my wife to In
yite a sort OF bluestocking cl~airyoyant
or something OF the kind, who was TO
tell weird stories suitable 10 the oc-
casion. She was q Miss Somers. thir-
ty-ive a old and altogether an odd
person.
On Halloween after dinner the young
folk assembled In the large apartment
used for a living room, at one end or
which was an enormous fireplace. The
night was cool enough for a blaze, and
logs In plenty had been provided. The
room was sealed, the rafters above be
ing left bare. On the walls were the
heads Of animals which I-something
OF a Nimrod-had slain, while several
skins from the same source covered
the pine floor.
Miss Somers seated herself In the
center Of the group before the fire,
which gave the only light in the room,
and began her stories. They all pur-
ported to have come under her own
observation and were intended to show
that for every boy and every girl there
was somewhere In the world a mate
1t did not seem to matter to her or
10 the youngsters, especially the girls
that this was impossible unless the
pair were born at the same moment.
There were several other big gaps
which were not filed, but this did moi
seem TO trouble any OF the listeners.
Miss Somers had an eye OF her lis
teners and observed on her right O
young man, Joel Harker. In whom a
love for the marvellous, judging from
his features, was strongly developed
on her extreme left. partly In shadow
sat a girl. Marjorie winthrop, one OF
those feminine creatures made espe
cially 10 love and be loved. HarkeI
was twenty-on years old: Marjorie
Winthrop was not quite eighteen.
To a close observer It was evident
that Miss Somers was casting or try.
ing 20 cast a spell over these two. Thi'
was noticeable since, while telling hel
yarns, she would first look at Joel
whose eyes-as indeed the eyes Of all
were fixed intently upon her, and ther
turn 10 Marjorie. IL seemed that SHE
was attempting by VIII power to draw
these two together. At times, willeC
by her. Joel would look from her &
Marjorie; then after an interval Mario
RE would look nc Joel and always viii
something of the expression indicating
that she regarded him as her own es
pecial property.
The young people listened 70 Mis-
Somers' stories and chatted till
o'clock, when they separated In orde
that each might go off alone In searcl
of a Halloween experience. The CAM
was situated on the margin OF a lake
surrounded by hills, the latter beinI
part wood and part open. The younl
fellows, 10 whom the Halloween par
OF the affair appeared ridiculous, wen
into a room where there was a billiar'
table to play and TO smoke. Joel Har
ker disappeared, and II was not know
where he had gone. AS for the girls
some OF them went to their rooms
some out IN the boats. while other
scattered themselves OF the shore
Where Miss Somers went was not no
ticed