The Meridian times. (Meridian, Idaho) 1909-1938, 1916-01-07

hole, brought my eyes to level with
the rent in the paper. The vista was
not a wide one and dare not enlarge
the space, yet ] saw sufficient to yield
me full knowledge of the party and
its occasion. The floor was crowded.
| the men almost without exception in
! Federal uniform.
The couples whirled past, circling
| the room. | watched the faces ca
| gerly, but they were all strange. No
doubt some of those young women
| had known as girls, but they had
| grown out Of my recollection. None
among the officers present, SO far as
could tell, had ever come in con-
tact with-ah! yes! there was Whit
lock sitting disconsolately alone below
the judges bench. / chung to my
perch determining to assure myself,
but my eyes encountered no other
familiar countenance. OF course No
reen would not attend, but there must
be some special cause to account for
Raymond's absence. He was the sort
to whom such an occasion as this
would naturally appeal.
Satisfied by my scrutiny, explored
the opposite wall in vain for any SINH.
lar opening. AS / remembered there
were Offices there, where in days of
peace the county officers held sway,
and the floor above was an unfur-
nished attic. extending the full length
of the building, having low, unceiled
roof. In the old days it had been
used for storage purposes, and there
was narrow stairway leading down
into the sheriff's Office. Ay and there
was contrivance there once in which
they used to burn waste papers. | re-
membered a certain house cleaning in
which l assisted, and was assigned to
the job of stirring the papers fire.
quently with an iron poker. | thought
it fun, and the chimney funnel was
a big one. Possibly it was there still,
but could l succeed in getting up that
far? The light shining through the
broken paper permitted faint glimpse
of my immediate surroundings, yet re-
vealed little to encourage me. The
chimney was barely large enough to
admit the upward passage of my body,
and was a black mystery. However,
the irregularity of the stones promised
finger and foot hold. 1t offered a
chance, a hope-and l could ask no
more.
l was climbing before the music
ceased, clinging desperately to every
slight projection, and bracing myself
against the walls. Progress was slow
!, and occasionally painful; the con
tracted space gave me feeling of suf
location. and | dislodged enough SCOT
: so l was compelled to struggle con
stantly to refrain from coughing. My
only relief was to bind handkerchief
across mouth and nostrils.
) While the music remained silent,
rested. fearful lest my struggles would
! be overheard, taking such meagel
comfort as l could. The first blare
of the horns started me off once more
careless in the midst of so much noist
as to whether | ratified the looseneC
: plaster, or even dislodged an i'll
: secured stone. But at the best the
passage was made by inches, and
took more than one desperate chance
of slipping; twice 1 chung breathless
as the music ceased, but the secorC
time l felt convinced l had attained
, : to the level of the upper floor.
: With the next burst of melody from
below, now somewhat mellowed b,
Z distance and the intervening walls,
made another attempt to ascend. bu
had scarcely attained more than I
u | rrhar ~ oh
, plunged into a wide opening. Chnginl
: as best l could to a precarious foot
ing, | ran my arm deeper in until
came in contact with a tin covering
I which fell rather noisily to the floor
= paused, startled at the sound, but n,
= CLEAN of light came through the open
: ing, and | instantly realized that tn
4 attic was unoccupied. The rattle o
: the tin would. in all probability, ere
:. ate no alarm because of the din be
low.
knew now exactly where | was, tn
! only immediate problem being m
= ability to squeeze through that nal
! row space. The old-time burner ha
= evidently been removed l wriggle
|
!, were doubled up in the chimney, an
:, my feet found solid purchase agains
the stones. l felt as though the yer
!, skin was being peeled off me. but
= shot forward. my head and shoulder
! emerging into the open. Heavens
:, what a relief! l drew long breatl
dangling over the floor, unable t
:. reach any support; then kicked an
: struggled until fell out headlong, an
! lay too exhausted even to move.
lie 1t was SO still l could plainly hea
the swift beating of my heart, and S
n. dark that not an object was discern
se ible. The music below had cease,
IN and, as l was now on the opposit
10 side of the building, the sound of col
Is versation and movement did not reac
IN me. For a long moment | lay ther
el endeavoring to recall the surrount
o. ings, but dare not waste much tim
ht in such idleness. The night was sill