The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1918-10-02
MYSTERIOUS nEleHsoRs


There was but one cottage between
the Ferrol home and the end Of the
road. 1t had been finished tor some
time. but had not attracted tenants
up to then on account Of its isolation.
But one morning while Edith was at
her kitchen stove preparing some pre-
serves for which she had received an
order from grocer at Danville, she
became aware of two vans of furni-
ture passing her house on their way
to the hitherto deserted cottage. Edith
was too much immersed in the prob
lens OF her own home to be the peer
Ing. prying country neighbor; so she
neither stopped to see who was NOV
ing into the next house nor gave it
much thought
But later In the day she saw a
woman and little boy come out, Of
the house at the end Of the road and
look about them. There was some
thing intangibly different shout them
from the types Edith had met in Ar
cadla. The little boy OF about Jackie
Ferrofs age moved so listlessly and
looked so frail that Edith stopped her
work for a moment to feel sorry for
him.
The child was dressed in a bright
new Indian costume COY with colors
and feathered deaddress: but he look
ed neither elated nor gay. His arms
were full Of toy animals, but he took
no interest In them and soon wearied
OF holding them. His mother, too, had
some OF his toys in her hands and
was trying to win his interest for his
playthings; for the new playhouse
which appeared on their lawn; for the
new home and its grounds The little
boy was as apathetic to it all as
though he were hungry for something
which none of these things gave him.
His mother kept on trying to arouse
the boy with that hopeless persistence
OF which only a devoted mother is
capable. Finally, however, she stopped
trying for moment, to look disspirit-
edly at the listless child.
At this moment Edith's children
came home from school and stopped
on the street before their home to
look at their new neighbors. Edith
saw the strange little boy suddenly
show interest and point toward her
children. The mother turned, saw
the children, hesitated, shook her
head doubtfully, then with sudden
resolution took her son by his arm
and started toward the Ferrol home.
Edith went back to her work, but
soon heard the door bell ring. She
hurried out to the front door and open
ed it.
Her new neighbors. mother and boy,
stood on the threshold, the little boy
looking wistfully at Jackie Ferroll and
his sister, who in turn were inspect
ing them from distance, pending per-
mission from their mother to intro.
duce themselves The woman, aside
from the gold trimmed spectacles she
wore, looked strangely out of place
away from the white lights OF Lob
ster square, entirely out of costume in
the simple, practical domestic looking
dress she wore
"Will you forgive my intruding,
pleased" she said with a timid, anx.
ious smile that was in strange con-
trast to the aggressive, robust per-
sonality she could be by merely let.
ting her handsome outer self speak
for her. II am your new-new neigh
Dor; Mrs. Fem is my name. l have
come to ask your permission for my
little boy to play with yours? Do you
mind?" she asked wistfully "He Is
not very strong and has never had
boy friends and it's the only thing
that can make him the least interested
in life-playmates!"
Edith had weirdly clear Fremont
ton that there was something very
much wrong in the life of this woman,
perhaps in the woman herself Yet
the mother love was so obvious. the
plea was SO hard to refuse and the