The Pleasantville press. (Pleasantville, N.J.) 1912-1929, 1919-01-25
ALunatic
~
- Ey L HAYES .
opyright, 1918. by the Mcclure NewsI
Der Syndicate.)

In her way, there was no better
woman than Miss Bessie Randall's
Aunt Jane Plaster, spinster, having
her own farm and living according to
her W lights. She was full of SYM
pathy and charity and good deeds,
but ''propriety" had been her motto
so long that even her best friends
thought she carried matters too far
when she withdrew from the church
because the minister called and found
her up a cherry tree, picking fruit.
For primness and preciseness and pro-
priety Aunt Jane was without a rival.
In after days, and not so very long
after, either, Aunt Jane admitted to
herself that she must have been
crazy when she wrote up to the city
for her niece, Bessie, to spend July
with her. She hadn't seen the girl
for several years. AS she remember
ed her, Bessie was a 1ong-legged child
with a lonesome face and demure de-
meanor who would sit and play with
a rag doll by the hour and ask few
questions. She had two real rag dolls
made before she wrote the letter of
invitation. She also had decided in
her own mind that she would let the
child chase grasshoppers in the back
lot and climb fences, but she must not
chase or climb boisterously-only
properly.
''You dear, darling old thing of an
aunt, but I could just stand on my
head for gladness !" was the greeting
the spinster received one day two
weeks later when a girl of eighteen
was deposited at her gate by the
stage from Sherlockville. The aunt
felt chills of horror creep up and
down her spine, but before she could
do more than utter a groan the girl
had seized her and waltzed her around
actually waltzed her up the path be-
tween the rows of pinks and peonies
and hollyhocks, with the hired mar
looking oni
That evening, after Miss Bessie had
talked about rowing, swinging indian
clubs, pitching quoits, bathing, climb
ing trees, and riding about in the cleo
tric runabout her father was to send
down to her-talked and never OBJ
served the pallor of her aunt's face
after she had talked-and had gone to
her room, Aunt Jane said to the hired
man:
flames, something has got to be
DONE"
"Yes'm, something has," he replied.
"You saw my niece waltz me
around?"
ST saw ma'am."
"And was properly shocked?"
every properly"
sand you may have caught some of
her words about climbing trees,
swinging clubs she bought of an In
dian, bathing in the river and riding
about the country on a machine of
some kind? You we're also shocked
again."
properly shocked, Miss Plaster"
'"Then you must agree with me that
we must take certain steps to save my
niece from herself. She is a dear girl
and a sweet girl, and she must not be
allowed to fall into h%oydenish ways.
She must be reduced to a state of pro-
priety and that without offending her."
"She must, ma'am-she must"
solemnly answered James.
Fortunately for u.s." continued Miss
Plaster as a look of mingled hope and
relief showed in her face, tive are sit
uated within two miles of the insane
asylum. insane patients now and then
escape and go roaming over the coun-
try. If my niece were to be told that
a male lunatic had escaped from the
place and was at liberty, and that he
was a dangerous character, I don't
think she would want to go gallivant-
ing around in that what-do-you-
call-it."
"She surely wouldn't, ma'am."
"Nor do any climbing of trees nor
clubbing of Indian clubs. If you have
heard of any male lunatics escaping
from the asylum within a day or two,
and haven't said anything about it be-
cause you feared to render me nerv-
Gus and %perturbed, it will be your
duty to notify my niece early in the
morning"
On the following morning James
found opportunity to say to the Wis
itor:
Miss Randall, did your aunt men,
tion the fact that we have a large in
sane asylum not far distant?"
"Gee! A place for crazy people!"
she exclaimed. 81 want to go and see
them this very afternoon! !"
"There are dangerous lunatics
among them, miss. Sometimes one
escapes"
"Oh, I hope one will escape while I
am here and come to the house! I
shouldn't be a bit afraid. Don't you
know that if you look a lion or a lu-
matte in the eye he will become as
timid as a rabbit? If you hear of any
n escaping"
"But I have heard of one" desper-
ately interrupted james. "If I were
in your place I shouldn't go far from
the house until we learn that he has