The Washington herald., 1920-10-21

amount of apparent surprise.
Fancy her telling everywhere,
recapitulated Mrs. Klnsolving. that
she saw a ghost in the apartment
she occupied here--our choicest
| guest-room--a ghost. carrying a
/ hod on its shoulder--the ghost OF
an old man in overalls. smoking q
pipeN and carrying a hod, The very
absurdity of the thing shows her
malicious intent. There never wa;
a Kinsolving that carried a hod
Every one knows that Mr.. Kinsoly-
ing's father accumulated his money
I by large building contracts. but he
never worked a day with his own
hands. He had this house built
from his own plans; but-oh, a hod
Why need she have been so cruel
and malicious?"
TT is really too bad" murmured
| Mrs. Bellmore, with an approving
glance OF her fine eyes about the
vast chamber done in lilac and old
gold. And II was in this room she
saw II! Oh, no, I'm not afraid OF
ghosts. Don't have the least fear
on my account. I'm glad you put
me in here. I think family ghosts
so interesting! But, really, the
bAoi uOts sOuud
ent. / should have expected some
| Suympkins. Don't they carry bricks
J in hods? why should a ghos,
! bring bricks into a villas built OF
ma rble and stone? I'm so sorry,
but it makes me think that age i.
beginning to tell upon Mrs. Fischer
! Suympkins."
This house. continued Mrs
KinsoIving. "was built upon the
site of an old one used by the
| family during the Revolution
There wouldn't be anything strange
in its having a ghost. And there
was a Captain Kinsolving who
fought in General Green's army,
though we've never been able to
secure any papers to vouch for It,
| If there Is to be a family ghost.
why couldn't II have been his, in
stead of a bricklayer's?"
The ghost of Revolutionary
ancestor wouldn't be bad idea.
agreed Mrs. Bellmore: but you
know how arbitrary and inconsider-
ate ghosts can be. Maybe, like
love, they are 'engendered in the
eye One advantage of those who
see ghosts is that their stories can't
be dIsproved. BY a spiteful eye, a
Revolutionary knapsack might cas-
lily be construed TO be a hod. Dear
Mrs. Kinsolving. think no more OF
il. I am sure it was a knapsack."
But she told everybody" mourned
Mrs. Kinsolving. inconsolable- ''She
insisted upon the details. There is
the pipe. And how are you going
to get out of the overalls?"
"Sh8n't get into them" said Mrs.
BeIlmore. with a prettily suppressed
yawn: too stiff and wrinkly. Is
that you. Felice? Prepare my bath,
please. Do you dine at at Cliff
top. Mrs Kinsolving? So kind of you
to run in for a chat before dinner.
| love those little touches of infor-
mality with a guest They give
such a home favor to a visit. So
sorry; | must be dressing. ! am
so indolent l always postpone 1t
until the last moment"
Mrs. cher-Suympkins had been
the first large plum that the Kin
solvings had drawn from the social
pie. For a long time, the pie itself
had been out of reach on a top
shelf. But the purse and the pur-
suit had at last lowered il. Mrs.
Fischer-Suympkins was the hello
graph of the smart society parad-
ing corps. To some pressure at the
command of the Rinsolvings, she
had yielded so far as to honor their
house by her presence. for an even
ing and night. She had her re-
venge upon her hostess by relating,
with grim enjoyment and sarcastic
humor, her story of the vision car
rying the hod. To that lady. in
raptures at having penetrated thus
far toward the coveted inner circle,
the result came as a crushing dis
appointment. Everybody either
sympathized or laughed, and there
was little to choose between the
two modes of expression.
But, later on. Mrs. Kinsolving's s
hopes and spirits were revived by
the capture of second and greater
prize.
Mrs. Bellamy Bellmore mad ac-
cepted an invitation to visit at
CIifftop, and would remain for three
days. Mrs. BelImore was one OF
the younger matrons. whose beauty,
descent and wealth gave her re-
served seat in the holy of holies that
required no strenuous bolstering.
She was generous enough thus to
give Mrs. Kinsolving the accolade
that was so poignantIy desired
and. st the same time. she thought
how much it would please Terence.
him.
Terence was Mrs. KinsoIving'
son, aged 2s, quite good looking
| enough, and with two or three at
tractive and mysterious traits. For
| one, he was very devoted to his
mother, and that was sufficiently
odd to deserve notice. For others
he talked so little that it was irri-
tating. and he seemed either very
shy or very deep. Terence inter
ested Mrs. Bellmore, because she
wac not sure which it was. She in
tended to study him a little longer
unless she forgot the matter. II he
was only shy, she would abandon
him, for shyness is bore. If he
was deep. she would also abandon
him, for depth is precarious.
On the afternoon of the third day
/ of her visit, Terence hunted up Mrs
Bellmore, and found her in a nook
actually looking at an album
It's so good of you," said he, ito
come down here and retrieve the
day for us. / suppose you have
heard that Mrs. Fischer-Suympkin
scuttled the ship before she left.
Shee knocked a whole plank out of
the bottom with a hod Ny mother
is grieving herself i'll about it
Can't you manage to see ghost
for us while you are here, Mrs. Bell
more-a bang-up, swell ghost, with
coronet on his head and a check
book under his ARM"
That was a naughty old lady,
Terence" said Mrs. BeIImore, ito
tell such stories. Perhaps you gave
her too much supper. Your mother
doesn't reilly take 1t seriously, doe.