Coulee City dispatch. [volume] (Coulee City, Wash.) 19??-19??, 1925-05-01

MIN on IL TO announcer WOrlO. WORTH
of love and passion and beauty. The
girl was singing-and the girls sing
Ing was unlike any he had heard be-
fore. What she was singing was a
Russian folksong, whose accompani-
ment was like swiftly flowing water.
When she had finished. David Camp
bell was asleep; but the plaintive voice
of Mrs. Pardee broke the momentary
stiffness:
81 do wish Verify that you'd learn
some cheerful songs such as Other
girls sing gay and bright you know
from the musical comedies there must
be cheerful music in the world though
we never hear any"
Renshaw rose abruptly and went to
the piano.
'srhank you very much" he said.
"And-good-night."
For an instant her deep eyes met
his, their expression as remote as his
own.
Goodnight, Mr.. Renshaw," she said
casually.
Renshaw crossed back to the little
old lady by the fire.
''I'm slipping off to my ROOM" he
explained "If Mr. Campbell should
want me-"
Gle won't he'll sleep till ten and
then James will come in and take him
to bed how he can sleep so much at
his age l don't know I myself don't
average five hours night last night
I lay awake from twelve to five that's
how l happened to hear those servants
come in"
In some way Renshaw stemmed the
verbal tide and made his escape. AS
he approached the door of his room, it
opened and two persons came out
jerks and woman. The woman was
immaculate in white gown, white
cap, and white apron, but she was
not the trim housemaid of ones
dreams. She was past middle age and
inclined to stoutness and the express
sion of her plain face was rather dour.
"This is Annie, sir, the chamber
and putting in fresh linen"
jerks spoke so quickly that Rem
shaw, who in his abstraction would
have passed the pair almost without
noticing them, looked at them with
closer attention. 1t then occurred to
him that the enterprise Of changing
the linen in his room hardly called for
the efforts of two servants, but he did
not dwell on the thought. Also, Annie
was contributing her modest share to
the verbal report.
"You will always find extra towels
on the shelf of this closet, sir" she
said primly. 81 leave the extra sup
ply for the floor there, because there's
no place in the bathroom but the one
rack"
"And-and excuse me- sir, but
there's another thing"
jerks was speaking again, and
Annie, with fitting humility in the
little to one side.
might l speak frankly, sir?" jerks
was almost humble.
"Of course" Renshaw waited with
his detached air. The man wet his
lips.
"There's-there's some queer things
going on in the old house. sir. If you
hear odd noises during the night, it's
best to pay no attention to them"
Renshaw frowned. "Odd noises?" he
repeated. "What kind of noises?'
"That's all can say, sir. And I'm
Ir1fxy Gin in, wi hot
much. But it's well meant"
Renshaw nodded his half-formed in
terest relaxing under a memory of
certain sentences in his interview with
Campbell to which he had attached
no great Importance at the time.
Cali right, jerks. Thank you," he
said, and passed on. AS he closed his
door he glanced back. Both jerks
and Annie were standing where he had
left them, staring after him. Caught
in the act, they started down the cor
ridor and parted at it's end, jerks de-
scending the staircase, the woman dis
appearing around distant corner.
The flutter Of her skirt as she went
stirred Renshaw's memory. Surely
twice before today he had seen the
final whisk Of that skirt.
He entered his room, still slightly
frowning. Everything was in order.
It was all reassuringly natural, and
yet-what the deuce was there about
jerks manner that got on ones mag
ination and made one exaggerate the
Importance of the simplest trifles?
He undressed slowly, but instead Of
going to bed he slipped on his dressing
gown and, after turning off the lights,
sat down in the chair before the fire.
There, clasping his hands behind his
head, he leaned back and grimaced at
himself. The simple truth was that
he did not quite dare to go to bed
Under the surface atmosphere Of COM
fort and normality that lay over the
house, something had been injected,
something intangible. OF course his
imagination was playing tricks with
him. At the back of his head was the
thought of a mystery at which both
Stanley and Campbell had limited, and
which, of course, had to do with the
warning just received from jerks.