Year: 1877

In the outskirts of the fourishing vii
lage of Millwater stands large, yellow
house, where took board in early life,
while a student with a physician iu the
neighborhood.


The site was pleasant. There were
rocky isles, dells, and grassy glades ON
every side of us while at a short distance
from our front gate was a large rock, that
lowered above the roof of the house.


1 had not been an inmate of the estab-
lishment long before L heard Silas Nor
ton, my worthy host, complain that q
stranger was in the habit of loafng about
that rock, sometimes climbing to its sum-
NIT, as if to get view of the surround
ing country. He could not prevent the
man from spending his time on the rock
and in its vicinity; there was no law
against his lounging on that spot, but
Norton could not understand why the
man should spend the greater part of
every day so near his domicile. He had
three daughters, and they complained
that they were often prevented from 60
ing out of doors by the presence of this
stranger; not that he had taken any par
ticular notice of them but it was suffi-
cient that he was always there.


had seen the man several times. He
seemed to be about % or 25 years of age.
There was nothing peculiar about his ap-
pearance except that his dress was little
ia the military style, particularly his
cap.


The man did not appear to take much
notice of passers by, 30 that one would
scarcely have taken him for spy. He
neither Stunned nor rcourted observation,
but he certainly stuck very closely to the
big rock, and therefore he must have
known that he was in full view of our
boarders and the young ladies whenever
they looked from the windows


At length it was reported that he had
been seen on the rock at midnight by
Alpheus Reed, who passed the spot with
his team. Even that might have been
forgiven, but when one of the young
ladies reported that she had seen him
make strange motions and gestures, Mr..
Norton thought it was high time for him
to interfere.


Accordingly, having creased his long,
winter boots, and brushed his salt-and-
pepper coat, my host went forth equipped
in such respectability as man who takes
boarders at So per week may be expect
ed to command.


On arriving at the big rock, Mr.. Nor
ton found nobody there, and he sat down
TO await the strangers return, as his
terms of absence were never long.


In few minutes an individual pre-
sented himself whom my host had not
expected to see. This was Mr.. Globose,
the richest man in the township, as he
was also the most corpulent. Those
readers who have lived in that part of
the country will remember him better as
Elder Globose. He was one of the pill
lars of the Presbyterian Church, and a
stout pillar he was, measuring some six
feet in girth.


Ny host hastened to pay his respecrs
TO this important parsonage but he was
at once cut short by torrent of abuse,
rolling like thunder from the lips of the
worthy elder, who charged him with har-
boring "that man" on his premises.


In vain Mr.. Norton tried to make the
Elder understand that he knew nothing
about the man, and that he had come
that very day, to require an explanation
of his conduct. Elder Globose would
hear nothing he preferred to do all the
talking, and, therefore, whenever Nor
ton tried to speak he raised his voice
and drowned that of the would-be inter-
locutor. But even then Norton could
gather very little from the words of his
impetuous assailant except that he
didn't want "that man in that place
although Norton was much puzzled to
find out what harm the young man
oould do TO that rock, and why the ell.
der was 30 indignant at the idea of his
being harbored there.


Finally Elder Globose shot away into
an adjoining copse without giving Nor.
ton an opportunity to ask or give any
explanation All that my host could say