Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Exeter Times, 1892-12-15, Page 5CHERRITEN'S CHICK. (Continued from page 2) er artist, and the prinoipa] figure was an offensively realistic tramp. "Nothing fancy about it, is there2" ho asked. °' I told him I wanted, real, and he obeyed orders. I think it's the ugliest thing o£• the kind on the face of the earth • 1 made myself up to look that wayand. I don't think I over -did my old self a bit.. .,But what do you suppose happened 'when Chick learned the story of that picture? V by, she put this curtain before it the very next day; she said it was to be her shrine. Every night siuee then, before going to her room, she kneels before that. picture to say her prayers. I kneel beside her; that is one of the many habits she's taught me, and I'm not a bit ashamed of it. If any one had told me— Sh—h--hh ? She's coming !" "Robert has come to tea, papa." "All right, Chick, I'll be there in a moment." Then he said to me, "Rob- ert is my employer's son, and one of the finest young fellows alive; I've been noticing him closely for more than ten years, for he is always with bis father. He saw Chick one day when she Dame in to ask me for some- thing, and ho lost his head at once and wanted me to take him home with me some evening. I knew something of the sort would happen some time, with F� somebody, if Chick were to he as hap- py as she had the right to be, so 1 told Irina I would think about it, What I did was to have a talk with his father first making the' old man promise to holcl his tongue, T made a ocean breast of it, but the old man didn't scare worth a cent; leGsaid his own parents had come over as emigrants. As to me having been a tramp, lie made light of it, The fact was, as he acknowledged, he had seen Chick himself, and he would be delighted if the boy could persuade her to make a mato; of it. Chick did not understand it for a long time, though the young fellow carne very often. When it did conte over her she tried to back out—said she..• never would leave me, and allthat sort' of thing, I told her she might always count upon me being around. Then she rc still -brought �•slie is braver thinr, rl a the young fellow in here, showed him this picture and told him the story of it. By the merest chance I happened into the room just then, and— THE PHANTOM HAND. A Oifea8TMA$ GHOST STORY. 1 sat alone ie the park at 'Deepdale reading a favourite book,. Deepdale, the country seat of my uncle, Norman el'er up the mystery ; not right sates- "your aunt is no more." French, was a beautiful place with its factorily to my mind. .But that's not "Dead 4" I almost shrieked, trine lawns and. pleasant park. my business." "Yes; be calm, for .our cousin's y opsin s 1 had oom.e from Cambridge for my The man turned on his heel and left sake; she is wild with grief." Christmas va:oation, as usual, and aunt me, and I went into the house. Aunt Dumb of tongue and soul, I follow and cousin had made me welcome, of reading in the drawing• room. ed where - the course; but, after all, I felt that some- andel waso t i ethey led. and T took a seat near her, � White and still was the face I had thing was lacking in their greeting: I had been worked up with the ex -seen a few short hours before so full They were hardly the same as .wizcitement produced by the phantom ,enof unexpressed hatred. Long I gazed photo was living, I thought; yet 1 hand and the gardener's words to- 1 upon the waxenfeatures,but no emotion could not define the missing feature. gether until I could not help speaking 1 of grief or pity stirred my heart. An undefinable strangeness had comeof the subject further. I Ines hovered over the inanimate between me and Deepdale, however. cc_ uut," I began, "was uncle ill the form, wringing her hands and wailing Uncle had been found dead in the day he went to the park for the last' out her sorrow, yet I could not feel park sornesixmonths previous, whither time ; that is clid he. complain of any ' toughed, he had gone for a walk. He was ly-pain i" 1 Some days after the burial I went ing at the foot of a tree lifeless and " Why, no, not in particular," she to my cousin, who, seemingly, could eoid, with his limbs drawn up, his face answered ; but Ifancied her facegrew' not be comforted. "Donot grieveso," . nsd contorted 'ts if in extreme agony, and white as she' shut her book and looked I said: "aunt wished for death." his arra thrown over his head,with the, away from me.. A wild, terrified look came into my fingers clutohing the sere grass. Being I thought 1 had touched memory's cousin's face. She beckoned me to old and somewliatailing it is supposed. chord ton roughly,perhaps, and added,',follow her as she withdrew into that he died in a fit. "Forgive me, aunt, I didn't mean to I the library, then she closed the door 1 was his favourite nephew, he hav- ingpaid for my education at conerc �e. I also had many reasons for believing that I would be favourably mentioned. in his will, but strange as it seemed to those knowing his habits of order and calculation, no last wish of his could be found, Inez, Itis only child, as a matter of thought he might need something, as nay grief, 1 know not, but when the he was not strong. 'But I allele, shadows lengthened across the snow- thought it kind o' strange, though clacl lawn, and deepened under [the 'bout his death." "He was old," I said, 's Yes, yes, he war old,but thatdon't trees, some one laid a hand Oil my arm. " Come' into the house," they said, YOUNG FOLKS. The Twins' Christmas. Chris and I are just eight years old apiece. This is, because we" are twins, and we look so much alike even mamma can hardly tell which is which without looking twice, Bob comes next, Be is six, and he's such a topsy-turvy 'boy ! When he comes into the house, seems as if every- thing was turned bottom -side up in a minute. `Then he's got such lungs Papa says he'll make a good brakeman when he grows big. Ctrl is the youngest of all, You ought to see him, he is so lovely 1 He's got the brownest eyes, and his hair will curl whichever way you brush it; and everybody that seed him has to stop and kiss him, he is so sweet, `Then he asks suohgrownupquestions about God and everything, that we are most afraid sometimes that we shan't raise him. Papa got hurt ever and ever so long ago on the cars, His leg was all broke lean ininside,—so up; -not c two, but he had to lie on the lounge, and be She made no answer, and I continu- +' She wished for death. Do Sou tended. And mamma sewed for cross ed. "1 asked beoause Simon said you know why?" she asked with white Miss Brown, who does dressmaking; gave him a stimulant before he left the lips. and it made papa most discouraged to house ; I imagined from that he was"Yes," I answered. have her sew so hard, to get things for ailing." 1 "Then you know that she poisoned us to eat. She turned on me w`th the fierce-' father, do you ?" I nodded in the af- But when papa groaned and looked ness of a tigress at bay. "I want no ; firmative, and she continued ; "I did sober, mamma laughed at him, and insinuations from you, she raped, and . not know until some time .after his sang and everything, to cheer him up, he''s the dearest little mamma 1 and paps. thinks so, too, I guess. Chris and I did 'most all the work, so as to help, and we didn't break a single thing, 'eept one cup that was cracked, and a bowl that wasn't. Mamma used to call us "her little comforts," and we did try ever so hard not to fret about anything ; but some- times it did seem as if we ` couldn't help it, we were alI so tired of oatmeal and baked potatoes! Papa had nice things, of course, but I s'pose pee couldn't afford anything better. One day Bob cried, and said be 'wouldn't eat any supper, else he could have some pie. Chris and I coaxed him out under the apple -tree in the Mamma opened the door au I you think t It was the man, and he began rolling inthin into the hall. Such piles and piles of them! A, whole barrel of flour, sweet potetoss, a big turkey and --everything/ We just danced around ,the room we were so glad, an Bob almost made us crazy. But papa and mamma did act so queer ! papa justput his arm around mammas neck, and I do believe they both cried ! I Mow mamma dkd. The man said the things were sent by the railroad hands. We never knew before that it had any hands, and we don't see haw itcan send things, if it has, Bat something beautifuller still came after that -the post -man brought it. 'Twas a letter, and when papa opened it he found a paper in it that gave him pay for all the time since he was hurt. Oh, it was just splendid 1 Mamma. never sewed a speck all day. And. I'm sure it was the best Christmas that ever was ! And we were all so happy! Chris and. I think it all came because we wrote that letter, but maybe God told the railroad hands about it. We asked Him to help us, and 'mamma, thinks He always answers wizen.- peo- ple ask Him for anything. We all thanked Him for the things, anyway ; and now everything will be all right, for papa is going to' work next week, course, became sole heir to his wealth, her eyes gleamed with a baleful fire. 1 death; never should have known, I and I was left out entirely. My cousin_,1 To say that I was astonished at her I think, had she not imagined that she was a beautiful girl of twenty, and.; unexpected demeanour would be put- , was haunted by a phantom hand. This always seemed very fond of me; in- ting it mild. I was simply astounded, hallucination worked upon her mind so deed, it bad also beenehinted to me byviand for a moment I had grave doubts much that one day she confessed to me Aunt Cecil before uncle's demise that lin regard to our individual sanity.' her awful deed." Inez and I were "born for eaeh,What was it 1 had said to arouse such "A phantom handl" I asked. other." 1 fierce wrath 1 "Yes she imagined she saw one in. In the face of this, however, I had jHad I been saying some insane the park, shortly after father's death, the ungrateful audacity to fall in love, thing and insulting Aunt Cecil, or was and that it followed her persistent - with au orphaned girl in the city, thus sae grieving 1 so deeply over uncle's ly." putting a strong negative to aunts •death that my mention of him bad I shuddered and left the library. In declaration. 'turned her heedI Flo! on second a week afterward 1 went away from Deepdale never to return. Some months after I received a letter from Inez. "• I have sold Deepdale," she said, I told her of any engagement to' thought 1 heeled done either. Then pretty Lulu Melville one day a short; wiry this outburst time before uncle's death, and she' Whether she read my thoughts or plainly told hie I was a scholar of the not I cannot tell, but she came toward school of experience. Uncle was present at the time, but he only smiled, saying that everyone! choose for them - sero should be allowed to c e u selves in such matters." A.ud then, in'. reference to my finances, he offered to help me to the extent of afew the t- 1 sands when 1 should be married, and"- -- With bis sudden death and failure of leaving a will, this bright forecast of the future, as a matter of copse- d pence, fell to the ground. It wast not on myown account so much that I cared for this; but 1, lover like, had planned so many comforts for Lulu' when she should became my wife that it made it very hard for nee to believe any of the old boys if you meet any of 1 was not remembered. them. I wish you'd come to the wed- I was seate linthe library on Christ-` ding, ; I'll send you an. invitation. If mos Eve, and had been thinking of alt you want to see the happiest man there, this rather bitterly, it must be confess - though, look at me— not at the bride- ed, before I opened my book for an. groom." hour with my favourite author; but in IA the interesting story 1 soon lost the Hints About Christmas Greens- bitter reflections and was enjoying the' narrative, when sucldeely the shadow; It is best not to put up the decora- of a human hand fell across the page I tions until the afternoon before Christ- was reading. ruas. The halls, sitting -room, dining -Por a moment I was dumfounded,R# .• .' room and library are the most appro- Then I thought some one was, er �r+yj 0: priate places for the holly. Place large haps behind me testing any creulity % > 7 �,.. �- f� t branches over the mantels and side- r r tj� =—J board and some of the pictures. Fill and began investigating. To my utter / i!:. the fire- laceswitlilar a dishes contain- astonishment, not a living thing was' : " r f-- t> ' ar :. t` p g visible. • `"`-,-'rte{ c ea,,,, ing holly and laurel, unless you are to Finding no one near, I felt strange, y w ti•' �% have a fire at once. Have long sprays but resumed my book, saying to any.:'� „see-- of see"of English ivy in small wide -mounted self that it was only a trick of the bottles which can be hung behind pie- vision. tuts frames. Twine the ivy around In a few moments, however, the the supporting wires and the frames. shadow came again, this time resting. Do not hang the greens near a fire or considerablylonger on the page and over a register. They curl and wilt . g P b me, with one jewelled hand clutching "and I am going abroad. I find 1 very quickly when exposed to dry in addition to the strange manifests the heavy crape of her dress, and the cannot live here alone, after all that heat. tion I felt a strong, cold wind go by. other, with extended index, pointing has happened. Enclosed find a portion At least a `week before Christmas Thoroughly mystified, 1 now arose, menacingly into my face. of the money realised from the sale of get at the florist's about fifty cents pato tut h grounds,book in mond began -walking ent out"Do you dare to insinuate anything, the estate. . Z have no one else to worth of the green stuff called "Wan- g g you ungrateful, poverty-stricken strip- divide with, and I am sure father about. ling t" she hissed, in a low, insulting would desire me to share with you if Wan- dering Jew." This will fill several What could it mean? tone. he were living.," bowls and vases. Arrange it grace- Surely there was a reason—or should AIy blood was up. I sprang to my In her letter was a draft for a con - fully in the various dishes, and fill with T say warning? in this uncanny visits- feet and faced her, " I have no idea," siderable amount, of which I made water. After wiping the outside of the tion. If so,what threatened me,or « receptacles perfectly dry, place on the T exclaimed hotly, what you refer to; good use. corners of mantels book -cases, etc. why Tshould 1 thus curiosity seized me. Bam innocent of any such base intent. Tam several years older now; but I I Change the water every other day. To "—and a.terrible suspicion crept never think of Deepdale without a do this do not disturb the plants; I would go back to the library, and in- into my sou]. "Your fury throws a shudder, and I often close my eyes on ice vite another visitation. . strong light on something which, I Christmas Eve for fear I shall see a ex simply hold the vase under the faucet I had not long to welt. A din the and let the fresh water run until allg swear, I never thought of before. If phantom hand or Aunt Cecil's rigid , shadow rested on mybook and again the yourself-condemnationsaw an insinua- features. the old is displaced; In.a week's time lay wind struck my face. ' By this tion in. my question it was because you the vines will have grown into a grace- time I had grown used to the mystery are—guilty 1" Fattier Christina ful, :luxuriant mass, and with care somewhat and watched it more close- I leaned towards her and spoke the 1 i they can be kept in this condition for p Hark the Christmas Dells are chiming 1 ie last word meaningly. It was a risky Let your voice with them be rhyming months. After a few moments' pausing on shot, but fortunately it told. One this festal morn. Smilax, asparagus. fern and other the page the shadow dropped to the Sheput her handonthe table and Hoer them heralding my coming.— delicate vines can be used for pictures floor, where it continued g to Hoard you not amid their humming and statuary, but the expense ptsmoving stood trembling like an aspen leaf. Blast of bugle born ? y p P and fro until it disappeared suddenly. " Oh ! Maurice `doyou think I gave them out of the reach of the majority "h I am patron of the season ! 1 once more left the house and stroll- your` uncle a poisonous draught $ she- From my realm I banish treason of people. There is a hardy wild fern ed through h thegrounds to think thepale, g which all florists keepnow and sell for g gasped.. Her face was ashen and Crown me Christmas' King r matter over. her eyes took on an expression of deep - And children T am gracious,about ten cents a dozen sprays. Buy r� Well 1" ejaculated T feeling utter- And for them in ba capacious , g est anguish. Gifts of toys I bine a few dozen of these and place them on i nonplussed " this is strange; some- " T stood still 1 felt m blood rim y g. the cellar floor. Sprinkle well and .y• P evidently about to ha eu- overwrought fount. By my beard and hair so hoary, theywill keepfor' weeks. Alar e thing is e ayPP coldly, back to its overt o bgetNeer was known in lite or tory g perhaps to Lela," With this I started " Aunt Cecil, I began, but could Such a king as I. bowl filled with these and a few flowers •for the house. no further ; a faintness came over me Christendom, I rule suprernely, will make an effective piece for the .' " And, though old I am extremely, Just eel was about"to enter the ,and 1 sank prone upon chair: Oh; g 1 y, center of the dinner table; or,'thebowl door I'met the gardener. "Bin,out in Uncle Norman 1" I moaned. Never shall Y sire . can be placed on a low table in any of nds haveye ?" he said and be- " still," Bred she, Torozzto. VPirs Inez T. JAMES. the rooms. These suggestions are for the grow ,. _ Maurice, be s , p bg fore I had time to reply he commenced "You drive me frantic, frantic, frantic! with modestpurses. 1„ Carols.—Originally religious songs r people P dwelling on the loneliness of the place Iph, God, how I have su!}erecl . n 1/ i Mr. Trench's cur'us death, and veelthrou h filehall dating back to the second century. ' Whyare wheat andpotatoes like the since She turned n b Gradually degenerated until theywere p " Oh 1" I replied, . ` UTncle Norman an as if the l+'ather of ]evil Y g d upstairsn a idols of old ?—Eyes have they but they, iter her. '� My God 1 can it be prohibited by clergy, Under Saxon Pikears have theybut theyhear would not harm anyone, living and were e y see not, could not. But, T man 1" I kings in England they were revived faa dead I am sure he o that she poisoned Uncle Nor element introduced. Puri- uo not. tell me about hum. Was he ill the day uestioned as I rose - Mid began to and a gayer tanjto thepark to elle l" q sal about the'rouncls tans abolished them and substituted Christmas -box. ---A gift made to a he went in wander •aiz?le the'ri� "unno seems he must �,; e me severest with psalms in y sou At present, in Eng. - tans servant or one in at lower position than Well, 1 a ,now gradually beeoma o- r remifrland, merry songs sung on Christmas he stoner. An : English custom � and have' been, too,'for your aunt gave him st1ow. - • e he started, 'cause she morning, ... , erre, a stimulant afore , How long 1 ti� all:ecl,half crazed with "Tell?" " Woil, Robert threw his arms around her, and instead of seeming embarrassed when he saw me he spoke up as manly as you please, and said : -» "Thank you, Mr. Cherriton." " That's about all there is to the story. You're welcome to tell it to .14 ■ II l et 01404'of9 4,0 111111 d!p`til i Ile I moo lu ll .IlI41IlU1lI1I11111 �. I II I J{^S^} 1 1 �� 'a �I1 Av ANXIOUS MOMENT. 'I say, B3V,, 1 doan' feel like 'vesttn' in tu'key 1V,4 dtt dog ob rolt'n a'ehawn"way at me ; so yo"blige me by cdllin him off: Gideon's Ban: how dem toef of his'n do lashcratel„Snt doan boddah yo'so'f co:nin'roun'; es whistle him off, Boss, right whore yo' is." The Birth of Motherhood. To me, that 'Christmas night at Bethlehem has no more beautiful sig- nificance than that ib was the birth of an honored motherhood as well as of a Saviour. Two angels on their wings might have brought an infant Saviour t.o Bethlehem without Mary being there at all. When the villagers, on the morning of December 250, awoke, by Divine arrangement and in some un- explained way, the child Tesus neigh have been found in some comfortabl cradle of the village. But no, no ! Motherhood for all time was to be eon- seerated, and one of the tenderest re lotions was to be the maternal relation, yard, and told him it was 'most Christ- and one of the sweetest word mas, and then we should have every- "Mother 1 In a11 ageses God has as lenor thing mice; chicken and pie, and p'raps ed good. motherhood. John Wesle, cranberry sauce ! had a. goal mother ; St. Bernard hat After that we had to tell him all a good mother; Samuel Budget, a goo about it over and over every day, so mother ; Doddridge, a good mother as to keep him from making a fuss, and Walter Scott, agood mother; Benjanf worrying mamma. West, a good mother. In a grea But one day something dreadful audience, most of whom were Chri happened. I was washing dishes, tiaras, I asked that all those who ha and T heard papa and mamma talking beenblessed of Christian mothers a low together, and papa said, "Poor and almost the entire assembly stag clears, they won't have much Christmas up.. Don't you see how important this year !" is that all motherhood be consecrate' Mamma said, "Never mind. You When you hear same one in sereno will soon he at work, and then we'll or oration speak in the abstract of give them a treat." I ran out under the apple -tree and told Chris, end we cried and cried till all the grass was wet with tears. It seemed as if we couldn't stand oatmeal another single clay. But we didn't dare to let Bob know, and we couldn't trouble mamma, so we had to bear it. After a lone time we thought of something. We got some paper and and. this a c n ' and wrote lotto a. pencil, , was what was in it : MR. PRESIDENT.—Our papa worked on the cars, and got all smashed up—he wasn't one bit careless, but %was trying to save an Irish boy from being killed. Sometimes he gets pretty blue, mamma says, but we think he is real white, and we are too poor to have any Christmas, and it seems as if our hearts will break, else you can help us, we are so sick of oatmeal; but if you cant, maybe God Will. CHRISTINE AND MORA.. P. S. Our papa's name is Arthur Cordes. good, faithful, honest mother your ey fill up with tears, while you say yourself, that was my mother. Tl first word a child utters le apt to "mamma," and the old man in h dying dreams calls," Mother 1 Mother It matters not whether she was broug up in the surrounding of a. city, in affluent home, and was dressed propriately with refer, pee to t mandc of modern life, or w enter wore the old•tirne cap, and gre round spectacles, and apron of her of make, and knit your socks with h own needles, seated by the broad fi place, with great black log ablaze o winter night. It matters not h many wrinkles crossed and recros her face, and how much her should stooped with the burdens of a 1 life, if you painted a Madonna h would be the face. What a gentle h she had when we were sick, and a voice to soothe pain ! And was th any one who could so fill up a ro with peace and purity, and lig And what a sad day that was w we came home and she could gree not, for her lips were forever s Come back, mother, this Christ day, take your oke place, and ten, or twenty, or fifty years come and open the old Bible you to read, and kneel in the same p where you used to pray, and look u us as of old when you wished u Merry Christmas or a Happy Year ! But, no 1 That would not fair to call you back. You had trou enough, and aches enough, and berg meats enough while you were Tarry by the throne, mother, ti join you there, your prayers aliens ed, and in the eternal homestea our God we shall again keep Chris jubilee together. But speak from thrones, all you glorified mothers, say to all these, your sons and daug words of love, words of warning, :w of cheer. They need your void they have traveled far and with a beart-break since you left them out there was only a little silver left ; you do well to call from the heig but then, she smiled just the same as }leaven to the valleys of the ever and said God would take care of Hail, enthroned ancestry ! W US. coming. Deep a place for ns, beside you, at the banquet. Slow -footed years 1 More swifty Into the gold: of that unsetting's Homesick we are for-thee— Calm land beyond the sea. T. Ds WITT TAU.: Then we put the letter in an enve- lope and carried it to the post -office. The man looked at it and asked us who 'twas for. Chris told him, "The Rail- road President." He was so kind and asked us ever so many questions, and before I knew it, we had told him all about it. He had such a cold he had to keep using his handkerchief most all the time. Then he wrote something on. the envelope and said it was all right. And we ran home and waited until the last day before Christmas but no- body sent anything, and Chris and I felt so we couldn't eat a mouthful of supper—hardly-though we made be- lieve to. But Bob and Carl kept talking all the time about the nice things they should have to -morrow for dinner. Just then Chris pulled my dress under the table, and I ieoked at papa and he was slying putting all of his nice toast and dropped egg on Carl's and Bob's plates. Even mamma looked sober when the rent -man came that night for the money ; and when she had counted it When Chris and I went to bed that night we had another spell of cry- ing, but we kept our faces in the pil- low, so nobody would hear us, and we both said we could not sleep a mite all night. But it was so funny, the very first thing we knew, it was morning, and Christmas was once observed o there was such a pounding at the out- Roman Catholici led aped ed Episcopal s opal boll side stool' ! I all the churches and there exists al all bed and peeped universal brotherhood in the eAl , We jumped out of p r through the door -in our ni:rcht-dress- this day. More than any oth? es lby it will be the world's holitla