Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The Red Cloud chief. (Red Cloud, Webster Co., Neb.) 1873-1923 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 29, 1904)
wnp'fPf'-11 '? i ' 'I'mw-piF i j ip 1 1 i mmmmm. ; Kiiiyiii IflWW B- ijww -y fW1 TrrTgr Tfjflj 'nMMMWIiwwMMi , 'r"i V'TaHR I Ri THE FATAL REQUEST O R FO U N D OUT Bv A. L. Harris Auihor of "Mine Own Fnmlliar Friend," etc. ! n n .. - i .. , . . . . - V " i i MI, 0 V C a t t -"j'yriynj 1 9 U . CHAPTER XVII.-Contlnucd. ' vi' lH'fii dreaming," ho snld to llniM'lf "I thiHIL'llt nvorvlliltur l,,i . -...,-,..- v........lrr, (Mini neen maili- milic Hum- in m .ii.mit t Wu lu dreaming still, or wan there I s'limi- one In the i-imiiii hen'.,io himself? I some one sitting before the writing tabic nnd bending forward as though J - The figure had a pen In Its hand, but it inndi- no bound as It rau'h'd over the paper! The next moment it had raised Its head so that he. saw the faee. "It Is the continua tion of my dietiui." he .said, and rub lied his i-iM. H,' looked again. There was nothing there. "Mow dooii thai chair eome lo be theie, in Its old place? 1 thought I had pushed it back against the wall, am) I have no recollection of moving It again. It is very strange." He itsted his hand upon the back of the chnlr. Oh. it was real enough. Tlicre wan no mistake about It. Hut lie could have sworn he. had never moved Ah, what In heaven's name was that? A simple enoiiRh thing, surely, to cause so much amazement and what? surely not fear In the beholder. Only a pen lying upon the blotting pad, beside a sheet of paper. Hut this pon was wet, and there were fresh words added to thoso he had himself written before he fell a3leep. The sheet of paper was the one upon which he hail written those vague nnd disconnected phrases, which had caused him so much per plexity and unprofitable speculation. They had been written Irregularly, just In the same orier that they had occupied on the mutilated sheet, with blank spaces between each broken sentence. Now each blank space had been filled In. and It was with per fectly Indescribable sensations that he read the copy as it now stood: "If you have not forgotten tho friend of twenty years ago. you will. mi receiving this letter, start at oneo for Dover, which place I expect to reach to-morrow morning. There Is The figure had thai ha ween us which I think will not allow you to deny this favor which I ask. I have much to sny to you and many questions to put which you alone can answer to my satisfaction. .If yon refuse I shall think, rightly or Awrongly. that you still regard me more at tho criminal than what I once was. the friend of your youth. The young man read this through. Who had written It? Whose hand had completed the broken sentences, and given them the meaning which they hnd heretofore lacked? Could he have done it himself, while In a Mate of somnambulism? No: for the hand writing was not his! At a glance, he could distinguish the words which he hud written hlnisolf. The jvords over which he had labored -find perplexed his soul. The words which had seemed to cast a slur upon the memory of his dead father which was now removed. lie turned tho sheet over. There, on i he other side, were those words, the last probably his father ever wrote: "My dear " together with .late. "April 2.1nl." He looked again at those mysteri ous sentences, upon which the ink Mill glistened. They were written In tin same hand! CHAPTER XVIII. r- The Advertisement. Next morning a party of three were assembled at breakfast. You don't seem to have much of an appetite this morning," remarked Dr. Cnrtwilght. addros-ilug his host, who nppeared rather distraught with a tendency to start when spoken to.. How's that?" The young man replied, ns he fid geted with his knife and fork. "Thnt he didn't scorn to care to er.l any 'dtfhlng. somehow." ' At this moment there was an Inter ruption. A mnld presented herself with a letter which had Just come by band, nnd gave It to her young mas ter, stating at the same time, that tho bearer was waiting for an answer. A letter! and come by hand! Ho started agnln as though he had been shot and tho doctor noticed thnt his hnnd'-vent up to iho breast pocket of bis coat, ns though thorn wero something there ho The doctor shook Ills hi ad as ho mado this observation. Ted Hurrltt took tho letter hold out to him, glanced at the superscription mid tore, it open. It apparently con- I I J'ubllthina V otnv a nv 6 i fl t t t . Smith. slated of only a fc lines, but those few lines seemed to afford him con siderable satisfaction, Judging !' the play of his features. Indeed, lo Iho two who were watching him. It seem ed ns though the expiesRlon which overspread I1I3 face were almost one of triumph. "Doctor," ho said, "will you excuse me a moment? I have lo send an answer to this by the bearer." He spoke rapidly, and atlll that spirit of elation was perceptible In his words nnd actions. Ho seemed quite to have cast, off that air of abstraction which had characterized his dementi or previously. He quitted tho room ten vlni; his sister and friend tete-a-tete. "Now," said the latter to himself, "Go It, .leremlah! Now's your chance. Make yourself agreeable for once In your life. But don't forget that you wcie forty-four last birthday, nnd you look it, every bit. Ahem! I suppose you tiro very much attached to your brother, Miss Hurrltt?" "Attached to him?" wns the ex clamation. "Of course I am!" "Exactly so and I'm sure It's very much to your credit. Your brother seems 1 mi illy to be himself. I don't remember that he was as nervous and shaky, as he appears to be now. when I first met him though ho hnd a lot to try him, and " She put her linger upon her lips nnd gave a nervous glance at the door before she answered, sinking her voice to a whisper. "He bus been like that ever since the funernl. He goes and shuts him sr If up for hours, and I know Hint he Is always thinking of Hint man who killed my father, mid planning how ho can hunt him down and bring him to the gallows. I don't mind telling you, because I know t can trust you: but" leaning across the table toward him "I can't help feeling sorry some limes for that other man!" "My dear yourg lady! I agree with a pen in its hand. every word you have said, and I am much Haltered by tho confidence you hnve shown In me. Hut I'm afraid it's no use talking to him. I was the samo at his age," he continued, "but. at forty-four one sees things dif ferently." "Are you forty-rour. Dr. Cart wright?" she Inquired, innocontly. "Then you are not quite a quarter of a century older thnn 1 am. I shall be twenty next month." "I wish 1 hadn't been In such n devil of a hurry to be born," thought tho doctor; "I wish I hnd waited another ten or fifteen years or so. I wish she'd got red hair nnd a squint, or that I was cut out after a different pattern myself." Later in the morning ho paid a visit to the lady of the house. She sat up in bed to receive him, with her Indian shawl over her shoulders, and allowed him to feel her pulso in the friendliest IKisslble wny. Hut when Dr. Cart wright had left tho room, ho shook his head and remarked to himself, "Un less I'm very much mistaken, that womnn Is dying of Just nothing at all." "Doctor," said Ted Hurrltt, meeting him nt the foot of the stairs, "I am afraid I shall havo to leave you for an hour or two a little matter of business, you know." "Don't hurry hack on my account, i sha'n't miss you in the least! Ho's off! I'll Just go and No, ho isn't. Why, what's ho coming back for? For gotten something?" "I've dropped a lettor the one I re ceived this morning. I thought I put It In my pocket, but It Isn't there. I suppose you haven't seon anything of tho kind lying about?" le cast a hasty glance 'round him, hut, not see ing It "Never mind," ho said. "After all, it Is not of much consequence, nnd 1 know tho contents." Tho door banged again and ho was gone. A few moments later his sister crossed tho hall, "I wonder what tho doctor's doing?" she said. "It Is very rudo of us to leave him to himself in this wny. What's that?" Her oyo had been caught by some thing white, lying on the mat at her fee. Sho picked It up and saw that it was a lottor, tho contonts of which merely consisted of a couplo of lines, us folio wk: "Dear Sir Tlio luggage has boon claimed. Can you call upon mo ut 11 o'clock this morning? Yours obediently, "JOHN SHARP." Dr. Cnrtwrlght did not return home by the first train next day. The mere mention, on his part, of such a pur pose being scouted as preposterous by his entertainers. "I thought you spoke of three days nt tho least as the length of your visit," said his host; "and I want to hnvo a long talk with you today If you don't mind." "Mind!" snld the doctor. "It's Just whn't I should like." They wero nt brenkfasl when this occurred, nnd the morning paper had Just been brought In. Ted Hurrltt hnd been glancing over Its columns In a careless way, with tho air of one who feels certain that they are not likely to contnin anything to interest him, when, turning the sheet, his at tention wns accidentally caught and held by something which appeared among the advertisements. There hu sat, his mouth slightly open, nnd n vivid spot, caused by excitement or some other feeling, on each cheek. "Anything very remarkable In the paper this morning?" asked tho doc tor, with an affectation of Indiffer ence ; but noticing every change In tho countenance before him from be hind his spectacles. This remark re called the other to himself. He seem ed annoyed that ho had betrayed his feelings so openly, and crumpling up the paper, threw It on one sldo before answering t "Nothing whntover. Thero Is absolutely no news worthy of tho name!" "Now," thought the doctor, "Is ho deliberately telling an untruth, or what? Oh, certainly! I must get to the bottom of this!" Aloud ho merely observed, "There never does seem to be much In the papers nowadays. Now, when I was in tlyj 17th, etc." Notwithstanding this last remark, ho did not forget to take an early oppor tunity of examining tho paper. "I wish i had noticed which pngo It was," ho said to himself, as ho ran his linger down each column In suc cession. Hut I don't sec anything lllco ly to account for the boys's peculiar behavior. Oh, here you am." as tho door opened. "Think of tho devil, you know, and Hullo! you look very much excited about something! What Is It?" "I nm excited." was the answer. "And you'll bo excited, too, when you have heard all I have to say." Dr. .leremlah stured at the young man In astonishment. Then, "All right," he said, "fire uway and aston ish me as much ns you like." "Not here."- ho ,answcn;d, "I want you to come with mo to the room that was .my father's study, and, where we shall be sure of not being disturb ed, ns I keep tho key myself, and never allow any one to enter it." They crossed the hnll; Ted unlock ed the door; they entered, and ho lock ed It again behind them. Dr. Cnrtwrlght looked round him with considerable Interest. Ho notic ed tho dust, now lying thicker than ever upon every object, small and grcnt. He dusted a chair with his pocket handkerchief before venturing to alt down. Then ho took off his spectacles and iollshed them care fully. "Now," he said, as he settled himself, "I'm quite rendy lo be nstou Ishod." "You asked me a moment or two back whether I had found tho other man?" snld Ted "meaning, of course, tho murderer. I have." "Quito vsurc?" said the doctor, still preserving his equanimity. "I will give you the whole story from the day wo parted. You know all that went before." Ho begnn wlth the account of the burnt letter; and the little doctor lis tened with an Interest ho found Im possible, to disguise. "It's a sad pity It should have been so nearly des troyed," was the first remark ho made, "because, of course. It is Im possible to tell now what the rest of tho contents might have boon." (To bo contI'iud.) MISTAKEN IN THE DIAGNOSIS. Doctor's Error Affected the Size of , His Pocketbook. Albert levering, tho black-and-white nrtlst responsible for so many "comics," used lo live In Chicago, but lecently transferred his nlleglanco to Now York. Ho took his hypochon driacal tendencies with him and they nro still in good working order. His favorlto pastimo Is to rend of soma dondly disease, preferably a now one, go to bed imagining ho has It, Ho awako all night, seek IiIb doctor in tho morning and got nssuranco that ho ia In perfect health, and then go back cheerfully to work. Ono morning not long ago ho turned up ut the doctor's just as the man or mcdlclno was getting into his car riage. "I'm in a hurry," called the doctor, "and can't atop to seo you, but It's all right you haven't got It." "Haven't got what?' demanded the astonished artist. "Whatever it Is you think you've got. Not a symptom of It. Good bye," and ho drove away. "Well, now," said Levering, turning to a lamp-post as tho only witness of tho scene, "that's 'tho tlmo ho's mis taken. I know I havo got It ten dol lars in my pocket to pay bis last bill; but if ho's sure I haven't I'll try to got in line with his diagnosis," und he went nround to tho nearest innir shop nnd invested tho monoy in a pair ot nrass candlesticks and a cop. per kottlo. Philadelphia Post. Russian Doctors. Russia Ib very short of doctors, hav ing only olght for every 100,000 Inhab itants. Cheat Hritaln has 180 for th camo number. Domestic Blunders of Women By A MERE ISIAN THE MANAGEMENT OF SERVANTS Y ono Idea In these nrtlcles Is to bo strictly fair to women, and not, ns so many other writers have done, to attack them unfairly on subjects of vani ty, dress, extrava gance, or any of the other well worn topics. To have followed In the lines of my predecessors would, to my mind, have been to prove my own weakness, for we cannot change a woman's nature any more than we can man's, and, therefore, to attack women becausu they are fickle or vnln-glorlous seems to mo ns nbsurd as to uttempt to prove that man Is not the superior animal because he is, by Instinct, fond of cakes and ale. Uonlly, I do not want to attack at all, because It Is as natural to me to he fond of women ns It Is for chil dren to bo fond or toys. My real Idea la to glvo women an opportunity Tor derense, and to prove their strength. It Is for this reason that 1 attnek them where they olect to be considered strongest, namely, In their homes. Tho cry of Into years Is that women nro as good as men, thnt they have been persecuted and kept tinder for years, and that, therefore, they should not bo expected, In tho first years of their emancipation, to bo up to competing with men ns bread-winners. That Is qulto reasonable, and. therefore. I do not gird at tholr mismanagement of the political and commercial sides of life. But tho management of the house they have always had, nnd, as 1 have said, there they fall sadly either to provide comfort, or to spend money in tho proper way. Woman's mission Is to nlways put the hlamo on some ono else. Evo be gnn It. Sho put tho blame on the scrpout, nnd her daughters havo ever since blamed the serpent on the hearth tho servant. Do not run away with nny idea that I am going, for moro love or paradox, to champion servants. A French writer has said. "So many Bcrvnnts, so many spies," nnd, In my mind, servants aro nmnv i things worse than spies. Hut let serv ants be, as they are, woman's excuse for everything thnt goes wrong. Just as servants put evorytliini: on tho cat. , I accept the gage. For Iho purposes ui iWKuim.'iu, wo win aumii mat serv ants aro nt tho bottom of nil the evils of home life. Now let us Inquire Into that. Tho first question to ask the woman in tho box, who 13 giving evi dence ror the defense, Is: "Who cngnges tho servants?" Tho nuswer is "I do." The witness, bo it understood, Is speaking on bo half of women generally. The next question is; "Who directs the servants?" Tho answer Is tho samo, "I do." Purbiilng this line, I usk tho mistress: "From whom do your servants learn their business?" "From me!" "And anything they don't know, I may take It, Is duo to tho fact that former mistresses havo not taught, or havo failed to teach, them?" "That is so." "Then, If the entire education, en Raging, paying, managing nnd dis charging of sorvantB Is carried on by women, and if tho proportion of wom en over men servants Is very large, tho entire blame for the unsatisfac tory state of the scrvunt question must be due to women?" The witness docs not nnswer, and, on being pressed, bursts Into tears, and finally says: "It is all tho fault of tho men!" Men, aB a rule, have nothing to do with servants, tho larger proportion of servants nro women, nnd, there fore J he faults of servants Is only another proof that women aro Incapa ble of managing another very largo section of a necessity which should go to make comfort and economy in the home. Hut perhaps It Is not fair to Judge entirely by majorities. Let uf look at tho excopllon, which again I'toves tho rule. Bachelors keep their In cnt of her tantrums. 'iervunts, men or women, for yenrs, and, with a fe.w exceptions, nlways speak of them as treasures. Why is this? Ask nny servant who applies to you for n Mt nation why ho or sho loft his or her lust place. Tho almost Inva riable answer Is: "I could not get on with tho mistress." Ask why nny gentleman's gentleniun, or my lady's maid, left his or her other place, and tho answers nro always. "Tho missus, the missus, tho missus." As n rule, when u servant gives notice, and is asked by his master why ho wishoo to lenvo, tho answer Is: "I can't satis fy my mistress, sir" or "I cau't get on with the cook." Servants very SBC BP9H seldom complain that thoy cannot got on with "tho master." It Is always "tho missus." Again I ask why Is this? The most unsatisfactory and sulky fetnalo sorvant will always smllo nnd do anything cheerfully for her master, or tho young gentlemen of tho house, nnd when sho is In ono of her tan trums, It Is, In nine enses out of ten, bcrause she cannot get on with the missus, or the young Indies, or the other female servants for tho com plnlnt of servants Is nlways against what they call "She." "Sho" is tho teror of the servant of either box, nnd where there Is dissension downstairs, tho femnle servant la always at tho bottom or It. Does not all this' show that mistresses ennnot manage serv ants, and that female servnntB cannot manage one nnother? Tho servants of a house cost ns much, ns a rule, as the rent and taxes, and yet they never glvo satisfaction, and are never satisfied. Why Is this? I could easily find fifty reasons to ac count for It. Tho mistress who over works, the mistress who underworks, the mistress who Is unkind, tho mis tress who Is too kind, tho mistress who Is too strict, tho mistress who If not. strict enough, the mistress who makes favorites, etc., etc., would nil prove fruitful subjects to enlargo upon were they not too obvious. The re markable thing about tho whole qucs tlou Is, that though money will so cure you everything on tho earth, no amount of wuges will Induco serv ants, ns a rule, to stop long In a plnco. It Is a mistake to Imagine that serv ants nro Independent nnd lovo to roam. As a matter or ract, they ar terrified to leave, because they novel know what character a spiteful mis trodB may give them, nnd ono bad character means the Btrect. It Is the haunting fear of this which make: them, ir possible glvo notice, before they receive It, for this Is their only protecton. Is It natural to auppos that any friendless, und homeless, and moneyless eienture willingly loaves a good roof, good food, and good wages, to run tho chance of mooting a worse mistress? Tho thing 1b absurd, for the motto of servants Is tho not very lofty 0110 of (Jervnlso: "To havo enough to eat and drink, to work all their llvos, to die In theli beds, and lie burled decently." When I was n little fellow, I heart! The mittrtis wAo ft overkini. a servant say that the fate of a serf- ant was: "To work while you are young, to beg when you nro old, und to go to the dovll when you die." I havo never forgotten It. There is very much to be said on the subject of mistresses and serv ants very much moro thnn I havo either space or patience for, nnd there would he very little use In saying it if I had, as It seems all very ob vious when you come to think of it, which women apparently never do, But this fact remains. Wo are as much Indebted to servants for tho comforts or home lire ns we aro to our wives and daughters. The only difference between the two clnsses is that some of us are allowed to try and manage our wives and daughters and some of. us succeed, but nnno of us are over allowed "to Interfere with tho servants"; all wives and (laugh tera mlsmanuge them, to our sore discomfort nnd their own; another thing is that wo can get rid or our scrvnnts, hut not or our wives nnd dniighters, who, I candidly believe, are really tho most to blame, though, poor souls, I do believe most or them try. Tho fact remains, however, that women nrrognto to themselves tho management of servants, and provo their Incapacity for tho task by tho deplorable state of tho servant mnr hot. Men ninungo shop girls, wait resses, fuctory girls, and nil sorts of women engaged In their businesses; but men cannot stop nt home to man age sorvnnts, and ir they could, they could not prevent their wives and daughters from Intorrerlng. The ques tion Is: What Is to bo douo so that wo may live in pcaco when our day's work Is dono? It looks like an impasse, but It Is not. Tho Inrger proportion of serv ants aro women, therefore it is women wo hnve to deal with. Tho real rem edy Ib to promptly sack all your wom en Bervnnts, and engage men only. Men servnnts will cook, make boda, Bweop, and wait at table. Why should thoy not do so for families? They do it in hotels, especially in France, in restaurants, and in tho army. Wom en apparently cannot, or will not, learn, and women appear to bo un able to teach them. Men can teach themselves to cook In, a very short time, and all tho rest Is child's play. Yes, tho solution of tho servant ques tion Is to got rid of your women serv ants, engage mon, and inako them en tirely niiBWcrahlo to yoursolves. Men servants will cost a llttlo moro, but ono man can do two women's work. Chinamen mako capital soivants: bo do Hindoos. Why not Europeans or Americans? (oopyright by Funk il Wagnalls Co.) STOCK BAM DESIGN COMMODIOUS BUILDING FOR REA SONABLE PRICE. Room for Eight Head of Cattle, One Single Horae Stall, One Box Stall and One Sheep Pen Cost Would Be About $415. E. It. D. Pleaso publish the plan of a bam 30 by 34 feet, with stall room Tor nine cattle; also u slnglo stall nnd n box stall ror two horses; nnd n pen, 12 by 15 feet, for sheep. I would like two mows overhead with n driveway between them. Can you glvo mo an jstlmato or tho material needed nnd tho probnblo cost? The accompanying plnn or bnBoment or Imm, :i() by 3-1 root, contains rooms ror eight head or cattle, ono single horse stnll, one box stall, and ono shcop pen. The floor nhovo has a driveway or 12 root, with n mow of 12 reel ono side over tho cattle, nnd ono or 10 reet over tho horses and Bhcop pen. Tho stairway goes down rrom the sldo of the barn floor nnd tho feed Is put down through n swinging door in the sldo ot tho mow besldo tho stairway. By using tho swinging door it will always bo kept shut and pro ven! draughts In tho stables. Tho cost of a cement concroto wall, nnd concroto stable floor, together "with tho frame work nbnvc. would bn -. ... ,p about f-Ufi besides the expanse of Ground Floor Plan of Stock Barn 30 by 34 Feet. A Ilox Htnll; H -llurso stall; C Sheer, pen: D Feed room; K Cow iitalln; K Clutter: a-PassiiBo liehliiil cattle; H, II Mangers; 1, I I'ostrf" under sill. hoarding tho men working on tin barn. Overhauling an Old Frame House. C. S. D. I hnvo un old frnmo house which I wish to overhnul and raise about one foot. Somo of tho posts aro rotted oft both top nnd' bottom and some or the beams ore rotted where morticed into tho sills. I also wish to raise tho roof without taking It off. Can I use the old plates or shouli' I procure new ones? In raising old barns and putting basement wnlls under them, I have often had the posts spliced at tho bot tom where they hnd been rotted off, and they answered ns good us now ones. Hut I think it you havo to splice your posts, both at tho top and bottom, It would bo cheaper and mako II better Job, It you were to take tho houso down, ror In raising tho roor, you would have to splice nil of tho studlng nnd you would practically havo to plaster the most of tho house. The same plates and rafters can bo used again If desired. Plastered Walls Remain Wet. A. A. M. Walls plastered some tlmo ago continue to bo moist and some times water will run down. Walls that were painted ura ruined. What would you reconJraend? The cnuse of those walls being so wet is thnt tho rooms aro not properly ventilated. The walls or tho rooms being colder than the atmosphero or the kitchen tho steam escaping rrom tho kitchen It condenses on the walls. The proper way to avoid this is to have ventilating flues built In tho chimneys nnd have a grate placed noar tho celling so that It can bo opened or closed when desired. I think K your kltchoii wero ventilated so that all tho steam were taken out, you will over como your difficulty. It might bo well to arrango a hood a few root abovo the stove, having a connection with the smoko pipe. Buckwheat as Stock Food. W. O. C Please glvo tho value of buckwheat when ground as a rood ror stock; should It ho fed alono or with other grain, ir so, in what proportions with ground oats or barley? The grain of buckwheat has a fair feeding valuo for nil classes of livo stock. Its nutriments run somewhat lower than tho leading cereals. In a hog-roedlng experiment, n mixture or hair buckwheat and hair or burloy, rye and wheat gave greater gains than buckwheat alone, or wheat alone, and almost as great an a mixture of wheat, barley, rye and bran. Buckwheat mixed wlih other grain In equal quan tities is especially good for milch cows and hens, and It is also valuable for conditioning horses for mnrkol, but tho flesh is said to bo soft for heavy work. Quantity of Hay in Mow. D. MoL. About what quantity of timothy hay should there bo in a solid block 12 ieet by 14 feet and 10 foot deep? Ans. About 500 cubic foot of well settled timothy liny la calculated to weigh 0110 ton. On this bnsls tho mow In question should contain ubout threo Ions nnd 720 pounds of hay. gpCE3aK3Bi Ir-lmVl m I I H I h ft, , 1 1 M ;l j !l m .. v H j w is s? J .'W . .V 1 ! .it M st, si . .'' rat 'iJ U Ml Ji.K5ty,J L V Ft &?,, A: 'r .