J
I
t
fcl
V
4
J
tommatmssxx
t Thats the one for my money inter
rupted Mr Gee loudly snapping his lin
gers Mrs Curzon will tell us all about
it so fire away and his companion
picked out the letter in question be
gan to read the following effusion
My Dear Miles Of course you have
opened and road Mr Barkers letter and
know the great news that you are now a
rich and an engaged man I wonder
how you are taking it Im sure your
face is a beautiful study this minute I
Wish I could see it Do you know how it
happened No of course you dont and
you shall hear without further delay
Three years ago when Esme was return
ing from school just as the train was
starting from Victoria an old gentleman
and his man servant came scuffling up
at any rate Esme is and countrified
I6hould like her for a sister-in-law very
much and you have my full and free
consent Of course you will come home
at once By the time this reaches you
six weeks of the six months will be gone
You will never be so mad as to let the
money go to the college in Calcutta if
you do I shall consider that you are not
responsible for your actions Mind you
sell off your little effects without delay
and come home immediately to vour affec
tionate sister ANNIE CURZON
Sell off my little effects I think 1 see
myself exclaimed her brother folding
up her letter with deliberate contempt
With the snipe just coming in and the
ces on next month
But there are heaps of racing and
shooting at home observed Mr Gee
No sport to hold a candle to what we
have out here Thirty brace of snipe
within four miles at Ya Goo or if you
like to go down the river to Liriam there
are a couple of hundred actually expect
ing you Besides all this Im going to
have a shot for the gold cup with Des
tiny and Ive promised Patterson to ride
Typhoon in the hunt steeplechase so I
dont stir for a mouth if then
Til tell you what Mr Gees favor
ite preamble you are too old to be talk
ing such nonsense A child would know
better than to be playing with his his
fate in tbisway And as to Typhoon
a bad tempered puling little brute with
as much mouth as a whale hell nearly
kill somebody yet
CHAPTER V
True to Mr Gees doleful prophecy Ty
phoon threw his rider in the races which
tookrplace a few days later with the
result that Miles was laid up with three
broken ribs Captain Brabazons acci
dent detained him more than a month in
Rangoon Tt was the first of July before
the doctors nvi him a reluciuut
ztWT S jNr
-
jjirty c
gaptaii grabaofi j
SI BY B 7Ut CROKER JlE
1 - Jill
CHAPTER IV Continued
He was the queerest old fellow you ever i
beheld in a white beaver hat a blue
cutaway coat and a checker tie and car
ried an umbrella that would frighten you
The carriage door was flung open but the
inmates showed no flattering desire for
his society very much the other way
squared themselves and scowled But
Esme who is good natured made room
for him in fact did the honors of the
compartment so agreeably and comport
ed herself so worthily that when he de
scended at a station he begged the favor
of her name and address which she gave
little dreaming that the yellow faced old
fogy was the renowned Uncle George
About six months later came an invita
tion asking her to spend three days with
the old gentleman It seems that she
made a very favorable impression on Un
cle G and the conclusion that she was
to be rewarded with your hand and that
it was a pity to divide the money in the
funds
Seriously my dear Miles she is a very
nice girl pretty and lively or would be
the latter only for her stepmother who
keeps these poor girls strictly in the back-
1 sion to take his passage in the
next
Go on go on Im just boiling to hear steamer
the sequel said Mr Gee nodding his Is Miles arrived in England oaryx in the
head like a mandarin
Give me time my dear sir In a few
days back came a letter saying that the
other was a hoax and he had only sent
it to try me and feel the family pulse
so to speak and as I had responded in
a liberal spirit I would never have any
cause to regret my generosity
1 -wish to goodness a relative would
play me the same trick A sprat of ten
pounds landing a salmon of forty thou
sand is plenty good business as they
say out here And by the way about
your cousin did she tip him too grin-
hing
Xot that I am aware of She must
have been in short frocks at the time of
- this particular episode
And have you never seen her inquis
itively
Not to remember distinctly There
were two little girls at Aunt Janes -when
I went to say good by years ago 1 rec
ollect chasing one of them round the gar
den and kissing her tremendously but
which it was I dont know and 1 suppose
it would be a delicate subject to inquire
into
Pretty picture But if she were as
ugly as the pig faced lady herself Id
marry her and never think twice about
it said Mr Gee resolutely Theres a
lot of spending in forty thousand pounds
but I cant tancy an old stick-in-the-mud
like you chasing and kissing any girl
youug or old grinning Tell me some
more labout her Where does she live
when she is at home Has she any sis
ter that would be likely to come in for
money Come dont be so glum man
alive
I -would have to go into our family
history said Miles I will read you a
letter and enlighten you for I know very
little about her myself There are lots
to choose from See what it is to come
in for a fortune Theres Mrs Braba
zons frightfully gushing and full of de
light congratulation and consent It
would be manners to wait till she was
asked Theres Aunt Janes that looks
as if it were written with a pin crammed
I jwith advice Theres my sister Annies
month of August and spent some time
with his sister at Folkestone staving off
the evil day as he called it in his own
mind when he must present himself at
Barousford in the ridiculous character of
an engaged young man who had never
set eye on his liancee Mrs Curzon was
si well jointured widow some years older
than her brother and any affection she
could conveniently spare from her three
idolized boys was bestowed on him
There is no use in postponing the vis
it she declared for the tenth time It
looks so extremely odd it looks as if you
did not want to carry out the engage
ment
Neither I do muttered her brother
You dont know when you are well
off said Annie with decision Its not
one young man in a thousand who has
your opportunities A pretty girl and a
large fortune for the mere picking up
You would be mad not to go to Barous
ford at least to see her Time is get
ting on
In the end her eloquent counsels pre
vailed and Miles sat down and wrote oil
a letter announcing his arrival for the
following day Strike while the iron
is hot was Mrs Curzons maxim The
resources of Baronsford were large its
hospitality in old days famous so he
waited for no reply but turning his back
upon the attractions of Folkestone set
forth for Thornshire the next afternoon
In three hours time he found himself on
the platform at Byford station about
four miles from Baronsford and leaving
his portmanteau to follow set out across
the fields thinking he would make the
old short cut and meet with familiar stiles
and pathways But ten years had work
ed a change He rambled about and lost
his way and nearly an hour and a half
elapsed before the big red chimneys of
the house he sought were to be seen shyly
peeping through the surrounding trees
As he approached the gate all his
dreamy speculations and nervous fore
bodings vanished his mind was galvan
ized to sudden alertness as he noticed for
the first time the figure of a tall girl in
white standing on the drive beyond the
trees in the full light of the harvest moon
She was young and slender as well as
he could judge Her head was bent for
ward in an attitude of listening and her
whole pose denoted eager expectation
She was without doubt waiting for
somebody Waiting for him Impossi
ble The instant she heard his footsteps
and caught an outline of his figure she
made a quick gesture of welcome and
gathering up her dress with one sudden
swoop came flying down to meet him
with the swiftness of a white squall
He could now hear her running toward
him in the dark for it was dark her
hasty high heeled shoes pattering rap
idly over the gravel Nearer nearer
nearer they came His heart beat fast
er even than when in dense and distant
Indian jungles he had heard the stealthy
treau or a tiger creeping through the un
derwood and approaching the tree in
which he was posted She was at the
gate even sooner than he was She had
dashed it open with hurried hands and
j almost before he could realize the fact
her arms were round his neck
He drew his head back with a jerk
while she breathlessly exclaimed
I can hardly believe it Ive been
waiting for you for ages and now you
have really come It eerns too good to
be true But how funny and dignified
you are Let me have a look at you
she panted taking him by the arm and
dragging him toward the light
To say that he was astonished at this
reception but feebly conveys his feelings
The first shock over and having success
fully eluded her proffered kiss his next
thought was his unhappy collar
However he yielded amiably enough to
her blandishments and suffered himself
to be almost hauled into the full search
ing white moonlight to be inspected
As its first chaste gleams fell upon him
jround and is the embodiment of a dozen us companion stopped as if she had been
wet blankets consequently they are shy shot gazed into his face with an
sion of agonized incredulity dropped his
arm with a kind of smothered exclama
tion and lied up the avenue like an arrow
from a bow He stared after her speed
ing figure in speechless amazement till
she disappeared into the shrubbery and
vanished like the Maid of the Mist The
whole adventure had been so sudden and
had passed so quickly that it seemed a
kind of dream It could not be a ghost
Another White Lady of Avencl But no
that hug was certainly human
There is no use in my standing here
and staring like a stuck pig he said to
himself at last having somewhat recov
ered his mental equilibrium I may as
well be moving on and ten tb one Ill
find the key to this riddle Its certainly
some girl who has mistaken me for her
lover She was a lady by her voice and
young decidedly By Jove she can run
a bit Maybe its Miss Augusta there
are only two of them
Supposing it had been his young lady
But strange to say this notion did not
please him at all and turning over this
very disagreeable idea in his own mind
he reached the hall door He was soon
ushered into the drawing room just five
minutes before dinner time where he
found Mrs Brabazon dressed for the
evening awaiting the gong with her
hands lying idly in her lap jnd an air of
pleasant anticipation pervading her aqui
line features Eight oclock was hnr fa
vorite hour in all the twenty four Flo
rian was lounging in a deep arm chair
absorbed in a yellow paper backed French
novel Few and evil were the books that
he read Gussie was flitting about the
room putting away papers work and
magazines So it was not Gussie ob
served the new arrival to himselfwhen
he had once more made acquaintance
with his Cousin Augusta with her saucy
black eyes and bewitching smiles
This is quite an unexpected pleas
ire said Vk Brabazon assuming her
WZZZM
1 c
fgtmtv
very beat company manners I think it
very nice of you taking us unawares like
this without any formality
Unawares V be echoed did you not
i get my letter f r
Your letter will probabb arve here
the day after to morrow said Flcriau
sarcastically Dont youknowthat we
live in the backwoods here and have no
second post What did you put on the
en velope By f ord
Yes
Then that means that it stops in By
ford postoliice for twelve hours
You seem to be progressing since 1
was here last said Miles with a laugh
glancing surreptitiously around in search
jf another figure
Gussie my dear said Mrs Braba
zau interpreting the pause with her
usual alertness of understanding go and
tell Nokes to see about a room at once
and Brown to lay another plate and
in a stage whisper let Esme know
Gussie having given some hasty direc
tions to Nokes rushed into the school
room with her great news But it was
empty So was the dining room accord
ingly she ran up the shallow stairs twe
steps at a time- breathless to pant forth
the intelligence to her sister and plunged
into their mutual bedroom headlong At
the first glance there was no one to be
seen Stay What was that limp crum
bled object on Esmes white bed Esme
herself Never Esme who had cast
herself down in at attitude of hopeless
misery and seemed crushed out of all
shape and form
Why pausing in mid room what
n earth is i the matter Arr vnn ill
on
v
demanded Miss Brnbazon aghast
No returned a choked voice
half
buried in the pillows
Then what are you about Get up
this instant imperiously Mrs Braba
zon says you are to come down at once 1
Miles your Miles is in the drawing
room
No answer
Esme Do you hear me irritably
Yes of course 1 hear you Im not
stone deaf she moaned querulously
then all at once sitting erect revealed
scarlet checks swollen o S and a very
disheveled head
Why youve been crying exclaimed
her sister amazed Your nose is like a
plum
I should rather think I have im
pressively Gussie she added slowly
keeping her eyes intently fixed on her
companions face did you ever hear of
anybody dying of shame because 1
shall
Look here Esme returned the other
severely this is no time for such non
sense Dinner is just going in and you
must come down Mrs B saya so
Here going over to the wash stand
and hastily pouring out some water get
up and bathe your eyes and smooth your
hair and dont be an idiot
What will you say inquired Esme
slowly getting off the bed and rising to
her feet a tall and very much creased
young figure what will you say she
reiterated solemnly when I tell you that
I have seen him already that 1 was a
long way the first to welcome him with
a rather hysterical laugh
Have seen him And when if you
please disbelieviugly
VAt the avenue gate Oh Gussie I
dont think I ever can leave this room
alive I took him for Teddy
And what harm if you did replied
her sister
Harm echoed Esme just listen and
you will soon hear You know since my
last letter from Teddy announcing his
home coming how I have been counting
the days and hours till he came and I
was waiting for him near the white gate
ever since G oclock
Esme how rash of you Supposing
Mrs B had seen him skulking about
ejaculated Gussie
I would not care two straws if she
did I would meet him on the hall door
steps in broad daylight she panted
breathlessly But to go on I waited
ages for Teddy and at last I heard foot
steps and saw someone that looked very
like him coming along the road in the
moonlight Need I saw thatrl tore down
to the gate threw it wide open caught
him in my arms hugged him like a bear
telling him I could hardly believe it it
was too good to be true that I had been
counting the days till I saw him and al
together was nearly beside myself with
joy I forcibly dragged hinrMnto the light
to feast my eyes with a good look at him
and I then discovered that I had been
hugging a perfect stranger a dark young
man who did not seem to approve of it
at a and who my prophetic instinct told
me was Miles Brabazon
To be continued
A Promising Pupil
A little girl who had just enterea
school lately jubilantly announced to
her father that she did better than all
the girls above her in the arithmetic
class and went to the top
That was smart of you said he
encouragingly Howvas it
Well you see Miss Maggie asked
the girl at the top how much was S
and 5 and she didnt know -and said
12 then the next girl said 9 and the
next one said 11 and the next 14 Such
silly answers Then Miss Maggie
asked ine arid I said 13 and Miss Mag
gie told me to go up top Course it
was 13
That was nice said the father I
didnt think you could add so well
How did you know it was 13
Why I guessed it Nobody said
13
Our lattie friend Once More
Her little brother was entertaining
in the front room the young man who
had jusf called
Look nere he said suddenly are
you goin to propose to mv sister to
night
Why erer What do you mean
asked the youth with some agitation
Oh nothin only if you are you
arent goin to surprise her At tea
jus now she bribed me an my little
brother to go to bed at half past 7
Shes hung four Cupid pictures on the
drawing room wall got pa and ma to
promise to go callin next door shut
the dog in the cellar and s been prac
tical Because I Love Tou Dearly on
the pianner all the afternoon Youll
get her all right only if she starts talk
in bout its bein sudden tell her It
dont work with you
The average length of a whales jaw
bone Is seven feet
f
- -
WILD BAY FOR WIND
FOURTEEN TORNADOES SWEEP
OVER KANSAS
Many Prairie Counties Are Visited
Breaking Up of Hurricane Center
Reduces Force of the Wind Small J
X oss of Life Results
This season Kansas has had fourteen
tarqadoes in one day This beats all rec
ords in the tornado line even in Kansas
According to weather forecasters how
gf the unusual number of these storms
sjprecisely the tiling that prevented the
nfost wholesale destruction of life and
property that ever visited the State
Originally it is believed tliat one great
tornado was formed and that almost at
taico it split up into subdivisions This
Segregation reduced the force of the
jvind so that only two people were killed
bythe storms and twenty injured A
gTeUt deal of damage was done to crops
anti many cattle and horses were killed
Over the whole Southwest as far as
JTexas the storm wave spread and as
ftft as human prescience could discover
conditions in that section of the country
were never so favorable for great loss of
life Jnd property For some mysterious
renfion the storm wave widened and the
Strength was reduced by 50 per cent or
more
TV
The first storm formed in the neighbor
hood of SS Peter and Pauls Church five
miles north of Ellinwood Kan at 5
oclock Sunday afternoon destroying onel
uouse completely and damaging several
tfther farm houses and outbuildings Al
most simultaneously another tornado
formed about four miles east of Great
Bend and moving in a northeasterly di
rection demolished fences and barns and
killed considerable live stock Here a
arm house and building were demolish
ed but the family escaped Another
Storm at about the same time struck near
Pawnee Rock thirteen miles southeast
of Great Bend and wrecked several
buildings and destroyed crops Consid
erable damage with no loss of life is also
reported at and near Claflin in the north
east part of Barton County and at Fred
eric in the western part of Rice County
Rain and hail following the storm did
great damage to crops in some localitis
VISIT THE PRESIDENT
Boer Peace Envoys Are Received at
the White House
Messrs Fischer Wessels and Wolma
rans the three Boer envoys who are
now in this country visited the White
House Tuesday morning according to
previous arrangement to pay their re
spects to the President No official stat-
us was given the visitors and they pre- I
presented
sented no credentials
The envoys were received in the blue
parlor no one being present but them
selves the President and Secretary Cor
telyou At first the conversation touch
ed upon a variety of subjects The Boers
talked about Wash5ngton told how they
admired the city and the President es
corted them to the porch at the rear of
the executive mansion where a splendid
view is obtainable of the Washington
moiiiment and the Potomac river Presi
den Krugers name finally was mention
ed and the visitors then stated their pur
pose in coming to this country They
said they understood that what Secretary
Hay had told them was final and that the
position of the United States was that
this country could not interfere in the
present struggle in South Africa The
President confirmed this view He said
that the action ho took some time ago
President MTcKinley Tuesday pardoned
H S Knickerbocker formerly bookkeep
er in the First National Bank at Chi
cago He embezzled 4900 and was -sentenced
to the pen for five years in 1S9S
New York ice trust has decided to sell
ice in 15 pound lots to the poor for five
cents
Arctic installation at the Paris posi
tion hurned
is
Metbodists Elect David H Moore and
J W Hamilton
Dr David H Moore of Cincinnati edi
tor of the Western Christian Advocate
and the Rev John W Hamilton also of
Cincinnati corresponding secretary of
the Freedinens Aid and Southern Educa
tion Society were chosen bishops of the
Methodist Episcopal Church on the sev
enteenth ballot at the general conference
in Chicago Tuesday The balloting was
Total number of votes 603 necessary to
choice 444 D H Moore 534 J W
Hamilton 510 J R Day 104 H Spell-
pjjfjg flba f
FDK HAMILTON
IffiV MOOKE
meyer 71 T B Neely 41 J F Berry
22 C J Little 13 scattering 23
By an overwhelming vote the general
conference on Wednesday decided to
abolish the pastoral time limit by which
a minister has been able to remain in one
charge not longer than five successive
years Thus one of the fundamental
laws of the denomination and one of the
principal features of the itinerant min
istry is laid aside and preachprs may re
main in places as long as the bishops ap
point them
An event of great interest and far-
reaching importance was the action of
the conference in changing the words
lay man to lay member wherever
they occur in the organic law of the
chirch This admits women to the con
ference and as a result Methodism begins
the new century on as liberal a platform
concerning women as the latter can ask
MUTINY ON THE TEXAS
Ten Men Are Conrt 3Iartialed at the
End of a Loag Cruise
The crew of the warship Texas muti
nied on the ships last voyage which has
just concluded at the Brooklyn navy
yard The commanding officer was in
sulted the officers and men guarding the
mutineers were attacked and one petty
officer was injured fatally Orders for
the court martial of ten of the men have
been issued
AWPLMABwjfg
CGSj ABRAHAM FISHER g3 S g
PEACE ENVOYS FROM THE SOUTH AFRICAN REPUBLIC
he did with great pleasure in the hope
that it might possibly bring the conflict
to an end This offer had been declined
by Great Britain and he said there was
nothing further that the United States
could do in the premises
The envoys intimated that they were
glad to feel they had friends m this coun
trv and then bade the President good by
This is the most startling case of mu
tiny that has taken place on board a
United States vessel in years The Tex
as has been on a long cruise during
which it touched at Galveston and the
Bermudas
It is said the crew were in a condition
of insubordination during the whole
cruise and the Navy Department officials
are at a loss to understand why serere
measures were not adopted at the very
first uprising The cause of the trouble
is said to have been rum secured at Gal
veston
This country last year exported more
meat products leaving out sheep and
mutton than allHhe rest of the world
combined The amount was nearly 200-000000-
and the great crofts of Indian
corn are the foundation of the trade
f
CUBAN POSTAL OFFICERS
MAJOR UATITBOXE
Director of Ports
BISHOPS ARE CHOSEN
POSTMASTER THOMPSON
Of Havana
have the slightest
hesitancy in accept
ing his word for
that fact just ask
him to show you
his badge If he is
really Uncle Sams
agent he will un
button his coat and
display a silver
badge just like that
shown in our illus
FACIAS AKUU 1
THE CENSUS
When the young man with the winning
smile rings the door bell and announces
that he is a census enumerator if you
tration This con- census badge
fers upon him all the powers of an officer
of the United States Government and as
such he is entitled to all due respect
When his labors are over Unci Sam
generously is going to allow him to keep
the emblem of his authority as a souve
nir
The director of the census will make an
effort to obtain exact returns from every
gin and press in the South of the number
of bales of cotton they handle during the
present season No gin is too small or in
significant to be overlooked and the in
formation sought is so important to the
Southern people that the enumerators and
special agents anticipate their helpful co
operation The work will begin on the
FOURTEEN TORNADOES IN KANSAS EST ONE DAY
- i i -
1st of June and if successful it is expect
ed that a similar cotton census may be
taken every year The price of cotton is
always based upon the volume of the
crop and from the beginning of the plant
ing until the last bale is pressed thou
sands of people throughout the South are
studying the subject with anxious care in
order to determine whether to sell their
crop at the ruling prices or wait for an
advance The Agricultural Department
has a thorough system that is generally
reliable Several private
agencies
news
papers transportation companies and
commercial organizations have undertak
en the same work but their estimates
are always hundreds of thousands of
bales apart There
is only one means by
which the exact amount of the crop can
5SSSftdat isom e ginning
wmuuauiuBuui every Dale has to be gin
ned whether it is
consumed on the planta
tion or sent to Europe and the director o
the census proposes this
year to count
every bale that goes through the ginneries
of the country enei
Mr Wu the Chinese minister at Wash
ii gton has issued a proclamation
to the
Chinese residents of the United States
explaining the purpose of the census arS
request ng them to give all the informa
tion asked for by the enumerators with
out hesitation
Ten
years
ago the
erators found it difficult to obtain infor
mation from the Chinese who
spec d
that it was to be used against them and
Director Merriam
anticipating similar
difficulties this year requested Mr Wu
to allay the suspicion of his fellow Voim
trymen
It may be a matter of interpsr fji
shtious people that the enoumerationof
population this year will be made on FH
day the 1st ofJnne fnit
faU
on that unlucky day
For the first time in the hisfe
of
the x
national census there will be an
enumew
tion this year of animals employ t
cities and towns Heretofore the JiS
stock census has been confined excnJz
ly to farm animals horses cows SET
etc but Director Merriam hal order
the enumerators to ascertain the number
of carriage and saddle horses draft
mals and other live stock owned in ciriS
towns and villages
John Lutz f
WITkesbarre Pa will
killing his wife
for
t
y
-
t
V
V
i
I
lb