Nebraska Newspapers

    THE MASTER OF APPLEBY
| ! i • ..- By Francie Lynda. ■ ■ '-■ ■ -"»■-'■■■■• -'. ' %
i »»« ««»»0****^***i***OAAA^*/tAAA»A»A*<»
CHAPTER XXXI.—Continued.
Bat when tne strain was off and
DM wan up and lit again, the misery
eg It al] came back with added goad
tngs. 1 had never dreamed how cut
ting sharp 'twould be to see these two
together day by day; to see her loving,
tender care of him, and to hear him
bahMe of hla love for her in his fever
ish vaporings Tet all this I must en
durm. mud with it a thing even harder.
Bor. to make It worse, if worse could
he. the shadow of complete estrange
ment had Mien between Margery and
m True to her word, given in that
meanest when I had besought her not
t« apeak aloud for her own safety’s
oaka, she had never opened her lips to
mo; and for aught she said or did I
might have been a deaf mute slave be
neath her notice.
•a she drew away from me, »ne
to draw the closer to Richard
aur, nursing him alive when he
_ at his worst, and giving him all
the womanly care and sympathy a sick
mss longs for. And later, when he was
fit to tide again, she had him always at
her side in the onward faring.
Am I have said before, this was all
aa I would have it. Yet it made me
•tck In my soul's soul; and at times
I nut needs fall behind to rave It out
la aelltude, cursing the day that I was
bora, and that other mlsfortunate day
when 1 had reared the barrier Impass
able between these two.
What wonder, then, that, as we
asored the fighting field of the great
war, I grew more set upon seizing the
llrot chance that might offer an honor
able escape from all these heartburn
ings? Twai a weakness, If you
choose; I set down here naught but the
simple fact, which had by now gone as
far beyond excuslngs ns the underly
ing cause of It was beyond forgiveness.
*Twas on the final day. the day when
we were riding tantivy to reach
Qn sens borough by evening, that my
deRvorance came. I say deliverance
because at the moment It had the look
mt o abort shrift and a ready halter.
Wo had crossed our own Catawba
•ad were putting our horses at the
steep bank on the outcomlng side, when
my saddle slipped. Dismounting to
listen the girth. I called to the others
to pfees on, saying I should overtake
them shortly.
Tbs promise was never kept. I
scarce had by head under the saddle
gap before a couple of stout knaves In
homespun, appearing from I know not
whose; had me fast gripped by the
anas, whilst a third made sure of the
"A dispatch rider," said the bigger of
the two who pinioned me. "Search him,
Martin, lad, whilst I hold him; then
j well pay him out for Tarleton’s hang
ing of poor Sandy M’Gulre.”
I held my peace and let them search,
•ea-tug the threat for a bit of soldier
bsByragglng meant to keep me quiet.
But when they had turned the pockets
mt my borrowed coat Inside out and
tipped the lining and made It otherwise
as much the worse for their mis
handling as it was for wear, the third
man fetched a rope.
"Did you mean that, friend?—about
tfce hnnglng?" I asked, wondering If
this should be my loophole of escape
' from the life grown hateful.
] "Sure enough," said the big man,
* coolly. “You'd best be saying your
I psnyers."
f I laughed. "Were you wearing my
; eeat and I yours, you might hang me
'■ and welcome; in trutn, you may as it
i la Which tree will you have me at?”
| The man stared at me as one de
mented. Then he burst out In a guffaw.
"Damme, If you bean't a cool plucked
one? Tve a mind to take you to the
cdond.**
“Don't do It, my friend. Though I
sun something loath to be snuffed out
by the men of my own side, we need
net haggle over the niceties. Point out
your tree."
“No; by God! you’re too willing.
What’s «t the back of all this?"
“Bathing, save a decent reluctance to
spoil your sport. Have at it, man, and
let’s be done with It.”
Tfot If you beg me on your knees.
YePlI go to the colonel, I say, and he
may hang you If he sees fit. You must
he a most damnable villain to want to
die by the first rope you lay „eyes on.”
“That Is as It may be. Who Is your
colonel?”
"Nay, rather, who are you?”
] gave my name and circumstance
and was loosed of the hand-grip,
though the third man dropped the cord
and stepped hack to hold me covered
with his rifle.
“An Jreten, you say ? Not little Jock.
•urely!”
“Wo. big Jock; big enough to lay you
•B your back, though you do have a
hand as thick as a ham.”
He Ignored the challenge nnd stuck
to bis text. “I never thought to see
the bsw of old Mad-bull Roger wear
tag a rad coat.” he said.
“That Is nothing. Many as good a
Whig as 1 am has been forced to wear
a red coat ere this, or go barebacked.
But why don’t you knot the halter? In
common justice you should either hang
me or feed me. ’Tts hard upon noon,
and I breakfasted early.”
“Fall in!” said the big man; and so
: 1 eras marched quickly aside from the
road and Into the denser thlcketlng of
; the wood. Here my captors blind
Mded me. and after spinning me
around to make me lose the compass
potato hurried me away to their en
' component which was Inland from the
ttnua though not far, for I could still
bear the dlstance-minished splashing
; of the water.
■ When the kerchief was pulled from
mr eyes I was standing In the midst of
a mounted riflemen’s halt-camp, face to
flare with a yoUng officer wearing the
| bbWsshj of the colonelcy In the North
OjuoHss home troops. He wras a hand
some young fellow, with curling hair
■ end trim side-whiskers to frame a face
j fine-lined and eager—the face of a gen
tleman well-born and well-bred.
“Captain Ireton?" he said; by which
; I guessed that one of my capturers had
1 run on ahead to make report.
(j “The same.” I replied.
“Amt you are the son of Mr. Jus
Bee Baser Ireton. of Appleby Hun
; dredr
!{ “I have that honor.
He gave me his hand most cordially.
j| "Ton are very welcome, Captain:
1 Davie Is my name. I trust we may'
tame to know each other better. You j
are In disguise, as I take It; do you I
bring news of the army?"
J; “On the contrary. I am thirsting for
avWB," I rejoined. "I and three others
: feave but now returned from pursuing
1 a British and Indian powder convoy
f feta the mountains to the westward.
hare been out live weeks and
j. more”
He looked at me curiously. "You and
\ three others?" he queried. "Come apart
' and te® me about It whilst Pompey Is ;
broiHng the vgnlson. I scent a whole I
Iliad In that’word of yours. Captain1
* Ireton."
“nee thing first. If you please. Col - I
•net r'nyfe." I begged. "My compan
ions are faring forward on the road to:
Queensborough. They know naught
of my detention. Will you send a man
to overtake them with a note from
me?”
The colonel Indulged me In the most
gentlemanly manner; and when my
note to Jennifer was dispatched we
sat together at the roots of a great oak
and I told him all that had befallen our
little rescue party. He heard me
through patiently, and when the
tale was ended was good enough
to say that I had earned a com- \
mission for my part In the afTalr.
X laughed and promptly shifted that
burden to Ephraim Yeates’ shoulders. |
"The old hunter was our general.
Colonel Davie. He did all the planning
and the greater part of the executing.
But for him and the friendly Catawba,
It would have gone hard with Jennifer
and me." I
"I fear you are over-modest captain,
was all the reply I got; and then my
kindly host fell amuse. When he spoke
again 'twas to give me a resume In
brief of the military operations north
I and south.
| At the north, as his news ran, affairs
remained as they had been, save that
now the French king had sent an army
to supplement the fleet, and Count
Roehambeau and tbo allies were en
camped on Rhode Island ready to take
the field.
In the south the distressful situation
we had left behind us on that August
Sunday following the disastrous battle
of Camden was but little changed. Gen
eral Gates, with the scantiest follow
ing, had hastened first to Salisbury and
later to Hillsborough, and had since
been busy striving to reassemble his
scattered foes.
A few military partisans, like my
host, had kept the Held, doing what the
few might against the many to retard
my Lord Cornwallis' northward march;
and a week earlier the colonel with his
handful of mounted riflemen had dared
to oppose his entry Into Charlotte.
" 'Twas no more than a hint to his
lordship that we were not afraid of
him,” said my doughty colonel. "You
know the town. I take It?”
"Very well, indeed.”
"Well, we had harassed him all the
way from Blair’s Mill, and 'twas mid- j
night when we reached Charlotte.
There we determined to make a stand
and give him a taste of our mettle. We
dismounted, took post behind the stone
wall of the court house green and un- j
der cover of the fences along the
road."
"Good! an ambush," said I.
"Hardly that, since they were look
ing to have resistance. Tarleton was
sick, and Major Hanger commanded
the British van. He charged, and we
peppered them smartly. They tried It
again, and this time their Infantry out
flanked us. We abandoned the court
house and formed again in the eastern
edge of the town; and now, bless you!
'twas my Lord Charles himself who
had to ride forward and flout at his
u.en for their want of enterprise."
"But you could never hope to hold on
against such odds!” I exclaimed.
"Oh, no; but we held them for a
third charge, and beat them back, too.
Then they brought up two more regi
ments and we mounted and got off In
tolerably good order, losing only six
men killed. But Colonel Francis Locke
was one of these; nnd my brave Joe
Graham was all but cut to pieces—a
sore blow to us just now."
The colonel sighed and silence fell
upon us. 'Twas I who broke It to say:
"Then we are still playing a losing
hand In the south, as I take It?"
“ 'Tls worse than that. As the game
stands we have played our trumps and
have not so much as a long suit left.
Cornwallis will go on as he pleases and
overrun the state, and the militia will
never stand In front of him again un
der Horatio Gates. Worse still, Fergu
son Is oft to the westward, embodying
the tories by the hundred, and we shall
have burnings and hangings and har
rylngs to the king's taste.”
I nursed my knee a moment and then
said: "What may one man do to help.
Colonel Davie?"
He looked up quickly. "Much, if you
are that man, and do not value your
life too highly, Captain Ireton.”
"You may leave that out of the ques
tion," said I. “1 shall count It the hap
piest moment of my life when I shall
have done something worth their kill
ing me for."
Again he gave me that curious look
I had noted before. Then he laughed.
"If you were as young as Major Joe
Graham, and had been well crossed in
love, I could understand you better,
captain. But, jesting aside, there Is a
thing to do, and you are the man to do
it. Our spies are thick In Cornwallis’
camp, but what Is need is some master
spirit who can plot as well as spy for
us. Major Ferguson moves as Corn
wallis pulls the strings. Could we
know the major's Instructions and de
signs, we might cut him off, bring the
tory uprising to the ground, and so
hearten the country beyond measure.
I say we might cut him off. though I
know not where the men would come
from to do It."
"Well?” said I. when he paused.
"The preliminary Is some better In
formation than our spies can give us.
Now you have been an officer In the
British service, and—”
I smiled. "Truly; and I have the
honor, if you please to call it so, of his
lordship's acquaintance. Also I have
that of Colonel Tarleton and the mem
bers of his staff, the same having tried
and condemned me as a spy at Appleby
Hundred some few weeks before this
chase I have told you of.”
His face fell. "Then, of course, it Is
out of the question for you to show'
yourself in Cornwallis' headquarters."
I rose and buttoned my borrowed
coat.
"On the contrary, Colonel Davie, I
am more than ever at your service. Let
me have a cut of your venison and a
feed for my horse, and I shall be at my
lord's headquarters as soon as the nag
can carry me there.”
CHAPTER XXXII.
IN WHICH I AM BEDDED IN A
GARRET.
" 'Tts a very pretty hazard. Captain
Ireton. But can it be brought oft suc
cessfully, think you?”
"As I have said, It hangs somewhat
upon the safety of my portmanteau. If
that has come through unseized to Mr.
Pettigrew at Charlotte, and I can lay
hands on it. 'twill be half the battle.”
"You say you left it behind you at
New Berne?”
"Yes. Mr. Carey was to forward it
as he could."
Colonel Davie had given me bite and
sup. and I was ready to take the road.
My plan, such as it was. had been de
termined upon, and to the further
ing of it. the colonel had written me
a letter to a friend in the town who
might shelter me for a night and make
the needed inquiry for my belongings.
| Also, he had given me another letter.
1 of which more anon, and had pressed
upon me a small purse of gold pieces—;
a treasure rare enough In patriot hands
In that Impoverished time.
When all was done, two of my late
captors were ordered to set me straight
In the road; and some half-hour past1
noon I had shaken hands with the big
fellow In homespun who had been so
bent upon hanging me without benefit
of clergy, had crossed the river, and
was making the first looping In a de-t
tour which should bring me into Char
lotte from the westward.
'Twas drawing on toward evening,,
and I had recrossed the river a mile
or more-below Appleby Hundred, when
I b^gmi to meet the outposts of the
British army. I was promptly halted
by the first of these; but my borrowed
uniform and a ready word or two pass
ed me within the lines as a courier rid
ing post to headquarters from Major,
Ferguson In the west.
The lieutenant in command of the
first vedette line was not over-curious.
He asked me a few questions about the
major's plans and dispositions—ques
tions which, thanks to Colonel Davie’s
Information, I was able to answer glib
ly enough, swallowing my tale whole,
and was so obliging as to give me the
password for the night to help me
through the lnnter sentry lines.
Thus fortified, I rode on boldly, and
having the countersign the difficulties
vanished. When I was come to town
It was well past candle lighting; and
the patrol was out In force. But by
dint of using the password freely X
made my way unhindered to the house
of the gentleman to whom Colonel Da
vie 8 letter accredited me.
Here, however, the difficulties began.
Though the camp of the army lay just
without the town to the southward, tha
officers were quartered In every house,
and that of Colonel Davie's friend was
full to overflowing. What was to be
done we knew not, but at the last mo
ment my friend’s friend thought of an
expedient and wrote a note for me
whilst I waited, half In hiding, In the
outer hall.
" 'TIs a desperate chance, but these
are desperate times," said my would
be helper. "I am Bending you to the
town house of one of our plantation
seigneur’s—a man who Is fish, flesh op
fowl, as his Interest demands. I heap
he came In today to take protection,
and there is a chance that he will
shelter you for the sake of your red
coat and a gold piece or two. But I
warn you, you must be what you ap
pear to be—a soldier of the king—and
not what this note of Colonel Davie’s
says you are."
Seeing a wide field of danger-chances
In this haphazarding, I would have
asked more about this trimming gentle
man to whom I was to be handed on;
but at that moment there came a thun
dering at the door, and my anxious
host was fain to hustle me out through
the kitchen as he could, catching up a
black boy on the way to be my guide.
"God speed you," he said at parting.
"Make your footing good for the night
If you can, and we’ll see what can be
done tomorrow. I’ll send your port
manteau around in the morning, If so
be Mr. Pettigrew has it."
With that I was out In the night
again, turning and doubling after my
guide, who seemed to be greatly
afeard last I should come nigh enough
to cast an evil eye upon him.
'Twas but a little distance we had to
go, and I had no word out of my black
rascal till we reached the door stone
of a familiar mansion but one remove
from the corner of the court house
green. Here, with a stuttering "D-d
dis de house, Massa,” he lied and left
me to enter asr I could.
Since the street was busliy astir with
redcoat officers and men coming and
going, and any squad of these might be
the questioners to doubt my threadbare
courier tale, I lost no time in running
up the steps and hammering a peal
with the heavy knocker. Through the
side lights I could see that the wide
entrance hall was for the moment un
occupied; but at the knocker lifting I
had a flitting glimpse of some one—a
little man all In sober black—corning
down the stair. There was no Immedi
ate answer to my peal, but when I
would have knocked again the door
was swung back and I stepped quick
ly within to find myself face to face
with—Margery.
I know not which of the two of ua
was the more dumbfounded; but this I
do know; that I was still speechlessi
and fair witless when she swept me a
low-dipped curtsy and gave me my
greeting.
"I bid you good evening. Captain
Ireton,” she said, coldly; and then
with still more of the frost of unwel
come In her voice: "To what may we
be Indebted for this honor?”
Now, chilling as these words were,
they thrilled me to my finger tips, for
they were the first she had spoken to
me since the nlghtof my offending In the
black gorge of the far-off western
mountains. None the less, they were
blankly unanswerable, and had the
door been open I should have vanished
as I had come. Of all the houses in
the town this was surely the last I
should have run to for refuge had I
known the name of Its master; and It
was some upflashlng of this thought
that helped me find mv tongue.
"I never guessed this was your fa
ther's house,” I stammered, bowing low
to match her curtsy. "I beg you will
pardon me, and let me go as I came.'*
(Continued Next Week.)
Stimulants and Nerves.
Collier's Weekly: The canteen It
defended by medical authorities
and by leading army officers,
and opposed mainly by people to
whom temperance is a matter less of
scientific than of senjt-rellgloue
thought; and the army canteen is the
only national temperance Issue at pres
ent, although states and towns are ex
perimenting with various aspects of
prohibition and license. We have Just
been reading some Italian statistics
wlilcn undertake to show that children
with nervous diseases are usually the
issue of parents who drink. The statis
tician found that 39 per cent, of the
children whom he examined were ab
normal nervously, a fact which he at
tributed In part to the stress of moaern
life, but more especially to stimulants
taken by the parents, and among stim
ulants primarily alcohol. Facts, as he
remarks, are more eloquent than De
mosthenes, and he is satisfied that the
facts connect drinking with the ner
vous diseases which he deems peculiar
to our times. Actually the evidence
about the effects of stimulants in mod
eration is still insufficient. That drink
is a frightful evil nobody denies.
Whether to the temperate nature stim
ulants In general, coffee, tea, liquor, to
bacco, are good or evil, is far from
i proved. People living amid the city
rush, in the center of excitement, ap
| parently live as long as their relatives
I in the country, and are as likely to bo
j healthy. Nervous diseases may be less
! the product of modern haste than the
| discovery of modern science. We are
i all the time discovering new diseases,
and all the time the death rate grows
less. We live longer as we understand
i more. While it is clear, therefore, that
stimulants of any kind are dangerous,
it Is not clear that nervous diseases are
more frequent than they were before
they wer.e discovered, and it Is not clear
that the general excitement of life is
| unhealthy.
Jeweled Combs in the Hair.
From the New York American. »
In the hair this winter women will
wear two combs in the back, the lower
one smaller than the upper, and both
jeweled at the top. These will be varied
by the old colonial type of comb, lor a
| different style of coiffure, and it is
I more than probable that the colonial
comb will share favor with its twin
sister, the Spanish comb, high and
broad and intended to be used effect
ively In draping the mantilla upon the
head. As mantillas will be among the
smart autumn and winter styles, the
Spanish comb will be practically in
evitable, although as yet not in vogue.
Taking Precautions.
From the Minneapolis Journal.
Governor Blanchard, of Louisiana, was
describing the precautions that a certain
veteran physician had taken against the
spread of a contagious disease.
"Knowing the people he had to deal
with," Governor Blanchard said, "he saw
that his rules were carried out before one
of these people left their homes. They
had tricked him in the past. He would
not be tricked again. He was like the
Camden clergyman of my boyhood.
"This clergyman once married a certain
huckster who, after the ceremony, de
clared he was unable to pay a wedding
fee, and so, willy nilly, the clergyman had
to let him off.
"Some years later the good man found
the same huckster before him with an
other woman. His first wife had died.
Now he desired to yoke with a second.
"The minister was willing enough to
remarry the man, but this time he would
take precautions.
"So, leading the bridegroom to one side,
he held out his hand and said in a low
voice:
" ‘My fee.’
" ‘Oh, yes, of course,’ said the huskster
confusedly, and he placed a banknote in
the clergyman’s palm.
" ‘Thank you,’ said the clergyman, with
a bland smile. ’That is for the first time.
Now we will have the fee for this occasion,
llease.’ ’’
Six Doctors Failed.'
South Bend, Ind.. Sept. 25.—(Spe
cial.)—After suffering from Kidney
Disease for three years, after taking
treatment from six different doctors
without getting relief, Mr. J. O. Laude
nian of this place found, not only relief
but a speedy and complete cure in
Dodd's Kidney Pills. Speaking of his
cure, Mr. Laudenian says
‘‘Yes, I suffered from Kidney Trou
ble for three years an t tried six doc
tors to no good. Then I took just two
boxes of Dodd’s Ividney Pills and they
not only cured my kidneys, but gave
me better health in general. Of course
I recommended Dodd’s Kidney Pills to
others and I know a number now who
are using them with good results.”
Mr. Laudeman’s case is not an ex
ception. Thousands give similar expe
riences. For there never yet was a
case of Kidney Trouble from Backache
to Bright’s Disease that Dodd’s Kid
ney Pills could not cure. They are the
only remedy that ever cured Bright's
Disease.
For Sewing Woman’s Comfort.
From Good Housekeeping.
Whoever provides these things against
the stressful times of sewing will find*
her seamstress rise up and call her
blessed.
First, a sheet of light crash or un
bleached muslin stretched smooth over
the floor and held In place with drug
get pins. Second, a big wall pocket for
patterns exclusively, the patterns to be
folded fiat and slipped each into a big
envelope, plainly marked outside.
Third, a string of spools of basting
cotton, fastened so securely to the post
of the sewing chair they cannot possi
bly be mislaid. Fourth, a hanging pin
cushion upon the sewing chair’s oppo
site post—the cushion to be kept always
generously full of pins. Fifth, another
hanging pin cushion, fastened to the
wall close beside the mirror, with an
emery bag pendant from It, and a ser
viceable needle book fastened to the
back. Sixth, a handy scrap basket, not
too light. Seventh, a press board, cov
ered with flannel, and further provided
with two clean white «|lps. Eighth, a
tiny oil or alcohol stove, with an Iron
to heat over It, both to be kept In a
small wooden box that makes an excel
lent rest for the stove when In use.
Ninth, shears with cutting edges and
easy rivets that are yet not too loose.
Tenth, blunt,pointed scissors for trim
ming out armholes and so on in the
process of trying on—also a hook in the
mirror frame from which to hang the
scissors so they cannot possibly get out
of place. Eleventh, a folding table
with deep drawer, the drawer given up
to unmade stuff, or linings and find
ings, Twelfth, plenty of the handy
portable hooks whlcn come already
fastened to boards, and can readily be
attached to the wall without much
defacing It—they are for hanging
things new and old out of the way.
Lastly and mostly, a good sewing
machine, well cleaned, well oiled, in
thorough repair, and a great plenty of
needles and of thread In all colors, of
all sorts, sizes and conditions.
■ ■ A
GET POWER.
The Supply Comes from Food.
If we get power from food, why not
strive to get all the power we can.
That is only possible by use of skil
fully selected food that exactly tits the
requirements of the body.
Poor fuel makes a poor Are and a
poor Are is not a good steam producer.
“From not knowing how to select
the right food to At my needs, I suf
fered grievously for a long time from
stomach troubles.” writes a lady from
a little town in Missouri.
“It seemed as if I would never bo
able to And out the sort of food that
was best for me. Hardly anything that
1 could eat would stay on my stomach.
Every attempt gave me heart burn and
tilled my stomach with gas. I got
thinner and thinner until I literally
became a living skeleton and in time
was compelled to keep to my bed.
“A few months ago I was persuaded
to try Grape-Nuts food, and it had
such good effect from the very begin
ning that I have kept up its use ever
. i-e. I was surprised at the ease with
wuleh 1 digested it. It proved to be
just what 1 needed. All my unpleasant
symptoms, the heart-burn, the inAated
feeling which gave me s. much pain
disappeared. My weight gradually in
creased from 08 to 110 pounds, my Ag
ure rounded out. my strength came
back, and I am now able to do my
housework and enjoy it. The Grape
Nuts food did it.” Name given by
Postum Co., Battle Creek, Mich.
A ten days’ trial will show anyone
some facts about food.
“There’s a reason.”
THE RESCUE OF THE CHINA1
And Some Front Porch Vaudeville.
From the Kansas City Star.
Before the receiver was half way to
Mr. Blither's ear he could distinguish
the eXclted voice of his wife almost
shrieking:
"Call Mr. Blithers to the phone,
please. Oh, Is that you Blithie dear?
Come home right away and unlock ths
door and oh! burry. Don't lose a min
ute! I'm outside and I know he’ll
break the cut glass tumblers," and
bang! went the connection leaving Mr,
Blither’s face a study In questioning
amazement.
Knowing that his wife never called
him "Blithie dear” except In stressful
moments, he decided to go at once and
so boarded the first Brooklyn avenu*
car.
' As he turned the corner a very un
usual sight greeted him. Mrs. Blithers
in dusting cap and apron, the center ol
a group of neighbors all cutting thi
most extraordinary capers on the lawn,
now tapping on the pantry window,
and making "faces,” now playing peep
boo behind their hands, Mrs. McCorkle
dancing impossible steps to Mrs. Blith
er’s elaborate patting. On closer in
spection, he discovered the face of his
2-year-old son pressed against the
pane from within, highly amused by
the unusual entertainment.
"Oh, I’m so glad you’ve come, at last.
We’ve kept him amused at the window
for a half hour and I’m nearly dead,
You see, I was dusting the china cab
inet and stepped out to shake my dust
er, when the babv slammed the door
after me.” hurriedly explained Mrs.
Blithers as her husband'was reaching
for his keys and fingering the bunch
for the proper one. "Do hurry, for all
the china is out on the table and oh—
uh—I’m sure I heard something break
ing.”
But Mr. Blithers was by now trans
fixed with despair. His latch key was
In his other trousers, safely locked In
the house.
“If you hadn't had those horrid snap
things put on all the doors and win
dows this never would have happened.
If he breaks my daffodil plate or the
Tiffany vase I shall never speak to
you again,” this with a tearful sniff.
"My dear," calmly replied her hus
band .“those horrid snap things were
put on because you were afraid of
burglars. But this is no time for tears
or sarcasm."
How to get in and save the treasures
from the little vandal hands was the
question. After a careful tour of every
nook and cranny, it was discovered
that the house was as Impregnable as
the Rock of Gibraltar.
The antics of the group at the win
dow were palling on the little prisoner
and something must be done and’ done
quickly.
Fortunately it was a modern house,
modern to the extent of the ice box
paving an opening through the wall
through which the iceman filled it. This
was the only hope; but such a meager
hope. The opening was for a hundred
pounds of ice and Mr. Blither’s girth
fivas what one might term ample.
“You must do it. If you don’t I will,
and how will that look for you to stand
by and me to crawl in head first?" Mrs.
Blithers grew fairly hysterical.
At the picture her huband hesitated
ho longer. Off came his coat and cuffs.
. “Keep up the show around there.
We'll be in in a jiffy," called he as
cheerfully as if he hadn't just dropped
h chunk of ice on his new Panama.
: The ice all removed it was next his
(wife’s turn to take out the provisions,
and surely never before had the box
peen so filled with “eatables.” It cer
tainly seemed she could not come to
(the bottom. After surrounding herself
f.vith a goodly row of cantaloupes,
Itomatoes, cold meat, yeast, cream, milk,
jcheese and innumerable dainties, she
jarose with a relieved look.
‘ "Now, dear, all we’ve to do, is to open
(the door.”
; But to open the refrigerator door
jlocked on the other side! All efforts
proved in vain. At last Mrs. Blithers
(brought the clothes prop and heroically
said:
“Break it in; I don't care.”
Mr. Blithers gave a confident “chug,”
but no result, and with each successive
"chug” the good-natured smile which
had so far wreathed his face faded un
til when the door at last gave way,
those behoind noticed an angry red
even behind his ears.
Now came eight different suggestions
as to the method of procedure from
eight interested neighbor women, borne
in dignified though omnious silence by
the leading actor. Then politely but
acidly he intimated that he preferred a
smalled audience for the rest of the en
trance.
First he tried head foremost. That
wouldn’t do. He couldn’t get any use
of his arms that way. It must be feet
first. In he sllppe^ them, steadied by
his wife, and thenltvRh a gentle boost
he made good progress, until his belt
refused to pass over the floor of the
chest.
At this interesting point Mrs. Mc
Corkle ran hurriedly around the corner
of the pantry. “He won’t stay at the
window any longer and I heard a
dreadful crash just now. Do hurry, Mr.
Blithers!” 4
Hurry! That was the last straw.
Hurry, to a man caught in an aperture
the circumference of which was two
inches smaller than his waist measure.
Although his breath was very short he
managed to say something that sound
ed like “empty headed chatterbox" and
.“giggling Idiots,” for Just as his dis
comfort was about to refit itself in
more explosive words he was greeted
J»y shrieks of laughter.
The banished onlookers had been
peeping, and when they discovered him
stuck in the hole it was too much to
restrain their merriment. In a moment
a deep bass ha-ha Joined them from
the unfortunate man, who could not
but see the ridiculous in the situation.
Laughing heartily they each lent a
willing hand to boost. Either this, or
his own laughter dislodged his belt,
and in he slipped.
A radiant face greeted Mrs. Blithers
as she burst in through the now open
door.
“Why, dear, the pantry door was
closed and he hasn’t been near the
china; he was playing with a boxful of
pieces saved from your other broken
dishes. That was the crash you
heard.” and they covered the aston
ished Billy with kisses._
Undoubtedly.
"Papa, what Is the meaning of the ex
pression ‘animated bustle?’ "
“Where did you see it used?”
"This story says: ‘At the picnic there
was all at once an animated bustle.’ ’’
"Oh, someone undoubtedly sat on an ant
hill." _
For the Military Expert.
George," said Mrs. Dovekins, "I wish
you’d tell me something.”
•What is it love?”
"If it's always such a serious thing
when one army turns another flank—
and it seems that they are always
bound to do it—why do they have
Hanks?”—Chicago Record-Herald.
Soldiers in France are allowed to
cultivate gardens in any spare ground
about barracks, and to help out their
rations by growing vegetables.
About 1.500.000 persons are employed
in the coal mines of the world
CHRONIC ERYSIPELAS
Sured by Dr. Williams’ Pink Pill*,
Although Whole Body was
Affectod.
Erysipelas or St. Anthony's fire is a
most uncomfortable disease on account
of the burning, the paiu and the dis
figurement ; it is also a very grave dis
order, attended always by the danger of1
involving vital organs in its spread.
The case which follows will be read
with great interest by all sufferers as it
affected the whole body, nnd refused to
yield to the remedies prescribed by the
physician employed. Mrs. Ida A/Col
bath, who was the victim of the attack,
residing at No. 19 Winter street, New
buryport, Mass., says :
“ In June of 1903 I was taken ill with
what at first appeared to be a fever. I
sent for a physician who pronounced my
disease chronic erysipelas and said it
would be a longtime before I got well.
“ Inflammation began on my face and
Bpread all over my body. My eyes were
swollen and seemed bulging out of their
sockets. I was in a terrible plight and
suffered the most intense pain through
out my body. The doctor said my
case was a very severe one. Under
his treatment, however, the inflamma
tion did not diminish and the pains
which shot through my body increased
in severity. After being two mouths un
der his care, without any improvement, I;
dismissed him.
“Shortly after this, on the advice of a
friend, I began to take Dr. Williams’
Pink Pills for Pale People, two at a dose
three- times a day. After the second box
had been used I was surprised to notice
that the inflammation was going down
and that the pains which used to cause
me so much agony had disappeared. Af
ter using six boxes of the pills I was up
and around the house attending to my
household duties, as well as ever.”
Dr. Williams’ Pink Pills are sold by
all dealers in medicine or may be ob
tained direct from the Dr. Williams'
Medicine Co., Schenectady, N.Y.
Road Linked with History.
From Everybody’s Magazine.
A hundred years ago the eyes of
America were on the southwest. We
were on the edge of war rvith Spain
over the closing of the Mississippi; and1
under orders from Washington, Wil
kinson, in command of Fort Adams,
held solemn conclave with the Indians,
who owned the east bank of the big
river, and by treaty established a sa
cred postroad through their country.
It left Nashville on the old Buffalo
trace, crossed the Tennessee at Col
bert’s ferry below the Mussel shoals,
and striking the hills back of the Big
Black, came down to Natchez and on
to New Orleans, with a branch to the
Walnut hills. The road was more than
• a military necessity, for so many pi
rates infested the Mississippi that mer
chants returning from New Orleans
needed the safer route home with their
money.
After it was opened it became all
things to the southwest. Methodism
went down that way in the person of
Tobias Gibson; later, Lorenzo Dow fol
lowed him with the camp meeting
spirit. Old Hickory marched his army
down to Natchez over this route in 1813,
and marched it back again the next
spring. And from that day till nearly
our own it has been the great center
of that country’s activity. Now the
railroads have come, the settlers have
moved down into the valleys' and
opened up poorer roads in the beds of
branches and through swampy low
lands. But the Trace is still there
upon its ridges, the best road of them
all. _
DEATH SEEMED NEAR.
How a Chicago Woman Found Help
When Hope Woe Fast Fading Away.
Mrs. E. T. Gould, 914 W. Lake St.,
Chicago, 111., says: “Doan’s Kidney
Pills are all that saved me from death
by Bright’s Dis
ease, that I know.
I had eye trouble,
backache, catches
when lying abed
or when bending
over, was lan
guid and often
dizzy and had sick
headaches and
bearing down
pains. The kid
ney secretions
were too copious
and frequent, and very bad in appear
ance. It was in 1903 that Doan’s Kid
ney Pills helped me so quickly and
cured me of these troubles and I'va
'been well ever since.”
Foster-Milburn Co., Buffalo. N. Y.
For sale by all druggists. Price 50
cents per box.
— ----*- L.
Business Necessity.
From the Chicago Tribune.
Customer—Boy, I don’t see any news
of that 'bloody battle' and 'many ljves
lost’ that you're telling about, in this
paper I have just bought of you.”
■ Newsboy (dropping his foghorn voice
to a whisper)—Pard, If you w-as as bad
!ly stuck on papers as X am this after
jnoon you’d kill a whole blamed army
to get rid of ’em. All about the bloody
-battle! Many lives lost!”
Mount Aconcagua, the giant peak of
,the Andes. Is 23,080 feet high.
CASTOR IA
For Infants and Children.
The Kind You Have Always t'ught
Bears the
Signature of