Show tions and not listening to one answer In twenty During the latter half of the walk however both question and ansver were mostly blown away by the wind which disconcerted me nothing for 1 was in high glee at bringing my mother 50 desirable a visitor Vl1en we cameo to the dOor of the lodge Yett I knccked 3l1d heard old Caleb CUnkabeITY withdraw the belts clearing the rust from the boldfasth ot the iron rods and his own throat or the roopy weather at the same time Come thy w yt Monster Phil thy mother hath been In n rare takln about thee Eh lIIaastet Spurwa an she wIll be glad to see thysen And so hobbling forward with eager politeness mixed with an under grumble grum-ble of complaint concerning his standing stand-ing for that ancIent Ioombagus in the back our old English servant lot the way to where my mother was sItting looking younger and prettier than ever I had neon her in the room that looks to the west through a kind of long alley al-ley cut out among the pines The sunshine sun-shIne or something else was red on her chrole as she jumped up at sIght or her guest and letting aU her embroidery embroid-ery stun fail In a fluttering cloud she gave Umphray Spunay her hand never nev-er looking at him nor saying a word save to scold me for being such a trouble In bringing the gentleman all the way hIther on so cold a night 0 he does not think that I sdd he wag as anxious to come as a cat Is to see her kittens And after that I had aU the talk to myself for some time Umphray Spurway sot down on a chair by the tire at my mothers invitation invita-tion and In turn he asked her not to make a stranger of him but to go on with her embroidery work s before And this after a little blushing demur she did I can see her now Her rose leaf skin was bright as I had not seen it for long years The flush of her youth seemed hardly yet lost When she threaded her needle she Would lift her soft sad eyes of blue a moment and nod at something I was saying nr as it might be smile at Umphray Spunyay in a manner which besought hIm to forgive the youthful folly of my speech es For I mind on that occasIon as indeed In-deed mostly when Mr Spurway came with me to see my mother about this time I took the conversation in mown m-own hands and conducted In person at least ninetenths of It Philip used to be a silent child said my mlther once when a lull gave her a chance 1 used to call him in jest the Graven Image for he would sit smiling In his little cot all day without with-out a sound or a cry Indeed he never spoke a word until ho was more than two years old Then one day all suddenly sud-denly he began to speak and except when asreoP he has never rightly stopped stop-ped sInce lIe and little Anna Mark arc a fine pair said Umphray Spunvay He IS properly matched there I can hear themhalf across the mm and I cannot tell whIch Is talking the faster or which cares least what the other is saying You have that child In the house with you said my mother And I knew by her voice that she was lees pleased than usual The name Seemed somehow to grate upon her As Indeed was small wonder Yes said Umphray Spurway bending bend-Ing forward a little eagerly and reply lag marc to ray mothers tone than her words yes sh Is a pretty bairn and when she grows as biddable as she Isver I mistake much but she will prove a credit to me My mother seemed to be deep In thought pulling ailsentmindedly at the thread and biting it off repeatedly without with-out answering It may be she said at last musing uhon his words It may be God grant you are pot deeehed In her The evil in the blood Is hard to exorcIse She is a rare good runner I saId interrupting them she can catch Will lam Bowman with a hundred yards start It was curious that when my mother and Umphra Spurway were together they gave much more earnest consideration consid-eration to my foolish boyish speeches than either of them did when apart I So now Umphray Spurwa smiled with a grave attention he never ouchsafEd me at the millwhere Indeed as like i as not Ite would have cuffed me well for the interruption Can she outrun you he asked And my mother also seemed to hang on my words Only uphill I said I can match her on the level fields and boat her hollow at running down hm I did not add that this last was owing to my legs being each half a foot longer long-er For why should a boy confers that a girl can boat hIm at anything fo we sat and talked and as I think forgot the time and place and aU else Meanwhile the wInd gren wilder and wilder without as It were rushing up the open alley of the pines collecting Itself In the little open court yard and I then flinging Itself In fury Ipon the small panes of the window with the sudden impetuousness of a tigers leap Suddenly the night dropped like a surtal1 But the fire only blazed brighter bright-er on the hearth Will yon be pleased to draw in your chair sir said my mother as a fiercer gust than ever shook the window win-dow settled the oor hooted In the chimney and then fled laughing fiendishly fiend-ishly down the darkening aisles of the wood I saw my mother shIver and glance out of the window The creaKIng and straining beeches and pines could he both seen and hoard In the pauses of the furious gusts Their stiff arms stood out like tall gaunt gallows trees outside the windows She rose and moved to the cupboard It Is almost time to take our four hours she said It seems to come early tonIght and to be more elcorne than usual It darkens apace Will you be pleased to athy and drink a CUp of tea My brother the Guinea man brought me some after his last voyage He got it for having rendered e seic on his homecoming to a nlliJ SUIV r thank you madame said Um phrny Spdrway making my mother a courteous little bow I ought to bestirring be-stirring but 1 must needs walt for that great pleasure Then my mother nt me up stallS for the Vest Indian sugar which justin just-in case or accidents she kept locked in the great mahogany chest of drawers in her dressing room I went gladlY for such a chance came not often and certainly was not to be mIssed And as I stood by the curtain of the bedroom bed-room cleansing the stickiness from my fingers and wiping my mouth with the silken lining I saw a dark figure pass from side to side or the wide west looking alley in which a certain reddish red-dish light yet lingered re1unctantly to depart altogether But I thought nothing of this For a gervltor going to the great hou5e or one of Mr Spur tays weavers in search of a hare to boll the pot was no unusual sight at the Lodge Yett I went down and as I came fleer the door of the little parlor In which I had left Umphrny Spurwa and my mother I pausedfor no reason at all connected with them nor God wot I with any idea or spyIng upon their converse For espionage at least I whatever my other aults was never any part ot rtiy nature I heard my mother say It Is use lcse Mr Spurway It Is indeed most selessI wilt not Jlstenno I can never listen Before all I bave my duty to the boy and this of all days Is not the time to speak of such things Think of him that was my husband 7 and is so no more I could not hear what was said In reply by Umphra Spurway though I am sure my mother was weeping For at that moment I felt a hand close on the lobe or my right ear and old Caleb Cllnkaberry bore me triumphantly triumph-antly to the door of the parlor with a great pleceof West Indian sugar In my mouth whIch I could neither swallow i swal-low nor yet rid myself of so high did he hold my head He opened the door d crying See madam what I caught thIs fine young gentleman at P But that which ke saw turned us to mono ih the very dorny My mother had dropped her broidery Work and stood erect Umpbra Spurway was just letting go her hand which he had been holding BUt that was not the surprise and terror for me My eyes were drawn irreelsfibly to the window It was one of the I arrow and high French sort opening In the middle for the house had been built In King Charles time that it might be a summer pavilion for a former lady of Xe Miles Non th lattice stood open and the wind rushed howlihg trtumphantJy thrugh the house shutting shut-ting every door with dreadful clanging ot iron and the clatter and clink of falling glass and breaking crocker Framed in the blank blackness of the opening appeared a head wild disheveled dis-heveled hardly human the throat bare and the ragged collar ot a coat tar too wide appearing beneath It was my father the man we had thought already hanged by the neck in the Grassmarket of Edinburgh Philip Stansficld the parricide His eye glanced along the level tube of a pistol barrel Traitor and traitoress I have you both And now I will send you to hell together ho cried and so without another word with shatterIng distinctness distinct-ness fired With a little shrill CO my mother tottered swayed checked herselt and then softly sunk back Into Umphray Spurways arms Then quick as thought the face vanished from the window The leaves clashed to The Englishman gave my mother Into the arms of Caleb Cllnkaberry and without with-out waiting to find his hat he pulled a pistol from his pocket looked at the priming and rushed through the from door of my mothers house Into the black night in pursuit of the double murderer To be ContInued |