| Show n A Z EBONY 0 N Y WATERS 1 ianno ianna mcclure maure shall i ANN W N U SYNOPSIS CHAPTER L on hr bar way to a in loftland Lost land academy janet Jr cr young professor of literature and rhetoric after receiving a letter from gordon haskoll haskell proprietor of the academy meets on an the train a youir man whom jibe learns itami li Is arthur fleming also on his hl way to the academy as professor of and cheni astry they reach rach blade railroad rall roid station nearest to their destination and aad there meet mrs lira denver an n fad aj matron of the academy at t th the school the group Is truck struck b by an air of mystery pervading the 11 onely lonely place lace haskell welcome welcom them WF wilton ton payne teacher r of pay exo lory completes complete the faculty CHAPTER II 11 vaguely disturbed and aad apprehensive p jant janet watches wa tche from age her r window a meeting between haskell and a man of possessing appearance but who evl evi antly gos antly is h high appearance arh in huells Has Hk kella ells confidence nce going down to the schoolroom she ibe finds a group which the fae t teachers had supposed were scholars studying are really highly artistic wax figures mystified Aly stilled she ahe informs inform mrs mr denver next day haskell explains the somewhat unusual circumstances connected with the conduct of the academy the professors pro assort take up their the r au duties ties among on jonets pupils pupil in I 1 berenice brace daughter of the late oxner owner of the ta academy and she h Is attracted fathel by her haskell under her fathers will ix berenice fu ardlan CHAPTER III janet innet and fleming while visiting a waterfall in the vicinity learn from wilton payne the story atory of the tragedy of jostland Loit Lost land academy two sisters later and a nd two brothers of berenice had bad lost oat their lives in the water at the mam moment some gome years ago aeo the wax figures which they had seen had been modeled by mrs brace bridges orders in the likenesses of the tour and the doctors will provided that they must be preserved later payne the figures meets berenice she he tells him bome me of the tha facts of the tragedy and he learns that the uncouth giant whom janet had seen with haskell Is hi named balder and Is a valuable servant CHAPTER IV payne visits an old farmer jerry moore the only witness of the drowning of the children who imitating mountain climb era are had roped themselves together and ana were helpless when one of them supposedly had slipped int into the water payne begins to take an an increasing interest in berenice as fleming does in janet the elevation commanded nil all the rugged country about them they could not see the academy and wil ton was glad of this berenice seemed more than content seated on a fallen tree trunk her hands bands clasped about her knees they were rather old fashioned the four of them berenice because of her seclusion reclusion the other three for the reason that life had bad presented serious problems to them problems of livelihood and education it was natural they should think it quite wonderful to have such a view spread at their feet while payne from an anthology he had bad brought read aloud the eve of st agnes these lovers fled away into the storm seemed a thrilling climax while clouds raced across the intensely blue sky and the silence of the lonely world about them was broken only by distant gunshots gunshows gun shots the farmer boys after partridges it would be a rare privilege to have bate an evo eve of st agnes these days janet remarked and flee away only theres nothing as a rule to flee from framl r arthur was reflecting that one could not be too sure this was true and payne too wondered if the old academy would not prove some day a good place to flee from would that he be might take berenice not into storm but out of it IL arthur was wa looking intensely at janet and wondering how long he could go on without telling her he loved her now it seemed by those strange anachronisms of love that he had known her long before he ever met her how automatically haskell was left out of all their plans plana and pleasures I 1 he wondered it the man had ever been in love their way home took them past the deserted village at that hour the long straggling row of crumbling houses sunk in their ancient pr fir charas presented a ghostly un earthly air the empty windows teemed seemed watching the road for inhabitants who were never to return V A ruddy glow not of the sunset was traced to a burning pile of 0 rubbish at the back of tho the church looming above it was balder uko like L basalt image for his face and clothes were dark with soot he saluted them with more courtesy than was his wont dont you want to warm you balder berenice said as they gathered around tho the fire do you remember the last christmas tree we had in the academy balder rolled hla his black eyes do I 1 sure I 1 do I 1 and I 1 know where it Is too I 1 saw it only yesterday tho the remains of it its up in tho the 1 belf belfry of the church there L i how on earth did it get there he had a pitchfork in his loft hand and on this he rested meditatively tat ively watching the fire which lit up all their faces and made janots janeta sweater glow like a coat of gold ill tell you what I 1 IJ know snoot of its his tory ory after aate that it if was waa thrown out on one of the sheds base and all and lay there for months with some bits of tinsel sticking to it then norman he found it and he and jethro took it up the ravine to be a flagpole tn in front of their tent near the whirl they had it a tiny tent there that summer st Want nt safe cafe shale crumbly under their very beds but there the pole was on Us its stand it got washed down in the spring freshets fresh freEh ets and bobbed up in the lake again I 1 fished it out and brought it down here to burn bum with some other rubbish some children must have lugged it up those belfry stairs I 1 remember massin it when I 1 came down to set fire to the stuff I 1 never thought no more about the old dried tree till I 1 see it yesterday arthur and janet dropped behind berenice and wilton on the way home 1 I dont think payne ought to have told her about that tree he said that poor child la Is too morbidly interested in everything connected with her brothers and sisters wilton was meanwhile saying to berenice if I 1 were you I 1 would not speak of the old tree to mr haskell after all he be has h bis I 1 s memories too and it may be as well not to revive them true I 1 hope you will all stay here until I 1 am twenty one she ehe added impulsively so far as I 1 am concerned nothing could drive me away As they entered the grounds haskell and one of the farmers of the neighborhood came slowly down the walk together As they passed berenice and wilton the fanner farmer was saying 1 I cant make sally come if she dont want to come cornel I 1 and ashes afraid they heard no more but another moment haskell came running after them of all the ridiculous nonsense I 1 must say P he panted ail aa he camo came up to them heres oba dlab welford over to tell me his daughter sally has nerves about this place and want to come to school any more a pity wilton said for ashes quick and bright really we cant allow her to drop out do you want me to walk over to the welford farm and talk to her haskell brightened a little 1 I wish you would go over sunday afternoon Beren berenice lee will show you the way and payne it if convenient id like you to go to blondale next saturday for some come supplies you can drive yourself over it if you want to its about fifteen miles a metropolis tro polis polls compared to blade almost a thousand inhabitants and a motion picture thea theater terl 1 wilton was already sure of one errand he would perform at birn dale he would have a duplicate made of the key to the room in which the tour four wax figures were stored berenice should go there when she wished when he had bad been in his rooms a few minutes arthur appeared 1 I wish we were going to move out of this place tonight he announced abruptly you know payne I 1 am not a nervous individual 1 I 1 came up here as full of health and spirits as a bian could bel dout dont tell me youre afraid of those four wax figures 1 I might as well say first as last that I 1 am and so I 1 Is janet but its a sense of some danger still lurking were we brought up to serve some purpose other than our utility as teach teachers ersT how should 1 I fleming know more than you it if I 1 conjecture my guess Is that we were sent tor for because berenice insisted on the terms of 0 her fathers will being compiled with that she bhe should be well educated certainly she Is getting intensive training now it if she ever did payne told arthur of the proposed expedition to Birr borndale idale that means I 1 can get a duplicate key made of the wax figure room door tor for use you think she ought to have one shell feel more at ease I 1 could have told her where haskell hid bid the key but I 1 thought it might make trouble it if he found she knew its biding place it may make trouble anyway 1 I can sympathize with her the four figures have seemed much more oppressive to me since they were locked in if they were kept openly upstairs as we nye saw them that first night for everybody to look at and remember or forget as he chose wed soon all forget them you cant remember anything constantly under your nose there was a knock at the door mrs denver stood there looking quite tta white wh me 1 if I bate wo lo f roub le u mr wilton and think mo me very foolish but mother martha has been in the kitchen talking of those four children I 1 listened as patiently as I 1 could because the old have so few to listen to them but when mr haskell came in and asked me to go in that room and see that everything was right in there and dust around a bit I 1 confess im too nervous to go alone ill go ath you youl I 1 I 1 should think haskell send you in there at this hour of the day but ill gladly go with you mrs denver Den verl 1 I 1 they were passing through the hall when gordon haskell met them he was wearing his academic cloak and looked more scholarly than usual well was everything right he addressed mrs denver 1 I been yet sir payne may I 1 see you a moment 1 I am going down with mrs denver why ashes afraid haskell gave an impatient ercla exclamation cla mation how glad ill be when berenice attains her majority then well have no more of the wax was figures well let the dusting go mrs denver really a woman of your years should have better sense you should have mentioned the figures in your letter sir she gave back unless you were afraid to mention them ile he scowled but made no answer payne was moving toward the library no not therel there I 1 here in the drawing room 11 you dont favor the library much too many memories of my poor stepfather what I 1 want to say la Is this balder tells me that berenice was talking about a christmas tree the family had the year before the accident now what started her on it natural her mind should sometimes go back to the very early days its just as well you should not encourage her recollections awant I 1 want her to look forward not bacal with all my heart so do I 1 11 I 1 why Is that door kept locked wilton added the archives of the parish are kept in a chest in that room haskell explained smoothly oh well theres every reason yes every reason the two men faced each other across the marble topped center table one like a study in burnt umber the other a bold and melancholy etching in black and white haskells dead white hand pressed down against the marble his veins as black as the veins in the stone his ring had cut a scarlet circle about his ring finger payne he be went on you dont know how oppressive this ancient place is to me id like to leave it to the ivy and its bats and the ghosts of all the dead presidents could come and ring its bell if they had a mind to ah berenice come in she stood in the doorway she had changed to a black taffeta dress with many ruffles that stood out like the petals of a black rose wilton went away berenice wat watched elied him go and her guardian app appraising rals her as the prettiest of sublunary girls in that quaint dress remarked jealously you have brightened very much since these teachers came naturally they have transformed the place doot get too fond of thera them they will not be here forever neither shall 11 II no after your majority or your marriage we can sell the old place though who would buy it I 1 dont know unless it were some doctor to turn it into a sanatorium yes it might make a sanatorium you might be the doctor ob no nothing like that berenice darling ive hoped for just one thing during the course of these years she met his eyes steadily though she knew what was coming had bad known it before the ministering angels of education had appeared upon the scene rt it was her acute realization of the trend of her guardians emotion that had led indeed to her demanding a small corps of teachers to finish her education together with a strong though dimly defined instinct that if any ghosts haunted the old academy it was the specter of a mystery not yet solved just one thing MIDI he said brokenly your love the hope that some day you would be my wife she hesitated before she answered him guardian that can never bel be I 1 his astonishment his pain wa was genuine across her mind floated the memory of a fairy tale once told her by mother martha of a wolf who desired to become human gordon haskells eyes at that moment were oddly like those of a wounded animal baffled in its attempt to step from its own kingdom into another why not he gasped crisply what Is wrong with me that you cannot love me love come at a call youve been very good devoted to our family he ere stepped back a few paces his face ashy white his hand clutching with the old gesture of pain at his heart hearl you have an attack 1 shall I 1 bring you water yes te hurry 1 l he was sitting by the fire when she returned after drinking the water he straightened up again and muttered 1 I must avoid emotion dont let these young teachers make love to you berenice you have money they have none she flushed with augerl anger 1 how can you imply such things guardian I 1 they have been most kind to me anyone Is kind I 1 think who stays in this old place they are well paid people of their attainments would ae b e well paid anywhere I 1 repeat its a kind of high sacrifice and devotion to stay herel he looked furtively at her why because of the wax figures and the sad memories balder says the last christmas tree we ever had is in in the belfry room it ought to be destroyed ill tell him to burn it and I 1 should like the key to the room where the figures are janet entered at that moment and berenice welcomed tier her warmly let us go and see mother martha she proposed in the east wing janet hesitated have I 1 your permission mr haskell certainly he be answered not looking at her berenice led the way down the corridors up a staircase through one totally deserted and shut up floor to a large room with a fireplace under the eaves before the soft coal lire fire sat mother martha in her rocking rock ing chair her hands in her black sm si k gloves her bright shawl bound closely around her stooping shoulders ive brought janet to see youl sit you down I 1 its been a fine day like the days when they were all here I 1 used to hear them and callin me the brown mans locked em cm up now just the figures mother martha yours no less berenice you have your sunday frock on 1 yes mother martha the old woman searched janeas face anxiously you are not taking her away no oh no mother martha rocked herself in her chair gazed at the glowing coals up in this high story the wind whistled as if they were to in a tower aint you been up the ravine yet yes once an awful place a pl place ace of death yes dear berenice said soothingly but dont think of |
