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About The morning Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1899-1930 | View Entire Issue (July 16, 1906)
MONDAY, JULY 10, 19c! ,TIIE MORNING ASTOMAN, ASTORIA, OREGON. 8 I The Peril of i Columbia A fourth of July Story By EVERETT BOIBKOOK I Conyrllt, lttA, by Frwlork k II, Toombs M: uncle, Stephen IVestcott, In a church member and ft de vout mnii. Therefore 1 wa the mora urprlel to ace tiio fguro of Hut n Niwiiml nt hi gute a I approached tint house, However, I wm partlully prepared for thlw spwlnele, bwutiHo I liiul Htcountered several oth er remarkable creuliire oil my way up from tlio wharf, and, beaMe, I had kim'u 1I1U same apparition twice In-fore lu (lint town, ' Three ytHirt u u Hciitoiivlllo decided to revive the old dlvcrtlmMuiiciit of'An tliiiiN mul Horribles' im a part of It l'miiili of July cclnbrntluu, mul 0 dru- niutU? performance won held for the purpuso of ruining n fiiud to buy cos tume, Tho prowwR which were un expvctedly hirM, worn Invented with a theatrical I'oHiumiT lu IMtou, uml tlio general opinion wiu Unit ho gave good value for tho money, Among the gar- iiiimiU which ha nviit witi a Mcphutto pbellan hulilt Unit hud Ihhmi designed for ome very lull ami slender limn. It would not lit nny of U10 Hentonvllle roasijucraders wlw might otherwise have been willing to wear It mid we eventually bestowed upon B hulf wltted youth mimed Asa Colby, who wan so Uolluhtixl Hint he wanted to wear It all tbe time. "Hello, Asaf aeld I. "What' the matter! Hick'' lie did uot answer my question oral ly, and I wa not surprised, for Aa wav a very exceptional fool, being of few word. Instead of speaking, he wagged bla bend lu the way of nega Don and then shook hta left hand with bla right, which waa hi customary alga of greeting, illy couhIii Cella appeared lu tlio door way, clothed lu the garb of Columbia, and alio looked very lovely. She waa at that time much too beautiful for ber own good, but the vanity of a school girl 1 uot necessarily permanent blemlah upon her character. "My cousin Richard !M alio cried. "We bad given you up. We wore o disappointed!" She ahook band with me aotuewuat burrledly and listened with only half an ear while I explained that my train bad been late; that I bad missed the llttte atenmor across the bay and bad come over lu a aallboat. I Judged that I bad Interrupted ber upon the way to ome engagement connected with the part In the day' observance, bat a moment later, looking through the alt ting room window, I aaw Columbia leaning upon tlio gate Idly convening with MephlKto. Uofld old Aunt Anne welcomed mo with that kludllues which la ao de lightfully out of keeping with the e verity of her aspect, and then I weut to find I'nclc Stephen, who wna In the buck yard, sulfllng nt the cloned door of a big barn long unused except aa a pi a co of storage for old furniture and queer odd and end. "I'm sure I amell tobacco smoke," aald bo after be bad dim ken band with me. "Do your Tobacco la bla pet aversion. lie can amell It a mile. I Baked blm bow It waa possible that there ahould be to bacco smoke in bla barn, and he aald that ho would be obliged If I would go and help him aolvo the mystery. We went Into the barn by way of the long "L" which connects It with the I BEACHED THE TOP OP TUB LADDER tVHt IN TIME. house, and there, to my surprise, I renlly amollcd pipe smoke. It seemed to bo drifting down from what bad once boon the haymow. A ladder led up to this region, and I was about to ascend when a woodcu slmttor In the rear of tlio barn was suddenly opened, find a broad shaft of light struck through the gloom above me. I reached tlio top of the ladder Just In tlmo to see tlio' face of a man who wns dropping out of tho wludow. It vnnlHhed Instantly, but my glimpse of It BUlllcod for recognition It waa the face Of Asa Colby. Dot how could the witless rascal be l' there whoa I had Jimt soen htm In V front o'f'tlw hoase? It was a puzzle ' lo.lnnrl I nrnuwi.il til tlio WlllllflW na , fnsts 1 coulti,' nild the rubbish, and bc'hftld 'Aan running "ha If "fdr bla Ufa acroM tba Sold. My aurprlae waa very greatly Incrnasod by this spectacle, for Asa waa clothed In a light sack suit f elegant design, the trousers neatly krensed, nttd ha carried a good straw M lu his band.' Upon tho floor near tho window was l slender cane with 0 silver head. 1 examined It la thu light mid found the letter "0, B," In monogram on the metal, . 1 My discoveries were too portentous to be disclosed to so nervous a man a Uncle Htepbcii. I threw the en no aa far a possible out of tha window, olosed tho shutter and descended to the lower floor. "Home tramp," aald I. "Ho hasn't done any harm." 1 Hut my uncle spent half an hour In the loft looking for Hpnrks and pro tected by hi manservant, whom be TBA1 STICK IIILOKO TO A IW10! At-roii." greatly lierated for having left the rear door of the barn unfastened. Mean while I went to the front of tho bouse and found (Vila still leaning upon tba gate, but Mephlstophelea had van Ished. From the evidence In my posaeaalou there was only one conclusion Oella was Involved In j nousenslcnl romance wim n mnn wno was niKiiiy on;ecuon able to ber parents. 1 was deeply grieved, for wo were cousins. True, the tie of blood between us waa a thlu as a homeopathic thlrty-sccoud dl lutlou. still I had always called her parents uncle end aunt and bad thought of her as a member of my family. Such being Uie cam), what was my bat untl duty-to find the man. lead blm by the ears to tho end of Long wharf and drop blm overboard t That waa at least my first Impulse, yet I could tot help feeling the need of a little more Information tafore proceeding to eia cute a vengeance. I would wish to act In such a way aa would serve Cella best. In order to act wisely I must get at tho fscta. I was not prepared to believe that Asa and the unknown Romeo bad been so overbold a to choose my ancle's barn as their dressing room. More probably the exchange of raiment bad been made in a thick grove of spruces which stood In the field, and the lnva alon of the barn bad been an after thought of Asa's. Upon this supposition the place to en trap tho bogus Mcphlsto was tho grove, and so I withdrew to that spot as se cretly as possible and waited more than an hour In vain. Meanwhile the procession had formed in front of the town ball, and Uie air was shuddering at the music of the Bcntonvllle band. I emerged from my biding place and intercepted the procession. Mephlsto waa not among Its attractions, and bli absence waa a subject of comment H appeared later lu a manner sufficiently mysterious to match the part that he played, and I sa Untied myself that he was the real Asa Colby this time. I did not dare to question blm, for if he supposed that bla harmless burglary of the barn was unsuspected be might keep atlll about it, whereas, If accused, be might attempt a too public JusUflca tlon. My ouly real clew lay In the Initials on the cuno, They would not fit the name of any young man In that com munlty; they puzzled me completely, And yet "0. 8." must have been In Bcntonvllle, for Cella had not been away within a year. Terhaps be bad lodged nt the Bentonvllle hotel, and upou this theory I approached the land' lord of that place of entertainment and exhibited to him the cane, wblcb I aald I had found In the woods. "That stick belongs to a Boston actor named Gilbert Seabury," said be. "Don't you tnke It up to your unclo's boune. If you do he'll have a fit" "Wby?" I asked, with counterfeit surprise. "Seabury was here a couple of weeks In June," he rcpliod. "Ilia folks live In Lynde"-a town about fifteen miles north of Bentonvllle. "He got to know your cousin Cella and be was talking ber head full of theatrical notions. She's a bit stage struck anyhow, you know. Your Aunt Anno got on to It and well, you know your Aunt Anne." Here was a very seiloua situation In deed, and no doubt it was my duty to lay the whole enso frankly before my nuut Vet no nmu Mips to do that sort of thlug. I resolved to flud out. first, whether Seabury wns still in town, and so I spent the' whole afternoon huntlnc. for him, assisted by the laa.ilord'n de acrlptlon and my owu , yuw of the actor's clothes, By supper time I war convinced that he had gone nway.,nud that Colin was safe from hit) histrionic vaporing for the present ' ' There was to be a display of fire works in the evening within tho fori on tbeJiUijiyollc of Euxllh occuua- mnlaW&lufloTi'orytimV; CJllabad laid aside tha vestment of Columbia and bad appeared during the afternoon In a gown of white duck, which was very becoming. After supper, bow ever, she clothed herself In a dark gray costume with a black bat. , I waa seriously alarmed, for the plain Implication to my mind was that Cella bad chosen tha gown most suitable fot t Journey,' I reolvl that ate should not get out of ray tight during the evening, but while we were sitting, with all Bentonvllle for company, upon tlio bank of tho fort Cella suddenly disappeared, , With great caution I myself slipped away while a particularly vivid bomb wa attracting the attention of my rel atives and friends. I made the circuit of tba grim t old earthwork, hoping to find Beahury lurking In somo corner of tho dry mont, but ho was not there, I then Increased the radius of my search and was rewarded by the discovery of a black horse and a light wagon In a little used road which runs back of tbe hill and Joins tho main highway lead ing out of town to the northward. Bo there was an elopement bidden in tills mystery. Tho horse wa hitched to the fence by one of the reins. I tied him by the cbeckreln and removed the other alto gether, unbuckling them from tbe bit It was my Intention to bide them under Uie seat, and my head wa in the wag on when I became aware that some one was approaching, My position was extremely favorable for concealment and I waited. It was Cella alone who was coming. Hue was within live steps of the wagon before she perceived me; then by tho light of one of the bombs, exploding high In air, we saw each other's face. Well, there wa a very strenuous cone, and Cella defended herself by nil the argument that romantic fic tion snpplle. This wa the love of ber life (at seventeen). Her career wa before her and only stagnation and failure here. Should she bury her one talent in tbe earth? Mr. Beabury was not only a man of wonderful promise In bis profession, but be was a man of honor. Tills and much more of tbe same sort A to fact, they were to lie mar ried In Lynde that evening. Seabury had left the wagon there and was wait ing at the Junction of the highway. "Ride with me to tbe road," aald she. "Talk with Mr. Scnbury. See for your self that he I all that I have described blm. Give me an opportunity of tell ing blm that I have not shown the white feather." This seemed not altogether unreason able, though I would have preferred to talk with Seabury alone. I helped Cella Into the wagon, while debating whether I should drive to the corner or across lot to tbe road at another spot I unhitched the horse and then re membered that I bad unbuckled the rein from tbe bits. They were lying loose over the dashboard, and I walked back to get them. There was a swishing sound and a sharp crack. Cella hod struck the horse with' the whip. lie leaped ahead, and I barely succeeded In catching the back of the wagon with one hand. How I managed to climb aboard I have never been abUj to rememlier, but I arrived somehow, and Cella and I I CACOIIT CEUA IN 1IT AEilS. were tearing along this trail in the fields behind a reinless steed. In an Instant there was a crash. I caught Cella In my arms, and we flew through the air, on our way, as I verily be lieved, to Join the winged hosts of heaven. When I awoke from this dream I was lying in the ruins of an alder bush, aud Cella was beside me. Dead? I dared not think of It In fact, I was not In the best of condition to think of anything. I seized the girl In my arms and ran wildly toward tho town. In real life ono does not carry a well grown and hearty young woman as If she were an Infant. She becomes more and more like a bale of hay the longer ono carries her. My heart was burst ing and my eyea were starting from my bead when I beard a moderately calm voice say: "Put ma down. I'm all right." . "Cella!',' I gasped and fell forward with her. Fortunately she alighted upon her feet . "I thought If I played dead you'd run away for help," enld she. "That's what I was going to do Just before you waked up. But, not Of courso you couldn't do the right thing. Don't speak to me!" "Are you hurt?" I ventured to In quire. "No," she snapped. "I fell on you, and Just as bard as I could too." ' "'Cella,'' said I, "are you going to try this foolishness again?" 1 ' : ' he did uot reply icUl ,y reached Uncle t .! ha WrtwrrJS faced me sturdily. "If yon won't tell about this," she raid, "1 vJll give you my word for mmi year." "Don!'," mild 1, fllid we kept tbe baf ,:a!n. ' Before the year wa ojcr she bad wept at tlw new of Gilbert Seatury's funrrlngo-hl second, I belleve-and then had very sensibly forgotten bis existence. Modest Claim Often Carry tba Most Conviction. When Maxim, the famou gun inven tor, placed hi gun before a committee of judge, b stated Its carrying power to be below what he felt sure the gun would accompli. The result of the trial was therefore a great surprise, Instead of dinappointmpnt. It is the same wltb Chamberlain's Colic, Cholera and Diarr hoea Remedy , They uot publicly boat of all this remedy will accampHsb, but prefer to let the user make the state ments. What they do claim, is that it will positively cure diarrhoea, dysen tery, pains In the stomach and bowels and has never been known to fail For sale by Frank Hart letding druggists. aw Customers. BTMpafr 1 w. tc4mUi of Sol ' Tba story of tha monkey who se4 the cat's paw to pull the Chestautioutof tbe lire, finds new Illustration daily. When a dealer! oils a customer institute for MENNEN8 BO RATED TALCUM. 1 he doe so because the substitute pays f him a bigger profit He make the 1 customer in caupaw to rake In a few extra dollars. 1 1 Is not pleasant to be made a catspa w, especially when you pay for the oppor tunity f being injured. Ia ltnot foolish . to dry for the epportunit jr to use injuri ous imitations of MENKEN'S BOR ATED TALCUM, the standard powder of the world 1 Think Hover. Have you tried MENNEN S VIOLET BO RATED TALCUM TOILET POW DER ? Ladies partial to violet perfume will find Men sen Violet Powder fragrant with the odor of fresh plucked Parma violet. - For sale everywhere for 23 cent, or mailed postpaid on receipt of price, by GERHARD MENNEN CO., Newark, N. J. PK4iaiiof So FILIPIKO HOBO, The Xcgro that Imn been in this city and In the valley for the past few days, I a Filipino and some 'of the people in the valley are not altogether plcaneil with his company," as they con sider hi actions and conversation queer to say tbe lcat. At Willapa be endeav ored to s-cure a school, naying that he had been a teacher In the Philippine iier he tnea to secure the hall for the purpose of giving a lecture but it turn ed out Hi 'it his financial condition wa at a very low ebb. IL claimed to have a sum of money due him from the gov ernment. Willapa Harbor Pilot. Acuta Rheumatism. Deep tearing or wrenching pains, oc casioned by getting wet through; worse when at rest, or on first moving the limb and in cold or damp weather, is cured quickly by Ballard' Snow Lini ment Oscar Oleson, Gibson City, II L, writes, Feb. 18, 1902 1 "A year ago I was troubled with a pain in my back. It toon got so bad I could not bend over. One bottle of Ballard' 8nom Liniment cured m." Sold by Hart' drag store. Old Chronic Sere. A a dressing for old chronic sores there it nothing so good as Chamber lain' Salve. While it is not advisable to heal old sores entirely, they should be kept in a good condition for which this salve it especially valuable. For sale by Frank Hart and leadiag druggists. ! V ' f i ' ! , , j . 1 1 AVeCetaUePreparation for As similating uOToodfindRegula tfrg ihoStnmftrM wnrl IWknf ncssandHcslXoatalnsndtJET Optum .'Morphine nor ItinrraL Not Narcotic. ftmtttU Me- QmfiUSamtr. fcniyiJiwee A wrecl Remedy forConslina- lion. Sour StomarJi,Diarrtioca. Worms .Convulsions ,f evErish ocss and LOSS OF SLEEP. tacSioale Signature of NWYOBIt, EXACT COPT 07 'WRAPPER. Uliil For Infants and Children, j Tho Kind You llayo Always Bought Bears the Signature of AW AW 'D For Over Thirty Years ey-jg ill 1 mm Will Cur Any Case of KIDNEY or BLADDER DISEASE Not Beyond the Reach of Medicine CHAELES EOT.EBS, THE DRUGGIST. . Y . IS, OUR FIELD, AND WE COVER IT. Our field is the district tributary to the mouth of the Columbia River. We pene trate into all the outlying districts, into lumber camps and isolated neighborhoods. The business of these places belongs to you, and it is worth going after.. .Space in THE MORNING ASTORIAN is reason able; contract for some and let these out siders know that you are still in business at the old stand. You may have a "grouch" but that won't get business; forget it. Let the people know what you have to sell; they may "forget" or have "forgotten" &he MORNING ASTORI AN THE ONLY PAPER ON THE LOWER COLUMBIA HAVING ASSOCIATED PRESS SERVICE ' mHW4HUT)iiwiinip"isawiisiini iimiLii.iiiisMeiWMiJ'-'11 lHi"lU "i" ULa.i.anM- W""mw ph wyiiiWmB nftin f i'1 rni" "nirrri-TT-tirT .,T,r...,- JM.....,Jri-MMMawft m, .--t