NEXT DAY
Oh wirrah! wirrah! wirrah! Its a sad and loansome warld and its a
trecherus snake is Minnie.
Yesterday me hart was full of feers. Its menny an effort I made to
relave mesilf to Miss Claire, but for pity for the puir yung creachure
me tung refused to spake.
Last nite was a nite of shocks. Mr. John cum down to the bastemint and
taks possisshun after dinner of me privat dining-rume. The widder do be
giving him a barskit full of seeds, frish picked from her gardin, and
he’s after wanting he ses to sort thim out and mark the reyspictiv
packages so he may know them nixt Spring whin hes going to have a fine
gardin.
Miss Claire cum into me kitchin, wid her bloo eyes swimming wid teers.
“What will we do, Delia?” ses she, “John is in the dining-room to-nite,
and I cant get him out.”
“Now don’t you be after wurriting darlint” ses I, “Shure Mr. Harry is
wilcam to me kitchin.”
“But John may walk in upon us” ses she despritly.
“He’d better not” ses I, and wid that I wint to the dure and called out
to Mr. John:
“Will ye be good enuff to kape your disthance from me kitchin to-nite,
as its private company I’m expicting.”
“Very well Delia” ses he perlitely.
I wint outside to the bastemint dure, and wated in person for Mr. Harry.
When he arrived, I tauld him the state of things, and he slipped into me
kitchen. Miss Claire were sitting on me table, her little feet swinging
in the air.
“Good avening” ses she, trying to smile and look chareful “Ye’ll
obsarve” ses she “the extrames to which we are driven. John holds the
fort to-nite.”
Mr. Harry is haulding her hands as she spakes, and watching her face
like he wad ate her up.
“Had I better go thin?” ses he.
“O, if you want to” ses she, slipping down from the table, and turning
away from him a bit.
“Want to!” ses he, “You don’t meen that!”
“No” ses she, saftly, “I—I don’t.”
I thot the yung lad wud grab her, but joost thin he seen me and kept
still.
Miss Claire sayses hauld of a frying pan.
“Never mind” ses she “We’ll enjoy oursilves aven in the kitchen? You’ve
never tasted me famiss fudge, have you Mr. Dudley?”
“No” ses he, looking at her pretty arms, as she rolled back the sleeves
from thim.
“Well” ses she “I larned to make it in me Vassa days. Get me an aprun,
Delia” ses she.
I brot her wan of her own—a little red gingum thin wid frills and
pockits. She let him button it behind her, and he tuk so long she broke
away larfing and blooshing.
“Now” ses she “_You_ may help me. I want cream, sugar, butter and
chocklett. A bit of vernilla too” ses she.
They set to work, busy and happy as childrun making mud pies. By and by
the stuff was cooked, and she set him to mixing it, “and mix it stiff”
ses she, “while I greese the pans.”
This dun, she took a spoon and scooping out a bit she hild it to his
lips. He, not looking at the fudge, but wid his eyes fixed on her,
opened his mouth and took in the spoon. Then he guv a yell and down
drapped the spoon.
“Oh!” ses she, turning pail, “wuz it hot? Harry!” ses she, “I _burned_
you!”
“You call me Harry!” ses he, and saysed hauld of her by the arms. I was
watching wid all me eyes, whin I herd the dure squake a bit. Befure I
cud move tords it Miss Claire roon oop aginst it and hild it closed wid
her little hands.
“The china closet, Delia!” she wispered, and I shuvved Mr. Harry into
the closet and banged the dure tite. Whin we let in Mr. John he looked
about him.
“Whats the matter?” ses he, “Why did you hauld me out?”
“O” ses Miss Claire, gayly, “Its a game Delia and I are playing.”
He frowned and ses cauldly.
“Ye cud find bitter implyment I fancy than playing in the kitchen wid
Delia. Your not a child Claire” ses he.
Shes about to spake in ansser whin the frunt dure bell run, and I saized
me aprun and wint to ansser it, laving the yung peeple alone. As I
reeched the upper flure, I seen Mr. Wolley turning on the lites in the
hall. Then he opened the dure. A little auld gintleman wid wiskers on
his cheeks and spats on his feet stud there.
“Good avening” ses he, “Mr. Wolley, I belave?”
I cud tell by Mr. Wolley’s back that his face was purple. He harf closed
the dure, and thin agin opened it.
“What is it you want?” ses he roodely.
“Who is it father?” ses Mr. James, comeing into the hall, then he too
seen the little gintleman. The latter is spaking wid horchure and
dignity.
“I cum, sor” ses he, “to—er—ask—you sir, to requist me sun to lave your
house.”
“I don’t oonderstand you” ses Mr. Wolley cauldly.
“I resaved” ses the auld gintleman, stepping into the hall, “a nonnymuss
epissle this marning. Ordinary I ignoar sich things, but me suspishuns
had alreddy been aroused. I tuk it upon mesilf to play the detictive
to-nite. When me sun left the house I followed him here. I saw him inter
ye’re place be way of the—er—bastemint” ses he hortily. “I wayted around
a bit and thin desided to spake to you personally. You—er—probably
appreeshiate me position” ses he. “I of coorse, shall absolutely refuse
to reckynise anny foolish shcrape of the yungster—he’s a mere boy” he
adds loftily.
“Sir” ses Mr. Wolley, “if yure yung ass of a sun—I yuse the word
advisedly” ses he “has been making a fool of himsilf over a girl in me
imploy, I am not intrusted in the affare. Will you be good enuff to go
to the back dure.”
Wid that he’s about to open the dure, when he seen me standing there.
“Delia!” ses he, “Heres your yung man’s father. Just tak him into the
kitchen.”
Old Mr. Dudley seemed aboot to boorst, but befure he cud spake, Mr.
James tuk him by the arm and lid him gintly but firmly to the kitchen
dure. As I was about to follow Mr. Wolley saised hauld of me slave.
“Delia!” ses he, wispering excitedly, “is _Claire_ doon stares?”
[Illustration:
“‘Go away John! Go away!’ ses she, ‘you shan’t open the dure.’”
]
“N-no—yes—indade I don’t know sir” ses I and I picked up me aprun and
begun to cry into it.
We disinded to me kitchin—Mr. Wolley, Mr. James and auld Mr. Dudley, who
shtumbled on the dark steps and sneezed whin he got to the bottom. In
the kitchin we cum upon a straynge site. Miss Claire was standing wid
her back aginst me china closet; her eyes were big and wild looking, and
she kept talking to Mr. John who stud befure her.
“Go away, John! Go away!” ses she. “You shan’t open the dure! You
shan’t! You shan’t!” ses she. Then she seen us all and she guv a little
cry.
“Delia! O Delia!” ses she, “don’t let him. He—he soospicts sumthing,”
ses she, and then she poot her hed down on me shoulder and burst into
teers.
I herd Mr. Harry moving in the closet, and I belave the yung chap must
have herd Miss Claire weeping, for joost as she boorst into teers, he
forced open the dure. For a moment he stud blinking, and thin he seen us
all. He guv a look first at his father and as the auld gintleman wint
tord him he drew himsilf up stiff and faced him.
“Well sir!” ses the auld fellow, choking wid rage, “so this is whare
ye’ve been spinding your avenings—in the kitchen of these contemtyble
pinny-a-liners.”
“One moment” ses the lad, and suddintly he turned to Miss Claire, and
poot an arm about her, but befure he cud draw her to him, Mr. James had
dashed forward.
“Dam you!” ses he, “tak your hands aff me sister!” Wid that he rinched
thim apart.
Yung Dudley toorned very pail, but he smiled quarely, as he moved tord
the dure.
“Claire!” ses he, spaking clear over the heds of ivery wan, “raymimber
darlint that we love aich other. All will cum rite yet deerest” ses he.
Thin ignoaring and pooshing past his little angry father he made his way
to the bastemint dure and out.
Mr. Dudley stud a minit looking aboot him his thin lips poorsed ap in a
snarling shmile. He adrissed himself to Mr. Wolley, but his eyes was on
Miss Claire.
“Me sun” ses he “is yung and rash. This is not the first time I have
been obleeged to cum in person to extrycate him from sich a scrape.
Forchunatly” ses he “we expict him to make an airly marruge. I was
talking to his finansay’s father to-day and its aboot desided that the
yung fokes will both be sint abrord nixt week. Good avening sir” ses he
“You will not be thrubbled again” ses he. Thin, still smiling in that
nasty insoolting way of his, he bowed and wint.
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