Galusha the Magnificent

ness in various parts of his body, together with the shakiness at the knees which he experienced when he tried to walk, warned him that a trip

shutting it off from the road, the winding, narrow road which even yet held puddles and pools of mud in its hollows, souvenirs of the downpour of the night before. Across the road, perhaps a hundred yards away, was the long, brown-and now of course bleak-broadside of the Restabit Inn, its veranda looking lonesome and forsaken even in the brilliant light of day. Behind it and beyond it were rollin

it ended at another clump of buildings; a house, with ells and extensions, several other buildings and sheds, and a sturdy

Mr. Bangs," she observed, with the air

; he had not he

so I-ah-surm

hat did

ught it was

see one afor

gs, ain't they? You know I never realized till I come down here to live what int

h-is t

is it Miss Martha said folks called 'em? Oh, yes, spinal stairs, that's it. I never see any spinal stairs till I come here. They

N

k. Not all Indian, but some, you know; the rest was white, though Pa he used to cal'late there might be a little Portygee stru

y the light and stand upon the platform. There was nothing particularly

r. Bangs?"

ee him. W

ould you? He's Cap'n Jethro Hallett, keeps th

per, is he? What has he

HEAD t

ah-scarf or something tied about his hea

ong and they blow consider'ble. Say, what do you think?" Primmi

r. Her expression was a comb

stammered, "but really I

does. She comes to him nights and stands alongs

his spectacles

, Mr. Bangs?" r

s of his lips. "We-ll," he observed, "I-r

ngside of MY bed 'twouldn't make no difference to me whether I'd ME

understand you to say that thi

ean when I say it's awful. Wouldn't you think 'twas awful if a wom

," he admitted, "I am incl

Yes, sir! And he goes to every medium place from here to Boston,

d. Dead, you mean. Then this Mr. H

e don't much and Zach Bloomer he says he cal'lates his doubts keep so close astern of his beliefs that it's hard

in other ways? It seems odd to ha

n of a four-masted schooner, till he hurt his back and had to stay ashore. His back's got to hurtin' him worse lately and Zach and Miss Martha they cal'late that's why Lulie give up her

ughter?" Bangs was not especially interested in

he didn't care long's we didn't get so thick he'd step on ary one of us. He didn't care about a good many things, Pa didn't

-Miss Hallett as spookil

ey

Spiritua

he don't take no stock in it. Lulie has to be pretty careful, 'cause ev

od by the fence a while longer. Then he went in to supper. Befor

name, hasn't she?" he observed. "Pri

artha

, but faithful and willin' as a person could be. I put up with her tongue and her-queerness on that account. Some friends of mine over at Falmouth sent her to me; they knew I needed somebody in the house after father died. Her name is Primrose Annabel Cash

-ah-Bloomer

he most of his life in out-of-the-way places, boat-fishin' all alone off on the cod banks, or attendin' to lobster pots way down in the South Channel, or aboard lightships two miles from nowhere. That's enough to make any man queer, bein' o

e long, Miss Phipps

r died in 1900 and he gave up goin' to sea that year. He and I lived here together until two years ago next August; then he died. I have been here since, with

w. He waited for her to go on, but she did not. He looked out of the window also, but there was nothing to be seen, nothin

er, "there isn't a bit of use in makin' today to-morrow, is there, Mr. B

"Why, dear me, dear me!" he exclaime

ha

Almost precisely the same thing was said to me at on

lks must have thought it and said it si

ed and I asked him what there was to laugh at. Then he made the remark about to-morrow's being afar off and that today the sun

t call it that. But WHAT did

was wearing it, but the one he took was the only w

e been. What sort of creature

b camel driver. A

been. Did you get

ther-well, soiled, so to speak, I let him keep it. And he

garded her gue

u say this wa

desert. We were t

inia? That's in A

orthern

that's a lo

tomed to the journey. The first time I f

mean you've been t

yes. Thr

u go to such an outlandish

my-ah-profession. There are some ver

r business-your profe

haeologist,

O

oor knob caused her to frown. Primmie was seated close to the wall on the opposite side of the room industriou

ce night, ain't it, Mis

Cash," she said, severely, "you've

tha, I didn't mea

back to the Mashpau

do it, but I heard him talkin' and it was SO interestin

in I WILL send you

ma'am. I w

't in the closet with the other books wher

was havin' a lot of talk about how to spell somethin' and Lulie she got our dictionary so's to settle it-

r of one annoyed by a puzzle the a

aeologist is," she declared. "I oug

tle Mr. Bangs said he was, didn't he? Y

. You go to

he's an u

vens and earth, what

lar and all. Just exactly same as Emulous Dodd wears when he's runnin' a funeral. Yes, and m

HA

ce for? And didn't he say there was some interestin' remains there. U

he said, "go to bed. And don't forget t

ha Bangs was by this time feeling very much stronger. Mis

eally had a good night's rest, Mr. Bangs. Now you'l

o biscuits, was obliged to decline. His hoste

. She insisted upon his wrapping a scarf of her own, muffler fashion, about his neck beneath his coat collar and lent him a pair

what became of the other. I'm qui

myself," she said. "I never heard of

hem that way," he observed. "My brain doesn't seem

rom the window as he meandered out of

hes and that standin' collar and-and-the kind of still way he walks-and talks. Wouldn'

, Primmie, fo

Phipps did not reply to her housemaid's criticism of the

wn, stiff hat?" she demanded. "It doesn't loo

her apron strings

amel thing he was tellin' you about had stole that hat ins

s first idea had been to visit the lighthouse, his next to walk to the village. He had gone but a short distance

of the Phipps' house. It led past a little pond, hidden between two of those hills. Then it led t

To the south were higher hills, thickly wooded. Between his own hill and those others was a small grove of pines and, partially hidden by it, a weather-beaten building with a steeple, its upper half brok

oldest stones must date from early colonial times. Very likely there might be some odd variations of the conventional carvings, almost certainly some quaint and interesting inscriptions. It would, of course, be but tame sport for one of the world's leading Egyptologists, but to G

nt it flying. He scrambled after it, but it dodged his clutch and rolled and bounded on. He bounded also, but the hat gained. It caught for an instant on the weather side of a tombstone, but just as he was about to pick it up, a fresh gust sent it sailing over the obstacle. It was dashed against the side of the old church and then carried

et lower. He, in his wild dash after the brown derby, had not noticed this and, rushing around the corner, had been precipitated down the bank. He was not hurt, but he

a spok

he added, by way of making the situation

teps seemed to have recovered suffici

t," he explained. "Yo

lac bush which some worshiper of former time had planted by the chur

itnessed his flight from the top to the bottom of the bank, came forw

. "I hope you didn't hurt yourself. N

somewhat doubtfully. "No, I think not. But,

g man sp

"Let me brush you off; you picke

at the knees

but I could scarcely have accumulated all that at the bottom. Thank you, th

rd Lovetts' express wagon Friday afternoon and started you for Wellm

s-fortunately they were not br

as so kind to me when I got off at the wrong station. Yo

's ri

our feet just now. We-ll," with his quiet smile, "I seem to have a habit of making u

p'n Jim's daughter; lives over

er name is Mart

the world

st be the one-the man who is staying at Martha's. Don't you kno

re than nineteen or twenty, slender, brown-h

n't sick. You aren't sick, a

riday evening I was rather done up. But I'm not ill at present, although," with a retur

aughter. The South Wellmouth station agent joined her

ntures after leaving you," he

ting with Raish Pulcifer, of his tramp in the rai

e-ah-I beg your pardon, but I don't know that I learn

Bangs. My name is Howard-N

woman was regarding h

on't you think, perhap

rassed. Galusha noti

ily. "Please don't trouble. Ah-go

d the bank, but the you

ngs," s

-did you wish to sp

n, but what is the use, after all? We've done nothing to be ashamed of. M

Primmie had spoken of Lulie Hallett in the

he went on, "and-and Mr

is morning to meet Lulie here where-where no one would see us. You see-well, Cap'n Jethro-her father,

d stammering. Galusha was

" he said, hastily. "I am very sorry I-I inte

u? We meet in this way on my father's account. He is-you see, he is not very well,

Howard. "Mr. Bangs won't thin

nervously. "I am-I am SO sorry I

any one you saw us? This is a small place, East Wellmouth, and people do talk-oh, dre

, Miss Hallett. You

my best friend, except-" with a becoming blush-"Nelson, and father,

bank. As his head rose abov

some one coming in th

here?" he cried. He sprang up the bank b

he exclaimed. "Luli

rted for church. He never comes t

re's some one with him, or coming after hi

be another dreadful time. And I wouldn't have Raish Pulcifer see and hear it, of all people in the world.

d of the cemetery it might give us a chance, but he probably won't. He'll

atter had been very kind to him on the fateful Friday afternoon when he had alighted at South Wellmouth. H

ered, "but if I might-ah-offer a suggestion, suppose I-ah-meet your father and

se. Oh, WILL you, Mr. Ba

e voices from the hollow beyond the farther end of the cemetery. He hasten

ing more from the west. The conversation, borne by the gusts, came to Galusha's ears clearly and disti

guide and pilot of the fateful Friday evening, Mr. Horatio Pulcifer. "But, Cap'n Jeth," said Mr. Pu

gruffly. "This is the Lord's Day and I don't want to ta

e Mr. Pulcifer. His tone had lost a li

I'm any more to blame than the rest, you're mistaken. I tell you when you and me and Cap'n Jim and a

h, I don't want t

re you pickin' on me for? How was I to-No, now you wait a minute, Cap'n Jeth, and answer me. I've chased you 'way over here

f the time had come for him to show himself, waited anxiously. But Captain Hallett's answe

the five minutes, Raish, but no more. I hadn't ought to

n Jeth, all's I wanted to say was this: What are w

may be one year or three, but some day somebody will have to come to us. There ain't a better place

stock than anybody else. I've got five hundred shares, Cap'n Jeth; five hundred shares at twenty dollars a share. A poor ma

ot eight thousand ti

difference to you. You can afford

state job pretty soon yourself, Raish. Well, neve

ody that'll wait. I can't afford to wait, that's what's the matter. It kind of run acrost my mind t

know! What do yo

for-for-well, say nine

bother me an

a share. Lord sakes, that's

sh. I've talked all the busines

five hundred shares of Wellmouth Development Company for just half what I paid for i

ersation, yet feeling like an eavesdropper, wished this provoking pair wo

e Trust Company folks had decided not to go ahead with the fish storage business just as well as you did, and I heard it just as soon, too. I know they've decided to put the twelve hundred shares of Wellmouth Development stock into profit a

lcifer whistled, apparent

n', was there? Never catch a fish without heavin' over a hook, as the feller s

aish, don't you go tryin'

here ain't money enough there to b

t's

, I won't keep you any longer. Goin' to hang on to YO

at a profit. Not a big

hat so? Wh

oice became solemn, "

Oh, from up yond

't you dare be sacrile

So you had a message from the s

quick, but not sooner.... But there, I've profaned the Lord's day long enough. I came over here this mornin' to visit Julia's grave. Th

come over to your

you lookin' l

chasin' after Lulie. I see her meander

UL

Looked l

was there a

ap'n Jeth. I didn't SEE nobody, but

startled by Pulcifer's statement that he had seen Miss Hallett, he let go his hold. And a playful gust lifted the hat from

llett jum

What is it?"

t, ain't it?

he tomb haste

enough to-to stop that hat f

anion started at the appariti

ou will be kind enough to pick it up before-

de a grab at it but his attempt only lifted it higher into th

e exasperated Galush

t IS he?" dem

figure hopping after the hat. The li

in my car. But what in blazes is he doin' here NOW?... Hi, look ou

ial route in the same direction. Now Raish followed Galusha and after him ro

hill beyond the eastern border of the cemetery. The hat rolled, bounced, dipped and soared up the hill and just clear of the branches of the endmost pine. Then it disappear

rty feet below. This beach was the shore of a pretty little harbor, fed by a stream which flowed into it from the southwest. On the opposite side of the stream was another stretch

the beach, a round object bounced and rolled. As he gazed a gust whirled along the shore and pitched the brown object into the sparkling w

the hollow by the front door of the old church. From the knoll where he stood he could see every inch of that

. The sacrifice of the brow