THE AMERICAN BKE-KEEFER. 



129 



SOLACE. 



De summor's sunipin mighty gay, 



De wimor's mighty sober, 

 But JL's' IjL'twix 't-ni an between 



Am gorgi'ous oU- 0.-tober. 

 So doan' i,'it cUaviic:;s' 'bout de fros* 



Dat nick yor bu'n de wood: 

 De 'siinnnou am u-ripuuiu an 



De 'possum's gittin good. 



De wrrtahniillion's dono played out. 



But dah am joy in sight ; 

 Do punkin's mighty temptin ef 



Yoli only cooks it right. 

 So take yoh pardniTs an n^joice 



Do way dat poople should; 

 Do 'siminon am a-ripenin an 



De 'possum's gittiu good. 



—Boston Globe. 



FOR ANOTHER'S SIN. 



Sir Morriiner Barbican was an old 

 mau, oue of the old types of English 

 aristocrats — fiery, imperious and inor- 

 dinately proud of the integrity of his 

 nauje and ancestry. At the time I went 

 into his employ, years ago now, he was 

 living alone with his only daughter at 

 bis family seat in Gloucestershire. 



A strange looking, tall lady was Miss 

 Linda Barbican, with large, black eyes 

 and pale, hard set features, bearing the 

 traces of some inward sorrow. 



Sir Mortimer, I learned, had bad a 

 eon, whom he had disinherited and dis- 

 owned, owing to some act which had 

 brought dishonor on the name of Barbi- 

 can, and he forbade all mention of the 

 scapegrace of the family. 



A young man, shabbily dressed, with 

 a reckless albeit a handsome face, stood 

 on the doorstep and scanned me nerv- 

 ously as I looked questioniugly at him. 



"Is my — is Sir Mortimer Barbican 

 disengaged?" he asked huskily. 



"Yes, sir," I answered. "Will you 

 please come in?" 



"Is there any one in the library?" 



"No, sir. " 



"Then show me in and tell your mas- 

 ter I must see him. " 



"Very well, sir! What name shall I 

 give?" 



"Oh, never mind the uame! He'll 

 know me fast enough," he added bit- 

 terly. 



Sir Mortimer looked up in a surprircd 

 way when I conimuuicated to h ■ \.^..^ 





>^tici v.'.'aijcci lu BwO 



him. He opened Ihe door and gtrode in- 

 to the room. 



"Father!" 



That was all. One short, despairing 

 cry, and father and sou stood face to 

 face once more. 



A gray, drawn look stole over my 

 master's face as for a brief moment he 

 stood eying the prodigal who had so 

 mysteriously reappeared. Then he found 

 bis tongue. 



"So it is you, you hound!" he said, 

 his features working strangely, while 

 there was a tone of suppressed rage in 

 his voice; "it is you, is it? Have you 

 forgotten how we parted? Have you for- 

 gotten," his voice rising ominously, 

 "how I cast you off and forbade you 

 ever to step in my house again? Be off 

 before I forget myself and whip you 

 out, as you deserve." 



"I will speak," cried the younger 

 man. "As there is a God in heaven, I 

 am innocent! But since you will not 

 hear me, I will not try to save you. May 

 it be on your own head, and may you 

 reap as you have sown ! But you will 

 have the comforting assurance of know- 

 ing that you have sent me to the devil, 

 and I curse you!" And, striding from 

 the room, the younger mau passed out 

 into the hall. 



I hastened to open the door for him. 

 As he was passing out into the night he 

 turned. 



"You are a stranger to me, " he said, 

 after a brief space, "but your face looks 

 like an honest one. If you can contrive 

 it, meet me tomorrow, about this time, 

 at the drive gate. It is a matter of life 

 and death. " 



The nest morning after breakfast Sir 

 Mortimer turned to me and said : 



"If you value your situation here, 

 Parkin, you will bear this in mind : Not 

 a word of what you saw and heard last 

 night, and never mention my — my son's 

 name to me again under pain of instant 

 dismissal. That is all. " 



It was with some feeling of trepida- 

 tion that I repaired to thetrysting place 

 that same evening to await the arrival 

 of thedi.siuherited son. Having inquired 

 my name, he began : 



"You must first know how I came to 

 be in this plight. Some years ago a 

 forged check in my father's name was 

 discovered. Suspicion at once fell on 



