第56章

"Perhaps his confederates, to spring out upon us at night, after everybody's asleep.""Are you sure you remembered him, papa?" said Kitty sotto voce.

"Certainly.And, my dear child, he knows all the family history as well as you do; and"--continued her father with a slight laugh that did not, however, conceal a certain seriousness that was new to him--"I only wish I understood as much about the property as he does.By the way, Amos," he broke off suddenly, turning to the young man, "he seemed to know your people.""Most men in the financial world do," said Gunn a little superciliously.

"Yes; but he asked me if you hadn't a relative of some kind in Southern California or Mexico."A slight flush--so slight that only the keen, vivaciously observant eyes of Marie noticed it--passed over the young man's face.

"I believe it is a known fact that our branch of the family never emigrated from their native town," he said emphatically."The Gunns were rather peculiar and particular in that respect.""Then there were no offshoots from the old STOCK," said Gabriel.

Nevertheless, this pet joke of Gabriel's did not dissipate the constraint and disappointment left upon the company by Uncle Sylvester's unsatisfying performance and early withdrawal, and they separated soon after, Kitty and Marie being glad to escape upstairs together.On the landing they met two of the Irish housemaids in a state of agitated exhaustion.It appeared that the "sthrange gintleman" had requested that his bed be remade from bedclothes and bedding ALWAYS CARRIED WITH HIM IN HIS TRUNKS! From their apologetic tone it was evident that he had liberally rewarded them.

"Shure, Miss," protested Norah, in deprecation of Kitty's flashing eye, "there's thim that's lived among shnakes and poysin riptiles and faverous disayses that's particklar av the beds and sheets they lie on.Hisht! Howly Mother! it's something else he's wanting now!"The door of Uncle Sylvester's room had slowly opened, and a blue pyjama'd sleeve appeared, carefully depositing the sheaf of bows and arrows outside the door."I say, Norah, or Bridget there, some of you take those infernal things away.And look out, will you, for the arrowheads are deadly poison.The fool who got 'em didn't know they were African, and not Indian at all! And hold on!" The hand vanished, and presently reappeared holding two rifles."And take these away, too! They're loaded, capped, and NOT on the half-cock! A jar, a fall, the slightest shock is enough to send them off!""I'm dreadfully sorry that you should find it so uncomfortable in our house, Uncle Sylvester," said Kitty, with a flushed cheek and vibrating voice.

"Oh, it's you--is it?" said Uncle Sylvester's voice cheerfully."Ithought it was Bridget out there.No, I don't intend to find it uncomfortable.That's why I'm putting these things outside.But, for Heaven's sake, don't YOU touch them.Leave that to the ineffable ass who put them there.Good-night!"The door closed; the whispering voices of the girls faded from the corridor; the lights were lowered in the central hall, only the red Cyclopean eye of an enormous columnar stove, like a lighthouse, gleamed through the darkness.Outside, the silent night sparkled, glistened, and finally paled.Towards morning, having invested the sturdy wooden outer walls of the house and filmed with delicate tracery every available inch of window pane, it seemed stealthily to invade the house itself, stilling and chilling it as it drew closer around its central heart of warmth and life.Only once the frigid stillness was broken by the opening of a door and steps along the corridor.This was preceded by an acrid smell of burning bark.

It was subtle enough to permeate the upper floor and the bedroom of Marie du Page, who was that night a light and nervous sleeper.

Peering from her door, she could see, on the lower corridor, the extraordinary spectacle of Uncle Sylvester, robed in a gorgeous Japanese dressing-gown of quilted satin trimmed with the fur of the blue fox, candle in hand, leisurely examining the wall of the passage.Presently, drawing out a footrule from his pocket, he actually began to measure it! Miss Du Page saw no more.Hurriedly closing her door, she locked and bolted it, firmly convinced that Gabriel Lane was harboring in the guise of Uncle Sylvester a somnambulist, a maniac, or an impostor.