CHAPTER XXIX. TWO CONGENIAL SOULS,

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XIII, Issue 27, 30 October 1885, Page 5

CHAPTER XXIX. TWO CONGENIAL SOULS,

Kathenne had not been long in this uncomfortable spot whea she he ird a sound which, fearless as she was, caused her a momentary shock. To hear a footstep in such a place was startling. Yet there was a cracking of the underwood to be detected through, or rather on the suiface of, the ioarof the woods. Her eyes being now used to the darkness, distiuguised the outline of a woman's form which was groping its way among the bushes. Presently a scream from the new-comer announced fear at the glimmer of Miss Archbold's white fur-i. The figure fell and cowered on the ground ; and Katherine amused heiselt for some minutes with the terrors of this unknown aud silly wretch. Tuen she touched the prostrate body with the toe of her little boot.

•• Git up quickly," she said, '• whoever you may be 1" The creauue. an old woman, revivtd at the human voice, and gatheied heisclf grot, squely into a sitting posit. on. They comd see each other now, howevei dimh . Kuhenne 1 <oked like some beautiful fairy, who h id cimsen fur i,o quod cud to pay a visit to this spot ; the odier like some witch in her famdar haunt ; for the old womaa was ugly, and she was wend. In short, she was Tiboie.

" I know \e now! ' .she cried ; "1 know y> now' Ye 're Sir J >hn Archbol .b d uigLter fiom beyant the mountain. Many a time I have heard o' the benny o' yer taee, an' the baidness o' yer heart. I know ye by yer hau ; for though my eyes is not go jd, I can see the glint o't. I took ye for an augel, an' I'm not good company lor angels — not till my bun Con's some way s ttled to his pioperty. Wueu Simon gives him hib rights, then I'll settle to goodness, but people can t get then wills wut the giaee o' God about them. An I'm bound toeet my will wLobumdever lends me a nand."

' Come,' said Katbeune, "this is inteiesting. My dear wise woman. I thank \ou for your compliments, and lam deligutjd to make ) our acquaintance. V,) U thought you had something pood, and you find you have something naughty; so you become quite friendly, and tell m- your secicts. Notning could pie t»e me more. It gne- me intense pleaMiie to meet with people who intend to have their will. And who lsyoui boy Con— and what is he to Simon? ' She knew the st >ry well, but chose to hear it horn libbie.

•' H e s mv Mister's own son, au' Mmou's nephew," she aaid •■An' I've sworn an oithiri ray knees th it he suail oe master o Tobfeevil There was a will that was nearly signed whin Paul Fini^ton h, 1 cut in a. i Hum dus out o doors. Ive been S'arvm' \uiid r wid the black-b, etle-s an' ihe rats: an' I'm buubd to have my lew ml. 11l u<A back lo his kitchen, an' I'll put, my boy into Paul •, shots. I've been beimiug on the hilU; but it's little I'll think o that when I \e gut the uumey-bags in my clut' hes ; an' I'm come this _ way tlmmgh the woods in h..p. s o lueetin' somethin' wicked tha \l hilp -ne. Iheiedube dewls an' badspiiits always livin' in th.> t'uees— l'm not uirud o' them if they d give me a Lnd ; but I'm mortal fcare 1 o' the angels, for they might keep me from mv will '

Kathrrine looked at the creature with admiration. Win re in all the land coul 1 bhe niece with anuhiug so congenial as tins hag, who had thus avowed a puipose which had made them enemies at once' "For I." thougut Kaihenne. "have determined tnat Paul Finmon shall be master ot lobeieevil, and I am resolved to have my wnl. And this creature is al-o bent upon foicing fate, &o that he Con shall take bis place. Yet we shall be fnends in spite of this little difference. '

'■ My dear soul." said she, '■ sit down on this stump and tell me all about it. lam anxious to hear your plans. What do jou mean to do in oid'-r to mm Paul Funsion ? "

" I would not tell \oi!," said Tibbie, " only that I know you are hard- hoai ted. If I thought you soft an' good, I wouldn't open my li| stove, not if ye pia>ed me on \er kuee.s. For Paul Fiuiston's the suit that women like-. '

" l'.iu he ii i tool, '-a d Kath-rm >, •• an nnpo-tor, and a beggar. who imi-t be turn' d b\ ti'f shouldeih out of t ,c eountty." libbie ciowed, and el t|>pi> 1 her hand;, with delight. "Oh inusha ! ' sh. c leu ; \\ou have the puity tuii_rue in jour head." ••How do \ -v mem t> do it? ' asked Kunuine. "Don't be afiaul to ull me, lor theie is no one wi hiu miles of us. Snail you give Inm a taste of nightshade, or a little hemlock tea?" '• No, ' saul Tibbie, doubtfully, as if the idea had not startled her, but wa«s familiar to her mind. •• I have thought o' that, an' thought o't, an' 1 11 thry another way. I'll do it by a charm. An

that's what brought me here to-day. There's roots that does be growin in divil's places like this ; an' if ye can catch them, an' keep them, ye may do anything ye like." " Roots ! said Katherine. And what do you do with them T " " Borne needs wan doin 1 , and some another," said Tibbie. " The best of all is a mandhrake, for that's a devil in itsel'. It looks like a little man, and ye haag it up in a corner where it can see y« walkin' about. Bo long as ye threat it well, it'll bring ye the luck o' the world. I go sarcbiag through every bad place in the woods, and on mountains, turnin' up the stones, and glowerin 1 under the bushes, hopin' to find a mandhrake that'll do my will. If I can find him, oh, honey ! won't I make my owa o' the miser 1 I'll make the keys dance out o' hia pockets, and the money bags dance out o' the holes he has hid them in, an' the goold jump out o' the bags into Tibbie'a pockets. I'll make him burn the will that has Paul in it, an' write out another that'll put Con in his place. I'll have all my own way ; an' the oald villian may break his heart and die widout me needin' to lift a hand against him."

" Capital ! " cried Katherine ; hut where will you find the mandrake f Are you sure that it grows in this country at all ? And suppose it doei, don't you know that to suit your purpose it must spring from a murderer's grave ? Then, even when it is found, there is danger in getting possession of it. It screams when its root is torn from the earth, and its shriek kills the person who plucks it." Tibbie's face fell as she listened. " You're larnder nor me," she said. " An 1 are ye tellin' me the truth ? "

" Ortainly, tbe truth," said Katherine. Tibbie lifted up her voice, and howled with disappointment. " Everything agin me," she said, rocking herself dismally ; "but I'm not goin' to be baffled. I'll cross the Bays if yell tell me the counthry where it'll be found. I'll get somebody to pluck it for me that'll not know the harm ; for I tell ye that I am bound to get my will,"

Katherine stood looking on, while the creature thus bemoaned herself.

" There, now," she said presently, " don't cry any more. I have a mandrake myself, and I will give it to you. It will be no loss to me, for I have everything I waut. I like meetiag with difficulties, for I have power within myself to break them down. If you like to have the mandrake. I will give it to you." " Like it I " cried Tibbie. "Is it would I like it, she says ? Oh, wirra, wirra 1 isn't her ladyship gone mad ! Like to have the maadbrake | Like to get my will 1 An' they said ye were hardhearted. Then it's soft-hearted ye are, an' I was a fojl to be talkin' to ye. Give away yer luck to wan like to me ! If I had it I'd see ye die afore I'd give it to ye."

"Oh, very well ! " Baid Katherine, turning away." "Of course, if you don't want it, I can give it to someone else."

Tibbie uttered a cry. She fell on the ground, and laid hold of Katheiine's gown.

" Ladyship, ladyship ! " she said, " I meant no harm. It's on'y amaeed I was, an" I ax yer honour's pardon. Give me up the mandhrake, an' ye may put yer foot on me, an' walk on me. I'll do anything in the world for ye when I have a divil to do my will. Ladyship, ladyship, give me the mandhrake ! "

" There, then," said Katherine, " I promise that you shall have it ; and if ever I should want anything of you I expect you to be friendly. Stay, there is one thing I should like — to see the house of Tobereevil. Bring me there now, and you shall have the mandrake to-morrow. I don't want to see the miser, only his den." " Well," said Tibbie, who had now got on her feet, and recovered her self-possession, " If ye can creep, an' hould yer tongue, an' if yer shoes don't squeak, I'll take yer through the place. There's little worth seem' for a lady like yersel', but come wid me if you like it. Only don't blame Tibbie if Simon finds ye out."

" Leavg that to me," said Katherine ; " I'm not afraid of Bimon."

Tibbie clasped her hands, and rocked herself with delight. " That's the mandhrake, ' she mattered. " There's nobody can gainsay her wid the mandhrake undher her thumb ; an 1 to-morrow it'll be Tibbie's."

So these new friend? set to work to extricate themselves from the prison of trees in which they had taken pains to amuse themselves. They groped, and pushed, and fought, until they made their way out into the more open woods, where air and moisture were found plentiful enough, and where the young vegetation was varied and magnificent, the delicate and wholesome growing mingled with the rank and poisonous. Ivy trailed from high branches of trees, making beautiful traps for unwary feet. Grass was long and coarse, being nourished with the giant ferns by creeping sources of the evil well of the legend. Btreaks of fiery scarlet shining out here and there from the gloom of greenery, and blackish atmosphere of rotten thickets, announced the brazen beauty of the nightshade. Upon this Katherine pounced, making herself a deathly and brilliant nosegay as she went along ; a poisonous sheaf of burning berries for a centre, some stalks of hemlock, some little brown half-rotted nut leaves with blots of yellow and crimson, some black slender twigs, the whole surrounded by a lacework of skeleton oak-leaves. She would have nothing fresh, nothing of tbe spring ; her whim being to make a nosegay out of deadlinegs and decay. {To be Continued.)

" My mother drove the paralysis and neuralgia all out of her system with American Hop Bitters."— Ed. Osrvego Sun. See. The fact that Carter and Co., of George street, are the only Drapers in Duntdin doing a strictly Cash Trade who import their own Goods direct from Home Markets, is the one cause of their being able to sell cheaper than any other fi i m. Carter and Co. have just opened, ex ss. Coptic and Kaikoura, 16 cases Men's and Boys' Clothing, and in consequence of the desperate scarcity of ready money, they have decided to offer the whole lot, for a few weeks, at landed cost. Therefore, call, inspect, and judge for yourselves. Carter and Co., 60 and 62 George street, Dunedin.