The Argosy — page 33: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

Edina. 23 dangerous illness. This was two days before they received news of Dr. Raynor’s death. Charles was rendered miserably uncomfortable during the service by the presence of the Tiger opposite to him—as might be read by anyone in the secret of his fears, and was read by Frank. Never did Charles raise his eyes but he saw those of the Tiger fixed on him: in fact, the Tiger studied the faces in Major Raynor's pew more attentively than he studied his book. “He is taking toll of me—that he may know me again: I don’t : suppose he did know me before, or his work would have been done,” thought Charles. ‘What a precious idiot I was to come to-church ! Thank heaven, he can’t touch me on a Sunday.” And when the service was over, the Tiger coolly stood in the churchyard and watched the family pass him, looking keenly at Charles. That same evening, John Jetty found himself invited to take a pipe with his lodger. They sat in the arbour in the back garden, amid the herbs, the spring cabbages, and the early flowers. Jetty never wanted any inducement to talk. He was not of a wary nature by any means, and did not observe how skilfully and easily the thread of his discourse was this evening turned on the Raynors and their affairs. No man in the place could have supplied more correct information to a stranger than he. He was often at work in the house, was particularly intimate with Lamb, the butler, who had lived with Mrs. Atkinson ; as had two or three of the other head servants ; and they had the family politics at their fingers’ ends. Mrs. Raynor had brought one servant from Spring Lawn; the nurse ; the woman knew all about her branch of the family, Frank included, and had no objec- tion to relate news for the new people’s benefit, who in their turn re- peated it to Jetty. Consequently Jetty was as much at home in the family archives as the Raynors were themselves. “Ts the estate entailed on the Major's son? ” questioned the Tiger, in a pause of the conversation. “T don’t think it’s strictly entailed on him, sir, but of course he’ll have it,” was Jetty’s answer. ‘Indeed, it is no secret that the Major has made a will and left it to him. Mrs. Atkinson bequeathed it entirely to the Major : she didn’t entail it.” “Who is Mrs. Atkinson?” asked the Tiger. “Why, that was the possessor of the estate before him,” cried Jetty, in an accent full of surprise. To him, familiar with Eagles’ Nest and its people for many years, it sounded strange to hear anybody ask who Mrs. Atkinson was. “She was an old lady, sir, sister to the Major, and it all belonged to’her. He only came into it last year when she died.” “Had she no sons ?” “No, sir; not any. I never heard that she did have any. Her husband was a banker in London; he bought this place a good many years ago. After his death Mrs. Atkinson quite lived in it.”' ~~ « comicbooks.com