Australian Tales - Setis

in her right ear, and she was lying on her left side in peaceful
unconsciousness of her mistress's distress, and her master's disaster, or of
the active bell in the kitchen lobby.
To describe the perturbed state of Mrs. Lemonpip's mind at that trying
juncture is too much for my pen: all her cruel persecution of her poor old
man, rushed like a turbid torrent upon her distracted senses, and she
howled with terrormingled grief — ” Lemonpip! my own Lemonpip!
Dear Jacky! speak to your pigeon: only one word, say you are not dead,
and I shall be happy!” But not a single word did her dear Jacky utter, a
stifled death-like groan was the only response, which ascended through
the darkness, and penetrated Mrs. Lemonpip's awakened conscience like
a rusty spike.
Chapter III.
IN a terrible state of excitement, Mrs. Lemonpip hastened up stairs to
the back attic, and called loudly upon Mr. McSkilly for help and counsel,
in the extraordinary trial which had visited her. She had previously
shouted fire! in order to arouse her lodger. Receiving no answer to her
verbal application, she drummed at his door with her knees and knuckles,
loud enough to stun the thickest head in Sydney; and when that appeal
failed to elicit a response, she boldly opened the door and entered the
room, when, to her further bewilderment, she discovered that her lodger
was non est. The window was wide open, and the full moon was shining
into the empty bed, from which Mr. McSkilly had most unaccountably
vanished, she knew not whither. Various articles of wearing apparel were
lying in confusion on the floor, but not even the shadow of the owner
could be seen; and all sorts of supernatural notions flitted through Mrs.
Lemonpip's excited brain, as to the aërial flight of her lodger, and also as
to the horrifying fate of her poor husband; while she intimately
connected Satan himself with the mystery and the mischief, both upstairs
and down.
Alarmed beyond measure, and apprehensive of personal damage by
remaining, Mrs Lemonpip rushed into the front attic, threw up the sash,
and, arrayed merely in her night robe and cap, she slid down the dewy
slates into the leaden gutter, and made the best of her way to the front
attic window of the adjoining house, or number one, which was a young
ladies school, kept by Mrs. Backboard. In that attic were three young
lady boarders, and a pupil teacher. The latter young lady was just about
to put the extinguisher on her candle, preparatory to jumping into bed,
when she heard a tapping at the window, and at the same time saw the
purple nose, and white frilled nightcap of Mrs. Lemonpip, which was all
that could be seen of her, for the window was five feet from the leaden
gutter. But even that was evidently more than the pupil teacher rejoiced