IN PRISON.
As soon as the chamber-maid’s footsteps had died away, Mildred locked the door, and sat down to think. Suffering herself to be drawn into an interview with a stranger was her second blunder, as she now perceived. Why had the clerk manifested such a sudden interest in her affairs? Did he not suspect her? What made her so foolish as to engage in a conversation with him? She could not but feel a little uneasy and anxious, and she determined to transact her business as quickly as possible, and leave the city. As soon as she would rid herself of Gen. A.’s message she would be out of danger. She must find Beall at once.
She then rose from her seat, and looked around the room, and even under the bed. She cast her eyes up to the ceiling, and as she did so imagined that she heard a sudden, but slight movement overhead. A small bit of plaster dropped to the floor. She at once made the discovery that about two feet square of the plaster had fallen off, or at least was gone. This fact, under ordinary circumstances, would have made no impression upon her mind, but now it awakened her suspicions, and she narrowly examined the unsightly blemish. Why should it not have been repaired? But it may have been recently done. To discover whether this might be so, she examined the carpet immediately under it, but she saw only a few grains of sand, and the little lump that had just fallen. Perhaps Sir Isaac, in the same length of time, did not study more profoundly in regard to the descent of that famous apple which revolutionized philosophy, than Mildred did about that insignificant bit of rubbish. Was its fall, too, due simply to the law of gravitation, or was it caused by some eavesdropper? After reflecting for some moments, a new thought seemed suddenly to flash into her mind, for she partially disrobed herself, as if to rest, and lay upon the bed, pretending to fall into a deep sleep. She was, in fact, wide awake, listening with all her ears. An hour passed away, and she arose. Taking a pair of small scissors from her pocket, she cut a small aperture in the lining of her dress so that she could secure easy access to the General’s manuscript pocket-handkerchief. This done, she drew her chair to the window where she could look down upon the busy street. She gazed at the crowds rushing along in pursuit of the varied objects that occupy the attention of the inhabitants of a gay city, like the capital of the United States. She beheld officers of every grade walking among the throng with proud, military step, who appeared to glory more in their magnificent physique and splendid, spotless uniform, than in the deeds of valor they had performed on the field of battle. In this gay, beautiful city, she felt a keen sense of loneliness. There was, so far as she knew, only one person in all the place, whose sympathies were like her own, and she had no intimate acquaintance with him. This person was Capt. Beall. She now determined to find him at once, deliver the General’s document, and immediately start homeward. Accordingly, she rose from her chair, donned her cephalic attire, and opened the door. She started back in amazement and horror! There stood before her a policeman, a woman, and the head-clerk with whom she had conversed not more than two hours since. What awful thoughts now came crowding into her mind! It is impossible to describe them. Persons who have been in similar situations remember how active is the mind in the first moment of surprise. The sense of danger, the line of defence, the means of escape, all are discussed in a few seconds. Thoughts such as these, and a hundred others of a different character, flashed in the most rapid succession through Mildred’s mind. Among other things Gen. A.’s cautions came vividly to her memory. He had told her how necessary is self-possession, and she was now making the most desperate efforts to be calm. The trio stood watching her face, as she gazed steadily at them. As they said nothing, she presently, in a quiet tone broke the silence.
“I am patiently waiting to learn the object of this intrusion,” she said with dignity.
“We are not guilty of intrusion,” replied the clerk, “we are merely standing before the door.”
“If that is all,” said Mildred calmly, “please let me pass, and you can enjoy your harmless pleasure to your heart’s content.”
“Not so fast, sarcastic lady,” spoke the clerk. “You must give a better account of yourself than you did a while ago. I suspected your disloyalty to the Federal Government sufficiently to induce me to make an effort to ascertain if my suspicions were correct.”