Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER II THE CURSE THE two men had now been working for three months at the mine, and the villagers had become used to the sight of strangers in Marshfielden. Indeed, as the weeks sped by, and nothing uncanny happened, they began gradually to forget the Curse in connection with the two young Forsyths. Summer was now waning. Leaves were beginning to fall and folks were making preparations for a hard winter. Mr. Winthrop was still going round on his kindly errands and had become sincerely attached to the two youths who had taken up their residence so near to him. Indeed, there was no one else in the village to whom they could go for social intercourse, and nearly every evening Mrs. Skeet’s little parlor was full of the smoke and chatter of the vicar and his two young friends. It was now the first Tuesday in October, and the evenings were growing chilly. Mrs. Skeet had lighted a nice fire, and they all sat round it enjoying the warmth of its glow. People outside, passing by, heard the sound of merry laughter, and Mr. Winthrop’s characteristic chuckle, and smiled with him. But Moll Murlock passed the cottage hurriedly and drew her shawl closer round her shoulders, while a slight moan came from between her tightly compressed lips. Of all the inhabitants of Marshfielden, there was one still who had not forgotten the Curse.
Well, boys, said Mr. Winthrop. I suppose you feel used to your life amongst us now?
Yes, answered Alan. It seems almost like home to We’ve never had a proper home, broke in Desmond. Ours is rather a romantic story, said Alan. Our mothers were twin sisters?they married on the same day and went to the same place for their honeymoon. A year later my mother died in giving me birth, and Desmond’s mother died when he was only …
