The Open

Window I
I
i
•
'l\1Y au nt will b e
'
l
down pres~nt~y,
I

rJr Nuttel, sa id a . 1
ver)' self-po~sessed
young l~dy o f .
fifteen;, 1n th e .
l
meantime you m u st.·
trY .,and p u t u p with ti
me. . , ..
·Framton Nutte_l - . ; . .. . ,. . . . . . .
sa y' th e . co rr ec t s: 0n ie tµ in g w h ic h .
endeavoured -t o
tter -~ he n ie ce .w it h o u t\ ;tn( luly · \
should duly:_.fla ri v ately
nt to ;
· c o ~ .e ~ P
discounting the ·a::u th a t w as
r th es e formal
·m o re · th an e
· v er w h et h.e
he doubted
;
·"
.
ld do ·
'

si
.

o n o f ~ ot al ·s tr an g e_r s w o u
visits on a ·succes
ds h el p i~ g th e n er v e cu re which h e
much towar
was supposed to ·be 11n_ dergoing.
w it w ill b e, '·h is si st e r h a d said w h en
'I know ho
treat;
g t9 m ig r~ te to th is ru ra l re
~ewas preparin ot sp e a k
rs elf d o w n th e re a n d n
You will b~·ry y ou ·
to a 1· ·
, an d y o u r ner ves w ill b e w o rse
th lVIng soul g ive y o u ·
an ever from m op in g. I sh al l ju st
 ,' :~:tters of introduction
· Ie all the people I ·
to ow there. Some of .
J{ll J1l .as far as I can -?·
tbe ' · .• ,
relllember, were qmte .. ,
· ice.'· · . · _:· · · • · · .··· ,. '. ·· · j : ·· • · ·

jirallltoll worideJ~d \vheth~i- Iv{rs_SapJ)I~ton, · .

1tlie lady to w~Qill he w?s presen~mg o~e o!
~ Hie letters of 1ntroduct1on came into_the :111~e •. ·

[!:.t::::icn~· kanY, o,
isked· niece,.when;
the
(~e· p~opierb~~dhere?' ·.
she·Judgi!d thaJ-~~,e.y J1ad -·

f;:r::1:~::i;~:1~i~;:!1;;~ist~r~s·· . · .
lstayi~g·he,fe,:at tlle r::e:ct9J:Y, ·.you:b)qw,:
~/ ,., . .. , ... ' ,. • .. , . . , , .·, , . . , ., .·• ' '
.., .. ,.. .
.s ~~e: ._.: .
. ' ; · •· .,.. , . . . "

ffo~r years ~g<?:;:c.t~t~;~!t.~::~~ye ·Il!.~:}~!t~!~}?.[~., ~ ·'.~-·,· .

~:1ntroducti-9n_to soµi~ ·o(th~:Pe()ple.J1~i:e/ _; . . ,· .... ...·
;Remade . .
th~-la~t;t~te~entfa a!to~ebf .
distiri~t ,.·
. ' ' ' •,• · .. '

regret.·. :·.·_ ....• :.·. ·:..·: ,.:, .·:· · :·.:~· .:-:·.··,'.·:. ·.;·.···:, ._.: r·< :.: .) \~:(~'. ·:_•.·. ·,•:· ·.- · ·_; ·
·. 'Then you know practically nothing ilboutriiy •. •
~·aunt?'.pursued. the self-possessed :young lady. , · ·.
'Only her-iUmi~ 'arid address,' admitted the caller.
He was_wondering Whether Mrs Sappleton was
in the married ~r widowed state. An undefinable
something about the room seemed to suggest ..
masculine habitation. · . · · · · ·
 ''
~er>'"':~
' 'C:.';;,:.7
• •- - f""'"4~ =-..
~~~::;i
<I(,,_,..,,.. • ..
r- -. ·1
.: : -,, ,) .d
~"-- · ... ;~ ' • ._· 1''•1"'•·
.,..,,,.,-.-r- .... - ; \.. .....

happened Just three years ,;,, ,. _,, . . . .-

'Her, gr:at traghe .{a_. 'that would be since your d ar aunt, she has often told me how they went
ago, s_a1d the, c 1 ' . et her husband with his white waterproof
011 ' • arm, an d R onnie, -
. h er youngest
•
sister's time~ . · . . at over his
'Her tragedy?' asked Framton; :meh~w{n this ~~other, sin?ing "Bertie, why do you bou~d?_" as
restful country tragedies ~e~me o~t ~ P a~e._ be always did to tease her, bec~use _she said it_ got
'You may wonder why we k~ep ,th~tdWithn<!o_w Wide 00 her nerves-. Do you know, sometimes on still,
October afternoon, sru. e niece, quiet evenings like this, ~ almost get a creepy
open on an · d · th t · _.through that
that t h ey WI·11 aII .walk 1n
. d. 1. g a large French win ow · a opened on feeling . d '
1n 1ca 1n . . . .- -
to a lawn. . WIO ow.·· ,· .
is
'It quite wann
for the time of the year,' _said she broke off with a little shudder. It was a relief
Framton; 'but has that window got anything to to Framton when the aunt bristled into the room
do with the tragedy?' _ _ with a whirl of apologies for·being late in making
her appearance. .
'Out through that window, th~ee years ago, .
this day, her husband·and her two ?'7oung 'I hope Vera has been amusjng you?' she said.
00
brothers went off for their day's shooting. They 'She has been very i:nt~resting,' ~aid Framton.
never came bac~ In crossing the moor_to their 'I hope you don't mir,id the open window.'
favourite snipe-shooting ground they were all said Mrs Sappleton ·briskly; 'my husband and
three engulfed in a treacherous piece of bog. brothers will be home directly from, shooting,
th
Their bodies were never recovered. That was e and they always come in this way. They've been
· dreadful part of it.' out for snipe in the marshes today, so they'll
Here the child's voice lost its self-possessed make a fine mess over my poor carpets. So like
· you menfolk'~sn · ?' ·
· 't ~t. . • _
note and ?ecame falterin~ly human. 'Poor aunt Sh
always thmks that they will come back someday,; e rattled on cheerfully about the shooting
~ey and the little brown spaniel that was lost ~nt~e.scarc~ty of birds, and the prospects for
With them, and walk in at that window just as h~c th e winter. To Framton it was all purely _ .~f
they used to do. That is why the window is kept suiri e. He made a desperate but only partially
open every evening till it is quite dusk. Poor cesgfuJ effort to turn the talk on to a less
I

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i
1111111111.
 ,-,,::•·';""\ . . r~:r.),~r~. ~~t~ ,,-;;-~~ _,
ft... :.·... ~ ,.~·1,"";"~~~-
L:·.. ·i ~~-4 l'.'1/,;'it:,},
.... ,i,.,._..:.,:;/,-" . .
l. .:..=-•-
ghas\iY'topic; he was conscious that his hostess •.::,:;::-~ . ~:- --,
L ·, ·. • "" '· •. c•: -~--3
was giving him only a fragme nt of her attentio . t ·, ·
window with·a
r eyes were constantly ·shtraying past ll, 1· ·staring out th:ouhgh the open
d dazed horror m er eyes. In a chill shock of
and he the open window an t e 1~~ beyond. nameless fear;·Framto n swung round in his seat
him to
It was certainly an unfortu nate cmncid ence and looked in the sa~e direction~
that he should have pai_~ his yisit on iliis tragic In the deepening twilight three figures were
anniversary.. walking acro~s the lawn toward s the window;
and one
'The doctors agree in ord~ri_n g me compl~te rest, theY all_carried guns under their arms,
burden ed.with a white
an absence of mental excitem ent, and avoidance of them was adqitionally
of anything in the_natur~ of violen t physic al coat hung over his shoulders. A tired brown
exercise,' announced Framto n, who labour ed spaniel kept clo·s e pt thetr heels. Noiselessly they
under the tolerably wides.pread·delusio n that a
nearea the ho:use~ ari~ th~n hoarse young voice
total strangers and chance acquai ntance s are chanteq ,out;?f th~· dusk: 'I ·said, Bertie, why do
nd ; · < · ,. · ·, ··
hungry for the least detail of one;s ailm~n ts and you bou ? · .· . ;,
· .

infirmities;.their c'1use and cui-e. 'On the matter ' Framton grabbe d wildly at.hi~ stick 3.nd hat; thi,
of diet they are not so much in agreem ent,' he \ hall do?r,_the gravel drive;>ana the front gate
. were dimly p.oted s~~ges ~n his headlo ng retreat .
eontinued. :·. _. /
t
'No?' said Mrs S~ppletOn, in a voic~ which only A cycliS coming a10-:ig the road had t<i rlln into
th e hedge to avoid immin ent collision. . .
replaced a yawn at the last mome nt. Then she
of the
suddenly brighte ned into alert attent ion-bu t . 'H~re we are, my dear,' ~aid the bearer
not to what Fram.ton ~as saying . : white coat, coming in·throug h the window ; 'fair"
but most of it's dry. Who was that who
'Here they ar·e at iast!; she cri.e d. 'J~st in time for muddy, bolted out as we carrie ?
up. ' · · ·
t dd
t hey. look as if th,.e_y wer~ muddy uf, 'A moSt extrao rdinary man; a Mr Nuttel ; said
0 n,'t ._
eath,aeneyes.
to 1
· ~illrs Sapple ton; 'could_.only talk _a bout his
Framt h' · · ·
1vered
. on swith l slightly
k. and turned· toward s nes ses, and d ashed out withou t·a word .of
the mece
intended to convey
a I
goodbye or apology when you ·arrived One·.
~
00
would think he had seen a ghost.; · · · ·
sympatbetic compr ehensi on. The child was

-- -
 ~1~!21~ft:>·¾;
· -~ {~if::::-,,-~
1 . :

·'.1avec! it wa s tlie ·spaniel,' sai d the niede -"'-

a1111Iy; he tol d ~e he ha d a ho rro r of do gs. He
cas once hu nte d int o a ce me ter y so me wh ere
w the banks of the Ganges by a pack of pa ria h
ong s. and had t.o sp en d.. .the ni~ ht in a .newly dug
d '
0
_rave with· th
. e cre atur·es s.nar11n
-• g an d>gn·nn1n
· g. .
;nd foaming jus t above him . En ou gh to ma ke
·anyone lose the ir nerve.'
Romance at short notice was.her speciality;
Hector Hu gh Munro (Saki)

self-poss·e ss ~d (here) co nfi de nt

commun·•ion .

sta te of .exchanging
tho ug hts
rectory where th.e rec tor or the
I ' ..
'
. . .

· pa ris h priest 'stays

moor
an uliuse·d area of land
.
.

treacherous
.covered 'with -rough grass
untrustworthy; ve ry
hog dangerous
·wet,_soft g_round with
~elu.sion decaying plants
lllfil'lnities false im pr es sio n
sicknesses