Show deft A ft STORY STOR HE AR I 1 S AND ma 1 S K S by dy HAROLD macgrath au harof the man on the box etc with drawings by harrison Harr isoa fisher coper fht 1905 by bobbi bobbs merr I 1 co CHAPTER VII vil cont continued aued we entered the general assembly loom if was roomy and quaint and ere above abone us was the able room in which george washing ton had slept the great hooded fire place was merry with crackling logs casually I 1 ed tl at we were not alone over yonder in a shadowed corner sat two men very well bun died up and to all appearances fast asleep moriarty lighted a four branched candelabrum and showed us the way to the little private dining room took our orders and left us this is romance said I 1 they ased to do thee things hundreds of 5 ears igo ago and everybody had a bood time it Is now all very wicked ana im proper murmured the girl laying aside her domino for the first time but delightful I 1 now find I 1 haven t the least bit of remorse for what I 1 have done in that dark evening gown she was very beautiful her arins and ders were tinted like carrara marble ana anif I 1 knew instantly that I 1 was never going to recover I 1 drew two chairs close to the grate I 1 sat down in one and she in the other with a con tented sigh she rested her blue slip pe ed feet on the brass fender my one regret Is that I 1 haven t any shoes what an adventure it its s fine gwo hours in the soci boci ety of this enchanting creature it m was as almost too good to be true ah ali if it might always be like this to re turn home from the days day s work to be greeted warmly by a woman as tul ful as this one I 1 sighed loudly moriarty came with the chicken and ham and coffee it if ye would like it wont won t be a bit of trouble to show ye george wash ington s room or with inimitable irish drollery I 1 can tell ye that he dined in this very room that will serve smiled the girl and moriarty bowed himself out his departure was followed by the latter clatter of silver upon porcelain of a truth both of us were nere hungry I 1 was simply ravenous the girl confessed and as for me I 1 never dreamt I 1 could be so unromantic now said I 1 pushing aside my plate and drop ping sugar into my coffee and vainly hunting in my pockets for a cigar there remains only one mystery to be cleared up and what might this mystery be bea she asked the whereabouts of the bogus haggerty 7 the bogus haggerty will never cross our paths again he has skipped by the light of the moon no that s not the mystery why did you tell me you were an impostor why did you go to the cellars with me when all the while you were at the ball on I 1 s hyphen bonds invitation 7 she leaned on her elbows and smiled at me humorously would you really like to know signers well I 1 was an impostor she sat with her back to the fire and a weird halo of light seemed to sur ro ind her and frame her mrs hy phen bonds accidentally dropped that invitation in my stud 0 a few days before she sailed tor for europe I 1 sim ply could not resist the temptation that Is all the mystery there is and they still think you were there rightfully you are no longer mystified 7 9 yes there is yet another mystery to solve myself I 1 knew it with out rhyme and reason I 1 was in love and without rhyme or reason I 1 was glad of it shall you ever be able to solve such a mystery 7 quizzically it all depends upon you mr air cornstalk you will not mar the exquisite humor of our adventure by causing me annoyance I 1 am sure that some day we shall be very good friends but one does not talk of love on eight hours acquaintance besides you would be taking advantage of my helplessness for I 1 really depend upon you to see me safe back to new york it is only the romance the adventure and such moonlight nights often si s i per induce sentimentality what do you know of me mea nothing what do I 1 know of youa you nothing save that there Is a kindred spirit which Is al ways likely to lead us into trouble down in your heart you know you are only temporarily affected by moon shine come make me a toast lift ing her cup lou are right said I 1 I 1 am a gentleman but it was vas only consist ent that having been the fool I 1 should now play the ass heres here s and I 1 held up my cup but neither of us drank there gasn wasn t time for the door opened quietly and in walked ahe two men we had seen upun upon entering the inn one of them gently hosed the door am anc locked cocked it one was in soiled eNer everyday clothes the other in immaculate evening dress tl TI ef er latter loafed his opera hat with the most engaging smile imaginable the gill and I 1 looked up at him in blank bewilderment and set our cups down so animally ani cally that the warm amber liquid spattered on the table cloth galloping dick and the affable in of the cellars stood before us CHAPTER VIII vill the unexpected always happens began the pseudo detective closing his hat drawing off hl hie globes and stuffing them into a pocket As a friend of mine used to say it is the unexpected that always surprises us we never expected to see these charming masque again did we William 7 9 io no sir said wiliam alilian grinning at af bably we didn dian t the gentleman was very nice and obliging to me sir when I 1 was in the cellars so I 1 understand now continued the late mr haggerty with the deadly affability of a macaire I 1 beg of you mr Com cornstalk stalk I 1 beg of you not to move or to become unduly excited physicians tell us that excitement wastes the red corpuscles that is to say the life of the blood your blood sir must be very thin I 1 returned coolly but I 1 cursed him so andly in my mind william s balg ing side pocket convinced me that any undue excitement on my part would be exceedingly dangerous william you can always tell a gentleman said the chief rogue ad you have not entered this room said the I 1 irl her terror slipping from her to offer these banalities what do ou wish what perspicacity wiliam cried the ro rogue taking out a cigarette case I 1 don t I 1 now what that word meana mean sir b it as you do it seems to fit the occasion cloper enough it means william that this charm ing young lady scents our visit from afar I 1 had a suspicion sir that it might mean that william leaned against the wall his beady eyes twinkling mer rily the master rogue lighted a cigar ette at one of the candles pardon me he said but will you join mea proffering the hand some gold case I 1 took a cigarette and fired it 1 I really wanted it I 1 would show up well before this girl if I 1 died for it I 1 blew a cloud of smoke at the can die dle flame there was a sparkle of admiration in the girls girl s eyes mr cornstalk my respect for you increases each moment the rogue sat down and to whom might this hand some case belonga I 1 asked elamin ing it closely oh that has always been mine there was vas a time blowing rings at the candelabrum when I 1 was re specter like yourself rich sought after A woman and a trusted friend how these often tumble down our beautiful edifices yes I 1 am a scamp a thief a rogue but not because I 1 need the money no with retro lve eyes I 1 need excitement 7 v 0 44 01 ai 1 rested her blue feet on the fender mirin gly A gentleman always re coggi cs his opportunities and never losea lose his sense of the balance of 0 things and he is usually witty too sir billiam tV illiam assented the girl sat pale and rigid in her chair what do you want I 1 demanded savagely for one thing I 1 should like to question the propriety of a gentle man s sitting down to dine with a lady without having washed bis his face the co coal aldust dust does not add to your manly beauty you haven t a cake of soap about you william have you youa no sir wlliam wiliams s face expressed indescribable enjoyment of the scene fhe girl s mouth stiffened she was struggling to repress the almost irre sis tible smile that tickled her lips in times like these said I 1 deter mined not to be outdone we are often thoughtless in regard to our personal appearances I 1 apologize to the lady fine fine I 1 sincerely admire you mr Com cornstalk stalk you have the true spirit of adventure t he wil ham he certainly has sir comes to a private ball without an invitation and has a merry time of it indeed to have the perfect sense of humor that is what makes the world go round aren arent t you taking extra risk in of fering me these pleasantries 9 1 I asked risks in what manner mannera the man you so cleverly imper is at the club I 1 do not know what prompted me to put him on his guard the rogue laughed lightly I 1 know mr Hag haggerty gertys s habits he is hustling back to new york as fast as he can he passed here bere ten minutes ago in the patrol lickett clip he wishes to warn all pawnbroker pawnbrokers and jewelers to be on the lookout tor for me tomorrow to morrow ten thousand in a nl night ht jovially A very tidy sum sir said william A fourth of which goes to you my good and faithful friend thank you sir replied william two cooler rogues I 1 never wish to 0 meet but t it be well sir to hastens asked william we have bane plenty of time now my son tremendous and continuous excitement to keep my vigilance and incela tion active day and night excitement to obliterate memory but we cant can t do it my friend we cant can t do it memory Is alvais abw a s with us she is an impartial nemesis she dogs the steps of the righteous and the unrighteous to obliterate mem ory that is it and where might I 1 find this obliteration save in this lifee drugs pah oh I 1 have given haggerty a royal chase it has been meat and drink to me to fool the cleverest policeman in new york till yesterday my face as a criminal was unknown to any man or woman save william here who was my valet in the old days I 1 have gone to my clubs dined played billiards a fine comedy a fine comedy tomorrow william and I 1 sail for europe miss haw thorne you wear one of the most ex rubies I 1 have ever seen per mit me to examine it the girl tore the ring from her fin ger and flung it on the table I 1 made a move as though to push back my chair I 1 wouldn t do it sir warned wll wil liam ham quietly my muscles relaxed do not commit any rash mr air Com cornstalk stalk said the girl smiling bravely into my eyes the gentle man would not appreciate it the master rogue picked up the ring and rolled it lovingly about his palms beautiful beautiful he mur aured finest pigeon blood too it is easy worth a thousand shall I 1 give you my note of exchange e for it ita humorously the girl scorned to reply he took out a little chamois bag and emptied its contents on the table how they sparkled scintillated glow ed thousands in the whitest of stones how he ever had got his fingers on them is something I 1 shall never learn aren t they just ful tula he asked naively can you blame me for coveting thema he set the ruby on top of the glittering heap it lay there like a drop of blood pres antly he caught it up and presented it to the girl who eyed him in aston ashment I 1 only wanted to look at it he said courteously I 1 like youl grit as much a as I 1 admire your beauty keep the ring to be cont noeo buei |