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Show 1 LOVE IN A MOTOR CAR By Lydig Sutton j !,rERH APS you might suit me," J said Miss Stanton haughtily, as she gazed down at her alnty Bhoe. "I am disposed to give on a trial. Maine, that's your name, at It?" "Yes, madame; and I am very Tateful for the chance." The girl gave a nod. "Mr. Saunders tells mo that you kavo worked abroad, and that he bew your people. He speaka very ifehly of you, Maine. I have every confidence in Mr. Saunders as my lawyer, and I will give you the post. Twenty dollars a week. Will that "I am quite satisfied," said the man Stfetly, "and I hope I shall bo able b give you satisfaction, madame." Miss Stanton nodded, and then rose from her chair in token of dismissal. dis-missal. "I shall drive this afternoon," she ld. "I suppose you are prepared totafce up the work at once?" -iaiBj "What you have told me and IlltfC' -bought forward," he said, "places i tho matter beyond a doubt, and you, Cdji tho son oC the late Mr. Melton, of all fcourEe, inherit everything. The . :l money was only left to Miss Stan-ffj Stan-ffj ! ton. the niece, on the supposition of i 10 doath oC Melton's son, that fcjKi! b yourBelt." iffjt "And I have been merely knocking sW .; .about the world, and I never as . ij l.ttuch as thought of getting off it," Jj f aid young Melton with a laugh as ggii - "Atid you will claim the fortune, a,W of course?" f "J suppose so." "But you must. You owe It to istj ,flJ"eIf, to equity, to do so." 1 ! Oh, we will leave equity out of ':'mwt'' Bald tlle youn& folio w as he re-jjvjjoved re-jjvjjoved his cigar from his lips. "So cousin of mine is in full posses-l posses-l eh?" i,e saj(i thoughtfully. IIne to think, it does seem a bit 6h on her, cutting in and taking filing like that. What's sho Sue is very pretty," he said, "and 5"od as she is beautiful. So son-lo son-lo too. You would hardly believe She who was, only a slip of a girl 1 shop has settled down into her at Position jubt for all the -world il fihe had been born to it, and People who have tried to patron-tar patron-tar have been very sorry for It, I 1 assure you." tolton laughed. A bit of a vixen, eh?" he said, spite her fine looks." ' ammwb6 TOQSt be a wonder'" saI!a Mel jigjB6 dryly- "l should like to see htMuMtii her." "You will have to see her. Poor girl! I am very sorry about it. Nothing Noth-ing personal, Mr. Melton, of course, but looked at from her point of view it is a trifle hard. She will have to go back to her former life of struggle after a short two years as the mistress mis-tress of a vast fortune. Yes, it Is hard on her." Melton gazed sharply at the speaker. "You have something In your mind," he said. The lawyer shook his head. "No," he said. "You are almost ready to blame me for coming back out of the wilderness wil-derness like this. If I had remained comfortably dead as people thought Miss Edith Stanton would not bo troubled in this way." "My dear sir, it is utter nonsense. The money is yours. You must assert your claim at once." . "Look here, Mr. Saunders, I am not hard up. This business can wait a little time. In the meantime I shall run down and see Miss Stanton, without, of course, letting her know who and what I am. Naturally, I am very much Interested in the young woman who is spending my money, but as you say she Is careful with it, it can't possibly do any harm to let her think she Is rich for a few more weeks." The lawyer looked thoughtful. "How can you go like that?" he said. "I don't know. Ah, I have it. I'll go as your assistant." "That would be no good. She knows Mr. Brunton. But no, lb is out of the question. I could not lend myself to It." "A lawyer would never lend anything, any-thing, we all know that, but nil the same, let's hear your notion," "Sho Is advertising for a new chauffeur but you would know nothing about motor cars." Melton laughed. "My dear Mr, Saunders," he cried, "there you are wrong, for if there's a man who knows, more about them thas I do, well, all I can say Is that I should very much liko to meet him. Why, I am on inoro Intimate terms with a carburetor than with any-, thing else in tho world. You say Miss Stanton wants a chauffeur. Look here, Mr. Saunders, you must see to it that I get the place." "But I don't know that I shonld be justified in letting you go, not like that," said the lawyer dubiously. "You leavo it to mo," was the re- ,PlMr. Saunders did leave It to the r young man, and Melton, as Maine, an out-of-work chauffeur, seemed to suit Miss Stanton very well. Yet all the same she had occasion occa-sion to reprove him several times, principally because Maine seemed ready to step out of his position, and in point of fact to forget that he was only acting in a subordinate capacity. "You must remember your place, Maine," Miss Stanton said one morning. morn-ing. The chauffeur was standing In the same room as he had entered, when, armed with ample testimonials from Mr. Saunders, he had applied for the post and secured it. "I have nothing to say against your driving, but as my chauffeur it is not becoming becom-ing for you to be quite so easy in your manners with your superiors." "I am very sorry, madame," said the man. "That will do, only pleaso remember remem-ber my words." After the man had left the room Edith sat deep In thought. Sho was thinking of what had occurred oc-curred only tho day before, when sho had attended a garden party in the neighborhood, to find ns sho loft tho houso that Maine was standing talking to a certain Miss Kate Morris, Mor-ris, and some of the conversation had reached the ears of Edith before the two on the other side of the hedge had seen her. "You understand? under-stand? Silence!" It was Maine who spoke. "Oh, yes, you may trust me." Now why in the world should Maine, a man who had only just come into the district, ask the old-fashioned old-fashioned and elderly Kate Morris to be silent? " There was no light forthcoming, and as tho days glided by Maine seemed to grow older. Ho knew what was the matter with him. "It's come to this," he muttered as ho sat in his driving seat. "Sho Is too true a girl to think me a cad, No, she will treat mo with scorn. Of course, sho will. Anyway, I am not worthy of hor." He was not going to dispossess her, although everything belonged to him, even the car, and the mansion, and the broad acres, and all besides. "All but the girl, and it is nothing without her," mused the young fellow. fel-low. "I will speak," ho murmured. He slowed down tho car and took another look at the girl. "She can't go back to a shop." "Miss Stanton," he said, "there's something I wish to tell you." "Oh, well, It had better wait until we aro back homo. It la not safe to talk when one is driving, I suppose you wish to give me notice?" "No, I want to ask you to marry me." For a moment the girl thought he had gone mad. Then the humor of the situation seemed to strike her. "You want to ask mo to marry you?" she cried. "Have you gone out of your mind?" "No." "Oh, I thought perhaps you were off your head," said the girl icily. "I am off my head right enough." He was still facing her. "But it Is with love for you." "I don't think I can discusB the matter, Maine," said the girl. "You had better turn the car at Varcross and diivo home, And you can take a month's notice." "Do think again. It might not bo quite as extraordinary as you think, Miss Stanton." "I could not think again. Kindly do as I tell you." "You should never have cause to regret it," said Maine. "I will not listen to 3'ou." "Miss Stanton, if you had not a penny in tho world it would be the same." "Will you obey my orders," she cried, "or must I leave the car?" "You should listen to me, Miss Stanton," said the man. "You see you soe" He got no further, for at that second the car, which had been sweeping on faster and faster, tho augmented speed unnoticed by oither of the occupants, .suddenly gave a lurch and dashed Into the low stono wall which Bhut off the precipitous precipi-tous valley. The wall crumpled before the impact, im-pact, and the car went hurtling down the declivity, while to Maine all that was clear to his mind a9 he was thrown from his seat was tho fact that tho girl gave a cry of terror and was lost to view. Maine came back to rcalltlos to find hlmsolf lying on a narrow ledge of rock. He looked about him. Not a sign of tho girl, nor of the car. Ho shouted, and then gave a cry of relief, re-lief, for his shout was answered from somewhere beneath him. "Miss Stanton, aro you safe?" "I am hurt and cannot move down hero," came In a frightened voice. Malno struggled up, and, going on hands and knees, peered over the edge of the scarped rock. Far bolow him ho made out Miss Stanton. She was clinging to another ledge of rock, and as ho saw hor white face his heart smote him. He began to clamber down the steep Bide of the wall of lichoned rocks, and at last, Injurod as ho was, and with hands cut and bleeding, he managed to gain her side. "I dismiss you," she said. Then she fainted dead away, and would have pitched backward, to fall to the bottom of the deep ravine. Maine smiled despite himself, for the situation struck him as. droll, notwithstanding not-withstanding the terrible position of affairs. Ho raised tho girl In his arms and began tho descent, for to mount to the road was out of the question. It was a long and painful task. She opened her eyes once when he had stopped tOrest, one hand clinging to, the branch of a tree. "Set me down," Bhe Baid, reverting to her old manner of command, "No!" he gasped out. "But I order it." "Be quiet, please. If I set you down hero you would roll to the bottom. bot-tom. Put your arms around my neck. Quick! I can't hold you if you hang away like that." "I sprained my foot," she murmured, mur-mured, as if an apology for the cry which had escaped her lips. "I am" sorry." Ho did not ask her why sho was sorry. Even the wonder of carrying hor down the dangerous slope was forgotten as he more and more realized real-ized the risky task beforo him, "Keep tight hold," ho said sharply. "Yes," she said In an awe-struck way. Just then she turned her head. "Don't look down." It was unquestioning obedience once more on her part. He was about to start again, and she gavo a little cry, "Does your foot hurt you much?" "Terribly!" she said in a whispor. He was starting again, and she hid her face on his shoulder as she clung to him. Maine saw the car lying a hundred leet away on their levol, and ho gave a sigh of relief as ho realized that it was not so much damaged. He told her this. "Tho car!" she murmured. "As If it mattered aboift tho car!" "It matters to me. It was all my fault." Sho was silent. "I am awfully sorry about It." Ho was not speaking exactly like a chauffeur who was under orders to quit. "I shall never forgive myself," he said. Ho had stopped again, and now he set her gently down as he stood on the very edge of the precipice. preci-pice. She actually smiled up at him. "I don't think I should worry much about It," she said softly. "There's one thing," ho said, "Tho car will be all right. I Baw it, and I dont think It is damaged beyond repair." re-pair." He turned on her sharply. "There, I told you not to look down. It will make you giddy." "You give orders," she said, "and I am very helpless." "You resent what I say?' "Perhaps I do; but it does not seem that it would make any difference, would it?" He shook his head. "Wo will get on again now." He made as if to raise her, but sho drew back. "No; perhaps I can manage." She made tho essay, but sank down with a groan. "There, you see; but wo will rest a little longer. You have done so much." "We will go on now," he said -firmly. He stooped and raised her. She gave a nervous little laugh as he did so. "What must you think of me?" "I could ask you that question." "Ask it," she said as she clung to him. But he did not ask. As ho descended de-scended lower and lower to the track which ran along the bottom of tho valley he felt more and more ashamed. They were in safety at last, and he 'set his burden down on a grassy bank. She looked up at the rugged, well-nigh perpendicular height, and a startled cry escaped her. The man was brave. She let her eyes rest on his face. "I can hardly bear to think of it," sho said, with a sigh. "My fault!" he said again. She lowered her eyes. "Wo are miles from home," she oald, "It's a nice go!" ho muttered. I can't leave her here In tho dark while I go and bring help. There is nothing else for it but to wake her and toll her we must go on again. I wonder what old Saunders would say if he could see us now7 He would think I was mad." Ho looked at tho sleeping girl. "Perhaps I am mad!" He hesitated again. "Rather funny her doing what 1 told hor, meek as anything, whilB I am to be dismissed from her service as soon as we get home!" He moved across to the bank, and laid his hand on tho' girl's arm. She woke up with a start, and the movement move-ment she made caused a fresh paroxysm pa-roxysm of. pain. "We must get on now, Miss Stanton," Stan-ton," said Maine. Sho crimsoned up as he lifted her in his armB and began to trudge down the track. "I am very heavy," she eald. "Why, no!" he replied pantlngly. J Maine stopped to rest many times, 'H and on one of these occasions the girl turned to him and put a question A ) h!j which took Maine by surprise: "Why did you ask me to be your wife?" U . "Because I love you," he Btammered fijl "But you hardly know me! I Bay 11 this because I do not think that you Btf are liko all the rest. But how could Hi I consider such a proposal from my HI driver? What do you imagine the HI world would say and think?" . HI - He did not directly answer the ft query, but going up to her ho took H her hand, and she did not with- draw it. B "You aro right," he said. "It was B mad, Miss Stanton, or would have I boon so." n "I don't think It was mad," said tho girl. ' "Thank you. But I owe you an ex- ? ! planation, Miss Stanton. I am no chauffeur as perhaps you have dls- 1 covered by now. Our friend, Mr. m) Saunders, knows all about you. I have been playing a shameful trick. Igj I wanted to stand on my own merits S s supposing that I have any, and I B'fj am rather doubtful. But really I am S as rich as you I can refer you to 1.8 Mr. Saunders for proof and that was- JsM why I dared to propose to you. You R see, Mr. Saunders had told me a lot about you, and I think I was in love 1 M before you engaged me as your chauf- 'q it feur." J $ "I soo," said the girl quietly. S And then the journey was resumed, i if and the house reached. -.'-j "Good-night," he said. . She held out her hands, and then ' f - drew him down to her where she Bat, J C and her llpB lightly brushed his 'K cheek. "It would have been all the same, w p I think," Bhe murmured. 3 JET; Mr. Saunders was at the wedding, jp which took place a month later. The jjli n old lawyer, took tho young wife aside 5 just before she was leaving with her 3oj J. husband for London. , IM : T "Did he tell you'" he asked. "He VB'2 has boon very secretive about It all Sfflfca to me." SBdI' Mrs. Maine looked at the solicitor W S in surprise. Jlj "Tell mo what?" she asked. H '&' "Why, that he is the heir! He was thought to be dead, but his real name U Is Melton, and he owns everything, 1 but he said he wa9 not going to sea M ;i you turned out until ho found out 2S TV what sort of a girl you were." jjffl j Tho girl flushed, but sho felt ah jj f-.5 had married the finest man. In 'all tha B : 1 |