Show I f I tm ERM f fI I ILLUSTRATIONS TION LAUREN cHT BY STOUT J J fJ 5 SYNOPSIS I I IJohn John Valiant Vallant a IL riot rl i society favorite suddenly ers discovers that the Valiant corporation corporation cor cor- which Ills his father tather founded and which was the principal sour en of his hia wealth has ha failed Ho voluntarily turnover turn turnover over his hia private fortune to the tho receiver for tor the corporation ills His entire remaining possession ions consist of ot an old motor car tilT a II white while bull do dog dog- and Damory court a D. neglected neg neg- li estate In Virginia On the tho way IL to Damory court he meets Shirley Dandridge Dand- Dand ridge an haired auburn bt beauty Ruty and decIdes decides decides de de- Ides c-Ides that he lie Is la going to like Virginia Im Im- Shirley's Shirleys mother Mrs Dandridge Dandridge Dand- Dand ridge and Major Bristow exchange reminiscences rem rm reminiscences during which It Is revealed that the major Valiant Vallant's father tather and a IL aman man Inan named Bassoon wore were rivals for faT the tho hand Iland of ot Mr AI Dandridge In her youth Bassoon and Valiant fought a a. duel on her account In the former was WitS killed Valiant finds Damory court overgrown with weeds weed and nd creepers and the buildings build i In ings In a very er much neglected condition I CHAPTER IX Continued He trudged away into the shadows but presently as the new master of Damory Court stood In tho gloomy i hall haJJ he heard the shambling step again behind him Ah done neglect- neglect ter ax yo 0 name sun sub Ah Alt did fo to er fac ac Sly My 1 name Dame is ill Valiant John Jolt Val Vat cant Uncle Jeffersons Jefferson's eyes turned upward upward upward up up- ward and rolled out of orbit Mah Iah MahI fah I he ejaculated soundlessly And with his wide lips still framed about the last word he backed out of the tho doorway and disappeared Alone in the ebbing twilight John Valiant found his hamper spread a napkin on the broad stone steps and took out a glass a spoon and part of ofa a loaf of bread The thermos flask was filled with milk It was not a splendid banquet yet he ate it with witha a great content as the bulldog at his feet gnawed his share of the crust He lie broke his bread Into the milk as asIre aslie aslie lie Ire had not done since he was a child and ate the luscious pulp with a keen relish bred of the long outdoor day It was almost dark when the meal was was ivas done and depleted hamper in hand lland he reentered the empty empt echoing house He lie went into the library lighted the great brass lamp from the motor and began to rummage The drawers of the room dining-room sideboard yielded nothing on a shelf of the butlers butler's butlers butler's but but- lers ler's pantry however was a tin box which proved to be half full of wax candles perfectly preserved The veT very thing he said triumph triumph- antly Carrying CarTing them back he fixed several in the glass-candlesticks glass and andset andset set sel them lighted all about the somber room room till the soft glow fl flooded its every corner There he said that is as It should be No big blatant bla- bla lant tant search lIght here And no glare of modern electricity would suit that old wainscoting either He lie dragged the leather settee to the porch and by b- the light of the motor- motor Amp R dusted it thoroughly and wheel- wheel ng it back set it under the tho portrait which had so attracted him He Washed the glass from which he had dined Ined ned and filled it at the cup of the garden fountain put into it the rose from rom his hat and set it on the read read- ing The small china dog doga a faught caught aught his eye ee and he picked it up usually casually mally The head came off In his hands It had been a bon bon-bon box and andas as was empty save for a narrow strip of r yellowed paper on which were write written writ writ- e ten len some meaningless figures 28 17 it 94 4 He pondered this a a. moment then ihen thrust it into one of the empty 5 ii 1 of the desk On the Inter later lat Int- r old fashioned leaf leaf-calen- er or stood an u lar ar the date it exposed was wad May Curiously enough the same date ld Rr v Q an x I a I Ing ng 1 aa I Ired red Syr the 15 1 tc e Ol l liti lr leere i r f iti C a Shuddered as He Stooped to Pick PickUp PickUp ilia k Up the Weapon mt auld recur tomorrow The page bore ich Quotation Quotation- Every man carries his hisM hise M ie e on cn a about his neck ivil tf tine line had been quoted in his fret Irel tiers tier's leu letter r. r May lay how how much arf ht 1 t dale and that tuat n motto tto may have rib vant font for him I jle Ie rote to push the shutter wider id d la IJ the hallow movement his hia elbow sent a cue case fe of morocco leather that ad ad d lah Jah tale or r. r t On the desk crashing to the thea thet luid t rolled opened and a heavy beavy metallic almost to his feet feel lie liet lIea the a plat l d glance that t It was an old- old op r fh rh Jr had haa dueling i le Ile originally h held ld t two o shuddered as an he pick stooped to op Lh J t weapon n and with the theng ther r r n ng g mingled anger a pang pang- Salle ery b babyhood aid o hUl It From his r that n had alwa always 8 been so aversion to the via via- T TI I I touch of firearms There had been mo- mo I I cents tents in his youth when hen this unreasoning unreasoning mo-l mo shrinking had filled him with a blind fury had driven him to strange tests self of courage He Ho had never been able to overcome It tion had told him that his peculiar abhorrence was no mere outgrowth of this It la lay far deeper lie He had rarely rare rare- rarely ly 1 of recent years met the tho test Now as he stood in these unaccustomed surroundings with the cold touch of ot the metal the old shuddering held him and the sweat broke in beads on his forehead Setting his teeth hard he lie crossed the room slipped the box with its pistol between the volumes volumes vol vol- umes of the bookcase and returned to his seat The bulldog aroused from a nap thrust a warm muzzle between his knees Its ts t's uncanny Chum he said as his hand caressed the velvety head Why should the touch of that fool thing chill my spIno and make my flesh tiptoe over my mr bones Why should I hate a pistol Do you suppose suppose sup sup- pose I 1 was shot In one of my previous existences For a long while he sat there his pipe dead his eyes on the moonlighted moonlighted moon moon- lighted out of The feelIng feeling feeling feel- feel Ing that had gripped him had gone as quickly as it had come At last he rose stretching himself with a great boyish yawn awn put out all save one of the candles and taking a robe bath-robe sandals and a huge fuzzy towel from the trunk steamer-trunk stripped leisurely He Tie donned the robe bath and sandals and went out through the window to the garden and down to where la lay the little lake ruffling under the moon On its brink he stopped and tossing back his head tried to Imitate Imi tate one of the b calls bird calls d but was un un- successful With a rueful laugh he lie threw off the tho robe bath-robe and stood an Instant glistening poised in the moonlight moonlight moon moon- light like a marble faun before he dove straight down out of sight Five minutes later he pulled himself himself himself him him- self up over the edge his flesh tingling tingling tingling tin tin- gling with the chill of the water and threw the robe about his cool white shoulders Then he thrust his feet into his sandals and sped quickly back He Be rubbed himself to a glow and blowing out the remaining candle can die dle stretched himself luxuriously between between between be be- tween the warm blankets on the couch The dog sniffed inquiringly at athis athis athis his hand then leaped up and snuggled snuggled snug snug- do down n close to his feet teet John Valiant's thoughts had fled a thousand miles mlles a away way to the tall girl who all his life had seemed to stand standout standout standout out from tram his world aloof and unsurpassed passed passed Katharine Katharine Fargo He tried to picture her a perfect chatelaine graceful graceful graceful grace grace- ful and gracious as a tall white sPlendid splendid splendid did lily in this dead house that seemed still to throb with living pas pas- Dut But the picture subtly eluded him and he stirred uneasily under the blanket After a time his hands stretched out outto outto outto to the stand reading-stand and drew the glass with its vivid blossom blosom nearer till in his nostrils its musky odor mingled with the wet dew-wet scent of the honeysuckle from the garden At last his eyes closed Every man carries carries carries car car- ries his fate on a about his hilS neck he muttered drowsily and then Roses noses red roses And so he fell asleep CHAPTER X The Hunt He lie awoke to a musical twittering and chirping to find the sun pouring into the dusty room In a very glory lie He rolled from the blanket and stood upright filling his lungs with a long deep breath of satI satisfaction He lie felt singularly light-hearted light and alive The bulldog came bounding through the window dirt dirty from the weeds and flung lung himself upon his hia master In a g canine rapture Get out the latter laugh laugh- ing Stop licking my feet How flow the tho dickens do you OU suppose Im I'm to get into m my clothes with your ridiculous antics going on on Down I say Hark lie Ho broke off and listened that singing o oThe The sound drew nearer a nearer a lugubrious lugubrious chant with the weirdest minor reflections faintly suggestive of the tine time rag-time ditties of ot the music halls yet ret with a plaintive cadence Good morning Uncle Jefferson The singer broke off set down the twig-broom twig that he had been wielding and came toward him 1 suh sub l he be said Hopes all yo good Ah Ab dem ar birds woke yo 0 up deys dey's makin sen seh er or better In Thank you Never slept i my life lIle Am I 1 laboring under a delusion delusion delusion delu delu- I sion when I Imagine I 1 smell coffee corree Just then there came a Il voice from the open door of ot the tho itchen Calls yosef er man yo ye 0 reconstructed reconstructed reconstructed recon recon- Wen gwine gwine- ter git he aid wid yo tin wid dat all dis s E s Go fotch some mo wood flab dis minute Yo heah 7 A turbaned head poked Itself through the door with a natured good leaf-brown leaf face faco beneath It which broadened into a wide smile as Its Us owner bobbed energetically ly at t Valiant's Va Va- pants pant's greeting Fo do she exclaimed wiping floury hands bands on a gingham apron Yo shoo she is up early but Ah Aun got yo ready suh sub All Ali right Aunt Daphno Daphne Ill I'll be beback beback beback back directly Ho lIo sped down to the lake to plunge his head bead into the cool water and thereby thereby thereby there there- by sharpen tho the edge of an appetite that needed no DO honing lIe He came up the trail again to find the stand reading transferred to the porch and laid with a white cloth on which was set a Il steaming pot coffee with fresh tresh cream butter and crisp hot biscuit and as he be sat down with a sigh of pure delight In his gown dressing a crepy Japanese thing redeemed from womanishness by the bold green bamboo of Its design de de- sign Uncle sign Uncle Jefferson on planted before him a generous platter of ot bacon eggs and potatoes These he attacked with witha a surprising keenness As he buttered his fifth biscuit he looked at the dog rolling roiling on his back in do morning ecstasy ecstasy S sy with a look of humorous surprise Chum he said what do you think of that All my life a a. single r ll He Craned His Neck but It Had Passed the Lin Line of His Vision roll and a cup of ot coffee have been the most I 1 could ever negotiate for breakfast and then it was waa apt to taste like chips and whet And now look at this plate The dog ceased winnowing his ear with a hind foot toot and looked back at his master with much he same expression Clearly his own needs had not been forgotten forgot forgot- forg forgot forgotten t- t ten Ah go ter git dat ar Jefferson Jerrerson machine thing said Uncle behind him OJ 01 heah she shelow shelow shelow low ter fix up de kitchen dis mawn mawn- in en erA we begin on de house dis evenin eve- eve nin am Right o said Valiant Its all uphill uphill uphill up up- hill so the motor wont won't run away with you ou Aunt Daphne can you get some help with the cleaning Hep that worthy responded with tine fine scorn No suh sub few lu ue tie e town low-down low new new- issue trash Jet dst aln ala killin Ah go fo dat house fo long hammah en tongs en git it fix up Splendid 1 My 1 destiny is la In your hands You might take the dog with you OU Uncle Jefferson the run will do him good When the latter had disappeared and truculent sounds from the kitchen indicated that the era of strenuous cleaning had hail begun he reentered the library changed the tho water in the rose- rose glass and set It on the edge of the shady front porch where its flaunting blossom made a dash of bright crimson crimson crim crim- son Eon against the grayed weather-beaten weather brick This done he ho opened the one large room loom on the ground-floor ground that he had not visited It was double the size of the library a parlor hung bung In striped yellow silk t 1 vaguely and tenderly faded with a atall atall atall tall plate mirror set over a marble- marble topped console at either side In one corner stood a grand piano of sian walnut with keys of tinted mother of pearl of-pearl pearl and a slender music- music rack rak inlaid with morning-glories morning in the I samo sarno material From the center of the ceiling above an oval table depended depended de de- I a n great chandelier hung with glass prisms The chairs and sofas I were covered with dusty slip-covers slip of muslin He lie lifted one of these The tarnished gold furniture was Louis XV V the upholstery of yellow brocade with a pattern of ot pink roses Two Japanese hawthorn vases sat On n teakwood teakwood teak- teak wood stands and a corner held a glass cabinet containing a collection of small ivories and faience lie He went thou thoughtfully back to the great hall where sat the big chest on which lay the volume of Lucile Luclle He lie pushed down the antique wrought- wrought iron hasp and threw up the lid It was filled to the brim with textures heavy portieres of rose damask ta table table- le- le covers of faded soft toned soft toned tapestry window-hangings window of dull green green all all with tobacco-leaves tobacco laid between the folds and sifted thickly over with the sparkling white powder At the bottom bottom bot bot- tom rolled In tarry smelling paper he found a half-dozen half thin Persian prayer pray pray- er er rugs Phew he be whistled I certainly ought to be grateful to that law firm that Inspected the place Illace Think of the things lying here all these years And that der pi everywhere Its It's done the work too for theres there's not a sign of moth If It Im I'm not careful Ill I'll stumble over the family plate plate plate-it It seems to be bo about the tho only thing wantIng want- want Ing lie Ho thought a n moment then went quickly into the library and began to ransack tho the trunk At length he lie found a small box containing keepsakes of various kinds He poured the tho medley on to the table table table-an an uncut moonstone an topped amethyst pencil that one of his tutors had given him as a boy a a. tigers tiger's claw a compass and what Among them was a mans man's seal ring with a crest cut In a cornelian lie He looked at it closely It was the same device The ring had been his fathers Just when or how It had hail come Into his possession could he-could he could never ber It had lain among these keepsakes keepsakes keepsakes keep keep- sakes so many years ears that he had almost almost almost al al- al- al most forgotten its existence He Ile had |