Show w s THE GIRL rom hh HIS TOWN by MARIE VAN VORST acy M G KETTNER 1910 bf tho bobow co 10 SYNOPSIS dan blaar the 22 year old son of the fifty million dollar copper king of blaar town mont Is a kuest K at the english home of I 1 ady gallrey dan s father had been corteous comte ous to lord malorey during his visit to the united states and the courtesy Is now be ng returned to the young man th youth has an ideal karl in his mind lie meets lily duchess ot breakwater a beautiful widow who la attracted by his immense fortune and takes a liking to her when dan was a boy a girl sang a solo at a church and he had never forgotten her the ga lorees lily ban attend a london theater where one letty lane Is the ar pan recognizes her as the girl from his town and going behind the scenes intro dices d ices himself and she remembers him ho learns that prince Is ai aitor and escort to letty lord ga lorey and a friend named ruggles determine to protect the westerner from I 1 ly and other fortune hunters young blaar goes to see lily he can talk of nothing bit letty and this angers the duchess the westerner finds letty from bard work but she recovers CHAPTER X continued dan altered his indolent pose and eat forward but I 1 am thinking of getting married he said 1 I hope it s to the right girl dan and with young assurance an scored it will be it I 1 marry her I 1 know what I 1 want all right I 1 hope she knows what she wants dan how do you mean you ar your money you have the handicap my boy flushed get to hate the whole thing he said ferociously it meets me everywhere bonds stocks figures dividends coupons deeds its too much be said suddenly with resentment its too much for me why sometimes I 1 feel a hun dred years old and like a hunk of gold ruggles in answer to this said why that reminds me of what a man remarked about your father once it was the bame english chap your father bought the claim of speaking ot blaar he said to me you know theres all kinds of metal bars and when you cut into them some Is bul lion and somes coated with alum anum and theres others that when you cut down cut a clean yellow all along the line if as you say you feel uko a hunk of metal it ain t bad it it is that kind it s got to stop coming in between me and the woman I 1 marry all right though dan did not pursue bis sub elect lect further tor his feelings about the duchess were too unreal to give him the sincere heartiness with which her would have liked to answer ruggles he went over to tho window and with bis hands in his pockets stood looking out at the fog ruggles at the table opened the cover of the book of mandalay and took out the four checks made out to lady gallrey and which he had forgotten he hur thrust them into bis pocket come away dannie he said cheerfully let a do something wild I 1 feel up to do most anything with this mis erable fog down on me it it had any nerve it would take some form or EO a man could choke it back ruggles blew his nose violently there s nothing to do said dan in a bored tone why don t you see who your tele gram is from ruggles asked it proved to be a suggestion from gordon gallrey that dan should meet him at five 0 clock at the club what will you do rug sleep said the westerner serenely im nearly as happy in london as I 1 am in philadelphia its four 0 clock now and I 1 can t sleep more than tour hours anyway lets have a real wild time dannie dan looked at him doubtfully but ruggles eyes were keen what kind of a time do coif mean lets ask the gaiety girl tor dinner for supper after the theater letty lane sho go why not she li awfully delicate it Is all she can do to keep her contracts he knows that ruggles thought lets ask her and see he w ent over to the table and drew out the paper come on and write ana ask her to go out with us to supper see here rug this tor strange in it she is from our state and it you dont hustle and ask her I 1 am going to ask her all alone dan was puzzled as he sat down to ibe table reflecting that it was perfectly possible that old ruggles had fallen a prey to the charms of an actress she wouldn t come of course lib wrote a formal invitation without thinking very much of what ha said or how folded and addressed bis noia what did you say asked eagerly a sn way anat two boys from home wanted to give her a supper well said ruggles U the an awer comes while you are at the club open it and give the orders think she 11 come I 1 do not responded dan rather brutally shea got others to take her out to supper you bet your life well there s none of them as rich as you are I 1 reckon dan and the boy turned on him violently see here josh it you speak to me again of my money when there s a woman in the question he did not finish bis threat but snatched up his coat and bat and gloves and went out of the door slam mang it after him mr ruggles profound and happy snore was cut short by the page boy who fetched in a note with the savoy stamping on the back ruggles opened it not without emotion der boy it ran 1 I haven t yet thanked you for the primroses prim roses they were perfectly sweet there Is not one of them in any of my rooms and tell ou why tonight I 1 am bazy to accept tor supper here she md evidently struck out her intended refusal and closed with I 1 m coming but dont come after me at the gaiety please I 1 II 11 meet you at the carlton after the theater whoa the other boy L L the other boy read the note with much difficulty tor it was badly writ ten hell have to stop sending her ruggles to whom bhe seemed to want to address her conversation im simply crazy over these flow ers the older man showed bis plea ure f my choice again 1 waked up myself and chose the bunch blama me again r ditto dinner mine from start to finish hope you 11 like it 1 would have added some montana peas and some chocolate soda water only I 1 thought you might not understand the joke miss lane beamed on him AI though he was unconscious of it she was not fully at ease be was not the kind of roan she had expected to see accustomed to young fellows like the boy and their mad devotion accustomed to men with whom she could be herself the big bluff middle aged gentleman with hla painfully correct tie his rumpled iron gray hair and his deference to her though an unusual diversion was allt tle embarrassing oh I 1 know your dinner Is ripping mr buggies I 1 m on a diet of milk and eggs myself and I 1 expect your order dlan t take In those dut at his fallen countenance she hurried to say oh I 1 wouldn t have told you that it 1 haan hadn t been intending to break through and with childlike anticipation she clapped her hands and said we re going to have lots of tun just think they don t know what that means here in london they say heaps of sport you know she imitated the accent maliciously its just we americans but I 1 am thinking flowers and going every night to the theater unless he wants a row with the duchess be eald dryly and with a certain interest in bis role ruggles rang tor the bead waiter and with the man s help ordered bis first midnight supper tor an actress I 1 CHAPTER XI buggies gives a dinner the bright tide of worldly london flows after and around midnight into the various restaurants and supper i rooms and as well through the corri dors and halls of the carlton at one of the small tables bearing a great expensive bunch of orchids and soft ferns josh ruggles in a new evening dress sat waiting tor his party dan had dined with lord Gai orey and the two men had gone out together after ward and ruggles had not seen the boy to give him letty lane s note got it with you blaar asked when he came in and ruggles responded that he carry love letters around in bis dress clothes they could tell by the interest in the room when the actress was corn ing and both men rose as letty lane floated in at flood tide with a crowd of last arrivals she was not dressed this evening with the intention that her dark elm of attire should be cons oua the cloak which din took from her shed the perfume of orris and revealed the woman in a blaze of spark ling pail lettes she seemed made out of sparkle and her clond head from which a bright ornament shook was the most brilliant thing about her though her dress from hem to throat glistened with discs of gold like moonshine on a stirry sea the ac tress look of surprise when she baw ruggles indicated that she had not expected a boy of his age the other boy 7 she asked well this Is the nicest supper party ever and you are awfully good to invite me ruggles patted hla shirt front and adjusted his cravat my idea he told her all the blame on me miss lane charge it up to met dan hero had cold feet from abo first he said you come she laughed he did much faith has bea miss lane drew her long gloves off touched the orchids with her banda on which the ever present rings flashed and went en talking to of getting married who know what lota of tun Is lent it near her dan young eydi were in the spectacle ol 01 delicate beauty beautifully gowned ol 01 soft skin glorious hair and he gazed like a child at a pantomime dundei his breath he exclaimed now with et fusion you bet your life we are go ing to have lota of funi and to him alsa lane said six chocolate sodas running oh dont he begged not thai kind of jag she shook with laughter are you from mr rug agles I 1 don t think I 1 ever baw yoi there and the westerner returned well from what dan tells me youre not much of a fixture yourself miss lane you were just about born and then her gay expression faded and she repeated his word abat a good word tor it mr haggles she picked up between her fingers a strand of the green fern and looked at its delicate tracery as it lay on the palm of her band 1 I eang ono day after a missionary sermon in the presbyterian church she interrupted herself with a short laugh dut I 1 guess youre not think ing of writing my biography are you and it was dans voice that urged her say do go on I 1 was there that day with my father and you eang simply out of sight TO BE CONTINUED |