Show GERTRUDES LOVERS BY CHARLES L DOYLE copyright oy W G chanman getrude desborough daughter of old merton desborough the coal oil millionaire was attractive in more ways than one to begin with she possessed an enviable share of good looks and a generous supply of corn anon sense naturally there were not lacking suitors who cast longing eyes on the heiress of the desborough mil lions and of these lionel wayne and hugh winslow were the most favored gertrude showing perhaps a slight partiality for the former wayne was a ready talker always entertaining and handsome in what some people considered a rather ef te minate way while winslow was re served self possessed and built on sterner lines than his rival both moved in the best soc al circles but neither was overburdened with money the quest on that troubled gertrude was whether it was her wealth or her self which formed the principal at traction for her admirers she cared nothing for the tact that neither of the young men in question was rich in this world s goods but she cared a great deal to know whether their at faction was sincere or aimed in he heart she felt that wayne had made a deeper impression on her than winslow he was more out spoken and dashing in manner than his reserved rival whose attitude toward gertrude was almost reveren bial still she hesitated for one of ler most intimate friends had dropped a hint in her hearing to the effect that wayne was an unscrupulous calculate cal culat ing fortune hunter she did not be lieve the assertion but it troubled her nevertheless and left her in a doubt ing frame of mind she had no moth er to consult in the emergency tor mrs desborough had died when ger trude was in her infancy and she shrank from asking her father s ad vice in the matter but an event was scheduled to oc cur which gertrude had never counted her small hands were caught tight ly in H s strong ones upon to all outer appearances her father had long ago ceased to par actively in the strife of the business world and was supposed to be living a 1 fe of luxurious ease re gard less of the fluctuations of the stock market so great was the girl s surprise and consternation one night when merton desborough gravely in formed her that a series ot unlucky speculations had resulted in the loss of his large fortune and that they would be obliged to retire from the world of society wherein she had so long reigned as an acknowledged belle and heiress yet when the first shock of the announcement had passed away gertrude s pride and courage came to the rescue and she threw her arms around her fathers neck and kissed him tenderly never mind me papa she said bravely as long as we have each other it doean doesn t matter we will be just as comfortable in a quiet little home as in this big house with all its grand furnishings and I 1 can go to work the same as lots of other girls do and help you I 1 dont think that will be feces gertie well probably have enough left to live on said her fa ther but a look of intense tion shone in his eyes as he spoke gertrude was true to the estimate he had formed of her character it ws evident that the unlocked for alon of her butterfly existence did not daunt the girl and merton desborough had never felt prouder of his daughter tl at that moment gertrude d d not abandon her reso gutlon of joining the humble ranks of the wage earners no sooner were they settled in the narrow confines of the little flat which her father se lecter as their future residence than she started out in search of work and the following week saw her installed at a sw itch board in the employ ot the telephone company fulfilling the duties of an operator her father smiled when she triumphantly in formed him of her success but did not try to dissuade her the battle of life had commenced for gertrude it grim earnest it must be confessed that after the novelty of the thing had worn off there were times when she regretted the leisure hours and luxuries which had once been hers but she did not complain and stuck to her task he roi cally although at this juncture she began to realize how very few friends the average person can rely upon her acquaintances in bygone days bad been leg on in number but with the change in her social posit on they be came wonderfully scarce three or four of her girlhood chums remained faithful to the deposed princess of their merry circle and loyally ex pressed their admiration of the man ner in wl ich she confronted her ad verse destiny but they were shining exceptions to the general rule perhaps the sharpest sting of all was contained in the knowledge that lionel wayne was utterly unworthy of the good opinion she once held of him from the day when he first learned of her father s financial ruin that astute gentleman had kept care fu ly out of sight and never even came forward to express his sympathy yet gertrude in spite of the d sap which the revelation of his true character inflicted upon her sen nature felt thankful that she had found him out in time to save self from the bitterness of a loveless marriage whether winslow would prove equally faithless remained to be seen business had summoned him to california before the downfall of the boroughs Des had become public and he was still absent from the city ger trude s belief in mankind had been severely shattered by her experience and she hardly knew what to hope tor when he returned time will show she said with a wise shake of her little head and ad dressed herself anew to the fight for existence A month had passed away and ger trude weary from a hard days work was reclining on a soia in the parlor of their flat an open book beside her while her father sat placidly smoking a cigar and busied himself with a formidable array of papers covered with endless rows of figures A loud knock at the door caused gertrude to spring to her feet and an instant later the tall form of hugh winslow ap feared on the threshold the color rose to the girls face at the sight of the unexpected visitor but winslow gave her no time for a commonplace salutation before she could speak her small hands were caught tightly in his strong ones and the glow of affection in his eyes told her that he was still the same stalwart and un complaining lover who had submitted so n beekly to her caprices in the past my own little girl he murmured gently and gertrude s wealth of brown tresses rested quietly on his breast yoi young folks seem to have set tied this matter very satisfactorily between you broke in merton des borough s voice he smiled as he spoke and winslow grasped the ex financier s hand and shook it warmly thank heaven for your misfortune he said fervently it has gained me the heart of the dearest girl on earth her money was the only bar between us mr desborough merton Des boroughs eyes were moist with feeling as he gazed at the speaker you are just the kind of man I 1 fancied you to be he said finally gertrude knows by this time what valuation to put upon fair er friends and money seeking suitors and now let you both into a secret my supposed nin was nothing but a scheme to test the worth of those who sought my daughters hand merton desborough is just as heavy a weight in the financial scales as he was seven weeks ago I 1 don t regret the expert ment for it not only proved gertrude s courage and affection but also gave her a husband nho really loves her tor herself one of gertrude s arms crept around her father s neck and the other rested upon winslow s broad shoulder the two people I 1 love most in the whole wide world she said I 1 am a very haiby girl tonight papa |