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Show I Cte 1ASH e& cf Yon bonded follows have pretty careful of your, sporting Oreene Iha Wilderness n8nua Aorjosonte ' Abatr Halllday, mlesrly millions! ra, to found bound and inaanalbla in Ma room, hb aafa rifted and (40,000 mlas- Th thread of the atonr la taken up 'by hie nephew Tom. Living in the name are other relatlvea; reekleee Bruce Jouff. Hal If day and pretty dare 'Wlnton. Bruoe. whoita a bond broker, haa bean trying to ralae MW to put through a deal and UmaaM from financial ruin. Ha haa Pflled to hie mlaerly uncle and to othara . tor tha loan but haa bean refuead. Tom P4e. for William LaDuc, an old-ti'friand oonnaotad with a dataettra agency, ithllig tha atory Tom revert to hla aequalatanoa with a Mr. Dam. a wealthy widow, whoae buatnaaa agent la Bleharu Mackey, a boodler and polltloal boss. TUm la Jealous of Mackey and la deeply I lore, with Mrs. Dace. Bruca HalUday waraa hlm'to ahun her aa an adventuraaa. paid, 'vt r I S CHAPTER VI(Contlnuad.) Xaat night I happened to be paaa-In-g thld place. 1 had no intention of 'Wins upon you I never dlahonored yon by inch acta but fate ordained 'that ahould be 'Just In time to aee you dllght wlth Richard Mackay. The door of tha lower entrnneo remained pen fora tew aeconda after you had. entered. 1 aaw your' ecene with him 'before you entered the elevator Never In my Ufa had I aeen inch a change come ' orer a human counte-'nano- e aa awept here at my worda. The color fled In a . fiaah and her cheek became aahy gray. Into tber eyes the Instant before to aoft there leaped the glitter Of a leopardeaa aa aha gather heraelf for the leap. Tenae and seeming to crouch, I aaw the leopardeaa In every outline of her curved body. Then aa auddenly the relaxed; the glitter faded and the heat, of angei; gave way to the cold-nea- s of acorn. She stepped backward with a mocking bow. "Ton honor mo greatly, my dear kir, and I aaaure you that I shall never forget It Yeaterday you told me that 1 wae an angel exalted above your hope; today I am a fallen thing beneath your contempt And nil because of a miserable occurrence like that! And you would, have left me with no opportunity to explain my guiltleseneea had I not forced you to grant me that right . Tour, guiltlessness! I returned as Idly. I have charged you with no guilt beyond treachery to me. You told me that no other man made love to you, and, I believed you.' You had told me that Mackey was merely your financial agent and I pinned my heart upon your .naked. wont ,, You hags crucified It Yet I could forgive you were It not for tha feet that this man la married end hue a family and you are .well aware of It I leave the ques- ' tlon of your guiltlessness towards hie wife to your own conscience. .Her bosom heaved and her hand! tightened. "Listen, she said In a votes hard as steel. You shall hear me oat now, for there are thlnge that you. must know. Not that I care for your opinion, and not that I care to retain even your friendship .after this, hut because It la my duty to myself :aad to :Mr. Mackay, who seme at tenet to respect me. I had told you much of my affairs, hut not everything. Mr. Mackay made certain Investments for my husband, and It was that fact principally that brought me hack, firom the. Orient- - He has been kind 'enough nowv that I .am alone In the world to protect thorn for mo and give me the benefit of hie Judgment and experience that I might not have to exist on the charity of friends. That makes It necessary that I should sometimes see him. As to what the world . says about me, I do not care the snap of my finger, for It haa always mathe ligned me and I do not even-takpains to deny whet It may any. As for that scene in the hall,' as your high-nes- s seems pleaeed to designate It, I have only to any this. I wee taken ill last night at n late luncheon at which he happened to he present with others, and bo hurried me home in hie car. I wee very faint when we arrived here end he supported mo with hie arm across the walk and Into the building. Before the elevator came down I must have lost consciousness for n moment, for when I regained my' senses he was holding me In hie arms to prevent my falling and bending over me me he asked me what he .could do for me. In n moment I had recovered my strength and requested him to release me, which he Immediately did. He .escorted me as for as my door and left me there at my request after I had assured him that Janet would do all that waa necessary for me. Mr. Mackay did no more than ' any other gentleman would have done under the circumstances.'-Thpride of her poise was magnificent .and the cold dignity of her tones that of an outraged empress. Never before had she seemed so beautiful, And groping for , so pure, so womanly. aomethlng, no matter how alight, upon which to once more fasten my faith In her, my Jealousy and black suspicions once more fled before her bearing and explanation, and In their place love and belief came surging back. ' The terrible smothering weight within mo was lifted and I could have cried aloud In the blessedness of my relief. I fell upon my knees before her as I brokenly begged her forgiveness; clutching her convulsively by the hand and pleading my heart-ou- t that she he merciful. She listened In silence to my appeals until they were exhausted and then told me I must i I '9. - ,-- bo hicles. " He brightened up again and whispered homely In my ear in Mage fashion: However, In this yon had hotter tmkb n chance; let eome friend put It up for you; say ome wise relative, for Instance. A hundred or two lost would not damage you much, and a few thousand gained jf would bo ambrosia and nectar. He O. Kattntr winked cunningly. lamjer.ai. Once more I told him that I could not violate my traditions, and he In abject penitence. fhat you have bragged hla and away he hurt my pride more than It waa ever went at Eagleshoulders; Boy speed himself, hyrt before periups' you may appre- doubtleea hot on the troll of some of ciate.' 1 scarcely know what to think hie particular cronlaa to whom he of n love so ready to defame Its ob- could break tha glad tidings. For ject and so willing to condemn It un- when Bruce had a chance to do hie beard. Certainly I could never go friends what ho thought was n favor through a scene each as this again. If he did not let the grass grow under oar acquaintance la to continue ns be- hla foet until he hod done It It wee fore, you must have unquestioning one of the traits that lay back iff hie faith In me. Should you ever doubt popularity. Of course ,1 sincerely mo again I should despise you. hoped he would win, but t was always '1 never Shall. I have learned my afraid that hla reckleeeneea would lemon and It win never bo forgotten. somo day get him into trouble, May I hope to he restored? I begged i The afternoon upon which the race humbly. She turned her face away. wee ran will forever remain seared That I cannot nay now. I have upon my memory. I had been wise been hurt and It will take time for the enough to put In my order long In adwound to hod. Stm, in n measure I vance at n fashionable stable, and aa am not without appreciation of your, a result my outlet wae about feelings, for If I lacked that apprecia- aa neat aa could be found anywhere. tion I should have commanded you to As i drove up to Mre. Dace's with' the leave me ; permanently before this. harness glittering In Neither do I think I blame you aa much the sun and the cob arehlng hla neck aa some women might! But at toast my and tapping the boulevard with hie day haa been spoiled and JI do not polished hoofs as daintily as a dancare to leave the bourn. Also, I wish cing ' I experienced much' the to be alone. You may call me up in erne girt, sensations as dose a schoolboy a week if you wish, and I win tell on the first day of hie long vacation you at the end of that .time how I feel when life at n well nigh endless primabout It . I do not now know whether rose way stretches' before him In a 1 can bring myself to a total forgive-- , lsta glorious to contemplate. I was nees or not and If I find I cannot 1 at the full tide of youth and hope. shall so Inform you. But I am going Charged to the full with health end to try. vitality, desperately in love with and I would have given years of my half accepted by one whom I. thorlife to have taken her In my arms In oughly believed to be the most beaua final appeal, and must have made tiful woman In the world, I shook m7 some motion that caused her to. tear fist defiantly In the teeth of the grinsuch an net for she stopped back- ning specter of my lack of money. ward quickly. Please leave me now. And realising my domination for the I will send you the keys by a mes- day the specter cringed and fled besenger when 1 have recovered myself fore me. The great migration of the day was sufficiently to make n search for them. I obeyed her Instantly, hum- In full movement. ' Automobiles were bly. whlszlng past honking like flights of 1 shall be hopelessly miserable un- wild geese. Victorias and traps, drags til the week has pasted, and can only and tallyhos streamed behind them In pray thatjyou be merciful," I impor- an endless procession. It was life tuned from the entrance. She nodded teeming and exultant The world was her understanding and I closed the on parade dressed In Its best clothes door between us upon my second ban- and with Its pockets lined with money,' and right royally did It proclaim the ishment I did not receive my keys, however, fact, Its headache of the morrow an until "the next day. Janet had mis- unthought-o- f thing. , laid them, said the note, and nothing Mrs. Dace came down In n creation I had never seen before, but .which more. fairly made me gasp with delight I Shall make no attempt to describe' it CHAPTER VII. but the' general Impression It gave me I have now come to the period Im- was of fleecy clouds in which were mediately preceding the running of blended delicate and changeful rainthe '.Derby, and upon the. events of bow tints . that came and flitted like that day I must dwell with some par- summer shadows. She seemed rather ticularity . for the reason that', they Jo float than walk, and when I gave er my hand at the curb and she arose form a very Important part of this narrative. Mrs. Dace waa to go with me. from It to the high seat with the lightness of a feather, I could scarcely ,be After torturing me by n week of and suspense, I had been lleve that she waa made of warm, firm received back first upon' probation, flesh. The aggressiveness of her beauand noon later, more or lose uncondi- ty challenged nearly every eye that tionally. It would do no good to go we passed, the men craning their Into the details of our readjustment of heads for a longer look, the women our former relations. There are some searching her enviously. In my pride things which may be expressed by of her and the enthusiasm of the mocold Ink, but you have to see the hu- ment I whispered in her ear that she man countenance with' Its lightning' waa the moat beautiful woman In all piny of expression, and hear the hu- the world and that I loved her dearer man voice In all Its wondrous Inflec- than my own life. My reward waa tions in order .to form n correct mental a smile and n flash of her wonderful picture of certain scenes. But on the yes. I am glad you think so, Tom, even whole her restoration of mo was both of course you are wrong. And womanly and gracious. I came to her though a kneeling and penitent sufferer; she it la sweet of you to be eo devoted to touched .me. upon the forehead and' I me. I am really very happy to be with arose healed. My spirits revived in- you. My fingers tightened about the reins and my teeth clenched. In my stantly in the sunshine of her forgive- heart I swore that she should become ness and I renewed my worship. mine though the heavens fell. The race was to be the We turned into the crush where the social aa well as sporting event of the boulevards emptied their converging beauseason. I was an admirer of the streams into the rolling sea of ve tiful. Next to a beautiful woman, a thoroughbred horse appealed to me as the moet perfect of the world's never creatures. And although I bet upon them, I' had kept myself well posted upon their performances through the medium of the press. Bruce, however, was an enthusiast. Coming In contact as he did with many of the more prominent horse owners and turfmen, he generally had a store of more or less reliable inside Information as to both the runners and the Imps who rode them. Consequently I - was not surprised when upon the second day before the great race waa to be run he came to me in n state of whispering excite- y: Harry Irvinq SYNOPSIS. to trails-ottona.- . two-whe- silver-mounte- d . Bugle calls vibrated In our before ua swept n cloud of preliminary racers with the Jockeys bumped over their necks like eo many colored aim-Nfor away I saw Clare Standing upright on her seat, her face aglow with excitement and her heed nodding rapidly as she carried on n running fire of conversation with a cluster of friends. Her eyes fell upon and ehe waved her hand with the airy grace of a plume; but aa she noticed my companion her smile grew thin and vanished as for a moment he' surveyed her with a face that was absolutely expressionless. Mra. Dace, whose attention had been attracted to my cdusjn by my waved reply to her returned Clare's gale, salutation, smiling folntly. Amusement lurked wlhln her eyee like a reflection deep, pa in unruffled waters. cousin, flics Wlnton, of whom ave often spoken," I explained The one at my aide, nonchalantly. gave her attention to the flying racers. An exceedingly pretty girl. You afe very fond of each other, I believe, she returned with a alight rising Inflection. I hastened to answer. n way, yea. She la a very good and aweet girl and we are the beat of friends. But of course that la all." Through the press Bruce came jamming bis way, his necktie awry from the scuffle, and hla face with enthusiasm. He bobbed my companion a hurried, bow and then shouted aomethlng to me as a surge of the crowd bore him along. Last call for prosperity In the betting ring, was all that I could catch of It as, still gesticulating, he was swept away. Mrs. Dace looked after ... In My Heart I Well Placed Among, the Leaders, him. What did he mean by that? she demanded. I enlightened her. Ob, Bruce, has got a straight tip from a horsey friend of hla that Eagle Boy la going to win. So I suppose he Is now going to back him tb hla limit. He would ae soon ait down and watch the hands of a clock go around aa to tee a race unless he had a wager on it The light of interest came Into her eyea. And you think what?" she queried, searching my face. I meditated. To tell the truth I think hla horse will win. I know aomethlng about thfe beasta, you know, having been raised on S Kentucky stock farm. The hone Is a wonder, aura enough, and Bruce says he haa been breaking records by moonlight Then, too, Pettit who rides him. today, la a fiend in the saddle. He can lift a horse off his hoofs and carry him around the track between hie knees ae a witch rides a brym. If I waa to bet on the race hEgle Boy would carry my wealth today." ... And the odds?" she mused. They are ten to one against him at present, but they will go down like a falling rocket when the crowd has once had an opportunity of seeing him In motion. He la a Pegasus. He seems to soar rather than ran. .If they have a hone that can beat him, that horse can catch birds. I waa surprised at the warmth of my own enthusiasm. Bhe opened her pane with a snap and her fingers dived into its depths. Presently she drew forth a $600 bill and crumpled it Into my palm. Bruce la a shrewd fellow and you are a born horseman. I am going to rely upon your combined Judgment I wish you would go and place this on him for me, wae her announcement Now, 1 had always considered that to consent to be an agent for n woman In a gaming transaction waa rushing In where angels might well fear to tread. I hesitated. But of course I do not know which one will win. It is difference of Judgment that makes hone racing pos- - d i: rV f - . ' sere; college yells shattered the air; beat of hoota Bounded like the roll of drams. Through the wide entrance to the club grounds wo drove into an arena banked by $0,000 peopleAlready the racing was on and ment Say, old man, I have got the best thing that Is ever going to happen In this world, and of course I want you to be In on It I wouldn't trade it for Aladdlne lamp. You know that Eagle Boy horse that we have been watching for the last .rear? Well, he haa developed Into n simon pure world beater. I got this on the deed Q. T. from his owner who would break his arm to do me a favor. That horse Is smashing all records by moonlight and even the rallbirds .haven't gO onto It yet He Is' going to run sway from that bunch like n locomotive leaves a mud turtle. And the odds will be Jong against him. I am going to plunge, and advise you to da tha same. But If you dare breath It Ill i , poison you." As a matter of . T was not startled. fact for some time past I had had my eyes on this great son of Black Eagle aa much the best horse of the- lot; therefore the news of his midnight performances merely corroborated my own Judgment 1 answered in an ' ' manner: " I rather look to see him win myself. But you know I do not bet and therefore cannot take advantage of the opportunity. But I thank ypu Just rise. "I do not know what to soy to you, the lame for the Information. Bruces countenance foil. "That's ph retained as I atagd. before her ' V Swore That Shs Should Become Mine. I Saw the Powerful Haunches of Eagle Boy. I warned her. Ible, you understand, She tightened- my fingers about the money, thrusting my hand from her. imperiously. I have said. that I am going to rely upon your Judgment At ten to one, should I win, I will have made $5,000. Do you wish me to go myself?1 If not, you had beat hurry. For the first time really chilled by doubt and feeling my convictions ooze, I continued to protest. "But he may be pocketed, he may foul another horse, he may be left at the post anything may happen in the race, to make him lose. She looked at me steadily, silently, I thought almost contemptuously, and without more words I pocketed the bill. Through the crush of the betting ring I fought my way, placed my money In the hands of a perspiring man who stood upon a stool and came back to her warm and crumpled. Alreadr tbe Derby racers had galloped tbe course In their preliminary warming dp and were now chafing before the flag. I gave her the ticket for her wager and resumed my seat in a throbbing hush. Then came a roar like the crash of surf and a thunderous wave of sound boomed across the field and waa echoed back by the distant walla. In a compact bunch and stretching themselves like greyhounds the bones wept past us. For an instant I felt a sensation of giddiness and closed my eyea; then opening them once more riveted them on tbe field as it circled tbe course with the speed of hawks. Well placed among tbe leaders I aaw tbe powerful haunches of Eagle Boy working with the smooth power of pistons aa they steadily drove him into the foremost rank. With a roar of hoofs they turned the last curve and came Into the stretch, while the sea of humanity rising- upon tiptoe burst Into full tongue. Mra. Due waa upon her feet and .watching them with parted lips. I sat beside her with parched lips, my knees shaking. Then from out of the Bunch a black horse that shone like a polished shoe forged a yard at a bound, and putting a good length between himself and hla nearest follower, led the way homeward In a buret of speed that waa truly magnificent. Pettit was fairly lifting him from hla feet, hla whip flicking. Bringing him on like a venomous yellow striped wasp.' I fiercely clutched my companions arm. "Eagle Boy wlna.'T roared In her ear. ' Then aa In a nightmare I saw the happening of an evil thing. A dpzen yards from the wire and when two more leaps would have brought him victory, there came a stumble that sent the great black one crashing to the ground, while over him his nearest rival hurtled a jumper clean a fence. From the vut crowd there arose first a cry, shrill and explosive, followed by an Instant of silence and then a raging tumult I heard an Involuntary . exclamation from the lips of the woman at my side and- turned to her with the cold pt ranlratlon bursting from my forehead. 11. r lips were tightly compressed and she waa gating fixedly at the fallen horse aa he arose with difficulty. The jockey waa already limping about and the mob surging upon the track. I guess that race ia settled for all time," she said quietly aa she snapped I suppoae we shut. her pocket-bno-k might as well be going. Her face resumed Its placidity, but she turned It away from me. Half dased by the suddenness of the catastrophe my hand hought hera In a sympathetic squeeze. She did not respond. I whipped through the crush recklessly In my chagrin and bitterness. Silently cursing my' folly I drove her homeward with but a perfunctory attempt at conciliation. Even to that be did not reply, and I decided that I had: better remain quiet until she had recovered her equilibrium. I had never aeon a woman whom I considered a good loser, and them waa that In her demeanor now which warned me to caution. Silence on the part of - u the fair sex I had always regarded aa ominous, and before her quietness I now gat wretchedly. ! CHAPTER VIII. I know of few things more uncomfortable than for a man to pose before the woman he lovea In the garb of a sage, and being suddenly unveiled to realise- that he stands revealed to her aa a naked fool. That I had been asinine enough to air my opinions to .her aa a expert upon such an Impossible proposition aa the winner of a horse rare galled me to the marrow. My humiliation waa all the more complete for the reason that in this, the first financial transaction in which I had advised her, she had coftie to grief. No one knew better than I the unforglvable-nea- a of my offense. Man may lead woman astray In love and he wept over through the darkness of many a night; he may counsel her out of her hope of a hereafter and yet die with her arms' around hla neck; he 'may separate her from the world and till reign aa her king, but when be separates her from her pocket-boo- k he becomes a rascal or a clown in her eyes. Just how Mrs. Dace made me know that I had lost caste In her favor waa not a thing that .could bie analysed, but in some .mysterious way he aaw to It that I knew it Perhaps. Jt waa by the almost imperceptible arching . of her eyebrows when I chanced to express my views ' upon some matter; perhaps it was in the occult way some women have of making you uncomfortable when they wish you to be so without discern able physical manifestations, on their part and perhaps it waa partially due to my own sensitiveness upon the subject. More than likely it waa a compound of the three. Be. that aa It may.. I became almost timid in her' presence; and knowing that thla would never do, grow desperate. I had never; believed that a mad could retain a woman's love unless he could command her respect aa to hla mentality, . and I, therefore, determined to reinstate myself to-- my former position at any cost Clearly the only way I could do this would be to reimburse her for her loss In so delicate a manner that she could neither take offense nor refuse. I pondered over the matter for about ten- - days and determined to take a plunge, sink or swim. I transferred what money I had In bank to my overdrawn check- - . ing account I hat) been watching the steady rise of a certain stock upon the exchange-fosome monttaswlth secret covetousness. It pertained to a vast system of underground railways which were to honeycomb the depths beneath tbe city. The franchise had been secured through political sorceries, end the capital to float the' enterprise was being raised by- public investment Aa ' steadily as the mercury mounts under a summer sun the stock had advanced point by point from a merely nominal sum until it had reached thirty, cents on the dollar. The more I pondered upon the yearly increasing value of Huch a system aa the overhead streets became rhore congested, the more I became convinced, that public rumor-woulthe stock: be verified and that ' would soon be at par. Without confiding in any one except my broker, and binding him to aecrecy, I mar--; gined a considerable quantity of it and watched its daily rise with a heart that mounted aa steadily aa my for- tunea. A week later I strolled over to aee Mrs. Dace. , . self-style- d -- the-saving-s (TO BK CONTINUED.) - ' Hla Busy Day. Tha visitor who left just now didn't seem to make a good impression." Hla remarks ! should say not! were Illuminating, but they bored no-tdeath." Indeed Yea; he waa Introducing a new. i kind of desk lamp." r 1 V |
