OCR Text |
Show ,,,., i . I SYN0PSI8. fffl "Ittrrar, ,pnnn-h()lixi girl lit lie pi iiarifi- FH ftorlum, Irlln ttin story. It (flii wltli tllo PH vucrlvni r MIhb 1'ntty Ji-iiiiIiikh, who In ri- f TlortX 4w v oriKnRnil to iniirry n prlrift. H tworj the Si-aCli of tlir old ilortor wlin mvrm Bj i)mi r.-uuilorliliii. Tliu cutntu In t f t to a H -w-jtp-j;tn Krutiilsoti, Dlrfcy Ciirtor. who fB fnrail urtrnr on it certain riniu atul run PK ijiv ranadirltiin micocnnfully for two PH VufetftChs ur forfeit the lulu rltaiin- A rnn PH 1f iiiumivs lvlu'H Ulrlt'i urilviil, Mr. Tlio- PH ,tirn Ik luivirlriK aliout In hope of PH miring: tlio plore for a Miiiiincr Itutfl. H " CHAPTER 111. Continued. r! .A At half past (he I JtiHt nbont gave "Vtii. Tt Wait dark outside, and nothing FffA '.tnio but firelight. Suddenly 1 """A sx-'niioiti' tl somebody" looking nt rffff Jw. lwcU-titrt in) neck mill I turned ! .-Hnundi Thorn wan a man standing outrtWo-oau.()f tlio wlndowa, atnrlng In ""fl Xly ll rut thought, of co u rue, was FffA -Utni It WnB'Mr.'Drck, but Jusl tiH tlio Ffffj '$.'ir? vanished I Haw that It wasn't. It FfffJ u'(ui oJdis" by three or four yearn than "fflj ( .air CHfcK and a bU fuller. rffl ZVm rxiL nervous. I've had to hold "V ori5 own against chronlo grouches too rfffi Sons Co havo norvea, so I went to tho FfffJ aiiws and looked out. Tho man came FflP autx3n.il tbo corner Just then nnd I Ffft cnuVd 6"o hliu plainly In thu llrellght.' jXl wau covered wltli hiiow, and lid FffJJ ntv ,a d outer .and no .overcoat, but Rie feokml like n.-'gontleman. " ticK jour pardon for apylng,-"'he milil. "but the lire looked ho Hiiug! a-i faH'a trying to get to tln hotel arwr tJmro, but In the dark I've loat On- jiath." rhafa not a hotel," ,1 snapped, for hat touched mo on tho raw. '"Hint's 5lor. Springs Sanatorium, and thla Ih oiiv at tlio pjjrlngB. i You'd, better, como j f xaG pet iwnrm." He shut the door behind lilin and c:mc over to tho .fire. H "l'ta pretty . well frozen," Ite said. Dmi bo astonished If I melt before 3-csr eyes; I've been walking for .Xov that I had n hotter chance to TB:e hfra I,'d elzod up thut drawn look jBruand lile mouth. Xlmuid your luncheon,' I suppose," X aaM. poking tho lire log. Ho grlnnod craftier nhceplshly. k -Well, lhavont lind any, nnd I've BfiWWPPWWayTToTrTnow. H y "Nothing's healthy that Isn't nat- BlLX" ' 'urai. fl declared. "If you'd caro for HP ( cat rifsth of buttered and Halted pop-corn, H ttherti'B iutiwi on tho mantel. It's pretty H a8.Xy, th Idea Is to mako folkb thirsty K o they'll enjoy tho mineral water." H', "Tblnk of raining a thirst only to M iroun It -with spring water!" ho said. 1 Itiit be got tho pop-corn and ho ato H .ft ail. If ho hadn't had any luncheon m Ifcrt hadn't had much breakfast. Tho m furr part was ho was a gonUoniun; M Ikls clothes were tho right sort, but H ' lli hail on jintnnt lenther shoes In all H iAhnttinow and nn nutomobllo cup. H 1 -jiut nwny the glass while ho ate. B '.T'rettyuoon ho lookod up and tho 1 1 vdrawn lines wero gone. Ho wasn't H'?. MUv .Mr. pick, but ho was tho same H 3yp'. only taller and heavier built; V -Anaso it Isn't n hotel," he remarked, ft VWVll, I'm Borry. Tho caravansary In H ?X vlUao Ih not to my liking, and 1 H thaS tbuuglit of engaging a milto up SJ, ICirrr My secretary usually attendH to PjHH Thero Was a Man Staring In. 'MfcfiH rTr6 things, but don't take awny all PS3 6hf' KlabWH. Hob I beg your pardon &3 -i-bn the thirst is romliig." i.BS In fill('d tll K'"KH nlmH(,,r alul tnLMI M !hl c111"4' ul' nm' itood In front of me. fSSwj! rlth tho glass hold up In the air. SRifBl To tho boat woman 1 havo met in lj many dayn," ho bald, not mocking but jMH Mrtouu. "I was about to lie down nnd $5jll r,t J ,,ttln J,r(,s t'over me with "ii&ili loaves." Then ho glanced at tho empty JrTwS ,-,,5,h nni1 Bm,lB(1' "T( m,teri,l I'lv fepgJii$ nm! Ix)i)g mny it wave"' he aald, WfifiM. ind twiptlod tho glass. fSM Wb, I found a couple of apples In illp, ;ciy pantry "! brought them out, and 'Jral flr lie ate them ho told me what wjjl tort happened to him. Ho had boon n fflffijS little of oivoryrhlng slnco ho left col- iSBKll ! ho was about twenty-live had TO$P$ crowd tho Atlantic In a rathoat and W$mm iboim with Homebody or other Into ffjffSh ne YiaAwtif A'frlcnthoROt lost flfl 'iu )tti.' t(t"eiit each other or lizards, wbmTw5 awl SLOWER. TPN, WHEN SMITH aLrWTSiP ' b ' IT.I.TTST1?ATHD & EnfiATi. BERT , ,.. . . ""?" ' or Homothlng like thnt imtl then he went to tho Philippines, ana got uturk there and had to sell books to get home. Ho had a llttlo monoy, "enough for a grub-stake," ho said, and all his folks wore dead. Thon a college friend of IiIh wrote a rural play called "Sweet Peas" "Great tltlo, don't you think?" ho naked and ho put up all the money. It would hnvo been a hit, ho said, but tho kid In the play the one that unites its parents In the last act just before ho dies of tuberculosis tho k.ld took tho mumps nnd looked as It, instead in-stead of fading away, ho was going to blow up. Everybody was so afraid of him that they let him die alone for three nights In the1 middle or tho stage. Then the leading woman took the mumps, nnd tho sheriff took everything ev-erything else. Well, of course, tho thing failed, and he lost every dollnr ho'd put Into It, which was all ho hud, Including uliat ho had In his pockots. "They seized my trunks," ho explained, ex-plained, "and I sold my fur-JIncd over- cont for eight dolhirs, which took ono of the glrlB back. home. It's hard for tho women. A fellow can always get soino sort of a Job I was coming up hero to seo If thoy needed an extra clork or a waiter, or chauffeur, or anything any-thing that meant a roof and something tb oat but I HUppoao they don't need a Jaelt-of-all-trades." "No," I answored, "but I'll tell you what I think they're going to need. And that's an owner!" I'm not making excuses. I did it for the best. If Mr. Thoburn had not boon there, sitting by to boo tho old sanatorium sana-torium dlo so It could sprout wings and lly as n summer hotel, I'd never have thought of It. Hut I was In despair. de-spair. I got up am) opennd tho door, but thu snow came In in a cloud, and the path was half a foot deep ngaln. But tho angel of provlddnco appeared ap-peared In tho flhapo of Mike, the bath man, coming down through tho snow In a tearing rago. Tho instant 1 saw Mlko I know it wns settled. "Am j I or am 1 not to give Mr. TmiTOBt-imFTTio-rnrflBoir. Ana i saw n had his overcoat over his bath costume, cos-tume, which is a Turkish towel. j "A needlo shower followed by a salt rub," paid I. "He's boon having thorn for eleven ycare. What's tho mattor?" ''That fool of a young doctor," shouted Mike, "ho told him before he left thnt if ho'd been taking them for eleven years and wasn't any better It wns tlmo to stop. Ain't businens bad enough only four people In tho houso takln' bathB regular without his but-tin' but-tin' In!" "Whero's Mr. Moody?" "In tho bath. I'vo locked up his clcthcs." "You glvo him a nccdlo shower and n salt rub," I ofderod, "nnd If ho mnkeB a fuss Just eond for mo. And, Mlko." I Bald, as ho started out, "nsk Mr, Van AlBtyne to como out here Immediately." Im-mediately." Mr. Van Alstyno enmo out on tho run, nnd when ho saw Mr. Pierce by tho fire that wns his nntno, Alan Plerco-ho stopped and stared. Then ho said: "You Infornnl young senmp!" And with that Mr. Plerco Jumped up, surprised sur-prised and pretty mad, and Mr. Van Alstyne enw his mistake "I'm sure 1 bog your pardon!" ho said. "Tho fact Is, I was expecting somebody else, nnd In tho ilrollght " "You surprised mo, that's all," said Mr. Pferco. "Under tho circumstances, , Tni glad I'm not tho other chap." j "You muy be," assurod Mr. Sam grimly, "You'ro not unllko him, by ' tho way. A llttlo taller nnd heavier, i but -" I Now It's all very well for Mr. Sam to say I originated tho Idea nnd all that, but as truly as I am writing this, as J watched, his faco I saw the snmo thought come Into It. -He looked Mr. Plerco up and down, and thon he stnred Into tho ilro and puckored his mouth to whistle, but ho didn't. And finally ho glanced at me, but I waB looking at tho fire, too. Mr. Sam got up and began to walk the floor, his hands In his pockets. II.. .!...! t t ,.. uvn tint atlll 1 He tried to get my eyo, uui sun i looked In the fire. "All tralllc's held up, Minnie," ho said. "Tho eight o'ejock, vtraln Is stalled beyond tho Junction, In a drift. I'vo wired tho conductor, and Carter Isn't on It." "Well?" unld I. "If wo could only get past to-day," Mr. Sum went on; "If Thoburn would only choke to doath; or If thero was uomebody around 'who looked like Dick. I daro say, by to-morrow " He looked nt Mr. Plerco, who smiled and lookod nt him. "And I ro.BOit.blo Dick!" said Mr Pierce. "Well, If'ho's a moral and upright young mun " "Ho lan'tl" Mr. Sam broko In finv-ngely, finv-ngely, And then and thero ho sat down and told Mr. Plerco tho trouble we woro In, nnd what sort of cheerful idiot Dicky Carter was. And then Mr. Plerco told about tho play and tho mumps,' n'nd liow ' ho wub stranded. Whon Mr. Snm asked him outright If he'd take Mr, Dick's place overnight he agreed at once. Just ns they'd got It arranged that Mr. Plerco was to put on Mr. Sam's overcoat and walk down to the village so thut ho could como up In a elelgli, ns If ho had drlvon over from York-ton York-ton he woa only to wnlk across tho hall In front of tin office, with his collar col-lar up, Just enough to show himself and then go to his room with a chill -Just as It wns all arranged, Mr. Sam thought of somothlng. "Tho house pooplo nre waiting for Dick," ho snld to :e, "and about forty women aro crocheting In the lobby, so thoy'll be sure to see him. Won't somo of them know It Isn't Dick?" I thought pretty fnst. "Ho hasn't been around much lately," late-ly," I said. "Nobody would know except ex-cept Mrs. Wiggins. Sho'll never forget for-get him; tho lust tlmo ho wuh here ho put on her false front like n beard and woro It down to dinner." "Then It's all off," ho groaned. "She's got as many eyes us n potato." "And about as much sense," said I. "Fiddlesticks! She's not so good wo can't replaco her, and what's tho uso of swallowing a camel and thon sticking stick-ing nt a housokeopor?" "You can't get her out of tho house In an hour," he objected, but In a weak volco. "I can!" I s h firmly. (I did. lnsidn of nn hour she went to tho clerk, Mr. Slocum, and handed In her resignation. She wns a touchy TmUt lgji rHm III l ' ( n' H M li I "You Infernal Younn Scampi" person, but I did not say all that was quoted. I did not say tho kitchen wus filthy; I only said It took away my ap-petlto ap-petlto to look In at tho door. Dut sho left, which Is tho point.) "Well, I stood In tho doorwny and watched them disappear In tho dark-ncsB, dark-ncsB, nnd I felt better than I had all day. It's groat to bo ablo to do some-thlrjg, some-thlrjg, oven If that eomethlng Is wrong Uut as I put on my shawl and turned out tho lights, I suddenly remembered. Miss Patty would bo waiting In tho lobby for Mr. Dick, nnd sho would not bo crocheting! CHAPTER IV. Whoever has charge of tho spring-house spring-house at Hope Springs takes tho nows stand In the ovonlng. That's an old rulo. After I ate my supper I rellevod Amanda King, who runs the nows stand in tho daytime, when slip Isn't laid off with tho toothache, Mr. Sam; was right. All the women had on their puffs, and they wero sitting In a hulf-clrclo on each side of the door. Mrs. Sam was thero, looking frightened fright-ened and anxious, and standing near the card-room door was MIbb Patty. Sho was all In whlto, with two red spots on her chocks, and I thought If her prlnco could havo seen her then ho would pretty nearly have eaten her up. Mr. Sam came to tho news stnnd, and he wub so nervous ho could hardly light a clgnretto. "I'vo had a messago from ono of the detectives," he said. "They'vo trnced him to Salem, Ohio, but they lost him thero. If we can only hold on this evening ! Isn't that tho sleigh?" Everybody had heard It. The women nt up and craned forward to look nt tho door; Mrs. Sam was sitting forward for-ward clutching tho arms of her chair. Sho was In whlto, having laid off her black for that evening, with a red rose pinned on her so Mr. Pierce would know her. Miss Patty hoard tho elelghbells also, and she turned and came toward the door. Her mouth wns sot hard, and she was twisting her ring As sho always did when sho was nervous. And nt tho snhio moment Mr. Sam and I both saw it; she was In white, too, and sho had a red rose tucked In her belt! Mr. Sam muttered something and rushod at her, but ho wae too Into. Just as he got to her tho door opened nnd In enmo Mr Plerco, with Mr. Sam's fur coat turned up nround his ears and Mr. Snm's fur cap drawn well down on his head. He stood for .Jk ni unuKing in tlio light, and n i . n AlBtyno Kt up nervously, an ins 8 n,r ovon Baw her , oyeB ill U on MlBfl I,atty'B face "d iY?i. V ),,,ero' Mr' Snm waB "'". bt it.vL.T.1 uld h0 do7 Mr' 1,,erco walked Xdpfe M,8S Patt- t00k h" hand. over to I th0r'" anJ k'8BCd her' U w.'..! wo,nen w,n d0 anything to i,, I'jicene, and that helped us, for nC n I r tUrnP(I n hnlr- "Ut Wh0n h vL.ifo" B0t hlm b tho R"" anu led Mr S j'nrd tho flta,rfl- Bh0 turned B0 him 'n 0,d cats sltt,nK around could Vw f? hor a,ld her faco WftB carloL "" i't over to tho wood flro our Shr. nl n 8ort of bl& r00U1 wth chairs inhh.1 t"6' nud pn,ms' nnd ftn Pn iiy. J U, wlnt"-and sat down. I , tln,nk Bho know hor8C,f wither I ,,F inoBt OBtonlshed or nngry. (ion t tn 83iggs snvo a nnHty InURh she wn.-J. brother didn't seo you." she v. VMrB Van Alfltyno- ''I laro say icmiv. doesn't count much when a said to princess la nround!" a HlstcJjVa,, Alstyno was still staring future staircase, but she ennm to nnr ' that. She hnd some grit in up i the I aho did look like a French doll, fleir at brother and Miss Jennings aro "Ml ,d fr,ond8'" B" remarked qui-MJ'I qui-MJ'I I believe that was what aho very o t, too. I don't think sho had otly- io othor red rose, and whnt was though think but that Mr. Piorco had seen tl Mlsa Jennings somewhere? She she to ,Z0(( Mrs Sam wmJ Uut Bhe known . off the situation anyhow, and was at b tlmo to breathe. Ve noedod It. carrleffl woro hla highness," said Miss Ba,vo Misreading tuo irlsh laco colInr ., VdB making ovor her knee nnd Cobb, lng at It, "I should wish my sho w , t0 Do moro er dlgnlflod. squint old Austrian families aro very fiance- ty. Thoy would not understand Those, merlcan habit of 'oso'flatlon." hnugW IS protty mad at that, for any-onr any-onr A could bave seen Miss Patty I w( klfis him. body Dy osculation you mean kissing, dl Fobb," 1 said, going over to hor. If iss you don't remember tho Aus-Miss Aus-Miss count who wns a head waiter "I gut if there was anythlnj In the i! JLVxuI3rThT!iu3?c- Al t j-way j-way of osculation that that mombor of an old Austrian family jlldn't know, Pvo got to find It out He could kiss all around any American I ever saw!" l I went back to my news stand. 1 wns shaking eo my knees would hardly hard-ly hold mo. All I could think of was that thoy had swallowed Mr. Plorce. bait and hook, nnd thnt for a tlmo wo wero saved, although In the electric light Mr. Piorco wub a good bit less llko Dicky Carter than ho hnd seemed to bo In tho sprlng-houso by the flro. Well, "Sufllclent unto tho day Is tho evil thereof," Everybody wont to bed early. Mr. Thoburn camo over and bought a cigar on his way upstairs, and ho was as gloomy as ho had been cheerful before. "Well," I said, "I guesa you won't put a dancing floor In tho dining-room just yet, Mr. Thoburn." "I'm not In a hurry." ho snnpped. "It's only January, and r don't want tho place until Mny. I'll got it when I'm ready for It I had a good look at young Carter, and he's got too squaro a Jaw to run a successful neurasthenics' neu-rasthenics' homo." 1 went to tho pantry shelf at ten o'clock nnd fixed a tray of supper for Mr. Plerco. I found somo chicken and got a bottle of tho old doctor's wine I had kept tho key of his wlno-collnr slnco ho died and cnrrlod tho tray up to Mr. Plerco's Bltting-room. Ho had tho old doctor's suite. The door waB open an Inch or so. nnd as I was about to knock I heurd a girl's voice. It was Miss Patty! "How can you dony It?" sho was saying angrily. "I dnro say you will oven dony that you ovor saw thle lot-tor lot-tor beforol" There was a minute's pauso while 1 suppose he looked at tho letter. "I nover did!" ho said solomnly. , "Perhaps." snld Miss Patty, "you also deny that you were In Ohio the day beforo yosterday." "I was In Ohio, but I posltlvoly assort" as-sort" "Mr Carter, I have asked my question ques-tion twlco now and I am waiting for an answer. "But 1 don't know tho nnswor!" ho said mlBorably. "I I assure you, I'm absolutely In the dark. I don't know what's In tho letter. I haven't always done what I should, I daro say, but my conduct In tho stato of Ohio during the lrst few weeks has been without stain- uiiIobb I've forgotten but If it had been anything very heinous, I'd remember, don't you think?" Somebody crossed tho room, and a paper rustled. "Read that!" said Miss Patty'a volco. And then sllonco for a mlnuto. "Good Lord!" exclnlmed Mr. Plorce. "Do ou deny that?" "Absolutely!" ho Hald firmly. "I I have nover even henrd of tho Hover-ond Hover-ond Dwlght Johnstono " "And that Is all you will say?" demanded de-manded Mls Patty scornfully. 'You don't know;' 'there's a mlstnko;' 'you never saw the lottor boforo!' Oh. If 1 woro only 'a man!" "I'll tell you" what we'll do." Mr- 5 Pierce said, with something like hope In his voice. "We'll sond for Mr. Van Alstyno! That's the thing, of course. I'll Bend for or Jim." Mr. Van Alstyno's namo Ib Sam, but nobody noticed. "Mr. Van Alstyne !"tfropeated Miss Patty In a dazed wny. I guessed It was about time to mako a diverolon, so I knocked nnd walked In with the tray, and thoy glared at me. "I've brought your supper, Mr. Car-tor," Car-tor," I began. Then I stopped and stared. "Oh," I said. "Thank you," said Mr. Pierce, very uncomfortable. "Just put It down any-whore." any-whore." 1 stalked across the room nnd put It on the table. Thon I turned. "I'm sorry," I said, "but It's one of the rules of this houso that gucsto don't como to those rooms. They're strictly private. pri-vate. It Isn't my rulo, but If you will step down to tho parlor " Mr. Plerco took a quick stop toward Miss Putty and looked down nt her. "About what happened down-stairs to-nigut, ho stnmmered, with the un-happiest un-happiest faco I over saw on a man, "I I've been ready to knock my fool head off ever since. Jt was a mistake u " "My letter, please," said Miss Patty, looking back at him without a blink. "PleaBe don't look llko that!" ho bogged. "I came In suddenly out of tho darkness, and you " "My lottor, please!" she said ngaln, raising hor eyebrows. He gave up trying thou. He hold out tho letter and sfie took It nnd went out with hor head up nnd scorn In tho very way sho trailed her skirt ovor the door-sill. Hut I'm no fool; It didn't need tho way ho touched the door-knob whero sho had been holding hold-ing It, when ho closed tho door after her, to tell mo what nlled him. Ho was crazy about her from tho minute ho saw her, and ho hadn't a change of llnon or a cont to hlo namo. And sho, ub you might say, on the ragged edge of royalty, with queens und princes sending her stomachers and tlnruB until un-til she'd hardly need clothes. Well, He wont ovor to tho fireplace, whore I wus putting hla coffee to keep It hot, and looked down at me. "I've a suspicion, Minnie," ho said, "that, to ubo a vulgar expression, I've bitten off moro than I can chew In this little undertaking, nnd that I'm In immlnont danger of choking to death. Do you know anybody, a friend of Mlse or Jennings, named Dorothy?" Doro-thy?" "She's got a younger sister of thnt nnme," I said, with a sort of chill going over me. "She's In bonrdlng-school bonrdlng-school now." "Oh, no, she'e not!" ho remarked, picking up the coffee-pot. "It acems that I mot hor on tho train somowhore or othor tho day before yesterday, atfd ran off with her nnd married her!" I ant back on tho rug speechless. Don't toll mo tho way of tho wicked Is hard; tho wicked got all tho fun thero Is nut of lifo, and ua far aa I can seo, It's the respectable "In nt ten o'clock nnd up at aoven" part of tho wlckod'a family that has all the trouble and does tho worrying. "If wo could only keep It hidden for a few days!" I said. "Hut of courso, tho papera will get it, and Just now, with columns every day about Miss Patty's clothes " "Hor what?" "And all tho princes of the blood sending presents, nnd tho king not favoring fa-voring It vory much" "What are you talking about?" "About MIbb Jennings' wedding. Don't you road tho newspaper?" Ho hadn't really known who sho wns up to thut minute. He put down the tray and got up. "I I hadn't connected hor with the the nowspnpor, Miss Jennings," ho said, and lighted a clgnretto over tho lamp. Something In his faco startled mo, I must say. "You'ro not going to glvo up now?" I askod. I got up and put my hand on his arm, nnd I think he wus shaking. "If you do, I'll I'll go out and drown myself, head down, In tho spring -" Ho had been going to run away I bbw It then but he put n hand over mine. Then he looked at tho door whore Miss Patty had gone out and gave himself a shako. "I'll stay," he fid. "We'll fight It out on this lino If it takos all summor, Minnie. After all, what'B blue blood to good red blood?" Which was almost what tho- bishop had said! Mr. Moody took Indigestion thut night not but thut he ulwaya had It, but this wns woreo and Mrs. Moody came to my room about two o'clock and knocked at the door. "You'd hotter come," alio said. "Thero's uo doctor, anl he's awful brtd." Wo went down to Mr. Moody's room, and ho wns sitting up In bud w.Ith his knees drawn up to his chin und n hot-water hot-water bottle hold to him. "Look nt your work, w.o'mnn," he snld to mo whon 1 oponod tlie door. "I'm dyltiK!" "You look sick." I Bald, going ovor to tho bed. It nover does to cross them when they got to the wator-bottlo stage. "The pharmacy clerk's gone to a danco ovor nt Trlmblo'e, but I guess . ' I enn find you somo whisky." "I never touch tho stuff nnd you both know It," he snarled. He had a fresh pain Just then nnd stopped, f clutching up the bottle. "Ilesldos," ha finished, when It was over, "1 havon't i got any whisky," f Well, to mako a long story short .wo got him to ngree to some whlsky'ffom L tho pharmacy, with a drop of peppermint pepper-mint In it, If ho could wash It down ', with spring water so It wouldn't dc any hurm. I put on some stockings of Mrs. Moody's and a petticoat nnd a shawl nnd started for tho spring house. It wns still snowing, and part of tho t tlmo Mrs. Moody's stockluga wero up L to their knees. Tho wind wua blowing f hard, nnd when I rounded tho corner l of tho houso my lantern went out I Ij) stood thero In the storm, with tho ' shawl Happing, thanking heaven I was fjl a single woman, nnd ubout ready to ' fl go back and tell Mr, Moody what I U thought of him when I looked toward J tho Bprlng-houso. sY At first I thought It wns afire, thon I saw that tho light wns coming from tho windows. Somebody was inside, I with a big flro and nil tho lights go- I B. " II I went over cautiously to one of tho windows, wading In deep snow to get ... 'ff there and If you havo ovor done thnt f H. In a pair of bedroom allppora you can ' jj realize tho state "of my mind nnd looked In. There were three chairs drawn up In ' a row In front of tho flro, with my bearskin hearth-rug on them to mako j a couch, and my ohephord's plaid ehawl folded nt ono end for a pillow. And stretched on that with her long I sealskin coat laid over her was Dor- if othy Jennings, Miss Pntty'B younger ff slater! Sho was ulone, as far .aa I could aeo, and sho was leaning on her I jj elbow with her cheek in her hnnd, fsJ staring at the flro. Just then tho door 't 1 into tho pantry opened and put came i gjL" "Were you calling, honey?" ho said, eP coming ovor nnd looking down nt hor. "You wero ouch n long time!" says k she, glancing up under her InBhes at Am him. "I I was lonely!" H "Dless you," says Mr. Dick, stooping , m over hor. "What did I ever do with- a out you?" ' ij I could have told her a few things H ho did, but by that tlmo It waB com- m Ing ovor mo pretty strong that horo m was tho real Dicky Cnrtor and that I iB had an extra ono on my hands. Tho jX mlnuto I looked nt this-one I know K thnt nobody but a blind mun would mistake ono for tho other, and Mr. H Thoburn wasn't blind. 1 tell you I stood out In that snow-bank nnd per- H spired! jM Well, It was no placo for mo unless m they know I was around. I waded S around to tho door and walked In, and thero waB a grand upsetting of the M seulskln coat and my shepherd's plaid shawl. Mr. Dick Jumped to hla foet and Mrs. Dick Bat bolt upright und stared at mo over the backs of the chairs. "Minnie!" cried Mr. Dick. "Ab I'm n mnrrlod man, It's Mlnnlo herself. I Dorothy, don't you remember Mlnnlo?" Sho came townrd me with hor hand H s i I He Looked Down at Me. out. "I'm nwfully glad to see yon again," sho said. "Of courao I rememberwhy remem-berwhy you are hardly dressed at all! You must he frozen!" 1 went over to the flro and emptied my bedroom allppora of snow. Then 1 sat down and looked at them both. "Frozen!" repented l; "I'm In a hot ' Bwcat If you two children meant to como, why In creation didn't you com In tlmo?" "Wo did." replied Mr. Dick, promptly. prompt-ly. "Wo crawled under tho wlro fenc Into the deer park at flvo minutes to twelve. Tho will B.ild 'Re on tho ground,' nnd 1 was flat on the ground! (TO Hi: CONTINUKD.) |