Show I N THE GIFT WI FE I By B y I. I RUPERT U P E RI H HUGHES U G H E S O 0 RUPERT HUGHES HUGHES SERVICE I I CHAPTER XIV SIV 14 14 I The ridiculous perplexity of I Jebb solved itself He heard a rustIe rus- rus rusI I tle rus-tle tIe itle and Minima came to him as asI I swiftly as she had vanished He greeted her with effusion Thank heaven you came for I Iwas Iwas Iwas was justI justI just just just- I came to beg that you Ime me for to be so rude to you Jebb Effendi has been so kind to me It Itis 1 is to heem I owe that I am free II am very bad I have not the right to ito be angry that he he he- Deceived you Say it ill said Jebb humbly but she would not accept Ithe the word That That he did not me the things I have no right to know Let Letus Letus us jus be friends once more yes more yes Tell me you me for to be jeal jeal- ous Oh don't dont dont don't- he was going to say dont stop being jealous of me I but he caught himself There was no time to explain or orto orto orto to let escape Miss Ludlam Ludlam Lud Lud- lam Jam was at Jebbs Jebb's elbow with the check folded and palmed as if it were a slight tip She pretended to shake hands with him and left the I money as she released the clasp I There you are Mr Pier Pier Dr Jebb and I can never thank you enough Dont thank me at all all er er er erMiss Miss Ludlam may I present to you I to Miss Ma Madame may may present you Miss Ma dame for dame for heavens heaven's sake hanim ef- ef what is your name She's my dearest friend on earth but I dont don't know her name I am Madame I did take my fathers father's name Miss Ludlam was staring with both ears at this mysterious conver conver- She was as much interested in Minima Mimma as in her Each was exotic to the other Miss Ludlam Ludlam Lud Lud- lam Jam sat down and motioned the other other other oth oth- er two to sit To explain this ring legend himself was intolerable so Jebb rose and said Wont you two talk to each other othera I a few moments while I go find out I about the trains to Budapest I must take the first one I I Seeing that was afraid and deeply troubled either at this news or at being left with her supposed supposed supposed sup sup- posed rival J Jebb ebb added And perhaps Miss Ludlam will tell you the story of the ring Then he decamped leaving ma very erect and disdainful toward Miss Ludlam When he came back the story had evidently been told for the two women had their heads close together and were on cordial terms He said I 11 find there is a train at my old friend the Orient Express It gets me to Budapest an hour before midnight I think Id I'd better take it Theres There's just time enough for a good drive about Vienna before train time Would you care to go was willing enough to go I anywhere with Jebb and she asked only time enough to get a hat and anda andI I a wrap When she was gone Jennie Ludlam who could see through a millstone with a hole in it and had guessed at once that Jebb and were infatuated lingered to say a perfect dear dear and and such a beauty Ill I'll take care of her for you while you are in Budapest Your generosity to me was princely I wish vish I could repay it at in an some way way way- but you are so rich When you come comeback comeback comeback back I have a scheme which might interest you you you-as as a physician though I dare say you dont don't practice any anymore anymore anymore more but perhaps you would lend me your advice This is for charity too On a sudden impulse he made her her sit down and told her briefly the story of his curse his other personality personality personality person person- the loss of the child and his arrival in Turkey And her sympathy sympathy sympathy thy came in a rush of warm thoughts implied in a pressure of his hand a alook alook alook look of compassion and a few words I understand I had a brother a younger brother Wentworth brother Wentworth was his name name name-he he would have been about your age now and he would have been a great man if its it's if its it's about a memorial to him that I want to talk to you some day day oh oh be glad that you have at least half a life left to you Dr Jebb and dont don't despair You have helped so many in dis dis- tress You have helped me You can you shall help numberless others And perhaps s some me day day day- He looked a God bless you but buthe buthe buthe he said She is coming now And he rose roseto roseto roseto to meet Sister Jennie rose too and said Youre a vision my dear And since Dr Jebb ebb J is called to Budapest for a day or so I want you to go with my brother and me to the Opera tonight accepted with a bashful gratitude and J Jebb ebb and she set out for their drive Along the broad glory of the Ring- Ring strasse over the Danube by the Aspern Bridge and down the Prat- Prat the horses galloped In the Prater the turmoil was gay bewildering The long colonnades of chestnut trees in the Haupt-Allee Haupt were choked with ith people And tile the air was tremulous with music from the Viennese and the Magyar bands in the cafes At the entrance was a circle where stood a naval monument monument monument ment on a stone column with bronze prows protruding It reminded Jebb of the entrance to Central Park P rk via Columbus Circle and nd its monument He longed to be there again and above all he longed to have there with him Jebb Effendi goes to Budapest thees evening to find the little child Could I not help by to go too You could could of of course you could but but but-but but I could hardly take you with me Why Dont you see see see- dont don't you realize real real- ize ize-it ize it would would would-it it would be unfair to you it would be compromising I I If you do not want me me- me me Oh The sight of her distress unnerved him his love was at his very lips But he could not say anything without saying everything When they reached the hotel it was so late that he had no more than time to make his train and she less than time to dress for the Opera Opera Opera Op Op- Op- Op era which begins at seven in Vi Vi- enna So their good-by good was a mere exchange exchange exchange ex ex- change of hearty promises to meet again and a short hand-grip hand in the crowded hotel corridor Of course that evening sister Jennie Jennie Jennie Jen Jen- nie let slip an allusion to the pathetic v fir y I d i S1 r ri i i Che kless pieced together the mans man's fragmentary story affliction of poor Dr Jebb thinking knew of it and of course extorted the whole story from her before they parted As she crept into her bed her heart was full of pity for her beloved beloved beloved be be- loved wrestling like another Jacob Jacobwith Jacobwith Jacobwith with a ghostly enemy but her heart rejoiced too with a radiant radiant- happiness happiness happiness happi happi- ness since now her intuition told her that this and no other cause or person was the reason for his asperity asperity asperity as as- with her Also in Pest there is a Hotel Bristol Bristol Bristol Bris Bris- tol and Jebb woke there the next morning He had not been long in Budapest before he learned that the Margit was as had imagined an island island island-in in English Margarets Margaret's Island But though it split the Danube it lay so far to the north that he could not see it from his window He took his breakfast at one of the houses coffee-houses on the promenade one of the houses coffee-houses that have never closed since they first opened It gave J Jebb ebb untold relief to find English English English Eng Eng- lish the favorite language of the town the affectation of the Magyar He had not finished his breakfast when a man at the next table addressed addressed addressed ad ad- dressed him in a rather thick dialect dialect dialect dia dia- lect and introduced himself as a fel fel- fel- fel low-American low though his name was unpronounceable able even when he handed J Jebb ebb his card with a legend like a line of pied type Gyorgy He asked J Jebb ebb to call caU him George for short and for easy He explained without being being being be be- ing asked that he had been swept into America on one of those tidal waves that nearly depopulated many manyan an Hungarian village he had become become become be be- come naturalized had prospered and returned to his country with Yankee ideas After some desultory conversation Mr rose with a please I got to go and hear de newspaper Hear the newspaper Sure Ve got a telephone news news- paper Aint you heard him Come listen once He led J Jebb ebb to a telephone-like telephone affair on the wall and putting the receiver to Jebbs Jebb's ear car watched while Jebb listened to a cle clear r voice spilling spilling spill spill- ing consonants lavishly You dont don't understand it No Let me listen He took Jebbs Jebb's place and a startled startled startled star star- expression came over him Dere goes bunch of I II I 1 dough for me Rapid Tren- Tren sit closed two points off last night in N New ew Yorick repeated more news UN Now ow the newspapers say the Kink of En England land comes to Carlsbad next mont Now he names de odds on de races horse-races dis afternoon But Jebb was not interested in Hungarian horse races Jebb had a curiosity to see this Margarets Margaret's Is Island Island Island Is- Is land where he and Cynthia Cynthi had been together Here George took pleasure in acting as Vergil to his Dante They crossed a heavy Y shaped Y-shaped bridge to the huge emerald emerald emerald em em- erald set in the tarnished gold of the Danube He found himself in a rose garden garden garden gar gar- den and here as his nostrils widened widened widened wid wid- ened over the fragrance nce his arm was suddenly clutched by a peasant evidently a gardener who bombarded bombard bombard- ed him with a shower of gutturals which he supposed to be peasant Hungarian the matter with the old boy Jebb asked Does he think Im I'm going to carry off his garden At length the interpreter interpreted interpret interpret- ed He says how dare you ou came here it a public garden Yes but he says that you came here a mont or so ago and a little girl vit you and then valk off and leave her to strangers to protect To amazement this heinous heinous heinous hei hei- accusation seemed to fill fiU Jebb with delight He embraced the smudged earth-smudged gardener and treated treated treated treat treat- ed him as a lost long-lost prodigal CHAPTER PTER XV After much parley pieced together the mans man's fragmentary fragmentary fragmentary I tary story into this narrative He says one day in the efter- efter noon you are came here vit a nice little child child and he makes notice of her she is so pretty and she loves his flowers so He cannot understand it vat she say but he loves her because she is so for his roses But you did look tired and sick and you sit on a bensh and go like you take a little sleep The little girl she plays all aU the time and talks vit the gardener He does not know what she speaks ks it but they make signs and become grand friends She helps him trim the and gets vit the thorns stick stacked ed but is very brave and does not make a Instead Instead Instead In In- stead she makes such a Soon a lady and gentleman is as sit on another bensh and watches the little girl and they call can her and she talks by them But they are not understanding understanding understanding un un- her either The man is take her on his lap and lets her listen his watch and they tell teU the gardener they God had to them a little child gave like that Long time the child plays here and then she makes a looking for you But you are not there You had gone out of sight The little little girl is afraid but she tries not to cry The lady and gentleman stay a along along along long while to keep her brave for they say all the time you surely come back Then the lady and gen- gen say Ve take her to our house and if you see the man you tell teU him we got the child The gardener says You better tell the police too And they say Yes they tell the police but aUthe all aU the same they like to keep the baby Long ULong times go by and the gardener gardener gardener gar gar- dener is almost it all aU When today comes you again and he has got such a big mad at you he wants to fight it It is rious cu-rious you are looking for a child and you look like a mans vat looses a child I am the man said Jebb I Iwas was was ill ill and I wandered away in a a a sort of delirium When I came cameto to my senses I was in another country country country coun coun- try and I couldn't remember almost swooned at so much history in such essence So Den all yet got to do it is to find the and lady vat keeps the child in cold stor and say Here ve ye are again We must find them at once What was their name v On hearing the question translated ed the gardener made them wait while he went to the tool-house tool and brought from his coat a soiled and wrinkled card bearing this and this only NIKOLAI Machine Machines a a Flaubert V ET PARIS gleaned from this He is a Rossia name and he sells French typewriters in Poland I see that said Jebb But this does not tell where he lives in Budapest ask him The g gardener turned the card over and put an earthy finger on a penciled penciled penciled pen pen- address on the back of the card But it had been blurred till nothing was legible but Pension ky Who is ut said Jebb He is a street one of the longest longest longest long long- est streets in Pest The gardener could remember nothing more The number of the house had been there but it was rubbed off his memory as well welI as the card Abruptly was smitten with an idea I got it he said Ve go to the telephone newspaper and tell telI them they got to tell everybody in Budapest all about it and maybe sure somebody telephones to the office office office of of- fice something about it The vocal advertisement was accepted accepted accepted ac ac- ac- ac for its news value without charge and put upon the wires while they waited The rest of the day Jebb spent in wandering up and down street studying every house and seeing in each one a den where Cynthia was incarcerated He dined with at t the Hotel Hotel Hotel Ho Ho- tel Bristol When they had ordered dinner went to telephone to the telephone He came back beaming A man has called up the paper and says he knows They give him this address and he comes here any minute At last a hotel servant brought a aman aman aman man who had asked for Jebb at the desk Jebb asked to ask the man to sit down and feast The stranger answered rather petulantly petulant petulant- ly for himself Aint I got any English Aint I gone to New York many times You are not Mr then Me him If I was I should into the Donan He is one dam that fallen faller My ty name is Laszlo Las- Las Laszlo Laszlo the Pension rates reasonable food sub sub- lime Mr was a man of great excitability He was chiefly impressed impressed im impressed im- im pressed with the fact that Mr and Mrs had gone away owing him money and that they had refused refused refused re re- re- re fused to pay for a vase and a pitcher the child had broken When Jebb offered to pay for the breakages of Cynthia Mr tr became almost amiable The gist of ofa a long three-cornered three duel with him was that Mr and Mrs tried to sell French typewriters in vain competition with the American makes TO BE CONTINUED |