Show I V m LADY m LARK JR G fr or 1 z M fJ C TJ JO rn rnA K U UA A FOREIGN GENTLEMAN Synopsis Richard Searles successful successful successful suc suc- American playwright confides confides contides con con- fides tides to his friend Bob Dob Singleton the fact that Inspired by the genius of ot a young actress whom he had seen In tn London he he has 5 written a play Lady Larkspur solely with the thought that she should interpret the leading character char char- acter This girl Violet DewIng has disappeared and Searles refuses refuses re re- re- re fuses ruses to allow the play to be produced produced produced pro pro- with anyone anone else In the part Singleton has just returned In Invalided invalided In- In from France France- where he ha had been serving In the aviation corps His uncle Raymond Ramond Bashford Bashford Bash Bash- ford a wealthy man had contracted contract contract- ed a marriage a short time before his death while on a a. visit to Japan He left Singleton a comparatively small amount of at money and the privilege of ot residence in the garage garage ga rage of his summer home Bar- Bar ton the Connecticut Mrs Bashford Is believed to be bo traveling traveling travel travel- ing InS In the Orient ft CHAPTER I Continued I Z 2 2 ZIll Ill tell you all I know Just as I Iwas Iwas Iwas was sailing from France I got a n letter from Uncle Bash Dash stating In a n most businesslike fashion that he was about to be married to a lady Indy he had met on the trip out to Japan The Tile dire lire event was to occur at the American American Amer Amer- ican embassy the following da day From Irom which I judged that my presence at nt the ceremony was neither expected nor desired Oddly enough months afterward I picked up an English paper aper In a French Inn that contained an announcement of ot the marriage Inthe in inthe inthe the usual advertisement form The lady was succinctly described as Mrs Alice Allee Wellington Cornford widow of ot the late Archibald ne Reynolds Cornford road Hants All Torrence Tor- Tor rence knows of the subsequent proceedings proceedings proceedings pro pro- is what he got In n official reports reports reports re re- re- re ports of Uncle Bash's Dash's death from the general consul at nt Tokyo Whether the widow expects to come to America America Amer Amer- ica ultimately or will keep moving through the Orient marrying husbands and burying them Is a n dark mystery If she should turn up the house at nt Barton Darton Is hers of course but with her roving disposition I fancy m my j jaunt aunt Alice wouldn't like the place I 1 IThe The Jap stuff is worth a bit of mone money and If the lady Is keen for such things and not a I mere ere adventuress she ma may take tahe It Into her head one of these da days s 's to come over and Inspect the loot I can cnn see the vampire said Searles musingly landing at I the Grand Central with wIth enough hand- hand luggage to fill a freight-car freight i a big raw-boned raw creature with a horse face and a horrible mess as ns to clothes You will be there to m meet et her ber deferential deferential deferential defer defer- anxious to please You will pilot her up to the coast of ot Barton Darton tip the servants heavily to keep leep them thorn from murdering her and twiddle your our thumbs In your our garage as you ou await her further pleasure By the wa way are those ancient freaks still sUII on the place those place those down broken-down hotel employees who were your yom uncles uncle's sole experiment In philanthropy Torrence assures me they are me all very much there Searles yielded himself to laughter An Englishwoman with lofty Ideas of domestic service would certainly enjoy a romp with that crew Oh they are In the same class with me I explained The place cant can't be sold till I die and while I live they're to be harbored harbored about about thirty i of clothed then them clothed and I think theres there's a n farce In the Idea and I l' may muy try It one of these days s he lie said scribbling in his this note A refuge for fOI brol down broken chambermaids chambermaids chambermaids chamber chamber- maids venerable hops bellhops grown gray rny In in the service and the head waiter who amassed a fortune In tips and then toyed with the market once too often and lost his Ill-gotten Ill gains What was the head waiters waiter's name I who presided with such stateliness I In the room dining o ol oI the T Tyringham Antoine Antoine who married married the assistant housel housekeeper nt at the ham hum Hes He's the butler and has char charge e eor of or the tho place When I get settled Ill I'll ask you OU up up and you cnn can study the bunch at leisure Splendid Ill I'll be up In a n cou le leof of weeks Im I'm going tb to Ohio tomor tomorrow row for a family reunion r n and anda n a look bole at the loved loyed spots my Infancy knew Youre lucky to have home folks even In Ohio enviously Well Nell theres there's always alwn is your distant auntie cruising the seven se seas sens In pursuit of husbands Nobody with an nn aunt to his credit can cnn pretend to tobe he be alone to the world Aunts mUst rank just a ft I below mothers In fn Inthe inthe the heavenly kingdom When VI f i was wasn wasa a n a boy out In Ohio the there e were two great occasions s every ery year In my life Ufe-o Ufe 1 hen len I went to visit a grand old aunt aunt- bad In the country countr the other when she visited us arriving ing with a gon oad of or j rm jelly salt rising bread brend pound cake and other manna Stop I or Ill I'll call the food censor I pleaded picking up my hat Send me your our copy of Lad Lady Geranium and Ill I'll tell you ou whether Its It's a classic or not Lad Lady Larkspur he corrected with a n shudder You shall have ha It by trusted messenger tomorrow I wired Antoine that I would reach the Sound the following day Tills This was September 1017 1917 As the train rolled along the familiar shore toward Barton I shook off the depression occasioned by my enforced retirement from the great grent struggle overseas I had done under the French flag all that It was possIble possible possible ble for me to do and there was some consolation In the fact that by reason renson of my two years ears on the line battle-line I Iwas Iwas Iwas was just so much ahead of the friends I met In New York who were answering answering answer answer- In ing the call to the colors and had their experience of war before them The tranquil life that had been recommended recommended mended b by the doctors was not only I possible at Barton Darton but It was the I only life that could be lived there l I My leisure I meant to employ In beginning beginning begin begin- ning a novel that had been teasing me ever since I sailed for home Of my uncle Bash Dash I had only the happiest and most grateful memories Quite natura naturally It had occurred to meat meat me meat at times and my friends hind had encouraged encouraged encouraged en en- the Idea that m my uncle would die some da day and leave me his monc money There here was no particular reason why he should do so as he had never manifested ted an any unusual affection tion for Cor me ond I had certainly never done anything for him Antoine was at the Barton station with the touring-car touring Uncle Bash had bought to establish communication with with- the village Fl Flynn nn the big Irl Irishman Irishman Irish Irish- hman h- h man who had been the doorman at nt the II I I 0 II III 1 f I c cI I Forget It Antoine Tyringham for years and retired because because be be- cause of rheumatism rh acquired from I be I long exposure to the elements at the hostelry's portals was at Vat the wheel Antoine greeted me with that air of lofty condescension tempered with a n sincere kindliness that had made him hima himi a n prince among head bead As I shook hands with him his lips quivered and tears came to his ecsI eyes I bade Antoine Join me In the back backseat backseat backseat seat that he might the more easily bring me up to date as to affairs on the estate It must be a n little slow up here hereafter hereafter after the years ears you lived In town I suggested but of course youre you're all nn old friends Well yes es all nil friends he be acquiesced acqui but with so little tittle enthusiasm that I looked at him quickly lIe He pretended pretended pretended pre pre- tended to be absorbed in the flying firing landscape at the moment I Flynn I noticed was giving g ear to our conversation con con- conversation from the wheel It was sad Bad very ery sad Mr 1 Bashford Bashford Bash Bash- ford Cord passing away so sofrom far from rom home sir It was a n great shock A And he had looked forward for Cor years to a n quiet lff life abroad Antoine's speech was that dint o of a well trained English upper servant ser and anti T Imagined that In his youth h he had taken talen some sonic I English butler as his model lie He used to pretend that he knew French very Imperfectly and I Iwas Iwas Iwas was surprised when he now addressed tie rne me quite fluently In that language You have been with the armies of dear France he remarked The War nr ar Is Very cry dreadful My Iy parents were of ot Verdun It gri grieves es me to know of the suffering In the land land of my people As I I. I replied sympathetically In French I sa saw saV V Flynn Klynn nn straighten himself himself him him- self at the wheel et with with an un Impatient inpatient fling of ot his head AntoIne Indicated him with a contemptuous nod Mar I tied ried Elsie the German woman who worked in the room linen-room at nt the I Tyringham I 1 This had caused some i trouble ane and there is 19 a n pantry girl Gretchen who wile was Ill m for a n long time before the master left and he sent her here for the country air She isa Isa Is la laa a little devil with her dear deor Father Father- land I 1 laughed at the old fellows fellow's gravity grav gray It ity and earnestness That the war should be making Itself felt on the quiet acres at the on was absurd I was pondering the recrudescence of race hatreds duo due to the upheaval In Europe when he tie startled me by a statement uttered close to my ear There have been inquiries for the widow these have hn caused me much anxiety It seems that there are arc persons persons persons per per- sons anxious to see her There have been inquiries one two three two three times Probably some of her American friends anxious to pay their respects or some sonic of the neighbors making calls of courtesy I suggested A JA foreign gentleman who WIlo acts very q queerly cerly AntoIne persisted My uncles uncle's widow was a vague unknown unknown unknown un un- un- un known being whom I had never expected ex ex- expected expected to cross my horizons If she meditated a descent upon on the-Sound the the trust company would certainly have hae had some hint of ot her approach but Torrence clearly hail had had no tidings of her beyond her last laet communication from Bangkok Still It was wholly possible that a n globetrotting globetrotting globetrotting globe globe- trotting widow would have friends Iri In many parts of ot the world and I could see nothing disturbing In the fact that Inquiries had been made for her I Isaid Isaid Isaid said as much Antoine's answer was another shrug and a Jerk of his head toward Flynn as M though even the employment employment em em- of un an nIl alien en tongue might not conceal our conversation from tho the big bis Irishman When we had reached the farm and were running through the grounds Antoine spoke e again We thought we would put you up at nt the house Mr Singleton and not In the garage he lie said Not at all aU Antoine I answered quickly We must stick close to the law In such matters Very good sir Stop at nt the garage FI Flynn nn To the casual observer cr the garage was a charming two story house followIng following following fol fol- fol- fol lowing the general lines of the plaster and timber residence from which it was separated by a strip of woodland and a n formal garden The garage and quarters for the chauffeur were at one ono end and at nt the other were a stairs down-stairs room living with a n broad fireplace and three chambers above so planned as ns to afford a n charming view of the Sound whose shore curved In deeply at nt this point On the chauffeurs chauffeur's side was a small kitchen from which I had been served with my meals when I lodged there lh file house is in order You will witt have hav your meals at the residence I suppose sir AntoIne suggested I debated this a n moment and when he hinted that dinner could be more conveniently served there than In my myown myown myown own quarters I said that for Cor the present the Flynns might give me breal breakfast Cast and luncheon at the garage but that I would dine at nt the house It was five o'clock when I reached the garage and Antoine left me after open opening In m my bags with the suggestion that I could summon Zimmerman a former formel- valet of the Tyringham for any service I might require i knew Zimmerman yel very well and said 1 I would call him when occasion re re- re- re He ne is of that race said Antoine plaintively In the French which now seemed to come readily enough to his lips Mace Ilace Botheration You trouble yourself about race questions out here Antoine Zimmerman is a good old chap n who's hos ho's probably for for- I gotten the very name of ot the German GermanI Germantown Germantown I town he was born in They do not forget Antoine replied replied re reo re- re plied plied with emphasis There has been much discussion much discussion much Forget it Antoine I supposed you OU were all living here like a happy happ family Plen Please e tell them at nt residence that Ill I'll dine at nt seven Very good sir he said In hi his pompous pompons manner but I saw that he was miffed by my Indifference Flynn hawing having disposed of the car car came to ask if It there was nn anything he could do for me Tonys against the wife and me he said mournfully Its the war and she and me that Tile Hie the tile American flag floats from the garage every er da day And If It a n heart can be tile lite Elsie's as true to America as though she was born in Boston Doston state state- house I believe beHeye you Flynn FInn I said touched by his nervousness Dont you ou worry about Antoine and the rest resi of them the they're ro just a n little nervous ous Ill I'll see what I can cun canto do to straighten things outA out A coming widow casts r her shadow before TO BE DE CONTINUED I |