Show S sylvia ay W V iria of the mi minute 0 CHAPTER vr Contin continued tied 17 what put th this Is idea into your head that he might marry a county teacher mr creighton anxiously asked it if hed go that far disgrace me with a low carriage st croix realized as he told his father the grounds ot of his bis fears that they sounded rather insubstantial but he must have been closeted a lone ong time with that girl this after boon tor for it was nearly two hours after closing time he explained and he seems to haunt her schoolhouse ashes young and pretty I 1 suppose young and pretty yes but deadly common 1 how do you know ever met her yourself yes ashes a relative of the farmer e r sam ton and boards at his farm I 1 met her that night sam ton snitched snatched snit ched my watch attractive Attract lve st st croix nodded nut but an imps little rul garlan I 1 cant imagine why they let such illiterates teach our schools she murders the english language as terribly as any uneducated pennsylvania dutch girl does docs 1 I scarcely believe st croix that marvin could be attracted to such a n girl as you describe ue ile usually let his senses blur his judgment rd id think too but for what ive ite een with my own eyes father it if he could tolerate her for two hours alone in her schoolroom with her and then walk home with her for a mile I 1 should think he must be pretty far gone it matter how far gone he were it if it that the young fools apt as you to marry her consideration for his family for ills his mother boother trifles like that would not stop him well ill 1 11 nip it I 1 ill investigate vesti resti gate the thing and it if theres anything in it ill tribe l the girl to go way away cut but wait we much evidence ence it would be a pity efty to let her hold you up for a pile of money if theres nothing in it til rii soon find out whether theres anything in it but how it if I 1 can contrive to get in touch with her the rest wilt will be easy I 1 the danger of interfering Is that it often starts just what you meant to ta prevent 1 I born yesterday st croix once I 1 meet the girl ril rii soon find out enough to guide me it if I 1 waited for indisputable evidence I 1 might be too late I 1 suppose I 1 could drop in to see her at her school just at closing time dont you think do you know what time in the aate afternoon anoon the school closes 7 about four ill look her over on monday it wont do to dally with such a possibility im fast coming to the point of resigning myself to the fact that aar alar yin cant be coerced very well then weve were got to circumvent him conceited obstinate amsl muttered st croix nothing of the kind lie ile has one of the few qualities in which men differ from sheep backbone lie ile has backbone stands upright on his own Refu sesto get down on all tours fours an and d run after a tinkling leader steps out from the herd and throws the whole works into disorder st croix contended lie he would say he was starting then them an on a better path bath away from the slaughter house sounds as it if you agreed with him father brather I 1 you know better but I 1 respect his backbone gets it from me sir mr creighton Creig liton concluded as at this moment the waiter presented the bill nod and st SL croix rose from the table CHAPTER VII when marvin martin creighton readied reached its his fathers house bouse that same evenin evening he be found to his dismay all the driveways about the place filled with limousines A party on but that was unlikely for now that he no longer lived at home lie he and his mother valued these thursday evenings together too much to let anything interfere with them this evening lie he especially wanted to see her alone for the reasons he had accurately stated to MISS ilass ton he wanted to see the photograph lie he had asked his mother to unearth and lie he wanted very much to hear bear about the english mall mail she had received lie surmised that lie had probably come in at the tall tail end of an afternoon club Diec meeting ting the quo non NOD Ascend us club probably well he be want to be caught in that bedlam so lie he stole in at a side door and went to his own rooms the familiar sight of his bedroom and study to which he could now come only on brief visits in n his fathers absence depressed him it all seemed so unnecessary this bitter controversy between him and ills his father I 1 yet it was not a light thin thing of recent growth but deep rooted in their essential differences of temperament and character and outlook his father being quite frankly primitive and human he claimed in ills his gopel gospel of self interest while he himself was inherently unconquerably socially minded from his boyhood up his fai ther had tried in vain to knock out ot of him his like consideration t for of tile the other fellows point ol of view ond and it f hid had at in last st in their t by HELEN R MARTIN copyright by dodd mejo a A co anu aco being unable to live under the same roof the hardest part of it to marvin was the distress it caused his mother it if anything could have made him deny his soul it was that thal while lie he freshened up in ills his bathroom rev reveling eling la in its conveniences and comforts there was no bathroom at absalom buntz he be wondered how miss ton who looked so dainty and seemed so fastidious endured the crude life at tons farm she fit into the picture lie ile knew the party must break up soon for it was nearly dinner urns time and most of these people had several miles to drive and a few empty cups and saucers about the hall which the servants had bad overlooked told him they had already had tea how did his mother comparatively intelligent stand that crowd and yet how else would slie she fill her life emptied through her great wealth of the wholesome necessity to work superfluous wealth was a joy killer as surely as poverty the visitors were gone at last and marvin went downstairs to take his mother in his arms it was cozy having his dinner alone with nith his mother and the taste and comforts of his home after his dose of absalom punt menage were certainly soothing father thinks a dose of plain living will cure met me I 1 marvin smiled as lie he helped himself to fillet of steak and mushrooms the butler was passing on the contrary living at absalom has made me realize as I 1 never did before how much unnecessary luxury we have here which I 1 always took for granted not knowing any other way of life so this throwing me out on my own Is just having the opposite effect of what he intended it to have 1 I dont like to think of your living in such discomfort dear his mother answered though youre not looking any the worse for or it I 1 but how in the world do you stand their food its good I 1 walk about the country so much that anything tastes good im getting to like sauerkraut and boiled beef and cabba cabbage el 1 bully and fried pon hausl and even eien smear casel easel imagine st croix eating at the table with those Punt zes mrs crelghton creighton smiled sauerkraut and sm carcase arease and bonhaus pon haus its not their food so much as the way they eat it that me know what means of course you dont means disgust rubs me the wrong way gets my goat I 1 cant watch them eat they are too darned industrious about it marvin Marv ln I 1 want to ask you something im worried st croix carols Is philandering lan dering im afraid with a very common girl and I 1 do dread what hat can come of such entanglements entangle ments its so imprudent you get about the country so much I 1 thought perhaps you yon had heard or seen something of lt it have nou oua do you know who ho the girl ls Is no marvin responded gloomily his heart sinking that car of his brothers near the william penn school and miss ton pretending she had remained in school to work when she had been out on the road and that weird business of her changing her clothes ilow how did you hear of it mother the girl sent a box of fudge here to the house for him with a verse written on the wrapping paper the poetry being as homemade home made as the candy I 1 gave it to him when he came homo home and lie he was so embarrassed and angry I 1 knew lie he must be involved rather deeply and ive been worried what makes you conclude mother that ashes a common girls girl I 1 iier her poetry I 1 Whom you receive this box of futch febby think it aint so BO mutch but in one piece I 1 put a kiss know which one the sweetest t tl Us marvin laughed joyfully the of that was not miss tont ton 1 st croix certainly takes his chances playing round with one ot of these pennsylvania dutch girls first thing he knows hell have a lawsuit on his hands but I 1 think he tried to comfort his mother we may always ban bank k on st croix playing placing sato safe philandering Is of course always dangerous where a suit for or dama damages offers a big haul baul but in st croix philosophy of life prudence and ability are such influential factors I 1 think we be on anxious well I 1 hope so she sighed another tiling thing I 1 wanted to ask you yon do you know rm im beginning to think marvin that theres more to this at fair with our english cousins than meets the eye ahal aha you are well so an am 11 II go on yours you know that for months st croix has been planning to go to england to see lady and marvin they keep holding him oil off I 1 their latest letter says lady silvia has gone abroad now of course no money to let her travel about the continent so im sure she must havo have taken a position as traveling companion or governess im beginning to suspect dear that ashes as much averse to this rather ridiculous marriage scheme as you are yourself I 1 i should think she would bet bel probably she prefers earning her own living P but she cant earn elou enough to save the estate I 1 its possible pris sible she may think more of her self respect than of the estate well her parents dont admit anything like that they probably hope to persuade her to bring her round vain hope it if ashes a girl worth anything yes only you must remember that the english dont regard such marriages as we do so used to them it if she marries st croix ashes no better than any other courtesan that sells herself I 1 what are your suspicions siar mar vierl sly my suspicions you said you agreed with me that there seemed more to this affair than meets tile eye exactly but lets not go so fast about the girls being abroad now perhaps its here to america that she has come to earn her living mrs crelghton creighton looked startled what makes you think that do you know that she has marvin regarded ills his mother uncertainly a wild possibility flashing upon his mind ills ilia mother was always perfectly open with him but she was conscientiously loyal to ills hla father and it if his father had bad asked her to keep a certain secret she would certainly try to do dolt it mother he asked his quiet tone concealing his strong feeling do you know that ashes here tor for p perhaps he was being worked perhaps the girl lad had been brought over here and placed where she was bound to cross ills his path his father hoping that when his son met her without knowing who she was he might fall for her and all tills this talk about st croix marrying her was perhaps a bluff to throw hl him marvin off the scent 1 could this be possible was the girl conniving with his father to trap him that her family and her home hoine might enjoy the crelghton millions and was hla his mother playing a silent hand but a girl that could lend herself to such a plot I 1 lie he felt a revulsion of feeling against her at the bare thought of it and his heart sank like lead in his breast ne he would demand the truth from his mother she would not deny it IL lie ile put down dovin Ms his coffee cup and took both her hands bands in his you know of course mother why I 1 asked to see that photograph he hazarded why no marvin I 1 dont she answered very puzzled why did you and what on earth makes you think she he may be here mother what do you know about this idiotic business let me ha hae i e the truth pa 1 I dont know a thin thing about it dear that you dont know or not as much evidently what do you mean you dont know whether la lady dy sylvia st croix Is in america of course I 1 dont why the possibility still remained that hla his father and lady sylvia might be working without ills his mothers 1 knowledge here was an acid test of his suspicion c are you sure st croix means to go over to england and try tor for her why of coursel course why should I 1 doubt it lies iles crazy about it you know that dear and so Is your father what Is in your mind dear marvin mariln dropped her hands leaned back in the deep couch an and folded aided his arms 1 I suppose im a fool but I 1 had a E suspicion for a moment that thai rather father had got the girl over here and was ivas jabbing her on to me on the sly clyl I 1 TO BE CONTINUED |