THE SUNDAY BEE: OMAHA, NOVEMBER 26, 1922.
HenryT Hhe would count upon the
awful warning tittering through
Mary'i own fumlly? Mary would
b able to give hir lover the truth
ful account of everything that had
happened at tho railway stutlon bo
fore any scandal monger Inter
pOHld.
Hhe began the li tter.
"My Dearct llnry:' Thank you
no much for Bending 'Trend of
Mind' for mo to read on the Jour
ney down. It wu thoughtful of
you. VVJ Will discus It when I ee
you In the C'hiiHtniaa holldaya; ao
murh more autlafactory to talk
thing than to write them, don't
you think? By the wuy, tho moat
absurd lllllo Incident happened Just
oa I waa starting off"
Hnro she put down her pen and
laughed lightheartedly.
Hhe waa writing In tho drawing
room and had. not noticed that the
elder Homelelgh Browne girl waa
sitting writing out ball program
on the window sent. Thla other en
gaged clrl r.ow looked up and
smiled at her. "What are you
laughing at, Mnryf
"O, my dear, how you made me
Jump! I was laughing at iom
thing I've got to toll my young
man," explained Mary, blushing In
that new and becoming way. "I
er I expect you've heard what It
in from Coueln Elizabeth."
"Tou mean that awful scandal
about tho affectionate etranger who
aaw you off?" I should think we
had all heard of It. Priceless! Do
tell me what you're going to tell
your schoolmaater young man."
"Why, the truth," aald Mary, "aa
I told Cousin Elizabeth, only she
doean't believe it."
"Do you mean to aay that you
think that your fiance will believe
It?"
Mary looked up, wild-eyed. "But
-do you mean to say that you
don't?"
Slight pause; then, "I believe, it
now. I can ate by your face. Hut,
you know, Mary, men don't see
thing oa we do; that' why they
don't alwaya believe the same
things."
"But, my dear," faltered Mary,
with a sinking heart, "If I write
everything in full detail to Henry
"Don't write. Alwaya a mistake.
If you have pot to confess any
thing, it is much easier by word
of mouth."
'But that means letting him hear
through other people, perhaps. O,
why was Cousin Elizabeth ever
born? That mean waiting until'
"It doesn't. I'll let you into a
secret a week old," said the other
engaged girl. "We've asked Henry
to this dance tonight. He's got to
leave for the week-end. He's com
ing by the 4:45."
"Henry?" exclaimed Henry's fi
ancee In delight. "He's coming?"
She was overjoyed. She was eager
for Henry to see her in such good
looks (she knew nhe was in good
looks as never before.) It seemed
ages since she had. seen her own
lover. It would be wonderful to
dance with him. And this was a
new thought to Mary who had al
ways been rather too sensible and
quiet for such ideofj it would be
still more wonderful to be kissed by
him again. She, who had never
been one of those girls who are
positively fond of kissing, actually
wished for that!
The Magnificent Philanthropist
r.' c ....' .1. A
the Gift of $200 from a Munificent but
Absolute Stranger.
The telephone on the desk of the
police station rang sharply; Kerri
gan picked up the receiver with a
cowl:
"Hollor"
"Hello! Long distance calling New
Tork police."
"That's me; fire away."
"This 1 the Hillerest Sanitarium
at Rye, a private insane asylum.
Tell your men to be on the lookout
for an escaped lunatic headed your
way. He knocked down a clerk In
our office, picked up all the spare
cash in the drawer, and got away."
"Huh!" grunted the desk sergeant
In an aside to Morely, his clerk,
covering the mouthpiece with his
hand. "He say a lunatic picked up
all the asylum's eoh and got awny."
Then to the telephone again: "What
ifcxs he look like?''
"Young limn: well dressed: gray
ult; straw ht; blue eyes; brown
hair: he thinks he's Andrew Car
negi and Is lay trying to git
awsy rm'in-y. '.' violent If )a
rrfue to Ink If. Notify ua as soon
you eaith him. and II tiu
nun down t get him."
Ktrrtgm ki hastily rtt.hliag
the dwertptlon ma pd, 'Ilua !
sy Mher Muilka ..f lrlitittlWifc?"
he ake4. ' ll.li ..' H!l .! . . . O.
hell. kt's rung -rf, Now, Ian ( I hat
rtpO.iA for lutt," h-iK-lin
..( hJ uktn ta Mtir, - Hot
dewed; rT evt: Mraw Ml'! I
, Jwet ho a? il"uWi I
The other engaged girt went on
talking about the party there would
be: "The boys, my young man,
yours, the boys' Air Force friends.
O, look out of the window Mary!
une of them is turning in at the
IihIks gates now."
Mary thought ."Here's Henry."
But the maid announced, "Capt.
Frlnce."
Enter the young man who had
kissed Mary In the train.
Followed by a bad quarter 'of an
hour; hectic prattle about Copt.
Prince' motor run down to this
pluce over swirling undercurrents
of cniltarrnssment. Instantly he had
recognized Mary; she him. Girllike
Miss Homelelgh Browne had leaped
to the right conclusion, guided
thereto by the look upon their faces.
Nothing was said. The others
came In to tea, the Hoiix-lelgh-Brown
boy escorting Mary's fiance
from the train.
What Mary went hrough in 10
minutes of that tea time nged her,
nhe felt, by at least 10 years. It
also beautified her, adding the
tpAikle of tension to her eyes and
keeping that lovely, fluctuating col
or blazing up and down her cheeks.
"You are looking extraordinarily
well for your change Into the coun
try," raid her fiance' voice, sedate
ly approving.
Mary felt, rather than saw, that
hi approval was echoed by the
eyes of all the other men there.
Especially by the handsome eye of
that young man who had come on
the motorcycle. Wu it possible?
Yes, he did; yes, he thought her
lovely. A for young Homelelgh
Browne, he made no ecret of what
he thought of Mary now she'd com
to life!
But what la the use of coming to
life when ther la some one stay
ing In tho house who make It clear
that what you deserve I to be
put to death?
Cousin Elizabeth entered, In fact,
at that moment. Desperately Mary
had not hoped that when the young
airman was introduced to her cou
sin Elizabeth would think that this
Captain Prince was ome one she
bad not met before.
Vain hope. By the icy bow and
the polar atmosphere that spread
around the room Mary realized that
the scandalous one had been recog
nized. All thi undercurrent, you under
stand, surged below ripples of po
lite afternoon tea conversation ap
propriate to any country house par
ty on the afternoon before any
dance. Further, Mary became in
some curious way conscious that
two of the young men, not only one
but two of them, were impatiently
waiting for the opportunity to talk
to her alone. One, of course, was
her legitimate fiance. Natural
enough! The other was the eccentric
"Irman, Captain Prince.
Also, perhaps, natural enough.
Obviously be must explain to this
girl that he had ophthalmia or
night blindness or myopia, which
caused him to take her for some
body else.
At last she found herself with
Henry. '
They went Into the appropriate
rose garden pursued by a glance
from Cousin Elizabeth which was
the equivalent of a hope that now
Mary meant to confess her awful
crime.
t i.7 tl.. r c;i.-
men there are in this little town who
would answer to these points!"
"Well," drawled the clerk, "you
rould count on the fingers of an
armies veteran the men of this
'rule' city who could pose for the
last part of that pen portrait: 'Al
ways trying to give away money
and gets violent when you refuse
to take It.' I wish he'd try some
of his insanity on me. I wouldn't
give him any cause 1o get violent."
His superior smiled appreciative-
"Well, forget your t.-ouch for a
while and send out this alarm to the
other stations, with the description
such as it Is. Tell them to keep
an extra sharp lookout In the neigh
borhood of the Orand Central and
the Pennsylvania. He may come
in at one and go out at another.
It II be easy for hint to catch train
and gel out In a hurry if ha get
a good start of iIh-iii, and they'll
have a ehaae before they catch
him." Then a self congratulatory
Kill spread over hut fce, "Hut
he 11 have to be pretty smart to get
I -I our Hat, eh, Motley?"
A food many mil from the scene
ef thta rrtnm Jerry Ann waa
tnvg4 Isi -iformiiig the last
Solttnii rite Of hi bachelor Uy.
No, a Wa But burning !. kv lot
It-re; k waa throwing away olj
tkiihi. Vtkesi be bad aikr4 l
lather all the mMwtuii orthy 4
Im H'Smm-U life fee Hum lu
in thj rose garden it was Henry
who had the most to eny.
Having kissed hi betrotlied's
flushed cheek and told her once
more that she was looking well, he
began to ask her opinion on the
book he had sent her which, of
course, was In the circumstance
nn unfortunate opening. (Hhe
hadn't lead a word of it.)
It diiMlied Mary's spirit.
Then he told h'-r about the offer
he'd received of a better post,
which meant that they would get
married much sooner than had been
antlclputrd. Curious! This, too,
did not elate Mary us might have
been expected. Hhe thought to her
self, "Something's making inn feel
wretched. Cousin Ellzubeth, of
course, would say it was a guilty
conscience, but I feel Just a If
something most depressing bad hap
pened." Hhe hadn't realized what
It was when the dressing gong
thundered out from the house.
"We must fly," exclaimed Mary.
Mdlway on their flight to the
house they encountered the young
airman bent on some errand to the
motor bicycle. -
Without preamble he said to
Mary, 'Can you spare me ome
dances."
"Yes," said Mary. (Well, she
couldn't very well sny no, could
she?) -
"Will you give me three and nine
to start with, then?"
Again she could show absolute
ly no reason for refusal.
As they turned into the house her
fiance said, "Have you ever met
that fellow before?"
"Once," faltered Mary, and fled
upstairs, for she saw Cousin Eliza
beth looming In the hall.
In her room it suddenly occurred
to Mary why she had felt wretched
In the rose garden.
After all, she hadn't liked It when
Henry kissed her!
. The quarrel the first quarrel
she'd ever had with her Henry
took place at the beginning of the
dance, during numbers one and two,
which, of course, she'd booked with
him
Now the two first items on a pro
gram are usually peaceful if not
slow; people haven't got worked up.
Mr. Ferguson, however, had. He
wouldn't dance. With a look of
purpose he led his Mary to a se
cluded stairway corner, and, sitting
out there, he made a row royal.
Immediately he demanded to
know what she meant by her be
havior; then, without waiting for
the girl to reply to this question,
he supplied the answer. He sup
plied the truly terrible fancy pic
ture of Mary's character; hypocrisy,
duplicity being the keynotes. Hhe,
whom he had always considered so
different from the Jazz girl, the mod
ern hussy who ha no charm or
reverence or modesty she was Just
like them all. Only far, far worse,
because she pretended to be differ
ent, and they didn't. At last she
was sailing under her true colors!
Here be gave a searing glance at
her frock the one lent by Miss
Homelolgh-Browne. tl was a dar
ing little gown of flaring tan
gerine color; glowing, passionate.
Never before had Mary worn any
color but washy pink or subdued
saxe blue. This vibrant orange
made another creature of her.
At last, said Mr. Ferguson, he saw
her as hhe was. Her own cousin
had' let him know the whole story
the shining little cottage to which
he was planning to bring his bride
on the following day. These per
sonal belongings were, exclusive of
his trousseau, a rather pitiful col
lection: a private's uniform, kit bag
and canteen; a battered silver mug;
a fishing line and tackle; faded
photographs of his long-dead par
ents and a snapshot of Amalle; a
package of letters from Amalle,
lsund together with a shoestring;
and a dusty china doll, dressed in
faded crepe paper and mounted on
a long stick. This lost was a dance
favor which hud been given him
by a pretty cocotte In a Parisian
restaurant when, one night on fur
lough, he and two of his buddies had
gone the round. Jerry cherished
this senseless toy because Its poa
session set him apart as a "gay
dog," and he had always hx-d for
some opportunity to say carelessly,
in coming across it, "Holly, I
thought I'd thrown that old thing
away age ago! lH-vllmhly protty
girl gave It lo me on night In a
restaurant In I'sris,"
He slept that nUiht In the rottnge
nd was up the nut morning l-e-fore
the milkman. Jerry shave.1,
thla day if days, with rU.-iltir
care, anointing his pl.un, but rather
likable luce with told tresm, tab
cum ii.wnr ami t.-ll.t wattr. an
imtmusl rt-liii with hint, but
en that be felt the V
i!!i.l.l. Th-i hi new gry suit
ramie In f r a cm-f il l iuOitn si.J
Snvrrkl ' !.! ne it. Voir. I to
iljuetlng a suit bshdkrrthl'f In hit
r kt s lhl )it ike m.M
IKHIIll .( ,U'i l-Vl-Lr Ht'Uld
hin).
, of Mary' disgraceful behavior at
Paildlnjton.
"Yea, I wish to explain about
that," Mary put In.
Useless. Mr. Ferguson would let
her expaln nothing. He was well
into his stride a a lecturer of little
boys; he held forth to Mary as if
she were some small defaulter In the
-lower third. He told her Just how
"thin" lie thought her story about
only having seen the young airman
once before.
"But you can ask him," protested
Mary, the pink flame In her cheeks
Just as vivid as the orange Tame in
her gown. "He will tell you."
"Yes, more variations on the
same theme," retorted Mr. Fergu
son bl'.t.rly,
"You mean you don't believe
either of us?"
' "Is it likely I should? I have
your own cousin's word for the way
In which you behaved at the sta
tion. I meet the young man him
self staying In the house. Too
much of a coincidence altogether.
Then the change in you In your
dress, your manner, your appear
ance generally" here another
glance at Mary's quite lovely shoul
ders. Never before had she shown
so much of them at any dance. Mr.
Ferguson disapproved of every
dimpled inch. He wound up with
a curt, "Quite enough."
."More than enough," cried Mary
flaming again. "You don't expect
me, do you, to go on being engaged
to a man who can't trust me?"
Henry Ferguson, who had been
working up to the climax of say
ing, "You don't expect me, do you,
to go on being engaged to a girl
whom I cannt trust?" found the
wind taken out of hi sail. He
could only hold out ' his band to
take the pearl ring which Mary,
with an unmistakable gesture of
finality, handed back to him, when
a voice at the door said In a tone
not to be denied, "Our dance, I
believe?"
It wan the airman.
Mary rose and floated off with
him, looking like a flame blown
by the wind.
Three and nine were the dance
for which she 'had been asked; ac
tually the program showed some
thing more like three to nineteen,
and the extras. There was so much,
so etxraordinarily much to be said
by both of thorn. Perhaps you think
Captain Prince began by hi apol
ogy and hi explanation of the scene
in the train? No, the first thing he
said, was "Did my eyes deceive me
or did I eee you giving back a ring
Just now to that chap with glas
ses?" "You did see me," admitted Mary,
who indeed, could scarcely keep
from laughter as they danced; "but
what do you mean?" ,
"What do you mean by ever hav
ing been engaged to such a dud?"
By this time Mary herself wonder
ed. I wasn't until number nine, aft
er many other things had been
said, that the audacious prince asked
her if she had forgiven him yet
for what happened the first time
she saw him. .
"I shall never forgive you," said
Mary, with palpable insincerity.
"What a pity," returned the
young man, perfectly unmoved.
"You see unless I knew you id
forgiven me, I couldn't explain to
you what and how It happened."
"O, very well then," said Mary,
Then the house must undergo
its 20th tour of satisfied inspec
tion. It was the realization of many
months of dreaming, planning, and
hard work, and Jerry was very
proud of it. Finally, after one last
look around, he locked the front
door behind him and set off to meet
his bride, as happy and as agi
tated as the surface of a bucket of
boiling water. He caught the train
and settled back to two hour of
blissful dreaming, enjoying, in an
ticipation, the long planned for
meeting. He had fallen a victim
to the lure of the little French
girl' helpli-s femininity when his
regiment had leen stationed in her
village, but he had not been able
to persuade her to come to him until
the rheuinatln old grandmother,
v. hose only relative she was, had
died. Hut now Amalle wua on her
way.
Today her Ihi uuld reach Phila
delphia, where a friend of Jerry's
would meet her and put her safely
fix the t in In for New Yoik When
she arrived. hi'IpUns and alone. In
the ord-r d confusion of the Penn
sylvania station, Jerry would be
there. Thinking of Ibis moment, h
tared thixngli the window with un
"inf eyes.
Hi,btrily bis reverie a Inter,
rupied, m ixditrly modulated voke
at hi rlU.w was saying, ."Pardon
ine, but Is lliu im ( taken ?'
'Huh o. no," Jeiry tame Utik
r hi. tn'tv fiom Ms dream and
meted uvvr to make way for a Woil
rr-w yi'iing man with Mown I
and plant 1.1 i eye The strong'
ir r.intixd his a!rat hl Wiml
t im.iti fw.riral Ai'b....h fee
resigned. "I forgive you. Kxpluint
pleuse."
And after all, the explanation
veined almost aa impossible as the
rest of the incident. "IJr'hy did I do
It?" explained the airman. " Be
cause I wanted to. I siwitted you
five mlntaa before getting your
ticket for somewhere (never dream
Ing It was to here!) and I thought
What a dear little face! Only how
and; how easy to see that It ha
never been kissed.' "
"How easy to make mistake you
mean! I was engaged; I'd been en
gaged for two year."
"Well, doesn't It show that that
didn't count? There are kisse that
don't," he Informed her. "They
don't count any more than the wind
blowing a dead leaf OKnlnst your
lips. They haven't. Have they?"
"Oo on, please."
"This," went on the young man,
"wus when I'd gone to get my
motor bicycle, out of the f-ift Lug
gage office. Instead. I followed
you to tho train, I Just wanted to
see the Inst of a very Inking 'asleep'
little face."
"I'm not asleep."
"You aren't now. You were then,
Isuw you sitting at the carriage win
dow, alone, a I thought. I thought,
'What a frightful shame! Nobody
to see her off! Never has been any
one to her off yet; quite possibly
never will be any one In our moth
enten state of civilization, when we
all behave so circumspectly. I
thought, 'What a miserable world
when a girl like that can be left to
pine awny unklssed until she' 50,
perhaps! I shall never see the lit
tle thing jigaln,' thought I. Pity
I can't give her one really decent
kiss and wish her luck for a send
off! Can't do her any horm, Just
for once in her life, so here goes!'
and there went."
"With a vengeance!" exclaimed
Mary, indignantly (though she real
ized that the indignation was a lit
tle late). "A for 'no harm being
done,' can't you see that you'v
completely wrecked my reputation
for being a nice, quiet, sensible girl?
You've given Cousin Elizabeth a
stick to b&tt me with for the rest
of my life. You've crashed my en
gagement" "To a dud; and I've shown you
what being engaged really means.
Yes! Don't be silly, darling," this
child of impulse stifled Mary's pro
tests. "Of course we're engaged.
What else is there to be done?
We shall never get anybody (ex
cept our mothers) to believe this
wild legend of our not having met
before. Consequently , we may a
well fall In with theirs; that we've
known each other secretly for age.
Perhaps we have, sweetheart. Any
how, there' going to be another
existence for us from tonight on,"
and he slipped his arm ingratiat
ingly about her shoulder, "a pretty
different one. For the sake of ap
pearances" "Yes. Do let's study those,"
Mary begged him, with a last at
tempt at satire.
"For the sake of appearance we
won't give It out officially until
whatever the usual time may be.
Unofficially, and In your car"
which was already close against hi'
lips "I intend to take i.iy answer
here and now."
As I said, this story begins with
a kiss. It also ends with one. Or,
rather, with a great many.
Copyrlcht, IM.
By Mary Day Winn
showed in his flushed face and
slightly disheveled hair signs of
having hurried, there was about
him, somehow, an air of the most
perfect composure.. Finally he re
placed his hat and sat regarding the
other passengers with un air of
benevolent interest. For a few
moments they rode on In silence:
Jerry looked him over covertly out
of the corner of his eye.
"Wonder what he'd think." he
mused, "if he knew that the fellow
next to him was nn his way to be
married,"
As the train passed through
ltrchmont thy rould see through
the window an Imposing brick build
ing. The stranger smiled pleasant
ly and pointed to It. "Fine library,
isn't it?" he said.
"It sure Is."
"Yes, I like It. I gave It to the
town. I've given librariea lo most
of lhce towns around here."
The bridegroom's eyes iened
wide. "You don't aay so!"
"ft, yes. That Is nothing." Then,
with an obvious attempt to be
ao.iul.lo; "Punning down to the city
on business or getting off in one of
these towns.
"O , , ur tioing in the city."
tmiiMrd Jerry; and then. Impul
sively. "I'm em my y now to
Iw murrU'd. Ik.n'l you think I look
like a hppy groom? '
The li vng.r lurna.1 in him tiiiu k
Iy, hi fur alight with Interest.
' That f n"' e. Iuur4 "1
rimfml.iLtte )UU Am you mel
tr iir biule lit N-W totk'-
' .. ah rame In on the I lo. k
In il at th ritnay-laftt aiti"
tlutuMM re - I
