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TffiROlD MACGRATH
Author of HEARTS AND nk$V&
Che "AN OR THE BOX c&.
IllvistrOLliorvs by AI.G.Kettmr- .
COPYRIGHT 1911 Iy BOBBS - MERRILL COMPANY t
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"8h8 Shall Never Marry
8YN0PSIS.
OeorKe I'orclval AlKcrnon JonoR,' vlcn
xirrwldnnt of tho Metropolitan Oriental
ItiiK company of New Turk, thtrstliu; for
ronmiieo, 1h In Cairo on u buidiiesft trip.
Horace Hynnno at riven at tlw liotol lti
Cniio Willi a carefully truurdrd bundle.
Klynnno 110IU Jotiu.n tliu famous holy Ylil
prrtcH ruK Which lio admits ImUtiK stolon
fiotu ii pasha lit IluKdad. Joiiph tneeM
Major Callahan nnd lntor l.i ttitrculuoccl to
jrlnnn Clioriuoyo by a woman to whom
tin had loaned ICO potiwlH nt Montu Carlo
boioo inontliu previously, unit who turns
ut to ho Jrortuuo'n mother. Jonos taken
Wrii. ChcdHoyo nnd Fortune to a polo
came. Fortune returns to Jones the
money borrnwod by her inothor, Mra,
Cheflnoyo appcnni to ba engaged In noma
tnyiilcrloiiB ontcrprlHu unknown to tho
daunhtor. Uyanuo IntercntH Jonon In tho
tJeiltoil Homanco nnd Advouturo com
tiiiny, a concern which for a prlco will
orranKo any kind of nn advouturo to or
dqr Mrs Clmdaoyo,. her brother, Major
Cnllnhan, Wallace and It ya line, an tho
United Ilomnnco and Adventuro company,
lilan a risky enterprise. Involving Jones.
CHAPTER VII. (Continued.)
"I accopt It rtB Bitch. I nm tired of
liotty things. I repent, fnlluro la not
possible. IIuvu I not thought it out,
dotal! hy dotntl, mapped out each lino,
anticipated dangers by eliminating
MiomT"
"All hut that ono danger of which
wo know nothing. You'ro n great
woman, lCulo. You liavo, as you say,
mado nluoty-ulno dungors out of n
fiundrod impossible. Lot us keep an
eyo 'out for that hundredth. Our pho
tographs havo yot to graco the rogues'
Cnllory."
"With ono oxcpptlon." Ryanno's
laughtor wa,s sardonic.
"Whoso?" shot tho major.
"MIihj. A round nnd youthful phiz,
fttlky young uuiBtacho. Hut rest
eaey; thoro'n no UkanosB between that
and tho original ono I wear now."
"You novor told 1110 . . . " bo
iCau Mrfl. Ohodsoyo.
"There was nevor any need till now.
TCIght yeara ago. Certnln powers that
)o worked toward my escape. Hut I
win novor to return. You will recol
lect that I havo nlways remnlned thin
uldo. Enough. What I did does not
tuajlor. I will say this much: my
tsruno was in bolng found out, Ono
vouluro into New York and out to sen
ngnln . thoy will not havo 11 chnnco. 1
doubt tf any could recall tho clrcum
r.taucon of my motooric cntoor. You
will ohservo that I nm Uoyed for uny
thl lift Let us got to work, It doovn't
nuttier, nnyhow."
"You did not ..." Mrs. died
coyo hesitated.
Illnqd?" roadlng her thought. "No.
aioeoiulii: my haiulH are kuIUIcbk, at
loust thoy woro till this Ilngdnd af
fnlr; nnd I nm not suro there. I was a
tnifilod clerk; I gambled; 1 took
inouoy that did not belong to mo. And
iioio I nm, room number 208."
"It ilurum't mator. Conio, Katoj
loii't Blaro at Hoddy ua If he woro a
now hpoulos." The major nmoothod
(ho eitdu of his luoustucho. "This con
ifuHHlon will bo good forhla bouI."
"Yoa, Olocomla; I feel oaslor now.
if am heart and soul In this affair. 1
mood excltemont, too. Lord, yos.
Whou I wont to Ungdnd, I had no Idea
flint I aliould over lay'eyon upon that
rug. Hut I did. And thoro'o tho
emoraldH, too, major."
Tha major rubbed his hands pleas
--!-- MiXt4F t-tff. H-Wi fWr-l-
a Man of Your Stamp."
urably. "Yob, yea; tho emeralda; I
had not forgotten them. One hundred
lovely green stones, worth not a penny
undor thirty thousand. A lino collec
tion. Hut another idea has taken pos
session of this teeming brain of mine.
Havo you noticed how this fellow
Jonoa hovers about Fortune? He's
worth a million, If ho's worth a cent.
I am sure, In pure gratitude, sho
would hco to It that her loved ones
Woie well tuken care of lu their old
age."
"I um going to mnrry Fortuno niy
Bolf," said Hyanno blandly.
"You?" Tho major wns nonplussed.
Wnllaco shuffled his foot unenslly.
This blond companion of his was al
ways showing klnka In his unturo,
klnka that ravoly, ever straightened
nut.
"Yos. And why not? What Is Bho
to either you or hor mother? Noth
ing. Affection you have nevor given
her, being unablo It surprises you;
hut, novortholo8s, I lovo her, nnd I
nm going to mnrry hor."
"Ilenlly?" said Mrs. Chedsoyo.
"Even fo."
"You are a fool, Horaco!" with ris
ing fury. So then, tho child had not
Jibed her in u moment of nlnuo?
''Men in lovo generally are fools.
1'vo never spoken boforo, bocauso you
novor absolutely needed mo till now.
Tliero's my cards, put."
Mrs. Chcdsoyo'B fury deepened, but
not visibly. "You aro welcomo to hor,
If she will havo you."
"Yes," supplemented tho major; "If
ahe will havo you, my friend, tnko her,
and our bonedlctlons,"
Hyanno's shoutdors stirred sugges
tively. "Of course, I expect to havo tho
final iord to say on tho subject. Sho
Is niy'tlaughtor," said Mrs. Chedsoyo.
"A trilling accident, my dear Glo
condn," smiled Hynnno! "merely
that.''
"Just a llttlo oil, Just a llttlo oil,"
the major pleaded auxloualy. "Dash
It all, this la no time for n row of this
silly order. Hut It's always tho way,"
Inltably. "A big onterprlso, domnnd
lng a slnglo purpose, and a trlfto llko
this to tipsot It all!"
"I nm ready for business at any mo
ment." "And you, Kate?"
"We'll any no more about It till tho
uffnlr la over. After that ..."
"Those who llvo will see, eh?"
Hynnno rolled a cigarette.
"To buslnoss, then. In tho first
pluce, Mr. Jones must not roach the
Ludwlg."
"Ho will not." Hyanno apoko with
quiet nsaurnnce.
"Ho will not even see that bout,"
added Wnllaco, glad to hear tho sound
of his voice again.
"Oood. Hut, mind, ho lough work."
"Lonvo It all to mo," said Hyanno.
"Tho Unltod Hnmnnco nnd Advouturo
Company will glvo him an advouturo
on approval, ns It wore."
"To you, then. Tho roport from New
York vends oncoumglngly. Our friends
thoro aro busy. Thoy aro merely
waiting for us. From now on Perclvnl
Algernon must recolvo no more mull,
tolegrams or cables."
"I'll tako euro of that also." Hyanno
looked at Mrs ChcdBoyo musingly.
will wire
him. possibly tomorrow."
"In that event, ho will rocclvo a
cable signifying that tho transaction
Is perfectly correct."
"Ho may also Inquire ns to what
to do with the valuables In the wall
safe." "Ho will be Instructed to touch
nothing, as the people who will occupy
tho house nro old friends." Hynnno
smoked calmly.
"Wnllaco, you will return to New
York nt once."
"I thought I was wanted heie?"
"No longer."
"All right; I'm off. I'll sail on the
Prince Ludwlg, c-tnteroom US. I'll
havo my Joke by tho way.
"You will do nothjng o tho kind.
You will havo a Btaloroom by your
self," said Mrs. Chcdioyo crisply.
"And no wine, nor cards. If jou fall,
I'll break you ..."
"As wo would n churchwarden's
pipe, Wnllaco, my Ind." Hjanno grip
ped his companion by the shoulder,
and there wiut enough prcfasuio in the
grip to cause tho recipient to wince.
"Well, well; I'll lny 11 straight
course." Wallace slid his shoulder
from under Ryanno's hnnd.
"To you, then, lloddy, the business
of quarantining our fiicnd Perclvnl.
Don't hurt him; simply detain him.
You must realize tho lmportnnco of
this. Hnvo you your pinna?"
"I'll porfect them lomoriow I shnll
find a way, never fonr."
"Does the rug como in nnywherc?"
The major was curious. It sometimes
seemed to him that Hyanno did not al
ways lay hla cards face up upon the
table.
"It will play Its patt. Besides, 1
am rather inclined to the lden of tak
ing It back. It may bo tho old wish-
Ing-carpet. In thnt case. It will como
lu handy. Who knowB?"
"How much la it worth?"
"Ah, major, Porclval hlmsdlf could
not say exactly. Ho gavo mo a thous
and pounds for It."
"A thousand pounds!" murmured
Wallace.
The major struck his hands lightly
together. Whether In npplnuso or
wonder ho alono know.
"And it was worth every shilling of
It, too. I'll tell you tho Btory somo
day. Thoro aro a dozen ways of sup
pressing Perclvnl, but I must havo
something appealing to my artistic
side."
"You hnvo never told us vour real
name, Horace," Mrs. Chodaoyo bent
toward him.
Ho laughed. "I must havo some
thing to confess to you In tho future,
dear Olocondn."
"Well, tho mooting adjourna,
sine
die."
"What aro you going to do
with
Fortune?" demnnded Hyanne.
"Send hor back to Mentono."
"What tho deuco did you bring her
hero for, knowing what was in tho
wind?"
"Sho expressed a. desire to seo
Cairo again," answered Mrs. Ched
soyo. "Wo novor dony hor anything." Tho
mnjor roae and yawned suggestively.
In tho corridor, Ryanne whlspored
softly: "Why not, Gloconda "
"Sho- shall novor mnrry a man of
your stamp," coldly.
"Charming mothor! How tendorly
you havo ohorlshod her!"
"Horaco," calmly enough, "Is It wlso
to anger" mo?"
"It may not be wlso, but I havo
novor seen you lu a rage. You would
bo magnificent."
"Cease this foolery," patiently. "I
nm In no mood for it tonight. As an
assoclato In this equivocal business,
you do very woll; you aio necessary.
Hut do not presume too much upon
that. For nil tftnt I mny not hnvo been
what a mothor should bo, I still hnvo
aomo solf-respoct. So long a I havo
any power ovor hor, Fortuno shnll
never marry a man so far down in
tho social scale as yoursolf."
"Social scuiov uiocouun, now jou
hurt mo!" mockingly. "I slvould real
ly llko to know what your Idea of
that lminclblo barrier Is. Is It be
cause my face is in tho rogues' gal
lory? Surely, you would not bo
ciuoll"
"Sho la fnr above us all, my friend,"
continuing unruffled. "Sometimes I
Htund In nbsoluto nwo of hor."
"A mnrvol! If my recollection is
not nt fault, many a man llns entered
tho Villa Fanny, with a view to court
ship, men bosldo whom I am as
Roland to tho lowest Snraccu. You
never objected to thorn."
"They had money nnd position."
"Mnglc talisman! And If I had
monoy and position?"
"My objectlona would bo no loss
strong."
"Your code puzzles mo. You would
welcomo na a son-in-law a man who
stolo openly tho widow'a mlto, whllo I,
who harass none, but tho predatory
rich, must dwell In tho outlnnd? Rnuk
injustico!"
"His real rBtato agent
"You couldn't take caro of her."
"Yes, I could. With but llttlo effort
I could make theso two hands as hon
est as tho dny is long."
"I have my doubts," nmlllng a little.
"Suppose, for tho sake of an argu
ment, suppose Fottune accepted mo?"
Mrs. Chedsoye's good humor returned.-
She know her daughter toler
nhly well; the child nnd a horror of
men "Poor Horace! Do you build
upon that?"
"Less, perhaps,- than upon my own
bright Invention. My suit, then to be
brief. Is rejected?"
"Kniphatlcally. I have spoken."
"Oh, well; tho fomlnlno prerogative
shall be mine, tho Inst word. Good
night; dorm! bene!" Ho bowed
grandly and tinned toward his own
room.
He po&sesned that kind of mockery
which was the despair of thoso at
whom It wns directed. They never
know whether his mood was one of
hnnnless fun or of deadly Intent. And
rather than mistake the one quality
for the other, they generally pretend
ed to Ignore. Mrs. Chedsoje, who
hnd a similar talent, was ono of tho
few who felt along tho wall as one
does In tho dark, instinctively. To
night she recognl.ed that there was
no harmless fun but a real desporate
ness behind the mask; and she had
hold In her temper with a firm hand.
This was not tho hour for a clash.
Sho shivered a llttlo; and for tho llrst
tlmo In the six or aoven years ahe had
known him, alio faced a fear of him.
Hla great strength, hla reckless cour
age, his subtle way of mastering men
by appearing to be raastored by them,
held her In tho thrall of a peculiar
fascination which, in quiet periods,
sho looked upon as something deeper.
Marriage was not to her an ideal state,
nor was there nny man, Hlng or .dead,
who had appealed to the physical sido
of hor. But he was in the ono sex
what sho waa In tho other; and while
sho herself would nevor have married
him, sho raged Inwardly at the possi
bility of his wanting another woman.
To her the social fabrjc which holds
humanity together was merely a con
venience; tho moral significance
touched neither her heart nor hor
mind. In her tho primordial craving
for cnao, for material comforts, pret
ty trlnketa and gowns was strongest
developed. It wns as if this sense had
been handed down to her, untouched
by contact with progression, from the
remote ages, that tlmo between tho
fall of Roman civilization and where
modern civilization began. In short
a beautiful barbarian, whoso intellect
alono had advanced.
Fortuno was asleep. The mothor
went over to tho bed and gently shook
tho slim, round arm which lay upon
tho coverlet. Tho child's nature lay
rovcaled as Bho opened her eyes and
smiled. It did not matter that the
smile Instantly changed to a frowning
Inquiry. Tho mother spoko truly
when she said that there were times
when she stood In awo of this, her
flesh and blood.
"My child, I wish to ask you a ques
tion, nnd for your own good answer
truthfully. Do you lovo Horace?"
Fortuno sat up and rubbed her
oyeB. "No." Had her wits been less
scattered sho might havo paltered.
Tho syllable had a finality to It
that reassured tho mother moro than
a thousand protestations would hav'e
dono.
"Good night," sho said.
Fortuno lay down ngain and drow
tho coverlet up to her chin. With hor
eyes shut Bho watted, but in vain. Her
mother disrobed and sought hor own
bed.
Ryanno was Intensely dissatisfied
with himself. For once his desperate
mood had carried him too far. He
had made too many confessions, hnd
antagonized a woman who wua every
bit as clever and Ingenious as him
Bolf. The entorprlso toward which
they wou moving held him simply be
cause it wns an exploit that enticed
wholly his twlated outlook upon life.
Thoro was a forbidding humor in tho
whole affair, too, which ho alono saw.
Tho po&slblo rewards were to him of
secondurj consideration. It whb tho
fun of tho thing. It wna tho fun of
tho thing that had put him squarely
upon tho wide, short road to perdi
tion, which had made him first a
spendthrift, then u thief. Tito fun of
tho thing; sinister plnaso! A thous
and times had bo longed to go back,
for ho wasn't all hnd; but door after
door nnu shut uouimt nun; ami now
tho slnglo purpose wns to get to tho
end of tho road by tho shortest route.
Ho did not docolvo himself. Ills
desporato mood was tho rosult of an
Infernal rngo against himself, a rago
against the weaknosti of his heait.
Fortuno Cuodsoyt,. Why had sho not
crosced his path nt that tlmo when he
might hnvo been saved? And yot,
would sho havo saved him? God nlono
know.
Ho heard Jones stirring In his room
next door. Presently nil became still.
The Porter Had No Suspicion That
To sleep like that! Ho shrugged,
throw off his coat, swept tho cover
from tho Btand, found a pack of cards,
and played solitaire till the first pallor
of dawn announced tho new day.
Reclining snugly agalnBt tho para
pot, wrapped In his tattered arbiyeth,
or cloak, hla head pillowed upon his
loan arm, motionless with that pre
tended sleep 0 tho wati hor. Mahomed-El-Gebel
kept his vigil. Miles upon
miles he had come, across tnree bleak,
cold, blinding deserts, on camels, In
trains, on camels again, night and day,
day and night, across tho soundless,
yollow plains. Allah was good to tho
true believer. The night was chill,
but certain fires warmed his blood. All
day long ho had followed the uccursed,
lying giaour, but never onco had ho
wandered Into tho native quartera of
tho city. Patience! What was a day,
a week, a year? Grains of sand. Ho
could wait. Inshalla!
CHAPTER VIII.
The Purloined Cable.
George, having made his bargain
with consclenco relative to tho Yhlor
des rug, slopt tho sleep of tho untrou
bled, of tho Just, of the man who had
nothing In pnrtlcular to got up for. In
fact, after having drunk his breakfast
cocoa arid eaten his butterod toast, ho
evinced his satisfaction by turning his
face away from tho attracting morn
ing light and passing off into sleep
ngain. And theroby hangs this tale.
So much depended upon his getting
his mall as it came in that morning,
that Fato herself must have resisted
sturdily tho desire to shake him by
tho shoulder. Perhaps sho would havo
done so hut for tho serenity of his
poso and tho lnfnnttlo smile thnt lin
gered for a whllo round his llpa. Fate,
as with most of us, has her sentiment
al -lapses.
Tho man next door, having no con
science to speak of (Indeed, ho had de
railed her whllo passing his twenti
eth meridian!) was up betimes. He
had turned In at four; at six ho was
strolling about tho deserted lounging
room, watching the entrances. It Is
Inconceivable how easily mull may be
purloined In a largo hotel, Thcro are
as many wajs as points to tho wind.
Rynnuc choso the simplest. Ho waited
for tho mall-bag to be emptied upon
the head-potter's counter. Nonchal
antly, but deftly, while tho porter
looked on, the adventurer ran through
tho bulk. He found threo letters and
a cnble, tho latter having been re
ceived by Georgo's bankers the day
before and mailed directly to tho lio
tol. Tho porter had no suspicion that
a bold theft was being committed un
der his very eyes. Moreover, circum
stances prevented his ever learning
of It. Ryanne stuffed the spoils Into
a pocket.
"If any ono asks for mo," he said,
"say that I shall bo at my baukor's,
tho Anglo-Egyptian bank, at 10 o'clock.
"Yes, sir," replied the porter, as he
began to sort tho rost of tho mull,
not forgetting to peruse the postals.
Ryanno wont out Into tho street,
walking rapidly Into town. Mahomed-Kl-Gebcl
shook the folds of 111 clonk
and followod. Tho adventurer did not
slacken his gait till ho reached Shop-
I tumult! hotel ITpon tho stops ho
paused Some "Migllsh troops were
a Bold Theft Was Being Committed.
marching past, on the way to the rail
way station; tho usual number of na
tives were patrolling tho sidewalks,
dangling strings of Imitation scarabs;
a caravan of pack-camels, laden with
cotton, shuffled by haughtily; a blind
beggar sat on the curb in front,
munching a piece of sugar cane. ,
Ryanne, assured that no ono ho knew
was about, proceeded into tho wiltlng
rooni, wholly deserted at this early
hour.
He sat down at a desk and opened
tho cable. It contained exactly what
ho expected. It was a call for ad
vice In regard to tho rental of Mr.
Georgo P. A. Jones' mansion In New
York and tho temporary disposing of
the loose valuables. Ryanno read It
over a dozen times, with puckered
brow, and finally balled It florcely In
his fist. Fool! Ho could not, nt that
moment, remember tho most essen
tial point In the game, tho name and
ofllco of tho agent to whom ho must
this very morning send reply. Hur
riedly ho fished out tho letters; ono
cbanco in a thousand. Ho swore, but
In relief. In the corner of ono of tho
letters he saw that for somo unknown
reason tho gods were still with him,
Reynolds and Reynolds, estates, Broad
street; ho remembered. Ho wroto out
a reply on n pleco of hotel paper, In
tending to copy it oft at the cable
office. This reply covered tho ground
convincingly. "Renting for two
months. Old friends. Leavo things
ns they are. P. A." Tho Initials
wore a llttlo stroke. From somo
sourco Ryanne has picked up tho fact
that Jones' business correspondence
was conducted over those two initials.
He tore up tho cable Into smnll illegi
ble squares and dropped somo into one
bnskot and sdme into another. Next,
he readdressed' Georgo'.s mall to Leip
zig; another stroke, meaning a delay
of two or threo months; from the
head olllco of his banker's there to
Paris, Paris to Naples, Naples to New
York. That Ryanno did not open
these letters was in nowise duo to
moral suasion; whatever thoy con
tained could be of no vital Importance
to him.
"Now, Hoiace, we shall bend the
crook of our elbow in tho bar-room.
Tho teactlon warrants a stimulant."
An hour luter (ho whole affair waa
nicely off his hands. Tho cablo had
cost him threo sovereigns. But what
was that? Nlente, rien; nothing, a
mere bagatelle. For tho first tlmo In
weeks n benso of security Invaded his
being.
It was by now 9 o'clock: and Per
clvnl Algornon still reposed upon his
bed ot enso. Let him sleep. Many
days weie to pass ore ho would again
know the comfort of linen sheets, tho
luxury ot down under his ear.
(TO lin CONTINUED )
Long Record as Public Singer.
What is probably tho world's record
as a public singer Is held by MrB.
George V. Johnson, who for moro than
62 yenr as ben soloist In tho Preaby
torian churth. Sho has traveled a
distance of mora than -10,000 miles In
meroly going to and. from 'her choir
rehearsals and church sorvicea. whllo
the actual tlmo alio lies spent In h
choir seat would amount to tho oqul
alont of ono year and a half, piko
(N Y) Ga70tte.
1
1
