PLÀCET
T Barone, the padre and Courtlandt And
they talked noisily and agreeably eon-
earning man affairs until Rao gravely
announced that dinner a as served.
It was only then, during the lull
which fol' wed, that tight was shed
upon the pu.tlo which had been sub
consciously stirring Harrigan s mind:
Nora had not once spoken to the son
of his old friend.
CHAPTER X.
Everything But the Truth.
.
SYNOPSIS.
Eleanors de Toscana was singing In
Paris, which, perhaps, accounted for Ed
ward Courtlandt's appearance there. Mul
timillionaire. he wandered about where
fancy dictated. He might be In Paris one
day and Kamchatka the next. Following
the opera he goes to a cafe and Is ac
costed by a pretty young woman. She
gave him the address of Flora Desimone,
vocal rival of Toscana, and Flora gives
him the address of Eleanors, whom he Is
determined to see.
Courtlandt enters
Eleanora's apartments. She orders him
out and shoots at him. The next day
Faris is shocked by the mysterious dis
appearance of the prima donna. Realising
that he may be suspected of the abduc
tion of Eleanora Courtlandt arranges for
an alibi. Eleanora reappears and accuses
Courtlandt of having abducted her. H!s
alibi is satisfactory to the police and the
charge is dismissed.
Eleanora Hees to
Cake Como to rest after the shock. She
Is followed by a number of her admirers,
among them the prince who really pro
cured her abduction. Courtlandt also goes
to Como and there meets Jimmie Harri
gan. retired prizefighter and father of El
eanora. whose real name is Nora Harrl-
gan. Harrigan takes Courtlandt Into his
favor at once. He introduces Courtlandt
to his daughter, but the latter gives no
sign of ever having met him before. She
studiously avoids him. Nora's confessor
ecents a mystery involving Nora and
Courtlandt. He takes a strong fancy to
the young man.
CHAPTER IX—Continued.
"I was asleep when the pistol went
off. Oh, you must believe that it was
purely accidental! She was in a ter
rible state until morning. What if
she had killed you, what if she had
killed you! She seemed to harp upon
that phrase.”
Courtlandt turned a sober face to
ward her. She might be sincere, and
then again she might be playing the
first game over again, in a different
guise. “It would have been embar
rassing if the bullet had found its
mark." He met her eyes squarely, and
she saw that his were totally free
from surprise or agitation or Interest.
“Will you be here long?”
“It depends.”
“Upon Nora?” persistently.
“The weather."
“You are hopeless.”
“No; on the contrary, I am the
most optimistic man in the world.”
She looked into this reply very care
fully. If he had hopes of winning
Nora Harrigan, optimistic he certainly
must be. Perhaps it was not optim
ism. Rather might it not be a pur
pose made of steel, bendable but not
breakable, reinforced by a knowledge
of conditions which she would have
given worlds to learn?
“Is she not beautiful?”
“I am not a poet.”
“Wait a moment," her eyes widen
ing. “I believe you know who did
commit that outrage.”
For the first time he frowned.
“Very well; 1 promise not to ask
any more questions.”
“That would be very agreeable to
me." Then, as if he realized the rude
ness of his reply, he added: "Before
I leave I will tell you all you wish to
know, upon one condition."
“Tell it!”
“You will say nothing to any one,
you will question neither Miss Harri
gan nor niyself, nor permit yourself
to be questioned."
“I agree.”
“And now, will you not take me
over to your friends?"
“Over there?” aghast.
“Why, yes. We can sit upon the
grass. They seem to be having a good
time.”
What a man! Take him over, into
the enemy’s camp? Nothing would be
more agreeable to her. Who would
be the stronger, Nora or this provok
ing man?
So they crossed over and Joined the
group The padre smiled. It was a
situation such as he loved to study:
a strong man and a strong woman, at
war. But nothing happened; not a
ripple anywhere to disclose the agita
tion beneath. The man laughed and
the woman laughed, but they spoke
not to each other, nor looked once into
each other’s eyes.
The sun was dropping toward the
western tops. The guests were leav
ing by twos and threes. The colonel
bad prevailed upon bls dinner guests
not to bother about going back to the
Tillage to dress, but to dine in the
clothes they wore. Finally, none re-
Stained but Harrigan, Abbott, the
!
I
i
i
'
i
“I dou’t see why the colonel didn't
Invite some of the ladies,” Mrs. Har
rigan complained.
It's a man party. He’s giving It to
please himself. And 1 do not blame
him. The women about here treat
him abominably. They come at all
times of the day and night, use his
card room, order his servants about,
drink his whisky and smoke his cig
arettes, and generally invite them
selves to luncheon and tea and dinner.
And then, when they are ready to go
back to their villas or hotel, take his
motor-boat without a thank you. The
colonel has about three thousand
pounds outside bls half-pay, and they
are all crazy to marry him because
his sister is a countess. As a bach
elor he can live like a prince, but as
a married man he would have to dig.
He told me that if he had been born
Adam, he'd have climbed over Eden's
walls long before the Angel of the
Flaming Sword paddled him out. Says
he's always going to be a bachelor,
unless I take pity on him.” mlschiev-
ously.
"Has he . . .?” In horrified tones.
"About three times a visit," Nora
admitted; “but I told him that I'd be
a daughter, a cousin, or a niece to him,
or even a grandchild. The latter pre
sented too many complications, so we
compromised on niece."
“I wish I knew when you were seri
ous and when you were fooling."
"I am often as serious when I am
fooling as I am foolish when 1 am seri
ous . . ."
"Nora, you will have me shrieking
in a minute!" despaired the mother,
"Did the colonel really propose to
you?"
"Only In fun.”
Celeste laughed and threw her arm
around the mother's waist, less ample
She Picked Up the Violets.
than substantial. "Don’t you care!
Nora is being pursued by little devils
and is venting her spite on us."
“There’ll be too much Burgundy and
tobacco, to say nothing of the awful
stories.”
“With the good old padre there?
Hardly," said Nora.
Celeste was a French woman. “I
confess that I like a good story that
isn’t vulgar. And none of them look
like men who would stoop to vul
garity."
"That's about all you know of men,”
declared Mrs. Harrigan.
”1 am willing to give them the bene
fit of a doubt”
“Celeste,” cried Nora, gaily, “I’ve
an idea. Supposing you and I run
back after dinner and hide in the card
room, which is right across from the
dining room? Then we can Judge for
ourselves."
“Nora Harrigan!"
“Molly Harrigan!” mimicked the in
corrigible. “Mother mine, you must
learn to recognize a Jest."
“Ah, but yours!”
“Fine!” cried Celeste.
As if to put a final period to the
discussion, Nora began to bum aud
ibly an aria from Alda.
They engaged a carriage In the vlL
lage and were driven up to the villa.
On the way Mrs. Harrigan discussed
the stranger, Edward Courtlandt. What
a fine looking young man he was, and
how adventurous, how well-connected,
how enormously rich, and what an ex
cellent catch! She and Celeste—the
one innocently and the other provo
catively—continued the subject to the
very doors of the villa. All the while
Nora hummed softly.
"What do you think of lil a, NcrsF*
the mother inquired.
"Think of whom?"
"This Mr. Courtlandt.”
"Oh, 1 didn't pay much attention to
him," carelessly. But once aloue with
Celeste, she seized her by ths arm. a
little roughly. "Celesta, 1 love you
better than any outsider 1 know. But
if you ever discuss that man In my
presence again, 1 shall cease to regard
you oven as an acquaintance. He has
come here for the purpose of annoy
ing me, though he promised the pre
fect in Parle never to annoy mo again "
"The prefect!”
"Yea. The morning 1 left Versailles
I met him In the private office of the
prefect. He had powerful friends who
aided him tn establishing an alibi. I
was only a woman, so I didn't count."
“Nora, if I have meddled in any
way," proudly, “it has been because
1 love you, and I see you unhappy.
You have nearly killed me with your
sphinx-like actions. You have never
asked me the result of my spying for
you that night. Spying is not one of
my usual vocations, but 1 did It gladly
for you.”
"You gave him my address?” coldly.
”1 did not. I convinced him that 1
had come at the behest of Flora Desi
mone. He demanded her address,
which I gave him. If ever there was
a man in a fine rage. It was he as he
left me to go there. If he found out
where we lived, the Calabrian assisted
him. I spoke to him rather plainly
at tea. He said that he had had noth
ing whatever to do with the abduc
tion, and I believe him. I am positive
that he is not the kind of man to go
that far and not proceed to the end.
And now, will you please tell Carlos
to bring my dinner to my room?"
The Impulsive Irish heart was not
to be resisted. Nora wanted to remain
firm, but instead she swept Celeste
into her anus. "Celeste, don't be angry!
I am very, very unhappy."
If the Irish heart was impulsive, the
French one was no less so. Celeste
wanted to cry out that sho was un
happy, too.
"Don’t bother to dress! Just give
your hair a pat or two. We’ll all three
dine on the balcony."
Celeste flew to her room. Nora went
over to the casement window and
stared at the darkening mountains.
When she turned toward the dresser
she was astonished to And two bou
quets. One was an enormous bunch
of violets. The other was of simple
marguerities. She picked up the vio
lets. There was a card without a
name; but the phrase scribbled across
the face of it was sufficient. She flung
the violets far down into the grape
vines below. T^e action was without
anger, excited rather by a contemptu
ous indifference. As for the simple
marguerites, she took them up ginger
ly. The arc these described through
the air was even greater than that
performed by the violets. .
’Tm a silly fool, 1 suppose," she
murmured, turning back into the room
again.
It was ten o'clock when the colonel
bade his guests good night as they
tumbled out of his motor boat. They
were in more or less exuberant spirits,
for the colonel knew how to do two
things particularly well: order a din
ner, and avoid the many traps set for
him by scheming mammas and eli
gible widows. Abbott, the Barone and
Harrigan, arm in arm, marched on
ahead, whistling one tune in three
different keys, while Courtlandt set
the pace for the padre.
All through the dinner the padre had
watched and listened. Faces were gen
erally books to him, and he read in
this young man's face many things
that pleased him. This was no night
rover, a fool over wine and women, a
spendthrift.
“There has been a grave mistake
somewhere,” be mused aloud, thought
fully.
"I beg your pardon," said Court
landt.
“I beg yours. I was thinking aloud.
How long have you known the Har
rigans?”
"The father and mother I never saw
before today.”
"Then you have met Miss Harrigan?"
“I have seen her on the stage.”
“I have the happiness of being her
confessor.”
They proceeded quite as far as a
hundred yards before Courtlandt vol
unteered: "That must be interesting.”
"She Is a good Catholic.”
“Ah, yes; I recollect now."
“And you?"
"Oh, I haven’t any religion such as
requires my presence in churches.
Don't misunderstand me! As a boy
I was bred in the Episcopal church;
but I have traveled so much that I
have drifted out of the circle. I find
that when I am out in the open, in
the heart of some great waste, such
as a desert, a sea, the top of a moun
tain, I can see the greatness of the
Omnipotent far more clearly and hum
bly than within the walls of a ca
thedral."
“You believe in the tenets of Chris
tianity?”
"Surely! A man must pin his faith
and hope to something more stable
than humanity."
"I should like to convert you to my
way of thinking,” simply.
"Nothing is impossible. Who knows?"
The padre, as they continued on
ward. offered many opsulngs, but ths
young man at hie side refused to be
drawn Into any confidence. Ho ths
padre gave up. for the futility of his
efforts became irksome. His own lips
were sealed, so he could not ask point
blank the question that clamored at
the tip of his tongue
“So you are Miss Harrigan's con
fessor?”
"Does It strike you strangely?”
"Merely the coincidence "
"If I were not her confessor I should
take the liberty of asking you suin'
questions.”
“It Is quite possible that 1 shoub'
decline to answer them.”
The padre shrugged. “It Is patent
to me thut you will go about this nt ,
fair tn your own way. 1 wist» you
well.”
“Thank you As Mian Harrigans
confessor you doubtless know every-1
thing but the truth.”
The padre laughed this time. The
shops were closed. The open res- j
taurants by the water front held but
few idlers. The padre admired the
young man's Independence Moat men
would have heaitated not a second to
pour the tale Into his ears in hope of
material assistance. The padre'e ad
miration was equally proportioned
with respect.
“I leave you here.” he said. "You
will see me frequently at the villa."
”1 certainly shall bo there frequent
ly. Good night."
Courtlandt quickened his pace which
soon brought him alongside the others.
They stopped tn front of Abbott'a pen
sion, and he tried to persuade them
to come up for a nightcap.
“Nothing to It, my boy," said Har-'
rlgan “1 need no nightcap on top of
cognac <8 years old. For me that's
a whole suit of pajamas."
"You come, Ted."
(TO BE CONTINUED.)
LET ‘HUBBY’ SLEEP AT NIGHT
If Baby Cries. Walk It to Sleep, Is Ad
vice That Is Offered to
Wives.
DESERVES KIS TITLE
JACK RING HAS EARNED RIGHT
TO BE CALLED RIVER HERO.
Mas Saved Three Hundred People
From Drowning and Recovered
Numerous Dead Bodies—He
Knows tho Missouri.
Ho Is a small cattish eating man.
past sixty, who baa won and gracefully
wears the title of River Hero. Homo
300 persons saved from the sucking
throat of the flood, about one hundred
and flfty bodies taken from the watery,
shifting graves beheld Ring's recordi
Of tho rescued, 40 were boys, 36 were
women, including a fameus "laughing
girl," and the rest were men, one of
them a 250 pounder.
Jack Ring's beat In one mile of tho
river front, and ho has patrollod It al
most dally since 1878, with the excep
tion of six months, when he was fight
ing In the Philippine islands.
He knows tho Missouri river; Its
subtle moods, «hen the floods will
come and when recode; the changing
channel, treacherous currents, suck-
holes, eddies, boilings up; where tho
sandbars are; tho habits and haunts
of the wiggling things, big and little,
that Inhabit tho stream.
He has developed a scientific and
effective method of rescuing persons
from drowning.
He has discovered that there uro
mysterious lass which govern tho
movement of corpses in the water.
Ho Intimate is Ring's knowledge of
the river that if ho bo informed
where an unfortunate sank to death
he will calculate the suckhole, eddy
or sandbar downstream. 100 yards to
fl ve miles, a here the body is likely to
be found. Teats huve often proved
the accuracy of his conclusions.
Not by guesswork or intuition does
Ring locale the dead bodies, as many
have fancied. He consults bls mental
map of tho river and then makes a
mathematical calculation.
"And the map o' the river la dif
ferent ever' year," tho hero explaned.
"Thia stream la a restless thing an'
twlata an' turna In hits bed."
Ring's skill as a life-saver is predi
cated. of course, on his expert swim
ming. Tho cupreine tost of river
swimming, so the expert said. Is for
one to be able lo take care of him
self In the awlft and mighty current,
battle through the suck holes and hold
his own In the perilous places where
the water “kicks up" and bucks like
a broncho, “I've been In a lot o' tick
lish places, but never lost my head."
tho old man mused, "an' that's why
I'm here."- American Magazine.
If your husband Is of the rare and
adorable variety who offers to take
charge of the child at night, thunk j
heaven for having given you such a'
man, and decline the offer, advises s '
writer in Mother's Magazine Should)
your health be unequal to the strain1
of both night and day work. It will
probably pay better In the long run
for some one to bo hired to spare you
than for him to give his strength to
the task. That is a problem tor cir
cumstances to solve The point I wish
to emphasize In this connection Is
that you are neither to feel aggrieved
if your husband doesn't claim th«:
right to share in the night care of the j
child, nor permit him to loao his sleep
If he pleads a desire to act as assist
Remembers Flora Temple.
ant nurse.
If you have made tho mistake ot
Spectators at tho United Hhoe Ma
asking your husband to look after the chinery trial recently tn the United
child at night, try to look at the mat States district court enjoyed tho repar
ter reasonably. He might have been tee between Judge Putnam and Fred
gracious enough to tell you why he eric P. Fish of counsel for the defense.
felt his sleep of such importance that Attorney Fish wan arguing on tho pat
he was not Justified in foregoing It, ent question Involved In the anti trust
even to spare you, but there are men suit against the United company and
who don't see things In that way and as a means of Illustrating a point re
he may be one of them. That doez marked: "You can put c race horse
not change the fact, I repeat, that he in a plow and you can put a plow
cannot do his best for you and the kid horse In a race."
dies when deprived of the proper
Here Judge Putnam Interrupted to
amount of slumber, and the truth that say:
“Hora Temple was a plow
it is for you and the kiddles that he horse."
works may help you to overlook the
"Yes," responded Attorney Fish,
ungraciousness.
"but sho soon got out of IL I remem
ber seeing her in a box car at Taun
WITH NATURE’S HAIR DYE ton."
"Why, I didn't think you were that
Young Lady Visitor to South America old." replied Judge Putnam.
"Oh. Lord," replied Attorney Fish,
Changed Her Blonde Locks to ■
"you don’t know what an old fellow I
Brilliant Red.
am. 1 remember Flora Temple well,
A young woman ran down the and I know what her time was, too. It
gangway of the ship Just In from was 2:27."
South American ports, and flung her
By this time tho whole courtroom
arms about the neck of a man who full of lawyers and spectators was In
had been waving to her.
roars of laughter, and Judges Dodge
"Gracious, Natalie!” he cried, and Brown, sitting with Justice Put
"what's tho matter with your hair? nam, Joined in the merriment.—Boston
It's red, and it was biondo when you Record.
went away."
“Oh," smiled the young woman,
With a Chef at the Steering Wheel.
"that’s the result of a shampoo from
An Atchison man met a reporterand
the water of a little lake In lea, Peru.” said: “1 have an item for you; see If
She told that during a recent visit you can get It right this time.” The
to lea she had found that the Indians item was In regard to some visitors at
there had their hair tinted every im the man’s house, who had come In a
aginable color. Sho learned that they motor car. In giving tho item the man
dyed their hair with tho waters of
several small lakes in lea, all of which said: “They were accompanied by
their chef.” The reporter asked timid
contained water of different colors.
ly:
"Their what?" And the man said,
"I thought that I would look so
much better if my hair was a deep with such a superior air: "Their chef,
red, so I went to the lake containing the man that drives the car. Don't
the reddish water, named Huaoachlna, you know what a chef Is?”
and shampooed my hair. It certainly
She Doesn’t Shut Up.
worked fne.”
Mrs. Flatte—Did you hear what he
called his wife?
Kaiser as a Censor.
Mrs. Flatte—No.
The kaiser has forbidden the produc
"A delicate little planL”
tion at Herr Reinhardt's Deutsches
"WsUF
theater of a play called "Ferdinand,
"Why,
delicate little plants gener
Prince of Prussia,” on the ground that
one of the characters is a member of ally shut up during a storm."
the Prussian royal family. Thera la
Dubious.
no appeal from the kalser'a censor
"To run this party ot so many op
ship.
posite kinds of people, I want to know
if you can recommend somebody who
Dally Thought.
Little minds are turned and sub can put all the guests on an easy
dued by misfortune, but great tnlnda footing?"
“Oh, yes. There's the man 1 got
rise above it.—Ini >
my slippers from.”