THE SUNDAY FICTION MAGAZINE, MARCH 26, 1916. 3
looked at her I felt that Paul Vargu' intercourse.' I attributed this change to sweetness of his seclusion wa already be-
earthly paradise ought to be complete. power of lore, for. wife or no wife, it was ginning to pall upon him, and the ooea-
She came forward with unembarrasaed plain that the man loved his beautiful sional sight of a commonplace, workaday
grace, smiled a bright smile, and giving companion with all the force of hia strong face waa a welcome one.
me her hand bade me welcome in Eng- nature. The route came at last, - I bade my
lish correct enough, although tempered Tet It shocked me to discover that all friend good-by and sighed as X thought
to send out a few EnglUh doctors; ! ten- by a slight foreign accent. the ambition waa dead, i mournea mat now gmm, ia scenes m
. .... f . , a 1 J -. VI. 4 n aahlnli T wa alullt t mmit In fflTl
After a little while Vargas suggested aucn a nigniy-giiiea man rauiu m u . ' w
that I should walk round the gardens withdraw completely from the battlefield tact would contrast with the Elysium I
with him. Aa we left the room, the look and seem only to strive to make life as waa quitting.
ah emigrant ship. I soon grew tired of.
this occupation, and being in. En gland, but
Cot yet cured of roving, I cast about for
something professional to take me abroad.
I bad not long to wait. Cholera waa rag
ing in the East. A fund had been raised
which passed between him and the girt
was quite enougn 10 snow iu
complete love they bore one an
other. "Your wife, I suppose?" I said
She is
"My love, my live, my very
soul," he exclaimed passionately.
dered my services, which were accepted.
At Constantinople I was detained sev
eral days awaiting instructions. One day,
while Idly strolling through the street. I
came face 'to face with Paul Vargas.
Although he wore the fez and was In
appearance more Turkish than English, I
knew him at once and accosted him by
his name. Surprised aa he looked at my when we were alone,
salutation, he had evidently no wish, to very beautiful."
deny his identity. As soon, as he recog
nised me he greeted me cordially, and
having learned what brought me to Con
stantinople insisted that I ahould pay him
a visit. I willingly consented to do so. I
was most curious to ascer
tain why he had thrown up
the profession so sudden
ly. The day being still
young. I started then and
there with him for his
home.
Naturally, almost my
first question was why he
left us so mysteriously.
I had my reasons," he
said.
"They must have been
powerful ones."
He turned his dark eyes'
full upon me.
"They were." he said. "I
grew sick of the life. After
all. what did it mean?
Work, work, work, only to
find out how little one real
ly knew or ever could know
by . study. Why, In one
half -hoar I learned more
by chance than anyone else
had yet dreamed of."
"I questioned him as to
the meaning of his arro
gant assertion, but he
' evaded me with all his
adroitness; then we reached
bis house, and I forgot all
save admiration.
His house was just out
side the city. House it
might be called a small
palace. Here he lived in
true. Oriental luxury.
Judging from the profusion which sur
rounded him. and from the lavish scale
on which his establishment was conduct
ed, I felt sure that the report of his hav
ing inherited a fortune was quite correct.
All that money could buy, all that an
" Intellectual Sybarite could desire, seemed
to.be his. - Books, paintings, statuary,
costly furniture, rich tapestries, the
choicest dishes and the rarest wines.
Qaly a man in "the enjoyment of a prince
ly Income could live In such style and
splendor.
He led me from room to room, until he
Vargas accompanied me to
"Myrrha, wel
come an old
friend of mine,
an Englishman"
the steamer by which the first part
of the journey was to be made." -
"Do you mean to live here all
your lifeT' I aiked.
"No, I shall grow weary of it
very soon, I expect."
"And then?"
"Then I shall sell everything
and try another land."
"Tou must be rich to live as.
you do."
"I was rich. I had 60,000, but
in the last year or two I have spent
two-tblrds of my fortune."
'Two- thirds of
your capital! What
folly!"
He shrugged his
shoulders and
smiled that old
superior smile.
Then a deep
gloom settled
on his h an d -
some face.
"I have plenty loft
plenty to last my
time." he said.
"What nonsense you talk.
What do you mean by your
time?"
He leaned toward me, placed
his hand on my arm, and looked
at me with an expression in his
eyes which thrilled me.
"I mean this." he said slow
ly: "I could, if I chose, tell you
the exact daj if not the exact
hour at which I shall die. Tou
see how I live, so can under
stand that if I have money to
last my time .that time Is short."
"My dear fellow," I exclaimed,
"have you any complaint any se-
cret malady?"
"None I am hale and sound as you.
Nevertheless, I shall die aa I have said."
His absolute conviction impressed mo
more than I cared to show. "A man mast
"But not my wife in your sense of the soft and sensuous as It might be possible die of something specific," I said. "If you
worj .. for wealth to make It. I spoke once or can predict your illness, can you not take
I said no more, feeling the subject was twice to this effect, but the darkness of steps to prolong your life?"
a delicate one to handle. Who Myrrha his brow and the shortness of his an- "Prolong my life," he echoed as one in
was. or why she should live, unmarried, swers told me I trod on forbidden ground. a dream. "Tea, I can prolong my life
For his own sake I hoped that the day
would come when he would weary of his
voluptuous existence and long for bracing
1 1 37 mm
with him was none of my business.
1 had not been long in his society be
fore I discovered that Paul Vargas was.
in some ways, much changed I may say tonics or nara worn ana tne struggle ur
Improved. He seemed altogether a better success. ,
sort of fellow than the man I had known I was detained in Constantinople three
of old. No less polite, but more natural, weeks longer. Vargas pressed me to take
but I will not." -
I could only conclude that Paul Vargas
meditated self-destruction.
"Why should you not care to lire?" I
urged. r
"Care to live?" he - cried bitterly."
"Man, I revel in life. I have youth.
His Invariably charming manners were up my abode with him. It was not worth- strength, love fame I could have if I
enhanced by the addition of something
that, I had made more progress with him
than I had In the whole of our previous
opened the door of one more beautifully like friendliness. In an hour's time I felt
garnished than any of the others. A girl
was sitting at the window. As We en
tered she sprang forward with a cry if
joy and threw her arms around Vargas.:
He returned ' her passionate embrace,
kissed her, "whispered some words of love
in a "strange, musical language, then gent
tv disengaging himself, said:-
"Myrrha, welcome an old friend of at first was under the management of the
mine, an Englishman." Department of Trade and Commerce, but
She turned toward me. Her beauty ab- . nQW a t o the poatofilee. The object
while to do this, as at any moment I
might be ordered away. But I spent sev
eral hours of each day with him. Ha was
always glad to see me. Perhaps the
solutely daxzled me. She was tall and waa to provide old age pensions for
majesUc; coll upon coil of jet black hair n - a volunUry lnste,d of a
Canadian Old Age; Annuities
IN 1908 the Canadian government ln-"of sex, no age limit, no medical qualifica
augurated a system of annuities whteh ' tions as to health or strength. The an
nuitant pays what he can, when ne can:
but the officers in charge do all that their
official duties will allow to insure the reg
ular payment of premiums as "agreed. If
for any reason the annuitant has not been
able at 55 years of age to pay the cost of
the smallest annuity allowed, his money Is
wisnea ror it. ret it is because I may
have fewer temptations to. prolong my
life that I am squandering my wealth
that I let ambition beckon in vain that,
when the moment draws near, I shall for
sake the twoman I love." ,
It was as I guessed years ago. ' Paul
Vargas was mad.
' He sank into moody silence, broken
only when the moment of my departure
came.' Then he roused himself, shook
hands with me and bade me godspeed.
His dark eyes gleamed with air the old
scorn they were wont to express when
anyone whose words were not - listened
to opposed him In argument.
"We shall meet no more," he said, curt
He was wrong. We met again.
(To be continued next vxti)
t.- 'wit.nnimt- aueenlv - head.
the south. ' Her eyes were glorious. Never Under the system now in operation no noWorfeited, but is returned to him with ,y ujMr; turning away and retracln
before had I seen such a splendid crea- one ean begin to Teceive a government Interest. ' . hla Bteps. - . -
ture. The perfection of her form, the look annuity until 55 years of age. although the The calculations . for this system are
of splendid health and glowing Vitality; purchase of such annuity may begin at ' baaed on 4 per cent Interest, compounded "
would have been enough to make her an any time. - The annuity is aDsoiuteiy tne anmiaiiy, anu no ciwj. l"r ' 11 ; -
.vi AMtwiVMntiMt interest to anvone property of the person for whose benefit penses or management, the salaries or om- : ..;.. v - L"- " .t '.T,'.'-
of my own profession. It was bought. It cannot be mortgaged, cera and other ouOays bemg voted by .the - iUmOVCrf
. ' k mr- f hr rich dress well sold ' traded, or in any other way endan- Canadian Parliament. Every postmaster "My dear, did yoa make this pie out of
became her. Although In years she was gered. has been made an agent, of the annuity the cook boo i gar TOT -
but a girl, the gold and Jewels which cov- Every resident of Canada is free to con- system and is paid a small commission on love r- ,.,..y:,-.,z
' , arma and neck seemed tribute to and enjoy the advantages of the the business done through his office. '"Well. I thought the crust tasted like
quite in keeping with her beauty. v As I system.. There is no exclusion on account New York Times. -
one of the covers."