i
THE
I
DESTROYING
! ANGEL I
~
]
By
L O U IS
JOSEPH
rr:
VANCE
Q U EER LUCK
Did you ever have a piece of
really good luck— for Instance,
help from an entirely unexpected
source when you were in deep
trouble?
Luck, good or bad, la certain­
ly on the trail of Hugh Whita­
ker. You remember, a corps of
eminent surgeons gave him Just
six months to live. So he found
a girl in trouble, married her to
save her good name and disap­
peared Immediately. Five years
later he reappeared In New York
from Australia, happy, healthy
and prosperous, and started out
to find the little girl he married.
He discovers her when he goes
to the theater—she’s Sara Law,
great actress. Mutual recogni­
tion across the footlights stops
the play and creates wild ex­
citement among the audience.
What next occurs is told in this
Installment. Go to it!
CHAPTER V— Continued.
“ Where's Miss Lnw?” he asked.
“ I dunno— go ask Max.”
“ Where Is he?"
“ You can search me; last I saw of
him he was tearing the star dressln’
room up by the roots.”
Whitaker hurried on Just In time to
see Max disappearing In the direction
of the stage door, at which point he
caught up with him, and from the
manager s disjointed catechism of the
doorkeeper garnered the information
that the star had hurried out of the
building while Max was making his
announcement before the curtain.
Max swung angrily upon Whitaker.
“ Oh, It's you, is it? Perhaps you can
explain what this means? She was
looking straight at you when she dried
up ! I saw her— "
“ Perhaps you'd better find Miss Law
and ask her,” Whitaker Interrupted.
“ Have you any idea where she's
gone?"
“ Home, probably,” Max snapped In
return.
“ Come on, then.” Passing his arm
through the manager's, Whitaker drew
him out into the alley. “ We'll get a
taxi before this mob— ”
“ But, look here— what bus'ness've
you got mixing in?”
“ Ask Miss Law,” said Whitaker,
shortly. It had been on the tip of his
tongue to tell the man flatly: “ I ’m her
husband.” But he retained wit enough
to deny himself the satisfaction of this
shattering rejoinder. “ I know her,” he
added; "that's enough for the pres­
ent.”
At the entrance to the alley Max
paused to listen to the uproar within
his well-beloved theater.
“ I'd give five thousand gold dollars
If I hadn't met you this afternoon 1”
he groaned. “ I always knew that wom­
an was a Jonah 1”
“ You were calling her your mascot
two hours ago.”
“ She'll be the death of me, yet," the
little man insisted gloomily. He
stopped short, jerking his urm free.
“ Look here, I ’m not going. I ’ve got my
work cut out for me back there” — with
a jerk o f his head toward the theater.
Whitaker hesitated, then without re­
gret decided to lose him. It would be
as well to get over the Impending In­
terview without n third fuctor.
“ Very well,” he said, beckoning a
taxicab in to the curb. “ What’s the
address?”
Max gave it sullenly.
“ So long,” he added morosely as
Whitaker opened the cab door; “ sorry
I ever laid eyes on you.”
Whitaker settled back in the cab
and, oblivious to the lights of Broad­
way streaming past, tried to think. It
suddenly presented itself to his reason,
with shocking force, that his attitude
must be humbly and wholly apologetic.
It was a singular case: he had come
home to find his wife on the point of
marrying another man— and she was
the one entitled to feel aggrieved 1
Strange twist of the eternal triangle 1
Far too soon the machine swerved
Into Fifty-seventh street, slipped half­
way down the block, described a wide
arc to the northern curb and pulled
up, trembling, before a modest modern
residence between Sixth and Seventh
avenues.
Reluctantly Whitaker got out and,
on suspicion, told the chauffeur to
w a it Then, with all the alacrity of
a condemned man ascending the scaf­
fold, he ran up the steps to the front
door.
A man-servant answered his ring
without undue delay.
Was Miss Law at home? He would
see.
This Indicated that she was at home.
Whitaker tendered a card with his sur­
name penciled after tliat of Mr. Hugh
Morten In engraved script.
lie stared round him with pardon­
able wonder. If this were truly the
home of Mary t.ndlslns Whitaker— her
I property— he had budded fur better
! than he could imsslbly have foreseen
; with thnt Investment of five hundred
1 dollars six years since. Soft, shaded
lights, rare furnishings, the rich yet
delicate atmosphere o f exquisite taste.
| the hush and orderly perfection o f a
home made and mulutnlned with con­
summate art: these furnished him with
dim, provoking Intimations of an Itull-
! vlduallty to which he was a stranger—
| less than a strangei^-nothlng. . . .
Almost
Immediately
he became
aware of feminine footsteps on the
stnlrcnse— there entered to him n Indy
well past middle ago, with the dignity
and poise consistent with her years, her
manifest breeding and her Iron gray
hair.
“ Mr. Whitaker?"
He bowed.
“ I am Mrs. Secretan, a friend of
Miss Law's. She has asked me to say
that she begs to be excused, at least
for tonight. And I am further Instruct­
ed to nsk If you will be good enough
to leave your address."
“ Certainly: I’m stopping at the Ults-
Carlton ; but” — he demurred— “ I should
like to leave a note, if I may— ?”
Mrs. Secretan nodded an assent
“ You will find materials In the desk
there.” she added. Indicating nn es­
critoire.
Thanking her, Whitaker sat down,
and, after some hesitation, wrote a few
lines:
P lease don 't think 1 mean to cause you
the sligh test Inconvenience o r distress. I
shall he glad to fu rth er your wishes In
an y w ay you m ay care to designate.
P lease b elieve In m y sincere reg ret . . .
Signing and folding tills, he rose und
delivered It to Mrs. Secretan.
He found himself In the street, with
his trouble for nil reward for his pains.
He wondered what to do. where to go.
next. The driver o f the taxicab was
holding the door for him, head bent to
catch the address o f the next stop. But
his fare lingered still in doubt.
Dimly he became aware o f the vio­
lent bawlings of a brace o f news ven­
dors who were ramping through the
street, one on either sidewalk. At the
spur o f a vague wonder If the papers
were already noising abroad the news
of the fiasco at the Theater Max, Whit­
aker purchased a paper.
“ Ther’y'are, sir. 'Orrible rnolder
. . . Thnnky . . ."
The man gnlloped on, howling. But
Whitaker stood with his gaze riveted
In horror. The news Item so pointedly
offered to his attention was clenrly
legible In the light of the cnb lamps:
with the affection that a generous-spir­
ited youth hud aeeonbxl Peter Stark
and Drummond—a blind and u urea Hon­
ing affection that asked no questions
and made nothing of faults. The ca-
pnelty for such sentiment was dead It»
him, as dead na Peter Stark, as dead
as Drummond. . . .
It was nearly midnight, but the hour
found Whitaker In no humor for be«I or
the emptiness of his room. lie strode«!
into the lounge, sut «!«>wn at a detached
table In a corner, and ord«-re«l aom«*-
thlng to drink. A page, bearing s«un*>-
thlng on a salver, ambled through the
lounge, now and again opening Ids
mouth to bleat, d!spassl«mnt«*ly: "Mls-
tn Whitaker, Mixta Whitaker I”
The owner o f that tiume experienced
a flush o f exasperation. What right
had the management to cause him to
be advertised In every public room of
the eNtnhllshtnent? . . . But the
next Instnnt his resentment evapor-
ute«l, when he remembered that he r«>-
matned Mr. Hugh Morten In the mana­
gerial comprehension.
He lift«*] a finger; the boy swerved
toward him, tender«* 1«! ii blue envelope,
accepted a gratuity and depart«*!.
It was n cable message; very prob­
ably an answer to Ids to Grace Pettit.
Whitaker tore the «aivelope and un­
folded the Inclosure, glancing first nt
the signature to verify Ids surmise. As
he did s«>, he heard Ids name a second
time.
“ Pardon me; this Is Mr. Wldtnker?”
A tnnn stood h«>slde tin* little table
— one whom Whitaker had Indifferent­
ly noticed on entering ns an equully
lonely lounger at another table.
Though he frowned Involuntarily
with nnnoynnee, he couldn't well deny
his Identity.
“ Yes,” he said shortly, looking the
man up and down with a captious eye.
Yet It was hard to find much fnult
with this Invader of Ids preoccupation.
He had the poise ami the dress o f n
gentleman: dignity without aggressive­
ness, completeness without ostentation.
He hud n spare, not ungruceful body, u
plain, dark face, u humorous mouth,
steady eyes: o man euslly forgotten or
¡1
What do you think of this man
Ember? la he on the level, or la
he a smart rascal who has avll
designs on Whitaker?
Half Bathrobaa.
Tw o women were shopping In a
Washington atru««t department stem«.
One stopp«'«! In front of a price card
which ri'ad, “ H alf Bathrobes”
"W ell, what do you think of that?”
she said to her companion.
"H a lf
bathrobes! Wonder If they cut them
In two?"
"W ell, If they do I «lon't want them.
A whole one f«ir me every time." re
idled the other woman.— Indianapolis
News.
A WOMAN’S BURDENS
IN THIS WAH
Every w om an 's burdens are lightened
when she turns tu the right medicine
If
her existent1« Is made gloomy by the
clironlu
weakness,
d ell.at«
d eran ge­
ments, and painful disorders that afflict
her sex, aha will find relief and emancl-
palltin from her trouble In l>r. Pierce'«
Favorite Prescription.
If ahe'e o v e r­
worked, nervous, or “ run-tlown," aha
rinds new life end strength It's a p o w e r­
ful. Invigorating tonic and nsrvlne which
was discover««! end used by an eminent
physic Ian for many yeats In all cases of
"female complaints" and weakness
For
young gi lls just entering w ..manhood,
for women at the critical “ change of life;“
In bear ing-down sensations,
periodical
palna, ulceration. Inflammation, and every
kindred ailment, the "Favorite Pres crip ­
tion" will benefit or cure.
The "Pres criptio n" contains no alcohol
and Is s.dd In tablet or lluul.l form
Hem!
lor |o Dr Pierce. Invalids' lintel. Iluffalo,
N. Y , fur large trial pkg.— Adv.
No Doubt About It.
"It s tough when a girl marries a
worthless man "
"And modem life has Introduced an
other angle."
“ What la that?"
“ It s tougher when she gives up a
good Job."— Kansas City Journal.
Hvvvvvwwvvvwvvv
«To Uk CONTINUED.)
P E R S O N A L W A S T E H E A V Y TAX
For Constipation. Biliousness, Liver
and Kidney troubles, tako Garfield
T e a — Adv.
The Human Beast.
Standard Oil Would Soon Go Bank
"It Is a pity that a man spouting on
rupt on “ System" That Most
a vexed question can't do as the whales
Americans Follow,
do In similar action."
"W hat do you mean?"
“ The whales, you know, always pour
How muny mornings does your cook
oil up«m tho water."
spoil the ttmst? You don't know.
Nor do you keep tnbs on the 50 oth­
er apparently trilling tlilugs of every
day.
From the moment you drnw nn un­
necessary amount of water for your
morning bath until you have touched
the push button und stopped thut tire­
less electric meter nt night and retire
to rest It Is waste plus "don't know"
all along the line, writes "Ulrurd" In
the Philadelphia Public Le«lgcr.
You corn pestered men and women
If Standard o il wus as careless with need suffer no longer. Wear tho shoes
Its pennies as a man uinklug $10 m that nearly killed you before, says
week Is with his. It would be bunk- tills Cincinnati authority, b«>cauRe a
nipt before Christmas. Itut you know few drops of freezuno applied directly
well enough thut y«>u've got to be on a tender, achlug corn or callous
wide awake to snatch even one cent stops soreness at once and soon the
corn or hardened callous loosens so It
from J. 1». It.
can bo lifted out, root and all, with­
And here Is President Bca's rail­ out pain.
road, which has run passenger train*
A small bottle of freezono costs
3,000,000 miles without killing a pas­ very little at any drug store, hut will
senger. Why? Because he has made positively tako off every hard or soft
In three and one half y«-ars 2,800,000 corn or callous. This should be tried
tests to see thut his trainmen observe as It In inexpensive Slid Is said not
to Irrltato the surrounding skin.
the rules of safety.
If your druggist hasn't any freezono
But, helgh-ho, you never test any­ tell him to get a small bottle for you
thing In your smaller uffalrs to see from his wholesale drug house, it Is
how muny little spigots are pouring fine stuff arid acts like a charm every
out pennies needlessly. Just the same time.— Adv.
they ure taxing you a great deal mors
Trained.
thun your church pew.
"M iss Strongmlnd says she doesn't
Intend to marry until after the war.
Freighter Unloads Quickly.
and then she’ll marry only a soldier."
About midsummer the Itullan cargo
"W hy a soldier?"
boat Mlluzzo, undoubtedly the largest
"Because her husband will then
freighter ou the seas, completed It* know tho value of Implicit obedience.”
maiden voyugu from Naples to New — Boston Transcript.
York. The Vessel Is o f s(teclal Inter­
Friends.
est because of Its remurkable unload­
"A dog la man's best friend.”
ing facilities, which enable Its 14,000-
“ W ell,” replied the prudent citizen,
ton cargo to be discharged within for­ “considering the price o f bam and
ty-eight hours. It Is particularly de­ eggs, n pig and a hen must bo very
so so­
signed ¿or the transportation of grain comforting, even if they're n
and coal, but because of current condi­ ciable.” — Washington Star.
tions Is now currying u general cargo.
To Dyspeptics: Others have found
The ship Is 512 f«-«-t’ln length, 00.9 feet
a steady course of Garfield Tea a
ucross the beam and when loaded dls pleasant means of regaining health.
places 110,040 tons. Its single screw Il­ Why not you?— Adv.
lumed by a 4,000-horse power quadru­
ple expansion engine. The ship's un­
Last Resource.
"M y dear, tho doctor says I'm In
loading equipment Is its most wonder
ful feature according to Popular Me­ need o f a little change.”
"Then HHk him to give It to you.
chanics Magazine.
lie's got tho last of mine.” — Exchange.
LISTEN TO THIS!
SAYS CORNS LIFT
RIGHT OUT NOW
LATEST EXTRA
T R A G IC
S U IC ID E
IN
H ARLEM
R IV E R .
Stopping his autom obile In the middle
o f W a sh in gton b ridge at 7:30 p. m.. C a r­
ter 8. Drummond, the law yer, and fiance
o f Sara L a w . the actress, th rew him self
to his death In the H arlem river. The
body has not yet been recovered.
CH APTER VII.
A History.
Whitaker consulted a telephone book
without finding thut Drummond had
any private residence connection, and
then tried nt random one of the clubs
of which they had been members In
common in the days when Hugh Whit­
aker was a human entity in ttie knowl­
edge of the town. Here he had better
iuck— luck, that Is, In ns far ns It put
an end to his wanderings for the
night; he found a clerk who remem­
bered his face without remembering
bis name, and who, consequently, was
not unwilling to talk. Drummond, It
seemed, had lived at the club; he had
dined alone, that evening, in his room;
had ordered his motor car from the ad­
jacent garage for seven o’clock; and
had left nt about thut hour with u
small handbag and no companion.
Nothing further was known of his
actions save the police report. The car
had been found stationary on Wash­
ington bridge, and deserted, Drum­
mond's motor coat and cap on the
driver’s sent. Bystanders averred thnt
u man had been seen to leave the car
and precipitate himself from the bridge
to the stream below. The body was
still unrecovered. The club had noti­
fied by telegruph a brother In Sun
Francisco, the only member o f Drum­
mond’s family of whom It bad any rec­
ord. Friends, fellow members of the
club, were looking after things— doing
all that could and properly ought to be
done under the circumstances.
Whitaker walked back to his hotel.
There was no other place to go; no
place, that Is, that wooed his humor In
thnt hour. He was. Indeed, profoundly
shocked. He held himself measurably
responsible for Drummond's net of des­
peration. Next to poor Peter Stark,
whom his heart mourned without ceas­
ing, he had cared most for Drummond
of all the men he had known and liked
In the old life. Now . . .
he felt
alone and very lonely, sick of heart
and forlorn. There was, of course.
Lynch, his partner In the Antipodes;
Whitaker was fond of Lynch, but not
“ Martin Kmtmr (It ran) private
agency 1435 Broad way, Grace Pettit."
Whitaker fold«1«! tti*> paper and put Ii
away In a pocket.
“ Ho on, please," he said quietly.
“ In those «lays," Mr. Ember reaumed.
"I did xiich things Indifferently well. I
had little trouble In following the run
awnya from Southampton to Green
port. There they parte«!. He was want
cd for theft In a former position, was
arresteil, convlcte«! and sent t<* Slug
Sing; where ho preaently «lied. I'm
glad to say. , . . Miss Lndislns had
registered ut the Commercial houss a*
Mrs. Morton. She was there, alone,
under that nnme, for nearly u week
before you register«*«! as Hugh Mor­
ten. and In the space of a few hours
married tier, under your tru«> name,
and shipped her off to New Y«»rk."
"Right," Whitaker agreed steadily.
“ And thou— T"
"I traced her to the Hotel Belmont,
where she stopped overnight, then loaf
luT completely; anil so reported to
Mrs. Pettit. I came Into a little money
about thnt time, and gave up my hual
ness; gave It up, thnt Is, na far ss
placing myself nt the service «if the
piddle was concern«1«!. After some time
Mr. Drummond sought me out and
begged me to renew my aeurch for
Mrs. Whitaker; you were dead. ho told
me; she was due to come Into your
estate- a comfortable living for nu In
diqwiulimt woman.”
Whitaker Stood With His Gaze Riv­
eted in Horror.
overlooked unless he willed It other­
wise.
^
“ My name is Ember," he said quiet­
ly. “ I f you'll permit me— my rard.”
He offered a slip o f pasteboard en­
graved with the name o f Martin Em­
ber.
“ And I'll sit down, because 1
want to talk to you for u few min­
utes.”
Accordingly he sat down. Whitaker
glanced at the rard, and questionlngly
bn«-k at Mr. Ember's faee.
“ I don't know you, but . . .
What are we to talk about, please?”
The man smiled, not unpleasingly.
“ Mrs. Whitaker,” he said.
“ Mrs. Whitaker didn't send you to
me? Then how— What the deuce— I”
“ I happened to have n seat nenr your
box nt the theater tonight,” Mr. Em­
ber explained roolly. "From —what I
saw there, 1 Inferred thnt you must be
—yourself. Afterwards I got hold of
Max, confirmed my suspicion, and ex­
tracted your address from him.”
“ I see,” said Whitaker, slowly.
“ Who the devil are you?” he demanded
bluntly.
“ I wus,” said the other slowly, “ once,
a private detective. Now— I ’m a per­
son of no particular employment, of In­
dependent means, with n p«*nchunt—
you're at liberty to assume— for pok­
ing my nose Into other people's busi­
ness.
Mrs. George Pettit once em­
ployed me to find her Rlster, Miss Mary
Lndislns, who had run away with a
chauffeur named Morton.”
“ Just a minute," said Whitaker sud-
denly— "by your leave— "
Ember bossed gravely. For a thought
longer Whitaker’s gaze bored Into his
ey«‘S In vnln effort to fathom what was
going on behind them, the anlmua un­
discovered by his worda; then, remem­
bering. he looked down at tb « cable
meaasge In hla band.
The Far-Sighted Woman.
You ure, let us say, a capable ste­
nographer or a teacher; If through
any
untoward circumstances, you
should be bereft of one of your fac­
ulties necessary to your vocation,
what would you do? Much things do
happen, you know, and wise Is the
woman who cultivates a hobby or nn
avocation that employs other faculties
than the ones she uses «In!ly. If you
know nothing else but teaching, und
should lose your hearing, you would
he stranded on the Island o f the help­
less; if your dnlly work Is of the
manual sort, eultlvute a hobby for
something that requires mcntnl effort.
If your mental faculties are In use
dally, give them n rest by doing some
sort of manual work.— Exchange.
Occasionally Useful.
We all o f us give the farmers a
mighty lot of advice, but the most of
them don't mind It; sometimes there's
s bit o f It they ran use.
The Censer.
The censor Is not the man who pats
the news In the newspapers, sad he
doesn't have much lock keeping ft eat
Career of Perfection.
About the best praise that a man
can get is to come to the end of his
life and still he the man his wife Is
glad that Blie married.— Detroit Freo
Press.
The Modern Method.
W alter— What will you have, sir?
Diner—Oh, bring mo an assortment
of proteins, fats and carbohydrates— I
leavo It to you. Henry, say about 80»
calories.— Brooklyn Citizen.
Cuticura Soap
Ideal For Baby’s Skin
COUGHI NG
»noojri other* and hurt* yoa. Relie»« throat
Irritation and tickllne.and »et rid of rough*,
cold* und hoaraeneas by U k ln » at one«
PISO’S