15
HOME AND FARM MAGAZINE SECTION
HOME AND FARM MAGAZINE SECTION SERIAL.
By
Oeo. B arr
M cCutcheon
A Fool and His Money
Copyright, 1Ö13,
By Oeo. B arr
McCutcheon.
the story! We are all sworn to secrecy. m ay happen to her. I t is ju s t such silly to do so, and to defend her if th e w orst
It was only on th a t condition th a t he acts as th is th a t m ake A m erican girls were to happen.
Q consented to eome w ith u s .”
Mr. Pie»» tos»ed hi» c ig arette over
the laughing stocks of the whole world.
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“ Indeed! ”
I give you my w ord I am alm ost the railing and sauntered over to join
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She hesitated, u ncom fortably placed asham ed to have people point me out as.
“ I suppose y o u ’ve been discussing
betw een tw o d uties. She owed one to and say : ‘T here goes an A m erican.
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the view, ’ he said as be came up.
I’o<di! ' “
<e> him and one to me.
By th is tim e I had m yself p re tty There was a mean smile on his—yes, it
“ It is only fa ir, Jo h n , th a t you should
4
■?> know th a t Pless is no t his real n am e,” well in hand.
was a rath e r haudsoino face and the
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“ I d aresay the m other loved the two ladies sta rte d guiltily. The atta c k
she said, low ering her voice. ‘ ‘ But, of
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<•> course, we stan d sponsor fo r him, so child, w hich ought to condone one on hi» part was particularly direct when
among her m ultitude of sins. 1 ta k e it, one stops to consider th a t there wusu t
it is all r ig h t.”
“ Your word is su ffic ie n t, E lsie .”
of course, th a t she was e n tirely to any view to be had from where we
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She seemed to be d eb atin g some in blame fo r ev ery th in g th a t happened. ” were sittin g , unless one could call a
They nt once proceeded to te a r the three-decked p la s te re r's scaffolding a
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<•> moved a little closer to me.
poor little m other to shreds, delicately view.
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“ W e've been discussing the recent
“ His life is a—a tr a g e d y ,” she w his and w ith finesse, to bo sure, b u t none
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No doubt they im provem ents about th e castle, Mr.
<§- pered. “ H is h e a rt is broken, 1 firm ly th e less completely.
P le s s,” said I w ith so much directness
<?> believe. O h !”
m eant to be charitable.
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The B illy Sm iths came up. Elsie p ro
“ This is w hat a silly A m erican no th at I felt Mrs. B illy S m ith 's arm
body gets for try in g to be somebody stiffen ami suspected a general tension
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“ We were sp eak in g o f Mr. P le ss,” over here just because her fa th e r has of nerves from head to foot.
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“ You sh o u ld n 't s|«iil the place, Mr.
said 1. “ He has a broken h e a rt.”
a tru n k fu l of m illions,” said Elsie, eon
The newcomers looked hard at poor eluding a ra th e r peevish estim ate of S m a rt,” said lie, w ith a careless glauce
0.
the conjugal effro n te ry laid a t the door about him.
<*x Elsie.
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“ D o n ’t ruin the ru in s,” added Billy
“ Broken fid d le s tic k s ,” said Billy of Mr. P le s s ’ late wife.
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Sm ith, of the diplom atic corps.
Sm
ith,
nudging
Elsie
until
she
made
“
Or
ju
s
t
because
one
of
these
spend
•
“ W hat tim e do we d in e ? “ asked Mr.
room for him beside her on the long th r if t foreigners has a title fo r s a le ,"
Pless, w ith a suppressed yawn.
<$> eouch. I prom ptly made room for B etty said Billy Sm ith sarcastically.
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“ A t e ig h t,” said Elsie prom ptly.
“ H e was deeply in love w ith her
Bd|y.
We were in the h abit of dining a t
“ We ought to tell John just a little when they were m arrie d ,” said his wife.
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*•£ about h im ,“ said Elsie defensively. “ It ” 1 d o n ’t believe it was his fa u lt th at seven th irty , but 1 was grow ing accus
<•' is due him, B illy .”
they d id n 't get along well to g e th e r.” tomed to the over riding process, so a l
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“
But
d
o
n
't
tell
him
th
e
fellow
's
“ The tru th of th e m a tte r is ,” said lowed my dinner hour to be changed
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Elsie w ith fin a lity , “ «lie c o u ld n ’t live w ithout a word.
<$> heart is broken. T h a t's r o t .”
“ 1 th in k I ’ll ta k e a n a p .” said he.
<♦?
“ I t i s n ’t r o t ,”
said his wife. up to her estate. She was a drug, a
<$ “ W o u ld n 't your h eart be b ro k e n ? ”
stone about his neck I t was like put W ith a languid smile and a little flau n t
♦
He crossed his legs com fortably.
tin g o n e ’s w aitress at the heuil of the of his hand as if dism issing us, he
“ W o u ld n 't i t ? ” repeated B etty Billy. tab le and expecting her to m ake good moved languidly off, but stop|>ed a fte r
H E R E was .1 Russian baron (th e
a few steps to say to me: “ W e'll ex
“ N ot if i t were as porous as his. as a h o stess.”
man who had to bo kneaded)
tho last syllable o f whose name You c a n 't break a sponge, my d e a r.”
“ W hat was her social stan d in g in plore the castle tom orrow , Mr. Sm art,
if i t 's ju s t the same to y o u .” He spoke
“ W hat happened to i t ? ” 1 inquired, New Y o rk ? " I enquired.
w as vitcli, the first five evading
me in a perpetual chase up and niildlv interested.
“ Oh, good en o u g h .” said B etty w ith a very slight accent and in a
“ W om en,” said B illy impresaively.
down the alphabet. F or I rev ity ‘s sake,
Billy. “ She was in th e sm artest set, peculiarly a ttra c tiv e manner. There was
charm to the man, I was bound to ad
“ Then i t 's easily p a tc h e d ,” said I. if th a t is a reco m m endation.”
I ’ll call him Fm oviteh. The French
v a le t's m aster was a Viennese gentle ‘ ‘ Like cures like. ”
“ Then you adm it, both of you, that mit. “ 1 knew Schlosa H ethhoefeu very
“ You d o n 't un d erstan d , J o h n ,” said th e best of our A m erican girls fall well. I t is an old stam ping ground of
man of tw enty six or eig h t ( 1 heard ),
but who looked forty. 1 found myself Elsie g rav ely . “ He was m arried to a short of being all th a t is required over m in e.' ’
“ In d eed ,” said I, a ffectin g surprise.
w ondering how dear, p u ritan ic, little tieaut ifu l— ' ’
here. In other words, they c a n 't hold
“ 1 spent a very joyous season here
“ Now, Elsie, y o u ’re te llin g ,” ca u a candle to th e E u ro p ean s.”
Elsie Hazz.srd could have fallen in with
two such uuam iable . r e e k s as these fel tioned B etty .B illy .
“ N ot at a ll ,” they both said in a not so many years ago. H oheudahl is
lows appeared to be a t firs t sight.
“ W ell,” said Elsie doggedly, “ I'm flash.
a bosom tr ie n d .”
W hen he was quite out of hearing,
The A u stria n 's name teas Pleas. He determ ined to tell th is much— his name
“ T h a t's the w ay it sounds to m e.”
was a plain m ister. The more I saw of is n 't Pless. his w ife got a divorce from
Elsie seemed repu-ntant. ‘ ‘ I suppose B illy Sm ith leaned over and said to me:
him the firs t afternoon th e more I won him, and now she lias tak en th eir child we are a little hard on the poor thing. “ He spent ins honeymoon here, old
dered at George H azzard 's carelessness. and run o ff w ith it and th ey c a n 't find ¡She was very young, you se e .”
man. I t was the g ir ls ’ idea to bring
Then th ere were two v ery b right and —w h a t’s th e m a tte r ? ”
“ Wfiat you mean to say, then, is th a t him here to assuage the present w ith
My eyes w ere alm ost popping from she w a sn 't good enough for Mr. Pless memories of the p ast. Q uite a p re tty
charm ing A m ericans, th e B illy Smiths.
He was connected w ith the American my head.
sentim ent, c li? ”
and his c o te rie .”
“ Is— is he a c o u n t? ” I cried, so loud
Em bassy a t V ienna, and I liked him
“ I t depends on how he spent i t , ”
“ N o , not ju s t precisely th a t ,” ad
from the sta rt. You could tell th a t he ly th a t th e y all said “ a h !” and shot m itted B etty Billy Sm ith. ‘ ‘ She made I said significantly. Sm ith grinned p-
was th e sort of a chap who is bound apprehensive glances tow ard th e pseudo a bid for him and got him, and my con provingly. Being a diplom at, he sensed
to get on in th e world by simply look Mr Bless.
ten tio n is th a t she should have lived my m eaning a t once.
“ G oodness!” said Elsie in alarm . up to th e b a rg a in .”
ing a t his wife. The man who could
“ I t w as a lot of m oney,” he said.
win the love and support o f such an a t ‘ ‘ Don t shout, John. ’ ’
A t dinner the Russian baron, who
“ W a sn 't he p aid in fu ll? ” I asked,
B illv Sm ith regarded me sjieculative- w ith a slig h t sneer.
tra c tiv e creatu re must of necessity have
exam ined every p article of food he ate
qu alificatio n s to spare. She was very- ly. “ I d aresay Mr. S m art has read all
w ith g reat care and discrim ination, evi
“ W hat do you m e a n ? ”
b eau tifu l and very clever. Somehow the about the a f f a ir in the newspapers.
dently looking fo r poison, em barrassed
“ D id n ’t he g et his m oney?”
u n fo rg etab le resplendency of my erst T h ey 'v e had n othing else lately. I
“ 1 am sure I d o n ’t see w hat money me in the usual fashion by asking how
while ty p ist i who m arried the jew ele r's w o n 't say he is a count, and 1 w o n 't has to do w ith the e a se .” said Elsie, 1 w rite my books, w here 1 get my plots,
clerk) fad ed into a pale, in effectiv e say he is n 't. W e're bound by a deep, w ith dig n ity . “ Mr. I’less is a poor man and all th e rest of tho questions th a t
drab when opposed to th e eharm s of dark, sin ister o ath, sealed w ith blood.” I 'v e heard. T here could net have been have become so h atefu lly unansw erable,
“ I h a v e n 't seen a n y th in g about it very mnch of a m arriage se ttle m e n t.” ending up by blandly enquiring w hat I
Mrs. B etty Billy Sm ith. (They all call
in the p a p e rs ,” said 1, try in g to recover
ed her B e tty Billy.)
‘ ‘ A mere million t«i s ta rt w ith ,” re had w ritten . This was made especially
A fte r luncheon I got Elsie o ff in a my self possession which had sustained m arked B illy S m ith ironically. ‘ ‘ I t ’s hum iliating by the p refato ry rem ark
corner and plied her w ith questions con a most trem endous shock.
all gone, my d ear Elsie, and I g ath er th a t ho bad ’ived in W ashington for
“ T hank h e a v e n !” cried Elsie d ev o u t th a t fath er-in -law locked the trunk you five y ears anil had read ev ery th in g th a t
eerning her friends. The Billy Sm iths
were easily accounted for. T hey be ly-
speak of and hid the key. You d o n 't was w orth reading.
“ Do you mean to say you w o n 't tell know women as well as I de, Mr. Sm art.
longed to the most exclusive set in
I f Elsie nail been a man I should have
New York sn d N ew port. He had an me his n a m e ? ” T dem anded.
Both of these rliarriiing ladies pro kicked her for fu rth e r confounding ine
Elsie eyed me suspiciously. “ W hy fessed to adore Mr. Vies»' w ife up to by m entioning the title s o f all my books
incom prehensible lot o f money and a
ta s te for th e diplom atic service. Some did you ask if he is a c o u n t? ”
th e tim e th e tria l fo r divorce came up. and saying th a t be surely m ust have
“ I have a vague recollection of hear Now th e y 'v e g o t th eir hammers and read them , as everybody did, th ereb y
day he would be an am bassador. The
Baron was in th e R ussian embassy and ing some one speak of a count having hat pins out for her a n d — ”
supplying him with th e chance to Irtiim-
trouble w ith his young A m erican wife,
w as really a very nice boy.
“ T h at is n 't tru e, B illy S m ith ,” cried phantly say th a t h e 'd be hanged if h e 'd
divorce, or som ething of th e sort. A Elsie in a fierce whisper. “ We stood ever heard o f any one of them . I shall
“ B oyI ” I exclaimed.
“ H e is not more th a n th ir ty ,’ ’ said very prom inent New York g irl, if I'm by her until she disobeyed the m andate alw ays console m yself with the jo y
she. “ Yon w o u ld n 't call th a t o ld .” not m istaken. All very hazy, however. — or w hatever jo u call it—of the court. ful th o n g .i. th a t I c o u ld n 't rem em ber
T here w as nothing I eonld say to th a t W hat is his n a m e ? ”
She did steal th e child, and you c a n ’t his in fern al nam e and would now make
“ J o h n ,” said Mrs. H azxard firm ly, deny i t . ”
and still be a p erfect host. B ut to you
it a point never to do so.
I declare th a t he w a s n 't a day under “ you m ust not ask us to tell you. W on't
Mr. l ’lrss openly made love to Elsie
“ Poor little k id d ie ,” said he, and
fifty . How blind women can be! Or you please u n d e rs ta n d ? ”
from his tone I g ath ered th at all was and th e Baron openly m ade love to
“ The poor fellow is alm ost distracted.
is silly the word I
not rosy in th e life o f the in fa n t in B etty B illy. B eing a sort of non-com
From w here we sat th e figure of Mr. Really, Mr S m art, we planned th is little, th is game of b a ttled o re and shuttle m ittal bachelor, I ranged m yself w ith
Pless was p lainly risib le in the loggia. visit here sim ply in o rd er to— to tak e eock.
the tw o abandoned husbands and we
He was alone, leaning ag ain st the low him out o f him self fo r a while. I t has
had quite a reckless tim e of it, talking
To
my
disgust,
tbe
thre->
of
them
r
e
wall and looking down upon the river. been such a trag ed y fo r him. He wor
w ith u n in terru p ted devilishneaa about
fused
tc
en
lig
h
ten
me
fu
rth
e
r
as
to
He p uffed idly at a cig arette. H is Coal shipped th e c h ild .” I t was Mrs. Billy
the grow th of A m erican d e n tistry in
the
history,
id
en
tity
or
ch
aracter
of
black h air grew very sleek on his small who spoke.
European cap itals, th e w ay one has hie
“ And th e m other made way with eith er Mr. or Mr«. Pless, but o f coarse nails m anicured in G erm any, tb e upset
ish head and his shoulders were rath er
I
knew
th
a
t
1
was
e
n
te
rta
in
in
g
under
high, as if pinched upw ard by a tend h im ? ” I queried, reso rtin g to a sud
my roof, by th e most ex trao rd in ary co price of hot bouse straw berries, th e
denly acquired cunning.
ency to defy a weak spine.
relativ e m erit o f Freneh and English
“ I t is a g ir l,” said Elsie in a loud incidence, th e C ount snd Countess o f bulls, the continued progress of tho
“ And th is Mr. Pless. who is b e t ”
Som
ething
or
oth
er,
who
were
a
t
war,
The
Elsie was looking a t th e rakish yonng w hisper. “ The lov eliest girl.
w eather and sundry other topics of
man w ith a p ity in g expression in her m other appeared in V ienna about three and the ehild th e y were fig h tin g for similar piquancy
w
ith
m
otives
o
f
an
en
tirely
opposite
weeks or a mouth ngo an d —w h iff! O ff
tender bine eyes.
(T o Be C ontinued.)
“ Poor fello w ,' she sighed. “ H e is goes th e ehild. A bducted— kidnapied! nature.
Right or wrong, my sympathies were
in g reat trouble, John. We hoped th a t And the co u rt had g ran ted him th e eus
Hheep will sometimes eat weeds, but
if we got him o ff here w here it is quiet tody of tb e child. T h a t ’s w h at make» with tbe refuge* in the lonely oast wing.
he m ight be able to fo rg e t— Oh,-fc*it ■t so terrib le. I f she is eau g b t anyw here I was ail tb e more determ ined now to it is gen. rally tmasua* they have noth
I am not supposed to tell you a word of ia E urope—well, 1 don't know « h a t shield her as fa r as it lay ia my power ing better.
♦
♦
4'
4*
**
SY N O P SIS OF PR E V IO U S ,
IN STA LLM EN TS.
In the opening instalm ent« of “ A
Fool and H is M oney,” Geo. Barr Mr
C uteheon’s charming novel, serial
rights for which have been specially
obtained for the Home and Farm
M agazine Section, we learn of John
B ellam y Smart, the young man who
<?> ia tellin g this story. l ie ha» ju st
4* w ritten his first novel, and at tho
sam e tim e has fallen heir to an im-
m ense fortune left him by his uncle
♦
A fter a v isit to London, Smart
tak es a trip on the River Danube.
A fter fin ding an old world town, he
discovers an ancient castle, which he
purchases from its owner, the Count.
W ith h is secretary, Poopendyke, he
€> tak es poasession o f tho immense
structure, which is supposed to be
<» tenanted only by the caretaker and
h it fam ily, the Schm idts. Later Smart
fin d s a woman who is in possession
o f a wing of the castle that is barred
to him. She grants a brief interview ,
but refuses to leave
The servants
appear to be in league with her, and
€> Kmart is in a quandary. Later he is
€> captivated by the w it and beauty of
4?» the m ysterious lady and no longer
urges her departure. l i e fiuds that
she is divorced from a w orthless and
schem ing A ustrian Count, who w as
*•» awarded the custody of the la d y 's
child. The Count dem ands a m illion
£» dollars from his rich American father
<£> in law, when he would give it up. Tho
mother abducts the child and selects
the castle as a hiding place. Smart
<•> fears trouble with tli« authorities,
<?> but decides to a ssist the fair divorcee,
although she warns him of tho
4> danger. A number o f v isito rs makes
4»> it d ifficu lt to keep secret the pres
4*> ence of the Countess in the castle.
♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ 4 • • • • • ? ♦ ♦ ♦ ,
T
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