The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1889-03-28

At that moment one of the executive
committee passed and whispered
caution. If there was q pickpocket in
the building great care must be OBJ
served, and undoubtedly both the lace
fichu and fan would be found. So the
colonel, in no enviable frame of mind,
departed to meet Miss Mirabeau and
to communicate to her the dreadful in
| telligence. To his surprise she was
remarkably sweet and bore her full
| share of the guilt.
Il had no right colonel. to ask you
| to take charge of that valuable fan. 1t
was not stolen from you it was stolen
from me, ''and she looked at him kindly.
An electric telegraph shot through
the colonel from head to heel
.'By Joven said lie to himself, "a
woman with a sense of justice, and q
| very pretty woman, toor'
But, although they had q very agree
BILE half hour bewailing their woes,
Miss Mirabeau turned pale when she
said:
"Who is to tell Mrs. McElroy?"
1--WE must wait a few days and SEQ
the result of Mr.. Smiths search,' said
the colonel. Then. if it is really ire
vocably lost. will pay for it. if cam"
"Oh, you can'tr said Miss Mirabeau.
at is an heirloom"
The colonel thought there were some
looms on which nothing but despair
was woven, but he looked at Miss
Mirabeau.
''Let us take it calmly and 60 to the
| opening tonight"
"Oh, no': said the careless Emily,
shivering; Il can never face Mrs. Nc
Elroy until learn the very worst"
The lace tichu was found, but the
! fan was not, and the colonel and Emily
walked about like suspected murder
| ers. Their visits to the exhibition were
made furtively, and like undetected
criminals they stunned Mrs. McElroy.
| Strangely enough that irate lady did
not make any inquiries for her fan,
and it was observed that she did not
come to the exhibition; all of which
was ominous.
Nothing is more sweet than mutual
| Joy. Colonel Beauclerc would never
have found out how charming Emily
Mirabeau could be had it not been for
| the anxious and mysterious secret
which now bound them together. They
grew intimate with policemen, en-
ployed detectives, and were to be seen
together in pawnshops. Wherever a
stolen fan could 90, there, together
! did this handsome and unusual couple
| go. That fan must be found.
However, this was not the worst of
it. The colonel came one day with a
paper in his hand. His martial brow
was clouded.
Read that" said he to Miss Mira
beau, almost assuming an after break
fast martial air. Read that Emily"
She started-he had never called her
emily" until this minute.
1t was a low paper, one she had
never seen before, still it was print
that was the terrible fact. The iron
machinery of the patent printing press
had caught up their trouble, and was
/ to blazon it to an unsympathizing
world. The paragraph read thus:
"Those cOnversant with a certain
gay set in this city cannot have failed
to hear that losses have occurred, quite
unaccountably, in the most aristocratic
| circles, and, indeed, we fear that some
| of the deposits ut the noted exposition
| have not all found their way to the
glass cases. A striking looking in
dividual, with prematureIy gray hair
and certain so called beauty, great
| favorte with the ladies, and the
possessor of foreign name and title,
| is more than suspected of being little
| better than a thief.
"Oh, DEAR" said poor Emily, quite
crushed; $50 we have got to thatr'
Dear, did you say?' asked the
colonel, sand 'we'?' and he looked
| volumes.
''At any rate" said she, II can prove
| your innocence. Let me write to this
paper and tell the whole story" and
she moved toward her desk.
NO" said he, "that would delight
them too much; that would be putting
on the cap"
The exposition came to an end, and
everything was sent safely home to its
| owner. Not loss of any kind oc-
Cured excepting that of Mrs. McElroy' s
fan. The colonel had spent no end of
money to find it, but the thief remained
concealed Both he and Emily had
lost flesh and color, but their faces
looked as if they had found something
else of greater value.
1utS al Ioui, anu SN0 W
eve. in Mrs. Majoribanks' parlor. Mrs.
| Maioribanks was their mutual friend
and the repository of their two secrets.
| Il have found a wife, if | have lost a
FAM" said the colonel, tenderly, look
ing down at Emily. Just then Miss
Lomax was announced.
"Ah, WE'LL" said she, "we are through
with the great work-aren't you glad,
Mrs. Maioribanks? How do you do,
Emily? Good morning colonel. Why,
how happy you all look!'
Mrs. Majoribanks told her of the en-
gagement, and congratulations fol-
lowed freely.
But said Emily, "we shall not
announce it until that dreadful fan is
| found"
Fan found!" said Miss Lomax,
"why. it is found. l saw Mrs. McElroy
at the party last evening, and she had
it in her hand
What? Where? How?" said the
colonel and Emily and Mrs. Majori-
banks, all in a breath.
Il don't know" said Miss lomax,
who had evidently not been in the least
excited or moved by the loss of Mrs.
McElroy's fan. which had so agitated
these two people; Il only knew she
had it. and was telling the usual story
about its being an heirloom. and the
disquisition which followed about
Watteau and the Spanish school, don't
you remember? And she said, show
ing it to Count de Fois, Just to think.
this fan was not considered good
enough to be exhibited.
Now Emily and the colonel were in a
new dilemma. Had Mrs. McElroy ad-
vertised for her fan, and had she re-
covered it through the police9 If So,
they were still guilty, and ought to
find out what reward she had paid, and
what expenses she had incurred, for
which they, the careless and now
happy couple, were undoubtedly re-
sponsible. The colonel breathed free
er and deeper as he reflected that he