The Sunday morning news. [volume] (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1886-1891, 1889-08-04

fasren the DroOcn on hlmSeir, II you nave
40 objection"
Nora rang for her maid, sent her for
her ball dress and saw the detective,
who was quiet, rather hungry looking
man, like shabby waiter, dexterously
attach the jewel by means of a little
wire he had brought with him.
~ defy any ordinary thief to snatch
that" he said, looking admiringly at his
handiwork. "What beauty 1t ISL he
muImured rapturously; then, promising
to follow their broughan in cab and be
at the exhibition as soon as they were,
he left the room, as he had entered it,
with a noiseless swiftness that Nora
thought must be extremely useful in his
professional duties.
The Indian, the Chinese and several of
the other courts lent to the rajah for the
occasion, were arranged so as to form a
magnificent suite of reception rooms
The gardens were illuminated, and the
terrace on to which the princes private
rooms opened turned into bower of
roses.
Nora Cannock was beautiful woman.
but it required very special order of
beauty and dress to shine among fiat,
apart from metaphor, "glittering thong"
The diamond, the great flashing, daz-
zling lakelet that seemed to hold heart
of lurid fire within it, obtained this dis
tinction for its wearer. The Orange dia-
mond became a prevailing topic Of dis
cussion. The rajah, who blazed, as
Nora said to her husband, like tree at
Botanical gardens fete, one mass of
colored jewels, was attracted at once by
the rare splendor of the great diamond.
He had passion for precious stones,
and eagerly asked all about it.
The detective was present; he had
walked behind his ten thousand pound
charge into the exhibition, and every now
and then Nora saw him unobtrusively
moving about. Nora had already been
glad Of his watchfulness, for between her
carriage and the entrance she had fallen
pace or two behind her husband, who
had a proper martial stride, and sudden
ly man, artisan or mechanic, had APP
peared, blocking her way for single in
slant. He had looked full in her face,
with an eager rather than impudent air,
and asked in distinct but rough voice,
sWhere Is Jim9"
She glanced back, satisfied to see the
detectives sallow, wien face close at
hand. and the man disappeared in the
darkness, but his voice fingered in her
ear She was sensitive to tones, and
there was peculiar ring of pain and
bitterness in it.
L. 4 ~. f,.llx
shut mad from misery of some kind"
and again and again that ''Where is
Jim?"-the aimless query seemingly
wrung from deeply troubled SQUIRE
CURED to her memory.
Itset her fancifully thinking by and by
Of the many astray and wandering in this
perplexed world. This ball was very
gorgeous and very pleasant, but it seem
ed to her, now that she was little tired,
just one blazing spot of beauty and lux
ury in wide, wide sea Of sadness and
wistful seeking after many things lost or
unobtainable.
"There must be q good many lost Jims
about" she thought with little smile,
as her memory fitted back good
many years to an old young love of
hers, a young fellow whose name, being
too romantic and sounding for Saxon
taste, had always been known as slim"
by his intimate friends. lie had spent
q year in her old home, and it had been
year of great enjoyment, endless fun.
merging by degrees into serious love
making. He had not been the most
satisfactory of youths, rather a scape-
grace, in short, but terribly winning, and
when he went away to make a fortune,
after showing greater capacity for spend
ing one, Nora's heart was very near
breaking. This was long ago, and she
was far happier woman than if she
had had the misfortune to marry that
first love of hers. Nevertheless, there
was always soft spot in her heart for
him, and she feproached herself for hav-
ing allowed the time to slip by for an
swering his last letter. She resolved to
write on the chance of his being still in
the same place. AL these reflections
flashed in and out of the brief spaces
during which she was not actually In
conversation with ono friend or another,
while the ball was running out its bril-
liant sands.
Col Cannock meanwhile was very
well amused, having found many an old
acquaintance, chiefly civil servants in
high posts, on leave. He had lived
so long In India that to meet them
was refreshing excitement for him.
One of them, Sir Meredith Walton, who
had just retired into private life with his
K. @. NJ. G., was discovered by him at q
whist table. Walton's play was thing
to watch respectfully. devoutly indeed,
by true whist player, and Col. Can
mock stationed himself behind his back.
Presently he resigned his seat to another
devotee of the science, and went for a
stroll with Cannock, having up to this
time seen nothing but the four suits and
the green cloth. But one flash Of his
keen hazel eyes took In more than Col.
Cannock, who was talking without cessa-
ton, had absorbed in the course of hours
People, things, places, We're ticketed by
some electric mind process, and popped
into their inches, not to be moved again.
Cannock had told the story of the