The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-09-04
The MARKED CARDS.
BY CLINTON ROSS.

abandoned store. On the table were
the two packs of dirty cards. Just as
they had been left the day of the divi-
sion. They had cut in the bare inner
room. which hadn't beel disturbed
since. My father picked up these in
struments of his bad luck. and he saw
, that the pack Smith had used had heen
marked"
How awful" the listener said. And
you might have had money, If it hadn't
been"
IF it hadn't been for Smiths dishon-
esty, yes. Miss Wolverton. But, to re-
turn to the story. My father went to
] Smith, whom he accused, but Smith
looked him in the face and laughed.
You are crazy, man. And you haven't
any proof. Who'd believe your"
Was that the end of it?" the girl
asked, gently.
mo, not the end of it. Ny father
could prove nothing, indeed. His af-
fairs went from bad to worse. He left
| California penniless. Later in the east,
he accumulated the little money he was
able to leave me. But it was al
ways a hard struggle for him and my
mother, who died shortly after 1 was
born
And Smith? that's not the name"
| Melville hesitatei
NO. that's not the name It's a WELL
known name, but we will let it remain
Smith. Everything Smith touched be-
came money; he was accused of dishon-
esty many times in the course of his
career; but nothing was ever proven;
he succeeded. and is today one of the
powerful men of the country
They We're silent, the girl grave.
And that's the reason you think you
are not in the class of BERTHE Townley?
Wen, don't want you to be in that
class"
IF you would care that much" said
he. half lightly. half earnestly.
"Oh. like you," she said, cheerily,
as she might have said she liked a fox
terrier
And the mans dishonesty was really
your blessing; it made you do things.
Oh, know; 1 know a lot of men, and
the men of the Far Westchester set
! are so tiresome."
ooh, thanks" said he, lamely
But you mustn't be tiresome. Do
you see that line there? That's Sandy
Hook; 1 know it. 1 have seen it that
way a dozen times. And-I must be
going below. Oh, have been so much
interested"
And she went away brightly smiling.
and he felt suddenly the least like a
fool. This feeling was increased when
ne lOullu III the Ol ldnUt0S IndI
she had only cool hand and a distant
so glad to have met YOU" and no ac-
acknowledgement of the fact that he had
asked to call, which she plainly had
evaded. He felt revengeful and a bit
of an anarchist. And the next morn
ing when he was reporting to Mr.. Win
field his success in London, and being
complimented by the company's head,
his success seemed cheap; he had a
MI or hafn h Of ierHf n erf,
bred looking. exquisitely gowned young
woman, surrounded by hippantly gay
persons whose world was not his, and
never could be; for when one is max
ing his way ploddingly, with no partic-
ular capital, he can't reasonably expect
that way to be made before he may be
gray and all the desires for pleasure,
life's good things. quite gone.
1t may be supposed that Miss VOL
verton put the young man of the At
lantic out of her mind. Perhaps she
had some thoughts of him, or else she
never would have repeated the story
he had told her at a dinner where her
father was. most unusually, her escort.
At a dinner no one knows it as duty
to do his part Nell did not care to be
lacking, and wanted her bon mot to be
as natty as anOther's, and her story as
spirited. For she waged little strife
to make the world she knew hold her
clever. Now she couldn't, try as she
would, think of another story than the
one Melville had told her.
Mary Winfield introduced me to
very entertaining man on the Luca-
nia-a man who does things, you
know
what does he do. horses or
yachts ?"said BERTHE Townley. "Oh, 1
say, Nell, you don't mean that serious
faced chap you were incoming about
with so much?"
THE very man." Miss Wolverton
said, without turning color.
And she told Melville's story.
How extraordinary" gasped Mrs.
Pemberton. You do meet such strange
people at sea"
Business methods are oftentimes
dishonest" said Judge forbid. pomp
ously. Yet.
Your story isn't funny enough"
criticised BERTHE Townley.
Samuel Wolverton-I should say
Sam" the great Sam-held his nose in
his port, he's a. thin, sharp-featured,
always wonders how he succeeded in
possessing such daughter.
Driving home, he said to Nell:
IF were you, don't think I'd try to
tell stories at dinner"
why, papa?"
It's undignlhed.
DO you think so?" she said petu-
lantly. She usually had him well in
hand.
What did you say that mans name
is?'' he asked, after a moment.
Burke Melville
Suddenly she turned.
Papa, you were in California;"
Yes; what of it?'
Did you ever hear a story like
that?"
Il have heard a lot of stories; Cali
fornia is full of 'em. Read Bret Harte.
AS for your acquaintance, he was prob
ably EARNING"
mo, no, he wasn't"
What makes you think that?"
He isn't that kind of a man."
Nell, / think that you can take care
of yourself, but 1 don't believe you can
judge men,"
'Oh, trust me for that" she said, air.
lily; and at the moment she was indeed
trying to judge no less a person than
her father. She had thought that she
understood him. Had she? He was
fond of her-he denied her nothing, and
she loved him-but there were depths
she could not fathom, and she knew
no more of his real life, even less, than
an outsider.
But now a sudden fear possessed
her. She rushed upstairs to a little
room which she used for her writing
table and her books, and eagerly she
looked for a paper in a certain English
magazine, American Millionaires, No.
X, Samuel Wolverton." Had she been
mistaken? And then she read: THE