Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1899-12-30
CHAPTER TX.

~ saw ti,ot 7 was coming. ana teTt TO
avoid me-" stanton said 10 himself as
he looked in vain along the gallery.
And really, now, 1 don't blame her
for not running 10 meet the fellow for
whom she found wife. L hope / shall
be able to show her some slight i'm
provement if ever we do chance to
meet
With that he dropped the subject and
went On with his itinerary; but the in
oident had reused in him an intense
longing for home, which grew strong
er and stronger the more he tried to
shake 1t of. He faithfully obeyed his
mute director, following its commands
through North Africa and Europe, till
months later he was strolling through
the Place de la Concorde with prom
1nent Partisan, congratulating himself
that only Spain and Italy remained be-
fore him.
The obelislx attracted his attention,
and he paused as a hieroglyphic car
xted him away to his friend in Bagdad.
Suddenly her face shut out the ODE
1ikk. Her voice drowned all other
sounds. Her eyes flashed In his
thoughts.
he turned, as pair of fiery cobs dashed
pest him towards the Bots de Borlogne.
She was driving them. Beside her sat
q white-haired man, and even In the
first shock Stanton realized that he had
seen his face before. Behind them sat
the footmaD.
Her eyes met his in one fash of recoR-
milton, but before he could move she
was gone. He stood silently watching
while the carriage disappeared between
the marble groups. Only vaguely he
realized that the Frenchman was say
1ngs
$50 you know her. Happy mani But
you cannot win her, nor can anyone
else. They say she has the wealth to
purchase q prince, but she is always
beside her father. She has beauty TO
capture anything. but she will look at
nothing. There are noblemen without
number who would give their titles for
such n glance as you received. Happy
mani How envy you'll"
Stanton WINGED as he thought how he
had questioned that woman, in his Of
Gee, less than year before.
How she must have laughed at me.
even If she did pity me and provide me
with a wifel" he thought, as they
walked away. The idea grew and de-
veloPed, till he said to himself: "rm
under no obligations not to see this
woman. She came to me without an
apology, when she had business. I
will go TO her. I'll tell her am deter
mined to be different man and make
myself worthy of real wife. She
hal e. I'll
assistance. She may be willing to help
me TO win her love-"
He finally recalled the fathers face
as that of Thaddeus Braddon, of Brad
don & Burridge. One of the last vic
tories he had won at the bar was an
almost hopeless case against Braddon
s. Burridge. Stanton had noticed only
the junior partner In the court room,
but Braddon was there, and chuclxled
In a most unaccountable way as John
Olmstead's nephew twisted his wit
nesses about till they said precisely
what they did not mean and the case
went against him in spite of glaring
facts to the contrary.
Stanton easily learned the location
OF their lodgings. He found the place
the next afternoon, and learned from
a servant that Mr.. Braddon and his
daughter had left Paris quite suddenly
and unexpectedly that morning, even
forgetting TO tell him where they were
going or when they would return.
The tips of his teeth showed under
his mustache as Stanton walked slowly
away, saying to himself:
$50 she did know me, and there's no
doubt she intends to avoid me. Well,
I'll not keep her away from Paris, right
in the height of the season. I'll leave
myself in the morning. But we shall
meet sometime, my beauty, on this side
of the ocean or the other; and when we
do I have word to say to you. Tn
ashamed of the man you knew me, but
Tn not ashamed to look you In the face
and tell you so. You are my only pos
sible means of reaching Esther Thorn
dixie, and you must help me. You must.
That's all there is to it."
Stanton took pains to have definite
statements appear, In the two Journals
which all Americans read, that he had
left Paris for Spain and Italy, whence
he should sail for America late in No
vember, without returning to the cap
ital.
IF we meet again 1t will be your OWL
fault now, and you will have to lister
TO me. See?" he observed; but the
weeks slipped away without such al
incident, and ne found himself in Ma
pies upon the eve of sailing home.
Home?
How he had longed for that time Il
comet
Now IL suddenly appeared to him tina
he had no home.
The stately, old-fashioned mansion
that he loved would be we'll aired an.
warmed to receive him on the 9th o
December, for he had already sent III
order to Sam and his wife. But wa
that all there was Of home?