The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-09-10

| decrept old gentleman who had served as
| model for her graphic description Of Age Butno.
| his hair and eyes were still dark his face Arm and
| full and his figure erect Thus treasured he
hazarded, suppose you have him. thought?
mo. she said. L haven't The agent told mo
about him. deal exclusively with the agent who
transmits all payments TO the former owner
Halliday thought Of the agent then for the
| first time since looking into the woman's yellow
eyes All, yes, the agent he said will you
kindly tell me something about him, please?
| What sort Of fellow is he anyway
| The young woman laughed. There, she said,
| you have made mistake in regard to sex. He
| isn't man at all. He is woman"
| This sent Halliday's mind working in a
vein. II the present agent was woman then
what had become of his own chosen representative?
| The only explanation that he could hit upon
that he had probably been murdered by this
scrupulous female agent who for years had been
pursuing her nefarious scheme of selling his,
Hallidays property, the installment plan
and putting the monthly payments into her own
pocket The prospect made him boil at first but
finally he cooled down and Well shall be even
more anxious to hear about him in that case, he
| added. suavely.
| But the young woman not 10 be melted by
soft tones. 1t is too bad, she said: but really.
cannot crafty your curiosity on that point The
estate agent not business woman at all, in fact
Her friends do not know that she has this
| case on her hands and they might be unduly
severe with her should II be found out Istumbed
| across her in this capacity by accident She and
| have absolute confidence in each other, She is
personal friend OF Mr. Halliday's'
"oh, see said Halliday which white
lie as he had told for many months for instead Of
| seeing he became more mystiied at every work.
az trust Miss Temple went on. that you will
| not allow the secrecy am in duty bound to pro-
serve in regard to the identity of my agent preiu
dice you against the place. You need have no
uneasiness far she is concerned. She is
| very nice, assure you
Miss Cecilia flashed Halliday a bewitching
| look from her yelled eyes. The ashes Of Halli-
| days consumed heart were revivifed as with
| electric spark and he mentally vowed that forty
thieves in the shape Of INSCRIPTIONS renting agents
| would be powerless to keep him away oh, GER
| tainly, Ill take the rooms, he said. My name is
| Gary, James Gary He did not falter over the
| falsehood He was convinced he telling it
| in Just cause To his mind the only way to
thwart the designs Of the villainous agent was TO
| match her duplicity with still greater cunning
| and entrap her in the web of her own deceit Thus
| reasoning his conscience became exceedingly
elastic. lam comparative stranger IN the city,
| he went on having arrived only this morning
| For testimonial to my character refer you to.
| and he glibly called off the names Of half dozen
fictitious personagos in indefinite places to
whom he we'll knew she would never attempt to
| write.
Miss Temple spread out her long white fingers
on the window sill and beat out a rhythmic tune.
| Mamma will be so glad TO have you here she
said. She has often remarked how nice il would
be TO have man around. A man goes such a
long way toward filling up a house Halliday's
vanity pulled him up 10 such an extent that he
had no doubt but that he could fill a dozen houses
and still have stray scraps of himself left 10 dis
tribute around among the neighbors but he kept
his head while she continued: 1t is really quite
lonesome here at times We seem almost lost in
this big house with Just mamma and me and the
maids and the children
Miss Temples grammar was somewhat uncer
tain but Halliday lost sight of 1t in the final word
which brought back vision OF brown knicker-
bockers and skirts whose ownors were then mon
otonously droning and humming in a below.
Heavens and earth the children, lie cried DO
they belong here
"She nodded.
IAN of them he asked
Yes, there are only thirteen good
many OF them have already gone into the country
for the summer. We keep them for company.
| Halliday groaned. Company he echoed.
| And a source OF revenue Also she explained
| We board and teach them and furnish their shoes
and stockings at the rate Of IS per week per head
We derive most Of income from them. They
are perfectly lovely children. not bit Of trouble
They won't bother you in the least
| Halliday stared in amazement at this extraor-
binary young woman who was buying his house
on the instalment plan from unknown agent
and kept thirteen children for company. He
had his doubts TO the veracity of her assertion
| thatt hay, m hot i'm he too Tia
TO contradict her outright Perhaps not he said,
obviously. I'll try il awhile anywhere
Under these extraordinary circumstances Halli-
day took possession Of the two rooms on the upper
floor Of his Harlem house. His position was
uniaue to say the least When he had given
out TO his friends in London that he was coming
home TO settle down. he had had but a vague idea
as to the meaning of that term which. at best is
only relative. He would then have been unable
J to conceive of himself as member Of family
J consisting of thirteen children ranging in age
from three to eight years: two maid servants
one quiet widow Of fifty. and young
, woman aged. Halliday not quite sure
about that Yet such were the conditions and
in spite Of the children he forced to acknowl
edge that il was the most tranquil existence he
had known for many years The only thing
that marred his serenity the thought Of the
I agent who was continually robbing both him and
} Miss Temple
Upon investigator he learned that his owl
chosen representative had died the week after his
departure for Europe, leaving among his paper:
: no reference to the property in Harlem. The
taxes for every year after 1893 had been paid by
! Miss Temple. so il was evident that the female
, sharper had in some way got Hold Of the manage
l ment Of the place after the decease of thu
D rightful agent The record of deeds showed tina
, no document transferring the house and lot t.
a Miss Temple had ever been filed; from that HI
Z inferred that the willy agent had destroyed al
3 evidence OF her double dealing and had drawn
d Miss Temple so completely into her net that writ
, ten agreements were no longer necessary. Hi
wonder at this increased when he saw what
bright intelligent woman his young hostess
n really was In his zeal 10 discover the otfende
Q he employed privatedetectiVe for a week 80
l. Nothing resulting from this he again broachet
the subject to Miss Temple. She treated the mat
y ter as Jest at first, but being pressed for al
3 explanation her Indignation mounted TO a whit