Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1899-06-08
(COncluded)

The next morning Mr.. Shum was
troublesome. He thought that the mo-
ment for action had come; the poor
stock had been blown upon enough; the
process of rehabilitation should begin
Various other gentlemen, weighty with
money, dropped in with their hats on
the back of their heads and expressed
the same views. Byers fenced with
them, discussed the question rather in
conclusively, took now this side and
now that, hesitated, vacillated, shilly
shallied. The men wondered at him,
they knew they were right, and, right
or wrong, Byers had been wont to
know his own mind. Their money was
at stake; they looked at one another I'M
comfortably. Then the youngest Of
them, fair boy, great at dances and
late suppers but with brain for fig
ures and cool holiness which made
him already rich and respected in the
city, tilted his shining hat still little
farther back and drawled out, eff
you've lost your nerve. Byers, you'd
better let somebody else engineer the
thing"
What her fair fame is to a proud
woman the prestige of his nerve was to
Mr.. Byers. The boy had spoken the de-
cisive word by chance, by the unerring
instinct which in any sphere of thought
is genius In half an hour all was plan
ned, the government of the princes
country saved and the agitation at an
end. The necessary resources would
now be forthcoming. confidence would
be made, the coup brought off. the tri-
umph won.
So in the next fortnight it happened.
Prince Julian looked on with vague
bewilderment, reading the articles and
paragraphs which told him that he had
abandoned all thought of action, had
resigned himself to wait for an express
recall from his loving subjects (Which
might be expected to assail his ears on
the Greek kalends); that, in fact, he
would do nothing. Mrs Rivers read the
paragraphs, too, and waited and waited
and waited for the coming Of Mr.. Byers
and the necessary resources. She smiled
at what she read, for she had confidence
in the cause, or at least in herself and
in Mr.. Byers. But the days went on.
Slowly the stock rose; then in went the
public with rush. The paragraphs
and the articles dwindled and ceased !;
there was a commotion somewhere else
in Europe; Prince Julian and his mani
festo were forgotten. What did it mean
She wrote note asking Mr.. Byers to
call
1t was just at this time also that Mr..
Henry Shum accepted the invitation of
the Conservative Association of the
Hatton Garden Division of Holborn Bars
to contest the seat at the approaching
general election, and that Lady Craig
enoch gave orders for the complete rem
ovation of her town house. Both these
actions involved, of course, some ex-
pense-how much it is hard to say pre-
cisely. The house was rather large, and
the seat was very safe.
Prince Julian sat in his library in
Palace Gate and Mrs. Rivers stood be-
side him, her hand resting on the arm
of his chair. Now and then the prince
glanced up at her face rather timidly
They had agreed that matters showed
x AO pioSIesS. lueu NILS. hlVeIS udu U.s.
come silent
''Has Byers thrown us over?" the
prince asked at last.
"Hush, hush!" she answered in low
voice. "Wait till he's been. He's COM
ing today" Her voice sank lower still
as she whispered: ''He can't have Oh,
he can't!''
Gil fa1
utes passed before the prince broke out
fretfully: 81 IN sick of the whole thing
I'm very well as l am. If they want
me, let them send for me- l can't force
myself on them.
She looked down for moment and
touched his hair with her hand.
eff this has come to nothing, I'll
never try again. don't like being
made fool Of .
Her hand rested for moment on his
forehead He looked up smiling.
'We can be happy together, he
murmured. "Let's throw up the whole
thing and be happy together. He
caught her hand in his "You'll stay
with me anyhow"
You want me still o.
"You'll do what l ask2" he wills.
pered.
"That would put an end to it in
deed she said, smiling
''Thank heaven for itl' he exclaimed
peevishly.
A servant came in and announced
that Mr.. Byers was in the drawing
room.
"shall come tool" asked the prince
"Oh, no, she answered, with 6
strange little laugh. whats the use
of bothering you? I'll see him..
SNAKE him say something definite,
urged Prince Julian. "Let's have ar
end of it one way or the other.
Every we'll. She bent down anG
kissed him. and then went off to talk t.
Mr.. Byers.
The fair boy with the business brains
might have been seriously of opinion
that there was something wrong witt
Byers nerve had he seen him waiting
for Mrs. Rivers in the drawing room
waiting to tell her that the necessary
resources were not forthcoming. HI