Evening star., 1900-11-17

was an aftermath, but 1t did not mature In
reality until the coming of age Of the flood
of l. o. US, checks, drafts on his wealthy
father and other dubious literature, which
had been so lavishiy given to the Madras
world.
Days before the fullness of this time he
encamped at Colombo. From Madras Lang
don, now Captain Kane, took letters OF In
PRODUCTION to the military and official life
of Ceylon's beautiful city. This, of course,
threw the onus of entertainment upon the
Colombo dwellers, and Captain Kane OF
the U. 8. A. was kept busy answering invi-
tations. His room in the Grand Oriental
Hotel was filled with them. At the end OF
ten days he said to the proprietor OF the
hotel:
'Ive got to return the many social kind
nesses 1 have received here. 1 wish to do
it in thorough manner-give one grand
ball somewhere, and invite everybody who
is anybody. l give you carte blanche-the
best of everything that money can buy we
must have. wines and all. Break the rec
ord-make it a ng-to-be-remembered af-
fair-don't forget that
1T shall be attended to, colonel said
the proprietor, with fawning Difference.
The best music and tons Of flowers
suggested the son Of the millionaire.
Il will see to it, general"
THE invitations will bother me-, de-
clared Langdon-Kane Il must have only
the best people, civil and military"
''Of course, my lord" assented his host.
But QOn Know q IllrQ 0D-
jected the captain.
IF l might suggest 1t. 1 could attend to
the invitations-take them off your hands.
1 know everybody. of course :"
Capital, capital! declared Sidney. pat,
ronizingly. "Just send out the cards. and
use your own discretion in everything; l
dislike to be worried by trifies. You can
let me have the bill
"All in good time" interrupted the pro-
prietor. There will be no hurry about
that part of it,
1t was a grand affair. For days the ap-
preaching banquet and ball was the talk of
the station. The hotel staff worked with
feverisn energy, for the order had been un-
limited. The crush was terrific, for the
boniface had killed several birds with this
most precise stone that had been put in
MS hands by the golden fates. Many little
courtesies he wiped off his own slate by
the invitations: also the greater the crowd
the bigger the bill.
The night of the ball. just as Sidney
or Captain Kane-was preparing to well
come his guests, he received a message
He confided this fact to the proprietor, and
begged him to attend to everything until
his return in an hour or two. 1t was a
tremendously unfortunate thing, but mat
ter of life and death to protege of his.
Langdon slipped out into the night; and
that is the last the genial caterer ever saw
of his prodigal patron, for an outgoing
steamer that had been lying in the roadbed
ready 10 clear took him far from 1ndia's
coral strand that same night of the mighty
ball. The guests drank the wines and
feasted like Lucullus, and merrily waited
for that prince Of good fellows, Captain
Kane.
They are still waiting. some of them,
while others are dead, for that was several
years ago.
The steamer by which the versatile Sid
ney fled fetched up in Rio Janeiro: but
that is another hemisphere: and what the
process was in the interval of his land
ing in the Georgia Jail is not of this his
tory.