El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1900-09-20
TIE Plot Thdt Failed
Showing How the Plan OF = Novel
May He Too Intricate.
so@o@o@o@o@4oeo@o@o@o%o,

full face a good deal from the Levity
sion of us that he must be Ill or in love.
AS his especial friend 1 was commits
stoned to investigate. To this end I
called upon him at his chambers in the
Temple.
i knocked. but received no reply, SO
pushed open the door and entered.
/ expected to find the room empty;
but. to my surprise, right before me as
entered sat Dick Graham at a writ
ing table which was strewn with man.
uscripts and odd scraps of paper.
"Dick. old chap" said l, stepping
forward to his desk and laying my
hand upon his shoulder, whats up7
Turned deaf all OF a sudden?"
Good heavens he cried. IL
you gave me fright, Harold. 1 didn't
know any one was in the ROOM"
IT beg your pardon" replied. But
I knocked several times, and as I re-
ceived no Invitation to come in 1 en-
tered"
THE fact is he began apologetical-
ly, with a glance at his desk.
Yes, yes" I interrupted. 81 see
your COMPOUNDED old yarns. Well.
you've simply got to turn them up for
. spell. Now, come"
81 would" replied Dick. "were / en-
gagged upon any ordinary story, but
this one 1 am working at now is my
masterpiece"
"H'mw i coughed slightly.
Really" said Dick, I'm I'm earnest
this time. Look here, I've just conceiv-
ed the idea for a plot which when
worked into a story will startle the
world with its brilliancy- Just have a
squint Mt the outline. Perhaps n sug-
gestion might help me-"
Eagerly he raked together about a
dozen scraps of paper covered with dia-
grams and n sheet OF paper closely
written upon.
My idea" he began. sis this: Two
fellows. named respectively Dick and
Harry, are in love with two girls, Lucy
and Mabel. Now. Dick loves Lucy.
while Harry's affections are conferred
upon Mabel Very well. But there is
trouble e.. Mabel doesn't care a
straw about Harry Her fancy is
Dick. And the object of Lucy's tender
passion is Harry. D'you see?"
YES" rather family.
WELL" he continued, there is to be
n masked ball in their town. and my
four characters will be present. Dick
intends to go as a Chinaman and Harry
as Mr.. Answers Mabel is going as
Queen Mary and Lucy as Mrs. Kruger. |
BY some means they all get to know !
what the DISCUSSES of the others will |
be. But at the last moment each |
couple exchange their dresses. revers- |
ing the characters. D'you seeT'
Il think l grasp It," 1 muttered |
between my set teeth.
WELL" continued Dick, "the con-
sequence Is that Harry. who was going |
as Mr.. Answers. but who has really |
gone as a Chinaman. proposes to Lucy. |
who is made up as Queen Mary, taking |
her to be Mabel, who as n matter of
fact is masquerading as Mrs. Kruger"
A cold sweat was beginning to break
out all over me, and / believe / must
have worn that same kind of hunted
expression which was now increasing
on poor Dicks face. He had gathered
two or three scraps of paper. and was
illustrating the Idea" to me by means
of rough sketches of the characters,
from one to the other of whom he drew
arrows to point his meaning.
go on" said desperately.
''You see" he said. In compliance,
there is an arrow pointing from Dick
to Lucy. showing he loves her; here is
another from Lucy to Harry. showing
she loves Harry 1 fairly trembled
now. and Graham's hair was assuming
a rigid perpendicular. Then here Is n
curved line from Harry to Lucy In the
diagram. showing them at the ball,
which points to the fact
AsHeayens manp I broke ont "droD
II, or I'll go madr'
do have a little patiencei" he cried
excitedly. Its getting quite simple,
assure you. There are only n few
points to clear up, and it'll be as simple
as A c."
He dipped his pen in the ink. and
drew another diagram representing
the four characters.
"You see by this" he said. pointing
to II, that Dick, who ought to be a
Chinaman, Is really Mr.. Answers:
while the girl he-that Is. her-and
Harry has changed his disguise from
Mr.. Answers to n Chinaman. Well,
Dick loves Lucy-Queen Mary, really
but he takes Mrs. Kruger to be she.
See. If
Pardon me. Dick, old fellow" in
terrupted- 'Tt may be that / am very
dense. but / must confess that I can't
follow you
That's because you're n foolY' he
snapped. This is the grandest, most