The Opelousas courier., 1901-03-02
TRe Ruse That Failed.
m.>&
by y. p. James.


q train and handed oves her ticket
Il want You to be sure and write t
me every day, and tell me everything
you think, how much you miss me
and all about the way the servant &c
a~lons-don't omit any Of the details
thinking that l shall not be interest.
ed, for every word that you write
dear, will be precious to ms. Pu
plenty Of local color in your letters
"oh, I'll keep you posted" he re
Piled. "You have q good time, ant
don't worry about ME. I'll get alons
somehow. OF course, it'll be lonely
and all that, but I'll manage to pass
the time. TIN be rather dismal FOL
me to sit in the garden alone wher
1t begins to get dark, thinking Of yor
IN the gay crowd having a good time
and neve giving a thought to"
ARTHUR" his pretty wife interrupt
ed, IF you continue to talk that way
] just shan't 60. You know I shall
think OF you every minute I'm away,
and If the doctor hadn't said the sea
air would be good for me l wouldn't
have thought Of accepting Aunt
Laura's invitation. Please don't fret
me, love, will you? Remember that.
wherever I may be, and no matter
how gay my surroundings, I shall be
thinking Of you"
They threw kisses at each other as
the train moved away. Then Barring
ton went to his Office and began writ
ing letters. They were to his wife.
de wrote fourteen Of them-enough to
last for two weeks.
In general outline the letters were
about the same. He started each bv
Milling a sheet with ~endearing words
and declarations that he was very
lonely without his darling. Then fol-
lowed the local color she wanted, In
the form Of comments on occurrences
OF the day in and about their home,
The letters were not dated, but he
sealed and addressed them, and ar
ranged them in a pile so that his lady
clerk could take off the top one day
after day and drop 1t into the letter
box.
Then he went off with a male com
panion, determined to have a good
eime for ten or twelve days.
He had been gone nearly n week
when there came a telegram for him.
OF course. kilograms had to be
opened, and when Miss Wildreth, the
lady clerk, read the message, she turn
ed pale.
"Why don't you answer my ques-
lions about the housemaid's ankle and
your liver? Am awfully Worried
That was what Elizabeth harrington
had t~elegraphed.
After studying the matter for a
while, Miss Wildreth decided that it
was necessary for her to act. She was
enough to hold a position that
not more than one man out OF fifty
could have filled, and she had the habl
t OF keeping her eyes and ears open.
Still. she said to herself:
'The housemaid's ankleY I can see
how he might know something about
his own Liver, but-and why should
Ms wife, Of all people, want him to
zee about it? Well If I we get mar
led"
But instead of finishing what she
lad started to say, she wrote the fol-
owing dispatch:
LEG and liver o. K. Don't worry"
It was about ten o'clock the next
lay when another telegram for Arthur
harrington was received. It read:
Yesterdays letter c~ontradicts tele-
ram. Why are you deceiving mel?
Ire you better to-day? Shall I come
The lady clerks reply was as fol-
oWs:
Am true as steel. Don't think of
home"
Miss Wilreth had just begun to feel
hat she had succeeded In settling the
l~isagreeable business, when a mess
niger boy arrived with another tele-
ram, In which her employers wife
don't understand. What do you
mean by being true as steel? Some
hing tells me you are worse. Wire
immediately"
Never mind reference to steel. Am
right"
Mrs. harrington watched eagerly
q postman on the following day.
nd when he handed her Arthur's let
er she opened It with trembling
myers. Eagerly she scanned the first
age and was about half through the
ocal color when she jumped up and
to her aunt, crying: 4
"Merciful goodness! what can this
lean2 Three days ago Arthur wrote !
nat the housemaid was still laid up
nth her lame ankle which / hayel
Red In vain to get him to tell me !
bout, and that he was not feeling
Teli, and the doctor had told him that
is liver was out OF order. Yet here.
lto-day's letter, he tells me that the !,
ousemaid has just fallen downstairs, !
Framing her ankle, and that he made /
lade himelf a Welsh rarebit the night !
efore last, and ate SO much of IL his /
yer Is all upset. Why on earth didIt
housemaid fall downstairs when :