The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1901-08-09

4 OS
dazzling in its brightness that he had
Ito close his eyes. The Devil picked
him up and carried him into richly
furnished room and put him down on
% couch piled with cushions. There
were ribbons, laces, satins and silks,
in chairs, ON tables, everywhere in
elegant profusion and confusion, but
what impressed Mcnamara most and
what he could hardly take his eyes
from was table in. the center OF
the room on which was piled, as gen.
erously as pebbles on the beach, every
known gem. Diamonds, rubies, opals
and pearls threw a shade over their
smaller sisters and tried hard. to out
shine each other in their fascinating
glow and glitter.
my angels are out tonight on 9TH
er missions, but I shall do my best
to entertain you, and shall be more
sorry than I can say if fall" and
the Devil bowed courteously to his
guest.
While he was speaking he placed
4 diamond scarfpin and opal ring on
the table, They Immediately began
to sparkle challenge to their neigh
bors. What familiar look they had
to Mcnamara! The Devil drew .
chair close to the couch, picked up q
guitar, and the last thing Mcnamara
remembered was hearing a rich tenor
voice singing popular melody.
The next morning when Macmanara
awoke he was in his own room. The
fire in the CRATE was burning cheerily,
and through the open door he could
see his valet preparing his bath. Out
side the sun was shining brightly,
talking away the snow as fast as it
had fallen the night before.
"What dream!'" Macmanara
thought, as he sprang out of bed. Els
clothes were hanging on the back OF
a chair, and there were tiny rivulets
where they had dripped the melted
snow. He went through his pockets
and his face fell. Yesterday he had
drawn $4,000 from the bank, vowing
in his heart to go as far from Louis
Vile as the money would take him.
This morning there was not a dollar
in his pocket-not even the little
Ipearl-handled knife he had carried for
years.
When he went down to breakfast
his aunt, who was also his house
keeper, looked beyond him after say
ing good morning, evidently expect
ing to greet some one else.
"How mistaken one can be, OTIS"
she said. II expected you to bring
company down to breakfast this
morning, for when heard you come
home last night was sure some one
was with YOU"
''Maybe there was, and maybe there
wasn't. What would you say, aunt, if
I were to tell you 1 don't know??"
IF you were anyone else but Otis
Mcnamara I would say you were
drunk, but as you are Otis I shall say
you are poking fun at your old aunt"
When the papers were brought in
Mcnamara glanced over the head
lines of the Courier-J onrnal, as was
his custom, and thezfo1lowing, fast
ened his eyes: ~. >&ss
Found drowned in the river at two O'Clock
this morning, the body of q young man
Of medium size. fair complexion. and
blond mustache. A lace handkerchief
marked "Gracte' was all that was found In
the dead mans pockets.
"That's the Devil" and with the ex-
clama ti6p 1Macmanara rushed for his
hat and overcoat, leaving his startled
aunt to9think he had gone insane.
"Yes,Hsthes morgue keeper replied
to Macmanara 'sseager.questions, "the
poor fellow was brought here at IN
early hour this morning. This hand
kerchief was the only thing about
him that may lead to his identity.
and that has only one chance in a
thousand. If his sweetheart reads
the morning papers-and of course
the handkerchief is his sweetheart's
she will be here in short while,
and, if she doesn't read them, lie may
20 to his grave unnamed"
Mcnamara examined the features
of the dead man closely. It was his
Devil of the night before, minus the
black hair, in place of which there
was close]y-cropped blond head. AS
Mcnamara was leaving the morgue
he almost ran over Grace Langdon,
who caught his arm and cried out:
"Oh, Otis, it is really you, and you
are not drowned, with my handker-
chief in your pocket? I was going to
the opera" the little lady explained,
land something got wrong with the
horses as we were leaving Chestnut
street, and the coachman stopped to
see what it was. My escort opened
the carriage door for the same pur-
pose, when 1 saw you and dropped
my handkerchief to see if you would
pick it up, and the way you bounced
upon it kept me happy for the rest
of the evening. lost my opal ring,
too, but I don't care, for it was al
ways bringing me bad luck"
Mcnamara thought of the ring rs
he had last seen.it flash by the side
~, a <,1,1o with tho11.