Evening star., 1902-03-08

| oridle. led the animal away. and, without
| mere ado, proceeded to unbuckle the girth
| md take off the saddle.
| This audacious deed was done in the
| midst Of an awed silence among those five
/ .oung men. Even the girl herself seemed
/ stand amazed, as one lost in the pres
/ nee of the inconceivable.
When at last she spoke her voice trem-
bled with anger.
MIR. Charlton Garrard. you will please
| put back that saddle and give me my
norse."
But it amt your horse" said Ralph Des-
mond. Seems to me like it's my horse and
saddle you came and took when l was
| dressin'. and / had to borrow another-and
had enough work to catch up with you all. "
| Which showed how quickly mutiny, once
suggested, will spread among the most sub
ordinate.
Charlton, dropping the saddle among the
weeds rolled over beside 1t, laughing help
| lessly.
please don't be angry with me, Miss
| Domino! he begged. between explosions.
Il have been abroad SO long, you know, it
all strikes me as-kind Of funny. But you
| must let me have your team hitched up to
| the road cart. You may choose any of
| these gentlemen to drive you-as you have
made up your mind that l am not fit per-
son for you to know"
| Still another moment she hesitated
/ standing in the moonlight, in all the char
l. nel-house hideousness of her disguise. and
| then her left hand went swiftly and inn
/
| demoralized pillow slip that served her as
! hood and mask. I'm Mella Harrison" she
said. with vexed little laugh.
| The light Of the new moon. that was
! just clearing the thin cloud back in the east,
shone on massive. tight-braided coils of
| dark hair and a beautifully modelled chin
| and throat-''The very throat for con-
! tralto." as 1t had been called. Not all the
1 clumsiness of her uncouth shroud could
quite disguise the precocious beauty Of the
| figure on which this head was set.
| Charlton Garrard was conventional
| enough to make his proper bow. but, that
| done-he had been an enthusiastic art stu
dent from boyhood. and for the last six
| years had thought his art the only impor-
| tant business of his life-he stood before
| Mella in silence for two or three seconds,
| frankly giving himself UP to critical enjoy
| ment Then he said, quite simply, Thank
| you. Miss Harrison. 1t was like chrysalis
| opening by moonlight-though l never saw
:! one that know Of" And then he laughed
| and stopped himself. "Oh, we'll, I was 60
| ing to talk shop. Please tell me, are you
| the same little Mella Harrison who
| used
| Yes, the very same little skin-and- bones
! Mella Harrison. with the two long copper
| colored plaits, who used to tag after Mabel
| Price and get in some peoples way" With
/ that she laughed away the last OF the ILL
| humor. and stood flcking that debauched
! pillow slip in her left hand, while she shook
| back the loose sleeve from her other wrist
| to shake hands with Charlton. The moon
empha sized her laugh with a cunning little
| CLINT of white ivory. But anon the laugh
| was gone. Il haven't forgotten those days,
! Mr.. Charlton Garrard." she added, with a
warning nod.
| Neither have /. Miss Harrison. Are you
going to honor the beverage Of our native
| commonwealth. or let me stand for some
cold buttermilk."
"Buttermilk for me, please"
| And So leaving the five to their juleps,
| these two strolled down the wagon road to
| where the faint moonlight cast shadows
over a mound that covered one of the cool
est and most famous springs in the Penny
| rle There they sat. side by side, like COM
rades. on the sloping turf. and waited while
| Chapultepec, with stable lantern, fitted
( in and out of the cayernous spring house.
Now. tell me what you all came for"
said Charlton. Did you bring two mugs,
Chapultepec? Well. wait here. We may
want lot more" Then again to the
| paradoxical figure beside him, Now, Miss
| Harrison what is 1t all about?"
'Of course. it was all meant to be joke
| She would be furious II she knew it,
Who would be furious?
| This buttermilk is heavenly. Nab of
! course. You don't mean to say you haven't
/ guessed 1t was all Mab-our Queen Nab?
| We are all devoted to her in Yellowbanks'
| "Yellowbanks Is devoted to Miss-to
| Queen Nab! Bravo. Yellowbanksi Have
some more buttermilk? Here, Chapulte-
pee"
Il can just tell you. Mr. Charlton Gar
| rard, Yellowhanks had some mighty hard
feelings about you last Tuesday when you
drove In. and instead OF going straight to
the Prices never even asked anybody il
Nab was dead or alive. That was the last
straw. Everybody knows how it was be-
tween you in-before-when-',
colored plaits had developed into that su-