Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1903-05-23
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i believe L did promise him" she
says reluctantly, and the next moment
the hne-looking captain is ushered In.
and Bruce goes back to his former seat.
Coolly polite are the greetings between
the two gentlemen. The words that mass
between them are of the briefest. while
Lulu goes for her wrappings. He smiles.
as standing at the window he meets her
regretful smile, and knows how much
rather she had been with him than dash
ing off in that handsome phaeton.
She carries that smile in her heart as
they whirl down the avenue. past the
White House, and off by pretty circuit
Gus route for the little city of George
town. There is glow on her cheek. q
sweet, serious light in her eyes, a slight
abstraction in her manner, that charms
her companion. He bends near her, a
sparkle in his blue eyes, a gratified smile
on his lips, for he fancies that be has
called that added charm to her face.
She has taken his heart by storm, and
before she can realize it, he has capitulat-
ed and laid the spoils of war at her feet
namely, the battered old heart of a
4o-year-old captain in the T. S. A., a
brownstone front on Capitol Hill, and
fifty thousand dollars
She looks up in utter amaze at the
fair blonde face of the really handsome
veteran with its ripping beard and sun
ny expression of good humor, then her
eyes fall, and she softly laughs at his
folly in the charmingly incredulous way
with which some women refuse an offer.
my dear sir, you do me too much hon
or, and I would not for the world OK
oh Oh frooIn,,, 6
and a ring"
The captain is not so very much dis
heartened. He is Of a sanguine temporal
ment, and says he will not despair yet
in short, means to try again at some
fitting future period; and she, leaning
back, listless, half sorry for him, and
little fattered at his preference. wishes
with all her heart that this were Bruce
Conway instead.
''Ah! by the way" he breaks in pres
emily, "there is a rumo-I beg pardon
if l offend-but is it true, as society de-
clares, that you are to marry Conway"
Her heart gives a great muffled throb.
that almost STILES her, then the small
head lifts erect and calm.
ut is not fact-at least, am not
aware of it-unless. indeed. society
LAACtl1Ao " uo Why -AlA1f'
Society has made worse matches" he
lightly rejoins Conway is a prize in
the market matrimonial-Miss Clenden-
on certainly has no peer! All. by the
way, talking of Conway reminds me Of
my friend Winans-in the Senate, you
know. A strange affair that of his child
don't you think SOP
What about it? l have heard moth
ing"
"Why, it seems that his wife was in
the city, and he called on her last even
ing at the hotel where she is stopping
he told me, poor fellow, in confidence,
that they parted more bitterly alienated
than before. l blame him, though. the
most I know his hot temper, you see,
Miss Lulu-and he desired her to send
the child and nurse around to his hotel
this morning, that he might see as much
as possible of the child before she re-
turned to Norfolk, as she designed doing
to-day"
"Well?' she breathes eagerly.
"Norah O'Neil, the nurse, took the
child very punctually to its father at ten
o'clock this morning. He received them
in his private parlor that opened on
long handsome hail. where similar par
lors opened in similar manner. Winans
kept the little thing so long with him
that it began to grow hungry and fret
full. He suggested that Norah should go
down to the lower regions of the hotel
and bring up some warm milk and crack
ers for the hungry child. She went, at
tended by waiter Winans summoned
for the purpose. Winans played with
the child that kept fretting for Norah and
the milk, and / dare say he grew tired
of playing the nurse should in his
place, I know-and thought of taking
comfortable smoke. He left the baby
sitting on a divan, stepped into his dress
ing room, selected a good weed, lighted
it, and stepped back again"
and what happened then| Lulu in
CURED.
Would you believe 1.-THE little thing
that could no more than toddle by itself
that he had left but a moment before,
sitting on the divan, fretting for Norah
and its milk-it was gone"
"Gone-where? asked Lulu staring
blankly at him.
"Winans ran to the door-it had stood
ajar all the time for fresh air-and look
ed up and down the hall for him, IN
vain, though Then the nurse came UP
with the milk, and they began to search
| together, called up the walters, alarmed
the whole house, in fact; and all was
useless. Every room was searched, eV-
cry one inquired of, but not trace OF
the child was found; he was clearly not
in the house. l happened in just then
and joined in the search. At four this
evening the search had become wide
spread; two detectives have secured the
city, and it seems impossible TO throw
the least light on the affair. Ninans IS
perfectly wild about it-never saw
man suffer So"
| "Oh, how DREADFUL breathed Lulu.
land who broke it to her-the wretched
mother?"
| "Norah absolutely refused 10 go to her
with news which she said must certainly
kill her. Winans shrunk from the task
in the same desperate horror. She does
not know it yet, and he clings to a hope
of finding it before dark, and sending It
back by Norah as though nothing had
| happened; but I fear he will fail. Little
Paul has undoubtedly been stolen Tor
L.