Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-09-02

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Miss sybil Barrow to Her School
Friend, Miss Minnie Hobson Of
Edgbaston, Birmingham.
Santa Margherita.
Taormina, Sicily,
January ".
My darling Min
You were a saucy girl to chaff me like
that about the Honorable Mr.. Winston. 1t
didn't matter one bit to me whether we
got to know him or not. Why should ity
Even when he comes into the title he'll
only be viscount, and Lord Brightheim-
ston may live for years 1t wasn't to
meet him that we joined the viscountess
though 1 shouldn't wonder if she had some
thing up her sleeve when she asked US to
meet her in Cannes. Anyway, she'd taken
a tremendous fancy to me. We got on
awfully well together at first, but she needs
lot of living up to. and if she hadn't held
a sort Of salon everywhere we've been,
with all kinds of swells, homemade and
foreign, kootOOing to her, and being intro
duced to US. 1 don't know but I should
have persuaded pa to drop the whole bust
ness long ago. She's nice old lady, but
sometimes. when you let yourself go, and
are having ripping time. she freezes up
and looks at you as If you were some I'M
known species of animal In the Zoo That 3
what mean when / say she wants a lot of
living up to; and more than once in the
last two months or 50 I'd have given my
boots If pa and I hadn't bound ourselves
to travel about with her. but had gone Off
on our own. with courier, like that hand
some one sent you the snapshot of with
the Yankee girl at Blois. Well, anyhow,
It's all come to an end now: and she's in
troduced us to dozens of smart people, SO
there's nothing to regret
Pa and l are going back to Naples to-
morrow or the day after. and so home to
England. Give me London I'm dying for
good game of ping pong. 1 asked them
to get 1t at the Grand Hotel at Rome, but
the silly things didn't. Adde johnson has
written and asked me to a swell dance
she's giving at the Kensington Town Hall:
hope we can get back in time; and l may
De able to take a charming cavalier with
me. But Ill tell you about him later.
We've been having scenes of great excite
ment for the last few days. which have
helped me to get through the time in Sicily,
which otherwise would have been pretty
slow. as l don't care for country, abroad
or at home. Besides. the oranges and
lemons keep falling on your head. and at
night you have to throw gravel at the
nightlngales to keep the noisy creatures
still. 1 collected some on purpose.
Well told you how vexed Lady B. was
because Jack as she calls him. couldn't
get to Cannes. He was always writing
from different places and making ex-
cuses. till Pa said in his joking way he'd
bet that Jack was up to some game of
MS own, and my lady didn't like
that a little bit. Finally, when IA
and I got sick of Cannes, which is too
far from Monte Carlo to be lively we ali
went on to Rome. That was just after nv
last epistle to you. 1t rained cats and
dogs in Rome and 1 never went into
single church. not even st. Peters. We
planned to wait for Jack" but YOUR let
ter came, and I was afraid there might he
something in that joke of yours about his
trying to keep out of my way. and / was
bound he shouldn't think was after him.
There's as good fish in the sea as ever came
out of 1T for a girl who can bait her hook
as can. So when Lady BIS neuralgia got
bad. we proposed Naples. and it was very
nice. But she is fussy old thing and
couldn't let well enough alone; she'd seen
Naples and hadn't seen Sicily. Nothing
would do but we should run over" I
would have put my foot down on that,
but Lady B. mentioned that she had
friend at some place called TaOrmina an
English baronet with lovely house, who
always had a lot of nice people staying
with him. And she said she'd often been
invited, and would get an invitation for us
all for few days if we'd go. l thought
we might meet some one 1t would be a
good thing for us to know, so 1 consented;
but we were to go first to Palermo and
Siracusa, and work on to Taormina by the
time our invitation arrived.
Palermo wasn't SO bad. I never saw so
many young men in my life, all very dark
with enormous eyes. and little moustaches
and canes both of which they twirled a
good deal when they looked at any one
they admired. But Syracuse was awful
I daresay it was nice enough when you
could be tyrant and cut Off your enemies
heads, and build gold statues to yourself;
but tyrants are out of their Jobs now and
a
good deal since their day. l nearly cried
when 1 saw what sort of hole it was, but
our invitation to Sir Evelyn Haines' (Which
we found waiting for us) wasn't for that
should go on the first train in the morning.
when a telegram arrived for Lady B. She
was in twitter, and gave 1t to pa to
read and say what he thought. 1t was
to her. who signed his name James Van
Wyck Payne; and as nearly as l can re-
member, it said, Beg that you will re-
ceive me at Syracuse. Have Travelled on
from Rome on purpose Immediately on
learning your address. Have news of vital
importance to give you about your son."
Lady B. couldn't think what it all meant;
but she was anxious and we We're curious.
She and pa calculated times, and discovered
that if we went away by the first train we
would miss the mysterious Mr. Payne, SO
1t was decided that We must wait till the
next and telegram was sent to an ad-
dress in Naples to that effect.
In the morning, as early as he could he
arrived. 1 was on the veranda of the
hotel watching, dressed In my travelling
frock, so as to be ready to get Off by the
next train. When a stranger came running
I'D the steps asking for Lady Brighthelm-
ston you can believe kept my eyes open,
though pretended to be reading an awfully
exciting book of Guy Boothby s-really
great! He was young, and evidently
American but very handsome, and the best
OF form blond tall and smooth-faced, with
such a clever expression, and unfathomable
ewes. He was shown in; but as Lady b. s
sitting room had window opening on the
yeranda, with the blinds only half shut,
I could presently hear from where l sat a
murmur of voices which l knew to be hers
and his. Just as pa had Joined me, and
was asking whether the gentleman had
turned up yet, there came a stif1ed shrek
from Lady BIS room. We jumped up,
rushed to the window, and met her there
as she was running out to call us. crying.
with Mr. Payne at her back We went in,
and she made him tell his story, which
was very complicated. However, We soon
understood that the Hon. Mr.. Winstons
chauffeur had stolen his motor car. and
his watch (which Mr.. Payne had got out
of pawn and shown to Lady 3D. and his
clothes. and probably murdered him. Lady
b hadn't had any letter for ages; she had
supposed that was because she was travel
ing about so much lately and had missed
them, but now She saw that anything
might easily have happened to her son.
Iixaryt hing was frightfuliy confused and