The Farmville herald. [volume] (Farmville, Va.) 1890-1934, 1904-11-18

terious-it made her awesOme
No one ever saw her smoke. but her
scarlet garments always exhalcd faint
odor Of cigarettes. Every night she
came into the roIi5tte room and sat
there in her scarlet dress. with a rod
flower IN her hair. and put down ben
stakes with as much emotion as though
the gold and notes were WORTHLESS.
Consistent In her color scheme, She In
variably placed her money on the red.
and nine times ont Of ten she won.
To make her a trine more conspic-
uous, mysterious and eerie. she had
for a chaperon a woman so thin and
wrinkled and old as TO seem hardly
capable Of life. When some one ven
tured to ask her a question about the
1oman in Red the creature caclled:
How should | knOw?"
"No wonder the men like her" chat
"Oh, the devil. the devil. the devil
tered a lively little French woman.
They'd like us II we mufied our faces
and wore clothes like that lll wager
she has the face Of a blanchisseuse-
any one could be fascinating behind a
velvet mask"
"She is. certainly" said a bysiander,
dryly.
"Pestel" exclaimed the sallow critic
angrily. "No one wants that old count
or that stupid baron or that pink
checked English boy, anyway"
It Is true that the Woman in Red
had found ardent admirers in the old
count and the stupid baron and the
English boy-the one TO whom she had
whispered that night behind The cacti-
and the rivalry between them increased
as the season passed. To-day one was
In favor. tomorrow another. and the
frequenters OF the Casino got to bet
ting on the chances Of the several
suitors till It became almost as exciting
as a game at one of the tables.
But throughout it all the woman re-
mained calm, inscrutable, mysterious
Neither of the three could persuade hen
to tell her name or take off her mask
"I answer to any name" she said
q have forgotten my own, and as fol
my face, what makes you think it beau
tiful?"
"Oh, YOU" said the courtly old count
your hands" said the stupid baron
"Your hair" said the blond youns
Englishman, with British egousm.
In answer to each she only laughed
a hard little laugh, not altogether
pleasant to hear.
To be much talked about and to say
little appeared to suit her. A monli
after her advent no one in Monte Carl'
or Monaco knew a whit more abou
her than at first, and no one would have
hesltated TO give half his fortune-ha'
he had one-to know everything. Tn
mystery OF the masked woman wa
exasperatlng-the theories concerning
her innumerable Perhaps the maJorit!
of the women believed that, being ugly
she had adopted this means of attract
ing the attention rightfully belonging
10 beauty. She was a problem whicI
might be studied for weeks withou
arriving at a solution.
The warm southern days crept lazll,
along. and as sometimes happens eNel
in the sheltered paradise, began q
grow oppressively hot. 1t was on IN
languid evening of one of these scorch
ing days that the Woman in Red am
the young Englishman were gamln
side by side at the roulette table. IN
air OF the Casino was heavy an
scented. there was a murmur OF laugh
ter and talk, and the frequent click
clack of the roulette balls The woma
pushed back her chair impatiently an
said to the man:
DO come out into the garden-it
insufferably hot in here!"
81 should think" said the young ma
at length, as they strolled through IN
shrubbery. that your mask would D
unbearablel" !"
at IS"
"Then why not take II on
'T did not come out to talk Of that.
"But perhaps I did, The Britis
shoulders squared themselves aggre'
siyely.
The woman made no reply, but cor
t,nued her occupation of listlessly slir
ming a ring up and down her finger.
ooh, l have dropped IT," she SUD
denly cried. and stopped quickly
search for #. The low branch OF tre
caught in the coils Of her yellow hai
To free It she impatiently drew mp NJ
head. There was a sharp click. as
the release of a metal catch. and th
velvet mask. loosened, fell softly to u
ground. She made an inarticula'
noise in her throat, and her hands wei
thrown up in an Intellectual attempt
conceal her face. but the young ma
was too quick for her. There. in III
bright white moonlight. he looked IN
|, at the face of the Woman in Red an
with a terrible cry Of horror, fell lil
one dead upon the grass.
II was a long time before he open'
his eyes and felt the touch of u
woman's hand upon his brow and U
cool trickle Of water over his face. b
Law passive, thinking Of nothing. The
|, suddenly It all came back
, "Oh, don't, don't, don't touch me-
, he gasped. Keep away from me-
. He staggered to his feet, and pressC
! his hands to his eyes to shut out u
. vision that would return. His knee
! trembled and his teeth chattere
Something as white as the moonligl
. gathered at his lips.
? The woman made an imposing &c
i ture. "Oh, see, have put it on again
9 and she turned her head that be mlgf
behold the velvet mask.
At the sound Of her voice he shiVere
In terror and, without word, D'
! making a strange moaning noise, 2
: ran. like one demented, in the directlo
: Of the lighted Casino. And in the still
i white moonlight the Woman In Re