The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1904-12-14

moved. mat rendered her mysterious
She talked but little, going about 81
lently, with soft, light step. One
might be quite alone. and the nexl
moment suddenly aware OF the REQ
Woman's presence. When the tall
young Englishman who lost everything
at turn of the wheel went out into
the Casino garden and, cooking his
pistol in the shadow of the cacti, NUT
tered: sI'll end the whole cursed bust
ness!" the Woman in Red murmured
persuasively beside him: ooh,
wouldn't" and he didn't, and wher
a lady knelt one evening before the
image of the Virgin in the church Of
Sainte Devote, and whispered wildly
20 Blessed Mother, forgive me my
sins!" it was the Woman in Red who
finished softly for her, ''and those who
sin against me-" This made her some
thing more than CONSPICUOUS and mys.
terious-it made her awesome.
No one ever saw her smoke, but 1e1
scarlet garments always exhaled fain.
odor Of cigarettes. Every night she
came into the roulette room and sa;
there in her scarlet dress, with a red
flower in her hair, and put down hel
stakes with as much emotion as though
the gold and notes were worthless
Consistent in her color scheme. she in
yariably placed her money on the red
and nine times out of ten she won.
10 make her trifie more conspic-
uous, mysterious and eerie, she had
for chaperon 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
Woman in Red the creature cackled:
How should know?"
NO wonder the men like her." chat
"Oh. the devil, the devil, the devil.
tered lively little French woman.
They'd like us if We muffied our faces
and wore clothes like that. I'll wager
she has the face of a blanchisseuse-
any one could be fascinating behind a
velvet mask"
"She is, certainly" said bystander,
dryly.
"Peste!" exclaimed the sallow critic
angrily. mo one wants that old count
or that stupid baron or that pink
checked English boy, anyway"
1t 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 game at one of the tables.
But throughout it all the woman re-
NAMED calm, inscrutable, mysterious
Neither of the three could persuade hel
to tell her name or take off her mask
II answer to any name,' she said
II 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 young
Englishman, with British egotism.
In answer to each she only laughed
q hard little laugh, not altogether
pleasant to hear.
To be much talked about and to sa!
little appeared to suit her. A month
after her advent no one in Monte Carlo
or Monaco knew a whit more abou
her than at first, and no one would hav,
hesitated to give half his fortune-hat
he had one-to know everything. TIL,
mystery Of the masked woman wa
eXasperating-the theories concernin,
her innumerable. Perhaps the majorit.
of the women believed that, being ugly
she had adopted this means of attract
ing the attention rightfully belongings
to beauty. She was problem whic'
might be studied for weeks withou
arriving at solution.
The warm southern days crept lazil
along, and as sometimes happens eve
in the sheltered paradise, began t
grow oppressively hot. 1t was on tn
languid evening Of one of these scorcll
ing days that the Woman in~Red an
the young Englishman were gamin
side by side at the roulette table. TIL
air of the Casino was heavy an
scented, there was 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!"
Il should think" said the young ma
at length, as they strolled through tn
shrubbery, that your mask would b
unbearable!"
"It is"
"Then why not take it OFF,
II did not come out to talk Of that.
"But perhaps l did" The BIRTHS
shoulders squared themselves aggres
sively.
The woman made no reply, but con
tinued her occupation of listlessly slip
ping ring up and down her finger.
ooh, l have dropped it," she sud
denly cried, and stopped quickly t
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