Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-03-04

the self-conscious TRUSTEES They passed
cell after cell, till James Gordon began to
wish that Mr.. Connoughton's hospitality
might soon find end. when he happened
to glance into a cell and saw, sitting on the
cot, figure that startled him so that he
nearly cried out.
He rubbed his eyes and looked again. feel
ing that he had been widely mistaken. But
the second glance left no room for doubt.
The man sitting there in convicts dress in a
'convicts cell was John D. Van Brunt.
The bookkeeper recovered himself in time
and managed to ask casually about the pris-
oner He was told that he was convict No.
-, and that he serving a term for
burglary.
Maybe you'll remember reading about
it," said the keeper. 1T made quite story
at the time. He broke into the house of the
Dumonts, and Mr.. Dumont caught him, COW
cred him with revolver. marched him out
of the house and turned him over to the
police"
And did he plead guilty?" asked the
bookkeeper.
"Oh, yes! There wasn't any way out of
it. He took his medicine"
James Gordons brain swan. He escaped
to his hotel and spent an hour thinking
things out.
Then he returned to the prison and asked
to convict No -.
The convict was brought into the little
iron-barred visitors cell. He made no sign
of recognition, and James Gordon made
none either. But convict No. - knew that
concealment was useless.
This is the story of convict No. -, once
Richard d. Van Brunt. 1t begins on June
II, 1900, when he came ashore from his
fishing.
He went to the little room that he rented
by the year in the boathouse on the shore
to put away his tackle. Then he struck a
match to light a cigar. The match Hared
up and his beard and mustache caught
fire. Half of his brown beard vanished be-
fore he knew it.
He got out his razor and shaved the -tst
of his beard and muStache off. Then he
hurried to the station, because train was
due.
The burning of his beard was chance No.
1 in a strange chain A fiat car loaded with
while trunding over the tracks of the Long
Island railroad at Jamaica, and Van
Brunts train pulled into Long Island City
two hours late.
He had an appointment-an appointment
so overwhelmingly important to him as to
be sacred. 1t was with a person for
whom he would have been willing to give
not only all he had in life, but his life
itself. He looked at his watch and gave up
all hope of changing from his shabby
clothes into evening dress. That WIS
chance No. >
He jumped into cab.
AS the cab ratified toward 9Th avenue ara
34th street. coming eastward toward it was
chance No. "A delivery wagon with
drunken driver At the corner they met.
The delivery wagon smashed into the CAB,
breaking the window.
The shock of the collision threw Richard
Van Brunt violently against the side of
the cab, knocking his head SO hard that
he never realized that a piece of glass
drew a long, ragged red scratch down the
side of his face from cheekbone to chin.
The cab hurried again IN few min
utes. bound to the place of fate.
Fate was woman-One of the best Wo
IN, hal Low fol toha I'd pr,rr \
Richard Van Brunt's love for her did i:ot
deceive him. In all New York there was
no purer, nobler woman than the one vino
was waiting for him.
1t was a secret meeting, but not guilty
one Mrs. Dumont was an honest wife 20
husband whose habits and vices had
made his name notorious In the city. She
had dragged through four years of abject
misery at his side, and at last had agreed
to yield to the opportunities of her rela
tiveS and seek divorce
The object of Richard Van Brunts visit
to her this evening was to bid her farewell
for long time. He had decided to go to
Europe and spend year there in order to
avoid the possibility of a breath of scan
dial clouding her name while she sought her
divorce. On his return he hoped to ask her
to be his wife.
Chance No. was on the steps of the
house as he came up, in the prosaic shape
of a messenger boy. Just as Van Brunt
reached the door the footman opened it and
turned away to take the message to his
mistress. Richard Van Brunt entered I'M
observed. without meaning to; and the next
moment Mrs. Dumont entered. He advanc-
ed with his hand stretched out.
To his amaZement she stepped back with
a little scream and exclaimed: who are
your
Then Mr. Van Brunt remembered that he
had shaved off his beard. And when he
looked into the mirror and saw in addition
the ugly red seam along his face, he was
not surprised that she had not recognized
him. He could not have recognized himself
1t was nearly l O'Clock in the morning
when John d. Van Brunt, bidding farewell
to his hostess in the library. heard the YES
tibule door open and knew that Mr.. Dumont
had returned. He was evidently drunk.