The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1905-10-13
~ RaffIes,
So 6be Amateur
l>IS7I CraCkSr11an
i IsNL 4lsfaig| " E. w. HoRNUNG
Craftsman
BY E. W. HoRNUNG

Hang the cricket,
We'll I thought you meant it,
"Of course l. meant it. Vii, you
Gomez"
like a shot-if you 90"
And I shook his hand and waved
mine in farewell with the perfectly
good humored conviction that l should
hear no more Of the matter. 1t was q
passing thought. no more. no less.
soon wished il were more That week
! found me wishing myself out Of Eng
land for good and all. I was making
! nothing l could but subsist on the
difference between the rent I paid for
my nat and tLe rent at which I had
sublet it, furnished. for the season,
and the season was near its end. and
creditors awaited me in town. Was ii
possible TO be entirely honest? I had
run 10 bills when I had money in my
pocket. aud the more downright dis
honesty seemed to NE the less ignoOle.
But from Rallies of course ! heard
nothing more. \ week went by. and
half another week. Then late on the
second Wednesday night I found a
telegram from him at my lodgings
after seeking him vainly in town and
dining with desperation at the solitary
club TO which l still belonged.
Arrange TO leave Waterloo by North
German Lloyd special" lie wired, "9:25
81. "a Monday next; will meet you
Southampton aboard THAN with tick
cts; am writing"
And write he did, a light hearted
letter enough, but full Of serious solicit
tude for me and for my health and
prospects-a letter almost touching in
tie light Of our past relations. in the
twilight Of their complete rupture. He
said that he had booked two berths to
Naples; that we We're bound for Capri.
which was clearly the island of the
lotus eaters: that we would baSk there
together "ani for awhile forget" 1t
was q charming letter. l had never
seen Italy; the privilege of initiation
should be his. No mistake was great
or than TO deem ii an impossible c0un-
try for the summer. The bay Of Naples
was never so divine, and be wrote Of
fairy lands forlorn." as though the
poetry spraug uubidden TO his pen. To
come back to earth and prose, l might
think il unparriotc Of him 10 choose a
German boat. but on no other line did
you receive such attention and accom-
mediation for your money. There was
q hint Of better reasons. Rafles wrote.
as be had telegraphed. from Bremen.
and l gathered that the personal use
Of some little influence with the au-
thorities there had resulted in ma
terial reduction in our fares.
Imagine my excitement and delight.
l managed to pay what I owed Mt
Thames Ditton. TO squeeze Z small edi-
tor for very small check and my
tailors for one more flannel suit l
remember that broke my last SOW
ereign TO get 4 box OF Sullivan's zig
arettes for Rafles TO smoke on the
voyage. But my heart was rs light as
my purse on the Monday morning. the
fairest morning Of an unfair summer.
when the special whirled me through
the sunshine 10 the sea
A tender awaited US AT Southampton.
Rsffies was not on board. nor did I
really look for him till we reached
the liners side, and then ! looked in
vain. His face was not among the
many that fringed the rail; his hand
was not Of the few that waved to
friends l climbed aboard in q sudden
heayiness had no ticket or the mon
ey TO pay for one did not even
know the number Of my room. My
heart was in nv mouth as l waylaid
q steward and asked II a Mr.. Rafles
was on board. Thank hsaven-hs was.
But where? The man did not know,
was plainly on some other errand.
and a-hunting ] must 60. But there
was no sign Of him on the promenade
! deck and none below in the saloon.
The smoking room was empty but for
a little German with a red mustache
twisted into his eyes. Nor was Rallies
in his own cabin, whittier l inquired
my way in desperation, but the
sight Of his own name on the baggage
was certainly further reinsurance.
Why he himself kept In the back
ground. however, l could not conceive,
and only sinister reasons would sug-
gest themselves in explanation.
$50 there you are! I've been looking
for you all over the shipw
Despite the craven prohibition l had
tried the bridge as a last resort, and
there indeed was A. j. Raffles seated
on skylight and leaning over one of
the officers long chairs, in which re-
clined a girl in a white drill coat and
skirt-a slip of girl with a pale skin,
dark hair and rather remarkable eyes.
So much | noted as he rose and quick
ly turned. Thereupon / could think of
nothing but the swift grinace which
preceded start Of we'll feigned aston
ishment.
"Why, Bunnyw cried Rahles. where
have you sprung FROM
] stammered something as he pinched
my hand.
"And are you coming In this ship?
And to Naples too? Well, upon my
word! Miss Werner, may 1 introduce
him?"
And he did so without a blush, de-
scribing me as an old schoolfellow
whom he had not seen for months,
with willful circumstance and gratui-
tous detail that filed me at once with
confusion, suspicion and revolt / felt
myself blushing for US both, and l did