News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1905-12-20


a hint of better reasons. Ralfies wrote,
as he had telegraphed. from Bremen,
and | gathered that the personal use
Of some little influence with the au-
thoritles there had resulted in ma.
| teral reduction in our fares.
Imagine my excitement and delight!
managed to pay what I owed at
! Thames Ditton, to squeeze a small edi-
/ tor for very small check and my
! tailors for one more flannel suit
| remember that | broke my last SOW
ereign to get box of Sullivan's Gig
arettes for Raffles to smoke on the
voyage. But my heart was as light as
ry purse on the Monday morning, the
fairest morning of an unfair summer,
when the special whirled me through
| the sunshine to the sea.
A tender awaited us at Southampton.
Raffles was not on board, nor did |
really look for him till we reached
the liners side. and then | looked in
| vain. His face was not among the
Eany that fringed the rail; his hand
was not of the few that waved to
| friends. | climbed aboard in sudden.
heaviness. l lad no ticket or the mon
ey to nay for one. | did not even
know the number of my room. My
heart was in my mouth as | waylaid
steward and asked if Mr.. Rallies
was on board. Thank heaven-he vast
But where? The man did not know,
was plainly ON some other Grand
and a-hunting | must go. 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 RafIies
in his own cabin, whittier | inquired
my way in desperation, but the
sight OF his own name on the baggage
was certainly a 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 ship"
Despite the craven prohibition had
tried the bridge as a last resort, and
there indeed was A. J. Rallies seated
on a skylight and leaning over one of
the officers long chairs, in which re-
clined girl in white drill coat and
skirt-a slip of girl with pale skin,
dark hair and rather remarkable eyes.
So much | noted as he rose and quick
ly turned. Thereupon l could think of
nothing but the swift grimace which
preceded start of well feigned aston
ishmClt.
"Whv, Bunny!" cried Raffles. where
have Won sprung FROM
] stammered something as he plnched
my h2nd.
"And are you coming in this ship?
And to Naples too? Well upon my
world Miss Werner, may introduce
him?'
And he did so without blush, de-
scribing me as an old schOolfellow
whom he had not seen for months,
with willful circumstance and gratui-
tous detail that filled me at once with
GULL uSlOl, SlSllClOlI anu lCfOII. LGLl
myself blushing for us both. and did
not care. My address utterly desert
ed me, and made no effort to recover
it, to carry the thing off. All would
do was to humble such words as Raj
fles actually put into my mouth, and
that doubt not with a thoroughly evil
grace.
$50 you saw my name in the list of
passengers and came in search of me2
Good old Bunny! | say though, /
wish you'd share my cabin. I've got
beauty on the promenade deck but
they wouldn't promise to keep me by
myself. We ought to see about it be-
fore they shove in some alien. In any
case we shall have to get out of this"
For a quartermaster had entered the
wheelhouse, and even while we had
been speaking the pilot had taken pos
session of the bridge. AS we descend
ed, the tender left us, with flying hand
kerchiefs and shrill gOodbys, and as
we bowed to Miss Werner in the
promenade deck there came a deep,
slow throbbing underfoot and our voy-
age had begun.
1t did not begin pleasantly between
Raffles and me. On deck he had over
borne my stubborn perplexity by dint
Of a forced though forcefGl ioNial,ty.
In his cabin the gloves were off.
you idiot" he snarled, you've
given me away again!
GLOW have I given you awayT
l ignored the separate insult in his
last word.
"How? l should have thought any
clod could see that | meant us to meet
by chance"
"After taking both tickets yours2lf?"
"They know nothing about that on
board. Besides, l hadn't decided when
I took the tickets"
"Then you should have let me know
when you did decide You lay your
plans and never say word and ex-
pect me to tumble to them by light Of
nature. How was I to know you had
anything on?"
l had turned the tables with some
effect RafIles almost hung his head.
"The fact is, Bunny, I didn't mean
you to know. You-you've grown such
n ,,io,,e robhit in vorr old age"