The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-03-25

oath before :. turned with a smile, some-
what strai,ir md fixed.
Were yo, , ing . lark" Dried Constance
Fielding Q 'I ~s4ohtully, without telling
me abou,e ear L lossie?'
The man controlled himself with a strong
effort.
Forgive me, Constance he replied.
Had there been any change I would have
waited. But I am expecting a patient on
this train for a most important oonsulta-
tom
4But you look so worried" persisted
Constance.
Not about Flossie, believe me. A physi-
clan, as it is your fate to learn, has many,
many cares, my dear girl. With perfect rest
and seclusion for q few days longer l think
/ can safely promise that you shall SEQ
Who is that fellow over there, C~onstance?'
he demanded abruptly, almost fercely.
There was a tinge Of melancholy in Con-
stance Fielding's brown eyes, a shade
perhaps cast before, as she replied without
comment.
He is the new gardener, Mark-a simple
German, scarcely able to speak a word Of
English
Aye, but he might hear. Forgive me
again, Constance; I am hipped, unstrung,
from overwork, for lack OF sleep. There is
the whistle now. This evening I will ex-
plain" And he dashed away through
the windings of the garden, leaving the girl
with the shadows over her brown eyes
deepening into pain.
A dapper little man with a sharp white
face and black spiked mustache leaped
nimbly from the train and joined the doctor.
In their five minutes walk to the cozy cot
tage not a word was said, but when they
were bsAind CLOSED doors in the ofios,
with the shades drawn and the droplight
burning, Sewell seemed to lose all self-re-
%strrint.
did you get It, Rayni"r? Have you
sold them?7 he cried pecing to and fro.
my God. man, don't you see that I'm half
crazy with suspense-"
You're n big fool" retorted the other
composedly; cas- big a fool as you are kDave.
Did l get it? No, not one ~picayune. Have
l sold them? No, not the millionth part Of
a carat. 10 I, Adolnh Raynier, rcog-
nized as expert Of experts in Rio, Cape
Town, Amsterdam, do l look like a dealer
in paste?"
"You don't mean-
Il mean, you clumsy dolt, that the gems
you brought me for debt and future adj
vances are nothing more nor less than a
clever imitation Of the famous Earle COL
lection. Oh, it didn't take me long to learn
that he once sent such q replica over to the
FAIRS Eyposition--
Sewell's lips ran blood.
THAT is why h5 didn't take any pre-
cautions" he gasped.
A. l. 49, Il
lack of precaution entails suffering. Take
your own case for instance.
Il had such confidence in you as q mar
who could achieve that l offered, l would
have abided by, terms most hSeral. Now
it is dinerent-you m~uddle-you involve
yourself in ruin inc xtrloable.
Cash down then in full, I say, with fifty
thousand as a solatium for loss Of faith,
chagrin-or well, what I know the prose-
cutting officer, he also shall know"
But, Raynier, be reasonable. In six
months I will be married, my future wife,
as o know, is wealthy in her " right.
Meanwhile you shall have your bond, il
you insist on grinding an old friend and
associate into the dust. Oh. / could kill
you-"
"Only you know 1 am too well armed to
make the attempt, Ell, my good Mark?
No, there is not sufficient. The estate may
deteriorate. II the gracious Constance
were to take all, perhaps
"Confound that girl Flossie," muttered
Sewell, hugging himself as II from cold,
Il had hoped she might make a die Of it,
but the deliium is lessening, abe has the
constitution Of a horse"
"As you ave Of an ass, my friend. You