Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1907-08-31

spirit as his would cause diSSension
among our simple minded workers. and
! felt 1t due 20 them that he should no
longer be at their side"
so you gave him thc--well, the sack
OF course ! know"
Perhaps" said Mr Shelf, with a
smile of pain, 'hc viii be able to OBJ
tain employment elsewhere, or being a
young man Of means he may choose TO
set up in business for himself but |
fear my dear. that lie VIII miss many
of the Christian Influences which SO
elevate and purify the dependents Of
Marmaduke RiveTB Il Shelf"
Miss Rivers shruGved her shoulders.
Isn't this" she said. "to do with the
city and not Park lane? As Mrs shelf
says. We're ordinary society heathens
when We're here. and as she sent Ham
ilton his card / don't see that it mat
ters. It's Mrs Shells at home
And not mine. Amy You are riGht
in the word, my dear. but not in the
spirit As Christian Of course,
have already forgiven the wrong Mr.
Fairfax has done me in doubling the
pureness of my motives. But this
humble roof is mine Amy and il would
grieve me 70 receive under il any one
with whom ! am not on terms Of BROTH
erly amity But perhaps you can as
sure me, my dear, that Mr Fairfax ha-
already repented him of his hasty and
unjust words"
Not that" said Miss Rivers. Pm
sure he hasn't"
Then replied Mr.. Theodore Shelf.
with sorrowful firmness. Il cannot
receive him. / couldn't do IT,"
Il suppose YOU know the girl re-
torted sharply, "thst if Hamilton does
not come here tonight | shan't either"
You are my ward"
II may be But you've never tyran-
nized over me, and you are not going
10 begin now. I tell you fatty that II
it's no Hamilton it's going 10 be no
me, | shall go 10 Hampstead 10 stay
with my cousin
Il cannot give way in this. Amy. Ny
conscience will not permit me-"
Very well. May | have q carriage.
or must ] order hanson" p"
My dear child, l can refuse You
nothing in reason. The brOugham is
now as II always has been, entirely
at your disposal
Miss Rivers left the room. ana Mr.
Shelf scrubbed his dogs ragged head.
shes angry with me now, George" he
said, with a fat satisfied smile "but /
think she'll change her mind afterward.
She's clever girl, and shel see. So
with that young beggar Fairfax. con-
found HIM"
Then Mr.. Shelf put George on
comfortable chair and turned to his
table. He had, rs may be imagined,
a good deal Of writing to get through.
and considerable deal Of burning. and
the work took him till very late Then
he dressed slipped out for dinner and
returned by II O'Clock 10 stand behind
hts wife and watch her as she received
her guests He thought he had never
seen the woman look so handsome or
so queenly. and once or twice ne half
B. q kI J.,
10 bring down upon her. But then his
eyes would fail on the walls of the
room. and the silver lamps and the
flowers, and the items Of that gorgeous
display would go into his soul and
wither up any mOrsel OF compassion
which might have been there.
"A mans impelling motive is not al
ways under his own hat" he overheard
some one saying as they passed him.
and he applied he words to himself
and when he remembered the ruthless
extravaganza which no words or en-
treaties Of his own could stay, and
which alonc-so he believed-nad
forced him into knavery, he felt that
social death was a poor requjtal to the
woman who had worked his ruin. A
knife was more her due. And yet-and
yet she was such a monstrous fine wo-
men and so thoroughly clever In the
role she had set herself to play!
II certainly was a gorgeous assem-
bly,, not made UP exclusively OF the
very best people perhaps. though many
of them We're there, but il looked
wealth unspeakable. Men in evening
dress cannot show this II they fail
10 appear like walters. that is the Ut
most they can expect But the wo-
men. They carried il on their should
ers and backs, as they have done since
the beginning Of time Their dresses
were dream
their teWe'ry a chain Of rainbows
'Oh IOr9!' said one young man with
predatory instincts who pcopped a
wall, why arut l practicing BUSH
ranger just now? There's some OF the
finest diamonds here In an the world
and two Johnnies with pistols could
stick up the whole house Why's Eng
land such beastly safe place? II
there was a hard wooden chair any
where here 70 sit on and think / be-
licvc I'd turn anarchist on the spot"
Don't reduce the c.owd 20 G 8. d."
said fellow prop. IL spoils the poetry
Of the thing. Now hnd them good
enough to look at" Never said they
weren't rejoined the other only
thing is they arn't mine Now 1 could
90 very well with IL. lot Of them"
This isn't Turkey. said his friend
reprovingly.
"Oh, not the women. I've got one
WIG, ana SIt enough IOE me. But
I'd like the dresses. And the diamonds.
I'd sell 'em second band and riot on
the proceeds. Talkilg of sales, ooce
and find some burgundy cup
They went away from the ballroom,
passing down the broad shallow star
way, and were going to cross the hall
when a man stopped them and tssi
them the way was closed.
whats the matter? Has there been
an accident p
Well. perhaps it might be an ascz-
dent, sir Tisn't for me TO say"
Who the devil are you anyway"
"A member of the metropolitan po-
lice force, sir; plain clothes man, at
your service. Stand back, sir You
can't come down here. The police are
searching the lower part OF the house"
My aunt! Has shere been bar
glary?"
They are looking for Mr.. Shelf"
said the policeman shortly. There's
d warrant out aga lost him for embez-
element. But that needn't affect you
gentlemen and ladlrs up stairs. You
can so on with YOU dancing"
The two guests Looked at one another
and broke into q stIained laugh Then
they calmed their faces again and went
back up the stair
And / was envying that man a min
ute ago" said one of them. well, all
/
would say himself Shows how little
you can gauge a mans finances from
seeing what he spends. l say, bet you
/ flyer my wife g-,es TO the trial. She
knows judge
The music stopped at the end Of a
polka. and the gabble OF talk burst
promptly out and was carried about all
oyer the house But by degrees il
hushed, and In II. place grew the rustic
cf whispers. This scandal microbe trav-
els quicker than his cousin OF cholera.
Some were sorry, some were shocked
few We're gr.mly glad The band
oroke out into "Eldorado," and being
the best band ~ London II played so
the very chairs tried TO Jig about and
dance Of their own accord. Buc.ro
leather sole kissed the glistening Var
quet of the ballroom. The only things
| that moved there were the music play
eSs and a latter Of tulle which wairled
about TO the gale OF the cornet.