The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1907-01-03

long time. TWO seasons. and she had
met him every winter Mt dinners and
swell dances. But this summer it had
been different. Asquith said it was
fate. Helene thought il the most deli
ci0us bit Of maneuyering love had ever
managed.
The rest of the family had gone 10
Europe. Helene had hesitatcd. Be
tween an automobile tour Of Brittany
and the Baltic coast and a quiet SINH
mer with her married cousin at LarclI-
mont she had chosen LarchmOnt. As
quith was Il member of the yacht club
at LarchmOnt Every morning from
the broad veranda ut Rayview cottage
she could see him out on the rocks,
sketching before sunrise.
They were splendid rocks, huge,
gaunt and gray; they rose raggedly
from the water ut low tide, like the
bodies of some submerged sea mon
sters. One could walk to them easily,
| stepping over little pools left by the
tide and stray strands of seaweed, and
| one morning Helene walked TO them,
slim and sweet and fresh as the dawn
in her white dress and white low
shoes. 1t was the shoes that did it.
When AsQuith turned ut her call for
help he found her standing in one Of
the pools, and the white shoes We're
ruined.
Helene glanced up ut the wall. \
little water color hung near her, some
gray rocks iii rose tinted sea, with Il
bit of salt marsh in the foreground.
She smiled at it happily. They had
sat up there together that morning. and
she had taken off her shoes and stock
ings-the precious ruined shoes and
stockings and that had been all.
And Asquith had said it was fate.
She laughed again He was such Il
boy after all. She stopped to pick ul
her gloves and stopped short 70 look
at something lying on the floor at her
feet. 1t was merely Il hlirpn. She
picked it up and looked at it curiouSly
Her own hairpns We're brown tortoise
shell ones TO match her hair. This one
was gold. small iHsidious gold wir,
affair, very cheap and very dainty.
The laugh was gone from her lips
In its place was q look of wonderlnent
of almost fear There had been a we
man in Hugh's studio, a woman viii
blond hair who wore gold wire hair
pins, who dropped gold wire hairpin
around promiscuously. And Hugh hat
told her lie never painted the figure
More than that, he had told her tina
no one knew of his den IN the attic eX
cept herself and a few close friends
He had no patrons. no buyers of pic
lures, because rs yet lie had never sol
any. All of his relatives were in Eu
rope too. If the hairpin did not belon
TO Il model, whom did it belong to?
With a sudden fierce Impulse, sh
threw the hairpin away from her
fell with Il tiny clink against the wal
, Almost instantly she had rcpentei
t After all, il was purely person;
t affair with Hugh, i'll which she ha
no part He had not expected her I
a visit his studio. She had no right I
resent another element of femininit
which she had found there. Even
, he dbl have models it was probabl
4 necessary All artists had to stud
from lie sooner or later. But was
o necessary that they should have la
that matched gold hairpns?
o She arose and crossed the room
= where the hairpin had fallen. For
+. moment she held it in her hand irres
+. lute Then slowly she laid it on h
table, and beside it she left the ne
@ solitaire ring. II would be enough. 81
q knew thai he would understand. :
~ sh" turned to the door her eyes i'll,
r with 4 sudden rush of binding tear
a. ANA as she felt for the latch it lift,
70 and the door opened.
II 1t was not Asquith. ON the landl
outside stood Il girl, plump, rosy chce
n. ga and red haired, holding VI h
II skirts in one hand and pail of scrl
he water in the other.
oh, thought Mr.. Asquith VI
st home" she said apoogetically. Il IL
s cleaned UP his place, ma'am, and
re guess | lost one of my hairpins. It's
f. little wire one, hut ! need it to keep Il
to pug up tight"
Il laid it on the table said Hele
10 gently The girl set the pail down
III the stairs and secured the hairpin, I;
ct tening up her tumblng red cIris wi
X it deity.
od Thank you, ma'am," she called
e. she went downstairs, and Helene we
al back to the table and slipped the ri
mt in its Old place just as Asquth car
". up the stairs.
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