The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1907-07-26

portrait of yourself?" whispered
Nancy, with curious glance at her
friend.
Evelyn did not answer. Strange
answers to those vague questions
began to float through her mind, and
with it all there grew and grew a
sense of familiarity with every de-
tail of the picture.
The very boughs seemed like old
familiar friends, and the girl who
parted them? All! Now she saw
the likeness Nancy spoke of. 1t was
indeed herself-the old real self that
Nancy had questioned her about less
than an hour ago-the self Evelyn
fancied had been laid aside long ago
with an old green gown.
Come" said Nancy, who was
watching her friend closely, 'tand
I will tell you the story of the man
who painted The Lady in Green and
Cold"
''He came to Paris six years ago,
and he was English" she began
abruptly, as they found quiet cor
ner and sat down. 'tHe was young,
he was brilliant, and before long be-
came the shining light of Lemaire's.
There was no future too great to
prophesy for him, the master said,
and if you add to this that he, loved
and was loved by beautiful girl,
and that every one was his friend,
you will have picture of this man
as he was then. Now try to realize
what it must have been to lose all
this in less than minute-just one
little minute of time, and love and
talent and even a future were swept
away. 1t was at a railway station"
Nancy went on quickly, for Evelyn's
face was white with appeal, "and
there was great crowd. Many of
the people were tipsy, for it had
been fete day, and in the rush that
was made for the incoming train a
mother and her two children-oh!
Evelyn, wasn't it awful?-were
thrown down ON the rails. It was
all over in a moment, and nobody
ever quite knew how he did it; but
Christopher Wayne was on the plat
form, and"
Saved them. oh! he saved
them?" whispered Evelyn, passion
ately.
Eyes, he saved them, but his arm
the engine caught it," explained
Nancy, with a shudder ''It was his
right arm, and the doctors, when
they saw it, said he would never
paint again. They amputated it and
saved his life, but he was in the
hospital for long time" Nancy
went on, after pause, in which she
dared not look at her companions
face, "and when he came out he was,
as Dick puts it, absolutely broken
and done for Dick, forgot to tell
you, was his friend and fellow stu
dent at Lemaire's, and the first thing
Mr.. Wayne did when he came out of
the hospital was to ask Dick to write
a letter. He had nothing left, he
said, for any woman to waste her
years over, so Dick wrote the letter.
1t was to a girl in England, whose
name Dick has forgotten; but in
essence it told her that the one who
0CAL IL AdO CAoASC0 LILO m1A0.
ooh! don't, Nancy, don't!" plead
ed Evelyn, piteously. "Just tell
me what happened afterward."
"He left Paris and disappeared.
No one-not even Dick-knew what
had become of him. It was sup
posed he had committed suicide in his
despair, but for five years no trace
of him was ever found. Then a
week ago Paris was startled by The
Lady in Green and Cold"
| "You mean" began Evelyn, a
| dawning comprehension in her eyes.
HE painted it with his left hand!
That last day when he left Dick and
went out into the dark alone he had
nothing but dim little hope for
company. He took It away With him
| to a lonely village in the Ardennes,
| and there slowly but surely began
| to fan it into fame. Little by
little it grew as he worked on
patiently through the lonely years
-one-two-thre four, then
five, and he came back to Paris with
The Lady in Green and Gold.'"
"Oh, splendid! Splendid" re-
peated Evelyn, with shining eyes.
Wasn't it? Just think of him
away there in his lonely village,
working on year after year till he
mastered that unruly hand. Liter
ally he had to become as little
child and begin life all over again.
All, that was heroic, If you like. I"
concluded Nancy; ''far more
heroic"
But Evelyn had suddenly ceased
to listen. She had risen to her feet
and, with parted lips and all the
color gone from her face, waited for
two men who had entered the room
and now came toward them.
One of these was keen of face and
slight of build; he wore foreign
decoration in his 3utton-hole, and
had the modernity of America writ
ten on his every look and movement;