Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1908-10-10


others or when l was alone (which
seldom happened for more than ten
minutes at stretch) l was as much |
excited as anybody. Partly it may
have been the effect of climate, for the |
air in America certainly does make you
feel always as if something wonderful
was going to happen to you around
the next corner, and partly it was the
effect of Potter.
Potter was most disturbing-an isl
still, for that matter. He has the air
of feeling that he, and he alone. has q
right TO me. ard it's quite lesson inl
tact keeping the peace between him|
and other men who feel it their Chris
tian duty to be little nice to young
foreigner.
But | am thinking now of the time
before the great affair. 1t really was
a strain wondering what it would be
like and whether it would be grand
success or whether it would fall short
of all the brilliant expectations wher
the mystery would be revealed.
At last the night came. The invita-.
tons were for 10 o'clock. and people
could not resist the temptation to come
soon after the hour and begin. Mrs.
| ESS Kay stood in the early English
| drawing room Chats the style it's fur
nished i'll. or she believes it isl receiv.
ing without mask and dressed to rep
resent Queen Margaret of Navarro,
| from whom she says that she is de
| seconded She had another dress to
| put Oh afterward. so that none of the
| guests would recognize her and she
| could have fun with the rest. but no
| one knew about that except Sally and
| Potter and me.
| We others didn't appear at first, be.
cause we had no costumes to change
with, but by and by. when a lot Of
| people had arrived. we mingled with
| them.
AS soon as any one came in Mrs Ess
Kay would say. How do you do. my
Lord of Leicester, or my noble George
Washington" or whatever the person
might be trying to be. 80 glad to see
] you. You must so and have look at
the maze. Do you know how to find
it? Just through that curtain. You
!. can't miss the way"
:, Then the gorgeous masker would
cross the hall and disappear behind a
great curtain of tapestry that covered
an open doorway lea0ing to the garden
But he hadn't to go out of doors 4
canvas covered. winding passage tool
him to the vast marquee, which was, OF
course. the maze. But why ii was the
maze and what happened to you in the
maze after you had got in l didn'
know any more than the outsiders
That was the fun of it for me, o.
course, and it really was fun.
Sally had only taken enough pain.
+ about her dress to save annoying Mrs
Ess Kay. She was a White Carmelite
1 with veil over her face instead OF
o mask. But Potter had made tremen
( dous fuss about himself. He wa!
g Flame. which he said was appropriate
: in the circumstances, as he had got S,
used to playing Fire to my Frost h
/ felt quite at home in the character
; And he was very magnificent He ha,
l designed the costume himself. for h
d fancieS himself at that sort of thing
and my white sparkling robes and hi
J scarlet satin and carbuncle embroid
s. cry and copper and gold fringes di
Is look rather effective side by side
IS He made that an excuse for insist
Z ing that l should go with him into tn
d maze. although a tall Hamlet and
II Henry V. of England both wanted t
e take me.
:" Potter whisked me away from ther
somehow, and we passed under th
tapestry curtains while one of the tw
!: Hungarian bands Mrs Ess Kay ha
hired played waltz which made M
long to dance.
This way to the maze: this way I
the maze" Il man dressed like bee
eater was continually saying. II
stood just outside the door, in kin
of canvas vestibule lined with greel
cry, so that it looked like the entrant
to a bower.
The passage to the marquee had bee
made so beautiful that couldn't he
crying out to Potter with admiration
Not an inch of the canvas showed. f,
we walked through a sort of tunnel
roses all lit up with invisible electr
lights. 1t was like the way to fair
land. and the floor was covered wit
a mat Of artificial grass, like they ha1
for stage lawns, Potter said.
l thought when we came to the Ell
of the rose tunnel we should find GU
selves in big open space in the ma
quee, but when the tunnel stopped v
were in narrow alley between ta
green bushes. set so thickly and
ng close together that we couldn't s.
what was on the other side. Abo,
re us, instead of the canvas roof of Il
to- marquee (which must have been ov
Zig alb, a violet mist seemed to float, wi
n very faint. soft light filteril
lot through it. like blue moonlight. su
ng pose it must have been ever and ev
We so many thicknesses OF blue gaus
ac- with shaded lights hanging above, b
the effect was mysterious and alIurir
on We had only gone little way VIII,
or we arrived at a tiny house built a
as parently Of red flowers, and there W
sv. red light coming out of the one lit