The Washington times., 1908-12-12
CHAPTER I.
A PROPOSAL IN A HURRY.

Not that he thought so at
the time. or indeed for long
afterward. There were many sub5e-
quent occasions when he rallied at the
event as the start of all his misfortunes-
But when does a man ever know what
IS good for him?
Certainly the circumstance was em-
barrassing enough at the moment. Here
he was. a stranger in New York, four
or five miles away from his hotel, a
pair of tight shoes on his feet which
made walking an excruciating agony,
and not a penny in his pocket.
The realization Of his plight came
TO him Just after he had left the pretty
fiat house on 122d street in The Morn
ingslde Heights section. where he had
been making.an evening call.
Mechanically he thrust his hand into
his coat as he came down the steps,
only to withdraw 1t with startled
gasp and begin a hurried ransacking OF
all his pockets.
The search was IN vain; his wallet
was gone, and with it every cent he had
with him.
He breathed a profound execration
against the thoughtIessness which had
betrayed him into trusting all his eggs
TO one basket. and limped painfully in
his tight shoes to the corner t0 con-
slider the situation.
His loss in itself did not disturb him
greatly. There was only about S25 In
cash in the pOcketbook, the remainder
OF the funds with which he had come
on from Chicago that day being In the
shape OF New York drafts. payment
upon which could readily be stopped
It was the immediate consequences Of
4 IL
the dickens was he TO reach his down
town hotel without money, and IN a pair
CT shoes which made every step a lin
gering tortureZ
Now. for one answer to the question:
Since he was well convinced that the
purse must have been dropped in the
house he had Just quilted, he had but
10 return there and announce his loss
in order TO recover his property; or,
even supposing the purse was not there,
he knew a mere statement Of his pre-
dicament would procure him all the re-
lief he required.
Jim. however. vowed hotly that sooner
than go back to that door upon such an
errand he would willingly enter a den
Of wild tigers.
Scarcely complimentary. perhaps, 70
the dainty little fat with its atmo-
sphere OF exquisite femininity, or to the
occupants thereof; vet Harrison was not
entirely TO be blamed for his forcible
siuile.
One may naturally be reluctant to face
sgain-especially where there is a pCssi-
bnity of having to strike her for the
loan Of a nicllel-the girl to whom one
has Just bade lofty and eternal fare
well: and that was the upshot Of the
interview which Jim Harrison had
rushed all the way from Chicago to
have with Helene Burns.
Only yesterday he had heard from
her in one of those gOssipy letters she
had been accustomed to write since she
had been attending the Teachers Col
iege in New York She told him that
an excellent position had been unex-
pectedly offered her out in the Philip
pines, and that she was preparing to
sail the following Saturday.
At this point the big Office chair IN
which Jim had been tipped back reading
his missive went over with a crash.
But he did not stop to figure up the
damage, either to it or himself AS ne
gathered himself from among the ruins
his one conscious Thought was that.
with HELEN on the other side Of the
world. America would become to him a
bleak and bowling wilderness, and that
she must be stopped at all hazards.
on Saturday she was planning to
sail, eh? And This was Wednesday,
There was evidently no time to be
lost
With one step across tho room he
grabbed up q telegraph blank. at the
same time ringing for a messenger
boy.
DO nothing further until I have
seen you Am coming on" he wrote,
and flung the message TO the waiting
lad.
Tell 'em to make the wires smoke
with that he ordered. Here, hold on
a second. Here's a quarter for you,
and a good cigar for the operator.
Now. chase"'
Then, after the hasty consultation Of
railroad guide. he plunged into a
wrestle with the telephone.
His ticket and sleeping car berth were
engaged; his landlady instructed to send
down without delay his suitcase packed
with al the requirements for a three
days absence; and minute directions
were impaired TO his broker, for he
happened to be engaged IN some rather
extensive operations on change, and
market conditions at the moment were.
TO saw the least. p bit tickiish.
In fact. as the broker told him. II
was just about the very worst time he
could have chosen to leave town; but
Harrison, undeterred by such Cassandra
c7oakings. babe the other, Shut up,"
and stubbornly went ahead with his
preparations
In half an hour, his decks cleared. he
went whirllng down to the station. and
catching the Limited" by a narrow
margin, was of 20 New York.
Eighteen hours later he arrived on
Broadway. and having INDUCED in the
luxury OF bath and shave to remove
the stains Of travel, proceeded to don
bis glad rags" for the approaching
audience which he anticipated so eager
y, and vet not without certain tinor-
GUS thrills OF uncertainty
And now arose his first reverse in the
game which had hitherto been running
so smoothly He discovered upon Inves-
tigation that his landlady had forgotten
10 add a pair Of dress shoes to his outfit.
To wear the tan ones in which he had
made the trip was manifestly impossi-
hln with aNyeufnc- ~fothas- --a4 ,,-f,r,s~,,~