The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1908-09-11
A STEAMER SMOKING
ROOM STORY.


81 was crossing from Southampton
to New York. We had among the pas
sengers a jolly devil may care young
Englishman named Trevor, who was
the life of the ship. He was especially
a favorite with the ladies', though he
seemed to prefer the society of men,
spending a lot of time in the smoking
room.
There was a middle aged passenger
aboard, with a wife twenty years his
junior We hadn't been out three days
before the young wife was daft about
Trevor and the husband green with
jealousy. Then there was an old maid
who would sit moping on deck till
Trevor appeared, when she would lam
guish till he Joined her and look mex
pressibly happy if he did so for even
few minutes. And so | could go on
mentioning various women, all of
whom were more or less affected.
Trevor singled me out for his principal
companion. and we used to sit in his
stateroom by the hour chatting and
smoking. On one occasion | rallied
him on the preference shown him by
the young married woman.
zone morning after the breakfast
hour we missed Trevor in the smok-
ing room. At noon steward came to
me as Trevor's most intimate asso-
ciate and told me that my friends
room was locked and no amount of
knocking could elicit reply. The
ships carpenter was called. went
with him, and he forced the door.
The room was empty.
There could have been no means of
egress for the occupant except the port
holes. 1t seemed to me that he would
have had difficulty in getting through
one of them, but there is no knowing
what one may accomplish in crawling
through small space, especially if given
abnormal strength by insanity, though
some thought Trevor had crawled out
in his sleep.
I'VE were a dull company for the
rest of the voyage. The young wife
didn't attempt to conceal her emotion,
and her husband looked as If he would
have liked to help Trevor make way
with himself. Some of the men even
limited that the husband had something
! to do with Trevor's disappearance. but
this supposition did not gain favor
with the rest. Indeed, 1t was absurd
on its face.
I'VE reached New York without the
temperance of the .favorite or a solu-
ton of the problem. The purser broke
open Trevors trunk in the hope of
learning more of his identity than his
mere name, but the information was
not forthcoming So the case was set
down as one of those mysterious disap-
pearances that are never to be ex-
planned.
"Now comes one of the strangest
happenings of all my life. Talk of co
medicines, never have heard or read
of anything to beat what I'm going to
tell you. Three years later went from
my home In Connecticut to the Pacific
coast partly on business and partly to
attend the wedding of a niece of mine
reached her home several days before
the wedding and when introduced to
the groom eXpectant stood paralyzed
with establishment.
"He was Trevor.
"He turned red and white and was
evidently at first bent on denying his
identity. Then he laughed and said:
Yes; we've met before. There's an
eXplanatiOn-not much to my credit
confess, but it might have been more
to my discredit If | hadn't done what
l did. though to tell the truth l chose
a method that was rather acceptable tC
a young scapegrace than an older man
Do you remember the young married
woman who
"'Set her husband wild by goint
wild herself about you? Yes; go on.
"She was wild true enough-sC
wild l couldn't control her. She was
bent on running three persons, hel
husband, herself and me. / made {
confidant of the captain and proposed
to make a stowaway of myself for tn,
rest of the voyage to get out Of he
way. He offered to stow me in hi
cabin instead. and accepted the offer
Mighty good man, the captain, anC
first class at keeping a secret. l ar
ranged the disappearance and, to pre-
vent the news reaching home before
could cable, removed anything tina
would point to my address. But
heavens, how did l come to get en-
gagged to your niece?
Why didn't you confide in mer
, asked.
Captain said confide in no one o
he would have nothing to do with tn
matter
ITO all this the bride expectan
listened with eyes and ears wide open
( We'll, l declared she said at the finish
( IF had heard that story without tn
T name of the principal. | would hav
known it was you. Uncle, do 20
think I'm safe in marrying such
: mann Then to her fiance. VIII
I haven't you confessed this to me wit
other thingsY