The bee., 1908-12-03
WIR E AND
WIR ELESS
BY lydia Andrews.

by except herself.
The thought only served to increase
her bitterness of spirit, though she
had carefully planned to conceal her
departure that there might be no one
at the dock to see her off.
Friends at such a time could only
serve to accsntuate the self-pity that
had sustained her ever since she had
read that fateful telegram.
This was to have been her wedding
journey. She and Graham Temple had
planned to take the trip. II was to
have been Grahams first visit abroad,
and they had laid out a tour that
should cover the whole continent
Then Temple had been called to
New Mexico to look after SONG min
ing interests, and presently the pa.
pers had reported his marriage to
Sonora Mendoz, who owned the mines
adjacent to his and who was reported
to be worth several millions.
Harry Vieland had often joked Ora
ham about his conquest OF the Mexi
can woman, but Mona had not taken
It seriously. When the telegraphic
dispatch appeared in all the papers
and Graham had not written In two
weeks, she faced what she thought
was the bitter truth.
/ Unable to bear the sympathy of her
friends, Mona had arranged TO sliT
quietly Off to Europe. Her aunt would
join her in London, and by the time
they returned the broken romancs
would have been forgotten.
} She sat quietly in the shadow OF
the tunnels on the upper deck and idly
watched the preparations for depart
ure through tear-dimmed eyes.
There were few on the upper deck
Most Of the passengers were crowd
ing the lower rails to catch last
glimpses of their friends as the huge
ship backed slowly out Of the sllp
and with the help of the noisy, pant
ing tug headed for the opening pan
Drama
Slowly the impressive panorama oil
the harbor slipped past the wonderful
skyline Of the city, the villa dotted
shores Of Staten Island and the more
populous Long Island shore, but Mona
gave no heed. She was lost in her
thoughts and her thoughts were far
from pleasant.
She had loved Temple with an in
tensity that sometimes frightened her,
and her disappointment was the more
keen because she had trusted him SO
implicitly. For nearly year they
had planned for their marriage, and
when he had wed another without
even a word to her, both love aud
pride were gorely hurt.
She would not stay at home and
let others condole with her 1t was
less than a week since the item had
appeared, yet it seemed to her that
years had pissed since her father had
passed her the paper at the break
fast table.
The bugler blew the luncheon call
the notes sounding soft and clear as
thet fioated up from the main deck,
but Mona gave no heed. She wanted
only to be let alone. to sit back in her
chair and watch the fading of the
land, comparing it with the dying Of
her hopes.
In review she brought all OF the in.
cidents of the year of their engage.
ment, recalling all their tender inter.
course and trying to deaden her feel.
ings with the thought that It was all
insincere and that Temple had forgot.
ten his tender VOWS In the thought
Of the material advantage to be gained
through the marriage with the owner
of the adjoining mines.
! She had thought by this means she
might succeed in deadening the bitter
pangs of her heart, but instead every
memory but increased her suffering,
and at last, unable to bear her pain,
she rose and descended to the lower
deck in the hope that she might find
distraction in company Of other pas
sengers.
AS she reached the other deck the
passengers we're coming up from
lunch and boy was pacing the decks
looking for her. Mechanically she
stretched out her hand for the en-.
yelope he held and tore II open.
For an instant her heart seemed to
stop beating as she caught sight OF
the signature but she steadied her.
self with an effort and read the mes
sage through.
II was a long one from Temple. and
told of his arrival in the city just too
late 10 find her. His telegram had
been delayed during the strike, and
the first knowledge Of his reported
marriage was when his friends had
iokingly congratulated him.
A hurried inquiry developed the fact
that Vieland's cousin was an operator
handling tho Press association dis
patches. and that he had changed the
name OF the groom, probably at Vie
lands instigation.
In a fash Mona saw the plan. 1t
was 10 offer her his sympathy. She
had wondered then at his suggestion
that they get married Immediately, to