Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1909-08-13

ner room with her wet nanQkerCnfe1H
and the ring. 1t had been easy. She
had never stolen anything before, and
it was SO terrible a thing that she was
faint and trembled like a leaf. She
thought:
"In feel better in the morning, and
then I'll see"
But no sleep came to her. and In the
morning 1t was all she could do to
rise and drag herself to the store. Her
eyes were heavy and her head ached.
She was pale and wan. The very
floorwalker to win whose admiration
she had stolen stopped and said:
miss Lovejoy, are you illf"
And he looked so sympathetic that
Ida's chin quivered and her eyes filed
as she replied:
"Just a little headache; that is all"
"You won't be able to dance tonight.
Hadn't I better get you excused to-
day? I will If you WISH"
eff you please" she said weakly,
while she thought, what If he knewT
She looked very Ill. The diamond
that was wrapped in a handkerchief
In her bosom seemed to weigh a ton
and to burn like redhot iron. She
leaned against the shelves with
pinched features until he returned
with the desired permission.
"ShaIl 1 get a cab for your he asked
kindly.
"I-think-I will walk. The air may
do me good. 1t is so warm In here.
Thank you very much"
Ida had beautiful eyes. The floor
walker had often noticed this tall,
silent girl with her heavy braids,
plainly of her own hair. He was tired
of the ridiculous pompadours Of the
other girls. Her voice was low and
sweet. and now it quivered with the
emotion that shook her very soul.
She dared not look into his eyes for
fear he would know she was a thief.
She had not realized what she had
done fully until now, but now, know
ing it, she trembled.
No thought of the ball entered her
mind. If she could only restore the
ringl
She crept back to her boarding house
and to her room. She heard the girls
come home and heard their gay chat
ter as they were preparing for the
fancy ball.
Dimly she remembered that she had
intended to pawn that ring and buy a
gown she had seen, all silver, like
moonlight on still water, and she was
going to get a veil of spangled tulle
and a tinsel crown, let down her long
dark hair and call her costume
might" All was over now, and she
was a thief.
What If the senora caused a search
to be nader She must hide it until
she could replace 1t. The window was
closed now. Then the supper bell rang.
She remembered that she had eaten
nothing all that day and went trem-
blingly down. To her Joy the sonora
was not there, and the other girls were
all SO full of the ball that her silence
passed without comment.
At last all the other girls left the
house in gay spirits, leaving Ida alone
in her fear, shame and horror of her
self.
The night the ring had been stolen
Sonora Valdez had sought for 1t every
where in her room. She knew where
she had left 1t. Nothing else had been
taken. She knew that she had put 1t
on the tree and that 1t was there when
she left, for all four Of the girls had
preceded her, and she had locked and
tried the door. She was always very
methodical.
"Some one must have a key that fits
my door and came in while l was
downstairs" she thought.
The sonora did as the most of us do
and took all her other valuables to the
safe deposit vault, but she said no
word to any one OF her loss.
eff l call the police" she thought,
"and have a search made all the mo
cent will hate me, and l may never
find 1t. If l keep absolute silence and
watch some day the one who took 1t
will say some word or do something
which will betray him and show me
the thief. / wish that it had been any
other jewel"
So the sonora went to sleep. The
next day brought no proof. That any
one could have reached the ring tree
from the bathroom window never en-
tered her head.
Scarcely had the merry party gone
to the ball when there was a ring and
a visitor for Miss LoveJoy. She felt
as though she must die then as the
handsome foorwalker came In.
II heard you were not going to the
bah, SO l thought I would come in and
see-if you-are better"
Eyes, but 1 don't care very much for
parties or balls ALI this while she
was wondering why he had come
mo more do l." said he. IT like
quiet better. I think l was cut out for
a home lover"
81 think l am, too" said Ida, with a
half sob as the memory OF her crime
surged up in her mind. closing the door