Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-03-31
CHAPTER III-Continued.

CHAPTER III-Continued.
Good Lord said Judy, to herself. as
he stood up and left her, with his usual
courtly bow. What a family to deal
with. This poor little joke is as apt to end
in bloodshed as not. The colonel is on the
warpath. already; I can see that by his
stateliness."
Col Ogilvie thought over the matter
for whole day before he spoke to JOY
He always very grave and serious
regarding subjects involving honor and
duty.
Joy knew that he had something on his
mind from his abstraction, and rather
kept out of his way. This was not on
her own account, for she had no idea
that she was involved In the matter but
simply because 1t was her habit to SYM
pathiZe with him and to think of and
for him. She was just a little surprised
when the next afternoon he said to her.
they stood together, at the back of
the wheelhouSe, over the screw, the
quietest place on the ship for talk:
Joy, dear, 1 want you to listen to me a
minute"
Yes. daddy
About that joke you had on the
Cryptic" ,
T1OuSly, she UNDERSTOOD now.
My dear. 1 don't object to your hav-
ing any little harmless romance of that
kind. don't suppose it would make any
difference If / did A young girl will
have her dreaming quite Independent of
her old daddy. Isn't it SO, little girl?''
Il suppose so. dear daddy, since you
say it," She nestled up close to him
comfortably, she spoke; this was nicer
talk than she expected.
But there is one thing you must be
fIrI Oh fIofo - hn
How do you mean, daddy"
Il gather that there has been a joke
among some of you, to calling You the
Countess or Lady Athlyne. or some of
that is not right You are not the
Countess, nor Lady Athlyne, nor lady
anything. A name. my dear, when it is
an honorable one. Is a very precious pos
name she does possess as a part of her
honor.
Il am proud of my name, father. very.
very proud of it, and l always shall be-
She had drawn herself upright and had
something of her fathers splendid per-
sonal pride. The very of the word
father instead of daddy showed that
she was conscious of the formalty.
quite right, little girl That is your
name now. and will. in a way. always
be. But you may marry, you know, and
then your husbands name will be your
name. and you will. on your side. be the
guardian of his honor We must never
trifie with name. dear. Those people,
who go under an alias. are, to my mind,
the worst of criminals"
Isn't that rather strong. daddy, when
murder and burglary and theft ana Wife
beating and cheating at cards are
about?' She felt that she was through
the narrow place, now, and could go back
TO her raillery. But her father was quite
grave. He walked up and down a few
PAGES, as though arranging his thoughts
and words. When he spoke he did so
carefully and deliberately:
Not so, little girl. These. however bad
they may be, are individual offenses. and
are punished by law. But false name
even in jest, my dear-is an offense
against society generally, and hurts and
is every one of the sins you have named.
and all the others in the calendar as
we'll"
How on earth do you make that out,
daddy?'
Take them in order. as you mentioned
them: Murder, burglary, theft, wife-beat-
ing. cheating at cards. What is murder?
Killing. without justification. Does not
guise, kill something? The murderer
takes the life; the other kills what is
often more than life-self respect, belief
in human nature, faith. One only kills
the body, but the other kills the soul
Burglary and theft are the same offense
differently expressed; theft is the meaner
crime, that is all. Well. disguise is the
thefs method. Sometimes he relies on
the absence OF others, sometimes on
darkness, sometimes on a mask, some
times on the appearance or identity of
some one else. But he never deals with
the normal condition of things; pretense
of some kind must always be his AID
The man, therefore, who relies on pre-
tense, when he knows that the truth
would be his undoing, is q thief"
Daddy, you argue as well as a Phila-
delphia lawyer.
Il don't believe much in lawyers" said
the old man. dryly. las to wife-beat-
ing
I'm afraid you've struck snag. there.
daddy. There isn't much pretense about
that crime, anyhow.
Not at all. my dear. That comes with
I'm the category of murder. The man who
descends to that abominable crime would
kill the woman. if he dared. He is
coward. as we'll as murderer. and
should he killed like "A mad dog.
Bravo daddy | wish there was man
like YOU to deal with them in every
county. But how about cheating at
cards? That's "A poser. | think
No trouble about that, JOY. 1t IS
cheating IL cards
How do YOU argue that out daddy"
ANY game of cards is game of honor.
So many cards, so much skill in playing
them according to the recognized rules
of thu. game: and over ALL general be-
have seen . man shot across handker-
chief-in honorable duel my dear-for
hesitaiing. markedly, at poker, when he
stood pat on full house. mat was
pretense and against the laws of honor,
and he paid for ii with his life. JOY
wrinkied her hrows II see it's quite
wrong. father. but | don't quite see how
II fits into the argument. she said.
That is simple enough, daughter As
| say, il il pretense- Don't you see
tnat after all. a game of cards Is
simple thing compared with the social
life OF which it is only an occasional
episode? If manor a woman. either.
Joy-misleadS another 1t must be with
some intention to deceive. And in that
deception, and by means of II. there Is
some gan-something he or she desires,
and couldn't otherwise get. Isn't that
plain enough?
..All right, father; ] quite see. | UNI
eerstand, now. what YOU mean. l did not
ever look at things I'm quite that way.
Thank YOU, very much. dear for warning
me. so kindly, too I'll stop the joke.
and not allow it 10 go on-so far as l
can stop il.
How do YOU mean? Does any one else
know il?
Il have written to one or two girls AT
home daddy. You know girls are always
fond Of such foolishness.
Had YOU not better write 10 them and
teU them not to mention it?
Good gracious. Why. you dear. old
goose of "A daddy, il i evident YOU don
know girls That would be the very way
To make things buzz. On, no, we'n sim