The Sauk Centre herald., 1909-10-14
CHAPTER Viii.

Margaret received her friends let
ter and the accoult Of Baraka's trial
by the same post On the morning aft
er she and Mr.. Van Torp had been to
hear "Parsifal" together, and she
opened the two envelopes before read
ing her other letters, though after as
suring herself that there was nothing
from Logotheti.
She read the Newspaper cutting
first, supposing that it contained
something fattering about herself, for
she had been little short of public
admiration for nearly fortnight Ba-
raka's case was reported with the
rather brutal simplicity which charac-
terizes such accounts in the English
papers. and Logotheti's name ap-
peared in Mr.. Pinney's evidence.
There had been the usual laughter"
duly noted by the stenographer, when
the poor girls smart mans clothes
wore produced before the magistrate
by the policeman who had arrested
her. The magistrate had made few
oSSAA ASAAoA Nd WACA oAuC1 lug tAC OC-
linquents to prison, and had called
Baraka hardened" because she did
not burst into tears. That was all,
and there were barely five-and-twenty
lines of small print
But the prima donna bit her hand
some lip and her eyes sparkled with
anger, as she put the cutting back
into the first envelope, and took the
folded letter out of the other. The
girl had not only stolen a ruby, but
it was Margaret's ruby. her very own,
the one Logotheti had given her for
her engagement, and which she had
insisted upon having set as ring,
though 1T would cover more than half
the space between her knuckle and
the joint of her third finger. Further,
it had been stolen by the very girl
from whom Logotheti had pretended
that he had bought it, fact which
cast the high light of absurdity on his
unlikely story! 1t was natural enough
that she should have seen it, and
should have known that he was TAX
ing 1t to Pinney's. and that she should
have been able to prepare, a little
screw of paper with a bit of glass
inside, to substitute for it. The i'm
probabilities Of such an explanation
did not occur to Margaret, who saw
only the glaring fact that the hand
some Tartar girl had accompanied
Logotheti, between London and Paris,
disguished as a man, and had ulti-
mately robbed him, as he richly de-
served. She had imposed upon Van
Torp, too, and had probably tried to
sell him the very stone she had stolen
from Logotheti, and the one she had
made him take as gift was nothing
but bit of glass, as he said 1t might
be, for all he knew.
She devoured Lady Maud's letter in
q few moments, and then read 1t
twice again, which took so long that
Mrs. Rushmore sent Justine to tell
Potts to ask If Miss Dome did not
mean to go out that morning, though
the weather was so fine.
Great singers generally develop q
capacity for flying into RACES, even
IL they have not been born with hot
tempers. It is very bad for the voice,
but it seems to- be q part of the life.
Margaret was very angry, and Potts
became as meek and mild as little
lamb when she saw the storm signals
in her mistress face. She delivered
her message in pathetic and op-
pressed tone, like child reciting the
collect for the day at a Sunday
school,
The prima donna, imposing as q
young lioness, walked slowly back
wards and forwards between her win
dow and the foot of the iron bed
stead. There was an angry light in
her eyes and instead of flushing, as
her cheeks did for any ordinary fit of
temper, they were as white as wax.
Potts, who was small woman,
seemed to shrink and become visibly
smaller as she stood waiting for an
answer. Suddenly the lioness stood
still and surveyed the poor little jack
al that served her.
"Ask Mrs. Rushmore If she can
wait half an hour" she said. "Im very
angry, Potts, and it's not your fault,
50 keep out of the way"
Margaret's wrath did not subside
quickly, and as it could not spend
itself on any immediate object, it
made her feel as If she were in a
raging fever. Her temples throbbed,
her hands trembled and were as hot
as fire, her lips were drawn and
parched, and when she caught sight
of herself in the looking-glass she saw
that she was quite white and that her
eyes were bloodshot.
But she was really q sensible Eng
ish girl, although she was SO very
angry.
"This is ridiculous!" she said aloud,
with emphasis. II won't be SO silly!"
And she sat down to try and think
quietly.
It was not 80 easy. A Tartar girl
indeed! More probably . handsome
Greek.
1t was no wonder that they had sue
ceeded in deceiving her for while,
the two orientals together! They had
actually made Rufus Van Torp be-
neve their story, which must have
been a very different matter from ly-
ing to credulous young woman who
had let herself fall in love! But for