The Red Cloud chief., 1909-05-13

less indeed he labored gravely under a
misapprehension, he was observing
her for the second time within the
past few hours.
Could he be mistaken. or was this In
truth the same woman who had las
he believed) made herself free OF his
rooms that evening?
In confirmation of such suspicion he
remarked her costume. which was al.
together worked out In soft shades OF
gray. Gray was tho misty veil, drawn
In and daintily knotted beneath her
chin. which lent her head and face
such thorough protection against pry.
ing glances: OF gray suede were the
light gauntlets that hid all save the
slenderness OF her small hands; and
the wrap that. cut upon full and flow.
ing lines, cloaked her figure beyond
suggestion, was gray. Yet even It's
ample drapery could not dissemble
the fact that she was quite small,
girllshly slight, like the woman In the
doorway: nor did aught temper her
impersonal and detached composure,
which had also been an attribute of
the woman In the doorway. And again
she was alone. unchaperoned, unpro.
tected.
Yes? Or no7 And, II yes, what to
do? Was he to alight and accost her,
accuse her OF forcing an entrance to
his rooms for the sole purpose las far
as ascertainable) Of presenting him
with the outline of her hand in the
dust of his desks top? . oh,
hardly! 1t was all very well to be
daringly eccentric and careless of the
worlds censure: but n scarcely
cared to lay ones self open either to
an unknown girls derision or to n
sound pummeling at the hands OF fel.
low passengers enraged by the insult
offered to an u~nescorted woman
The young man was still pondering
ways and means when a dull bump ap.
prised him that the ferry boat was en-.
tering the Long Island City slip. The
DEVIL" he exclaimed In mingled dis.
gust and dismay, realizing that his
distraction had been so thorough rs to
permit the voyage TO take place almost
without his realizing II. So that nov
worse luck!-it was too late to take
any one of tho hundred fantastic, steps
he had contemplated half seriously. In
another two minutes his charming
mystery, 30 bewitchingly incarnated,
would have slipped out of his life, II.
nally and beyond recall. And he could
do naught to hinder such q finale to
| the adventure.
Sulkily he resigned himself to the
inevitable, waiting and watching,
while the boat slid and Numbered
clumsily, paddle wheels churning the
filthy waters over side, to the floating
bridge; while the winches ratified, and
the woman, sitting up briskly in the
drivers seat Of the motor car, bent
forward and advanced the spark; while
the chain fell clanking and the cal
shot out, over the bridge. through the
gates, and away. at a very consider
able, even II lawful. rate of speed.
Whereupon. writing fms to the fina
chapter OF Romance, voting the worlt
a dull place and life a treadmill, an
athematizing In no uncertain terms his
lack Of and address, Maitland
paid Off his cabby, alighted, and tC
that worthy's boundless wonder
walked into the waiting room Of the
railway terminus without deviating q
hairs breadth from the straight and
circumscrlbed path OF the sober In
mind and body.
The 1920 had departed by a bare
two minutes. The next and last train
for Greenfields was to leave at TO-: SO
Maitland with assumed nonchalance
composed himself upon a bench In the
waiting room to endure the 37-mlnute
interval. Five minutes later an able
bodied washerwoman with six children
In quarter sizes descended upon the
same bench; and the young man In
desperation allowed himself to be dis
possessed. The news stand next attract
Ing him, he garnered a fugitive amuse
ment and two dozen copper cents by
the simple process Of purchasing six
might extras" which he did not want
and paying for each with a f~ive-cent
piece. Comprehending, at length, thai
he had irritated the news dealer, he
meandered off. jingling his copper for
tune In n hand, Juggling his news
papers In the other. and made a de
termined onslaught upon a slot ma
chine. The latter having reluctantly
disgorged "a assorted samples Of
chewing gum and stale sweetmeats
Maitland returned to the washerwom
an, and sowed d%issension In her brood
by presenting the treasure horde t.
the eldest girl with instructions Il
share 1t with her brothers and sisters
1t is difficult to imagine what foil,
might next have been recorded against
him had not. at that moment, a fe
rocious and inarticulate howl from the
train starter announced the fact tina,
the 1853 was in waiting.
Boarding the train In a Thankful
spirit, Maitland settled himself as com
fortably as he might In the smoker
and endeavored to find surcease o.
ennui In his collection Of extras, In
| vain auan a tugn noJnnc .otls -