Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1909-09-21

Adventurer
Copyright 1901 The DObbs- Merrill Company.
over in his mind the one idea it was
capable of harboring at time.
''He c'u'd we wrote that letter to him
self He's wise enough. . &.
Yeh can't fool Hickey all the time. . e.. e.
I'm get him yet Gottuh make
good r it's the sidewalks f'r mine.
|. Ne, tryin' hard to make an 'onest
ilivin' Nd him with all kinds OF
money!
| The fat notified fingers sought a waist
coat POCKET and, fimbling therein, touch
ed caressingly a little pellet Of soft pa
per- 49,. possessor did not require to ex-
anime II to reassure himself as to its
lleglumacy as a work Of art. nor as to the
prominence of the Roman c in it's en-
bellishment OF engraved arabesques.
i "A century" he reflected sullenly; "one
lonely little century for mine. Nd he
had a wad like a ham q. on him.
. ma I might we had It all for my
very own If =" His brow clouded
blackly.
''s.euthr' Hickey ground the epithet
vindictively between his teeth. And spat.
"Sleuth! All hellv
Recalled to himself by the very vehe-
mence of his emotion, he turned hastily,
drained to it's dregs the tall glass of
lukewarm and vapid beer which had
stood at his elbow, placed a nickel on
the table, and. rising, waddled hastily out
into the night.
1t was being borne in upon him with
much force that If he wished to save his
name and fame somethin' had go to be
done about it.
II hadn't oughtuh left him so long, 1
guess" he told himself; but I'll
get him all right"
And turning, numbered gloomily east
ward, rapt with vain imaginings squat,
swollen figure blending into the deep
er, meaner shadows OF the Ten
derloin; and so on toward Matt
lands rooms-morose, misunderstood,
malignant, coddling his fictitious
wrongs; somehow pathetically typical OF
the force he represented.
On the corner Of Fifth avenue he paus-
ed, startled fairly out of his dour mood
by the loud echo of a name already be-
come too hatefully familiar to his ears,
and by the sight of what, at f1rst glance
he took to be the beginning of a street
brawl
XIII.-FLIGHT.
In the alcove the girl waited, torn in
the throes Of incipient hysteria; at first
too weak from reaction and revulsion Of
feeling to do anything other than lean
heavily against the wall and fight with
all her strength and will against this
crawling, shuddering, creeping horror Of
nerves, that threatened alike her self
control, her consciousness, and her rea-
son.
But insensibly the tremor wore itself
away, leaving her weary and worn but
mistress Of her thoughts and actions And
she dropped with gratitude into chair,
bending an ear attentive to the var Of
words being waged in the room beyond
the portieres.
At first, however, she failed to grasp
the import Of the alteration. And when
In time she understood it's trend, 1t was
with incredulity, resentment and a
dawning dread lest a worse thing
might yet befall her: worse by
far than aught that had gone before.
But to be deprived OF his protection, to
feel herself forcibly restrained from the
shelter OF his generous CARE
A moment gone she had been so sure
that all would now be well with her, once
Maitland succeeded in Kidding himself of
the police. He would shut that door and
land then she would come forth and tell
him everything. and, Withholding naught
that damned her in her own esteem,
throw herself upon his mercy, bruised with
penitence but serene in the assurance that
he would prove kind.
She had such faith in his tender and
gentle Kindness now. She had d.
vined so clearly the motive that had per-
mitted Anisty's escape in order that she
might be saved, not alone from Anisty,
not alone from the shame Of imprison-
ment, but from herself as well-from her.
self as Maitland knew her. The burglar
out Of the way, by ruse, evasion, or sub
terfuge she would be secreted from the
prying of the police, smuggled out of the
house and taken to a place of safety.
given new chance to redeem herself, to
clean her hands of the mire OF theft to
become worthy Of the womanhood that
i But now-she thrust fnger-nails into her
soft palms. striving to contain herself and
keep her tongue from crying aloud to
those three brutal, blind men the truth:
that she was guilty of the robbery. she
with Anisty; that Maitland was-Mait-
land; a word synonymous with man %
honor"
In the beginning, indeed, all that re-
strained her from doing so was her knowl-
edge that Maitland would be more panied
by her sacrifice than gladdened or re-
lieved. He was so sure of clearing him
self. 1t was inconceivable to
her that there could be men so stupid and
crassly unobservant as to be able to
confuse the identity of the two men for a
single instant. What though they did
{ resemble each other in form and feature
| The, likeness went no deeper; below the
/ surface, and rising through II with every
word and look and gesture, lay a world
wide gulf Of difference in every shade of
I thought, feeling, and instinct.
] She herself could never again be
deceived-no, never! Not for a second
could she mistake the one for the other.
!. What were they saying?
| The turmoil of her indignation subsidized
as she listened, breathlessly, to Matt
lands story of his adventures; and the
| Joy that leaped in her, for his frank men,
dacity in suppressing every incident that
4 involved her, was all but overpowering.
She could have wept for sheer happiness;
and at a later time she would; but now,
when everything depended on her main
itaining the very silence Of death.
/ How dared they doubt him? The inso-
lentsi The crude british insolence, of
theml Her anger ragged high again
. and as swiftly was quenched, ex-