Los Angeles herald., 1909-06-06

He was, still holding the watch in his hand 1t was
fve-thrty."
"Well at least she cried, that gives US some time
%Planl All we can do is to put for i'll
But she'd know from the concierge that you got her
card And-and supposing we met her at the corner
She ran to the front window :" knew it! knew i'll
knew it She's Just paying the cabman now!
"We could both be laid out sick And tor his part
he could have given the most perfect imitation OF an
exceedingly well-bred young having fit
If we both were, she'd insist coming in But I'm
my taking the things out She fled into the bedroom.
You can tell her I've had headache and am asleep"
"Wel, my heavens, like that By James, l do!
And how am I to square it with herr"
"Why, you're all the time making things up. It's
your profession And you know Morton, you always
say that when offer you suggestions in your plots
only get you mixed-I guess I'd help you if could
But lit needn't be any trouble at ALL You can do 1t
just as if it were part of story.
Miss Pastonbury a mddle-aged educated English
spnster of inexbe principles and unconhdng tempera
nent who had long gained fair livelihood by teaching
her language to the patrcian youth of Paris She had
let her apartment during the period OF her visit home
and she had let it to Americans-for whom, sister
race she had very half-sstery affection But she had
put that apartment under the egs both of the concierge
and the house agent And although she had not men
toned it to the Carters-she had from the beginning
counted upon the present continental tour to give her
the opportunity of returning at the end of the second
month for a visit of inspection herself
Nor did Mr.. Morton Carter need any psychic intui,
ton to tell him that it a visit of inspection And
while, outwardy, he making apology tor Mrs
Carter and leading his guest to the seat in front OF the
fireplace,
defence-hs mind speeding back to first and basic
principles He had youngster, against parental
warnings, applied the tip of his tongue to an iron pump
handle in weather Immediately in an ingenious
attempt lick it off, he had followed it with the rest
of his tongue, and his lips we'll And moment later
he trussing his slobbered fingers beside his Jaws in
the same agonizng chancey The experience had stayed
with him afterward great moral and literary
lesson In all fiction whether written spoken you put
the end of your tongue to the pump handle perorce but
to attempt to it by more tongue-that way mad
ness lies Safety and strength in no specious ex-
pansions, but in narration confined TO the most Dorc
simplicity
And already Miss Pastonburys gaze had come to rest
upon the shelf above the Tantel ~oh, see you've
been shifting things about BIT Mr. Garter"
"My little shepherd-the Dresden, you know I
afraid for a moment there had been accident"
"Oh-Oh, yes He drew in his breath for it ITO
tell the TRUTH Miss Pastonbury, we-we've been send
ing some Of your china out to be looked at by, the
mender Not that anything was broken-but they'd been
little knocked about and -
"Oh, Mr. Carter!" There was bitter agony in her
"Real1y-really! You can take my word for it We
sent them out just be dead sureentrely certain,
know And they'll be home again tomorrow. You'll
be able to see for yourselt!
But I'm sure Chrstne-n my service she used al
ways to be the very carefullest maid !"
"Oh, it wasn't Christine She's all right She's the
mend her to US 1t was dog Monsieur Laeunesses
-Poigneau, you know He was in one day, and got to
Why. l thought Monsieur Lajeunesse had gone to
Vile dAvray and taken the great stupid brute along
with him?"
see he'd forgotten some stuff" Having said so, he
realized that when Miss Pasonbury went downstairs
she would ask the concierge about it. and learn that
Monsieur Lajeunesse had never been back at all. 1t
the pump handle
But on this first occasion it did not seem to have
taken hold of him Miss Pastonburys eyes had dropped
to the nanel Mr.. Carter, Il don't see my bowl!
"Yes. but thew weren't broken! IL don't believe
c<ad
it safest to send them out There that pair of
Gouda on your desk too" (She was at that mo
ment looking for them) They weren't damaged at all,
though-not in the slightest"
She sat back and fairly shrilled at him. "But-Mr.
Carterthe bowl stood directly over the hearthstone
can't how it escaped being absolutely shattered
"Heh! Well--wel to tell the truth it did have the
closest kind of squeak If it hadn't been that of
the cushions happened to be lying right beneath at the
time" He reset his smile II funny, wasn't it ?"
"OhLoh, yes, indeed" They were cushions which
Miss Pastonbury had embroidered herself.
shepherd and the Gouda vases" drop ran suddenly
down in front of his left ear. Monsieur Lajeunesse
managed to catch them halfway We saw them lust as
they were going. 1t was mighty quick work, though!
"Oh! oh, yes, it must have been.
Until now Miss Pastonbury had been sitting with her
back to the serving table and the china cupboard But
in the eveed glare of the setting sun-she had been
gradually shifting her position Cupboard and table
came within her field of vision at last And, as she had
only strongly suspected there to be seen neither
Queen Anne tray hreepiece service nor ancestral
tankard
Mr. Carter had marked the direction in which her
eyes had travelled. And now-wth what might very
we'll have been mistaken for eagerness-he began at
once to speak about that silver In fact he had been
just about to bring it up To tell the truth they didn't
seem to have had the right sort of polish for it It had
kept on getting duer and more tarnished in spite of all
they could do, And in the end they had made up their
minds to have it cleaned up decently. When she re-
turned she could count finding the things in prac-
ticay the same condition when she had left them
They had felt it only right to that they were kept
in proper shape He smiled upon her more reassur-
ingly than nephew trying to borrow money.
"Why that was very good of you, Mr.. Carter, very
good I'm sure "
Oh, not at all And it was really Mrs. Carter's sug-
gestion."
"Yes? And you were fortunate in finding place
where they do re-poishing, weren't you? I've heard
there's such shop just down on the Rue Monge Per-
haps that where you left it in?
No. No, were little afraid to trust it there.
We took it across to the Right Bank. We found big
place there where they do all sorts of mendng and
fine metal polishing"