The Brownsville daily herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1897-1910, 1909-07-24

.Ci-- lJicIlit tlDAu MS lAlLSLtS, OF llfS-
tending to do 50, ascended the single
fight OF stairs to his fat
Spontaneously heavy feet were to be
heard dumping up the basement steps;
and surmising that the janitor was
coming to light the hall, the young
man waited, leaning over the balus-
tiers. His guess proving correct, he
called down:
=. "O'Hagan? Is that you?"
9Th saints presarve usi But twas
yersEf gave me tn sthart, Misther
Maitland, sor," OHagan paused in
the gloom below, his uptulned face
quantity Illuminated by the fame Of
wax taper in his gaslighter.
I'm dining in town tonight, Ola
gan. and dropped around to dress. Is
anybody else at homer"
Nivver a wan, sor. Shure, tn house
do be quiet's amy tomb"
Then who was that lady, O'Hagan?"
Leddy, sor?"-in unbounded amaze
merit.
YES" impatiently. "a young wom-
an left the house Just as was COM
ing in. Who was she?"
"shure an I think We must be
dr'amin', sor. Diyyle a female-ray-
spicts to ye!-has been in this house
for NANNY an nanny tn wake, sor."
but, I tell you"
Belize twas somewan jist sthepped
into the vesthibule, mebbe to tie her
shoe, sor, and We thought"
"Oh, very well" Maitland relin-
pushed the inquisition as improbable,
willing to concede O'Hagan's theory
reasonable one, the more readily since
he himself could by no means have
sworn that the woman had actually
come out through the door. Such had
merely been his impression, honest
enough, but founded on cireumstan-
tial evidence.
When you're through, O'Hagan." he
told the Irishman, you may come and
shave me and lay out my things. if
you will"
Very good, sor. In wan minute"
But O'Hagan's conception of the
passage of time was a thought vague;
his one minute had heightened into
ten before he appeared to wait upon
his employer.
Now and again, in the absence of
the regular man, OHagan would at
tend one or another Of the tenants in
the capacity of substitute valet; SIS in
the present instance. when Maitland,
having left his hosts roof without
troubling even to notify his body-serE-
ant that he would not return that
night. called upon the janitor to under
study the more trained employe;
which O'Hagan could be counted upon
to do very. acceptably.
Now, with patience unrufied, since
he was nothing keen for the evenings
enjoyment Maitland made profit of
the interval to wander through his
rooms, lighting the gas here and
there and noting that all was as it
should be, as it had been left-save
that every article of furniture and
hric-a-brac seemed to be sadly in want
of a thorough busting. In the end he
brought up in the room that served
him as study and Iounge-the drawing
room Of the fiat, as planned in the for
gotten architects scheme large and
well-lighted apartment overlooking the
street Here, pausing beneath the
chandelier, he looked about him for
moment, determining that, as else
where, all things were in order-but
gray with dust
Finding the atmosphere heavy. stale,
and oppressive, Maitland moved over
to the windows and threw them open.
A gush of warm air, humid and redo
lent of the streets. invaded the room,
together with the roar Of traffic from
its nearby arteries. Maitland rested
elbows on the sill and leaned out. star
Ing absently into the night; for by
now it was quite dark. Without con-
Germ, he realized that he would be late
at dinner No matter; he would as
willingly miss 1t altogether. For the
time being he was absorbed in vain
speculations about an unknown Uon-
In whose sole claim upon bis consid-
Grafton lay in = certain but immaterial
glamour Of mystery. Had she, or had
she not, been in the house? And, IL
the true answer were in the afirma-
tive, to what end, upon what errand?
His eyes focused insensibly upon a
void Of darkness beneath him-night
made visible by street lamps; and he
found himself suddenly and acutely
sensible Of the wonder and mystery Of
the City; the City whose secret life
ran fluent upon the hot, hard pave
ments below, whose voice throbbed,
sfbiIant, vague, strident, inarticulate,
upon the night air; the City of which
he was part equally with the girl In
gray, whom he had never before seen,
and in all likelihood was never TO
see again, though the two OF them
were to work out their destinies within
the bounds Of Manhattan island. And