Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-07-05
CHAPTER XII.
The Belated Appearance of John
McCandless Blair.

The calendar swings us almost into
cOtempOraneous history. 1t Is September
of the year of our Lord nineteen hun
dred and nine. Mrs John McCandless
Blair's excuse for returning to town SO
early was the dilatoriness of the work
men who were making over her house.
1t had been remodeled so often that only
her own ingenuity could have devised
further changes, and her long-sufYering
architect shuddered when he heard her
voice on the telephone. She was ter
ror to contractors, and even plumbers
were humble before her. Her husband.
John Blair-who has had no chance at
all in this chronicle for the simple rea-
son that he was. in all matters that en-
gagged his wife's attention, q negligible
quantity-had thought her safe at York
Harbor until the first Of October. AS
one motive was never enough to assign
for any of Mrs. Blair's actions. her nus
band waited patiently for the disclosure
Of the real cause of her coming He was
a philosopher. and her appearance did
not interrupt his work on the brief he
was writing; but he was sorry for the
architect, who was friend of his.
Wayne was at home. and he and Wing
field We're teaching Walsh to play golf.
and Pittsburg had hardly seen anything
funnier than this. Col. Craiehill, who
was quite himself again. was with Mrs.
Craighill in the Berkshires. at point
convenient TO Williamstown. where
there was to be a meeting of the execu-
tive committee of something or other
little later. People had been saying late
ly that the colonel was a different man
now that Wayne had given up his evil
ways; but Dick Wingfield changed the
subject when Wayne's reformation was
preached. He declared that Col. Craig
hill would be i'm the poorhOuse IL Tom
Walsh had not fished him out of bank
ored by his prejudices: and besides, he
never knew what Wayne did for his
father at Walsh's behest.
John Blair was staying at the Country
Club while the house was out of COM
mission and Mrs. Blair joined him in his
office i'm the Craighill building for the
motor flight to Rosedale. On the second
afternoon following her descent she
broke in upon her husband at midday,
ostensibly to go to luncheon with him
i'm the ladies' cafe Of the Allequippa, but
as he begged her not to disturb the open
volumes that bristled on the tables and
chairs of his private room, he was aware
of a new light in her eye. 1t was hardly
II o'clock. and Fanny did not usually
care for luncheon. Blair made place
for her and waited.
Jean Morley's coming. She'll be in at
4 o'clock. Poor girl! She's been out In
New Mexico in ali this heat. doing pic
lures Of Indians. I've been wiring her
here, and I just now heard from her"
Blair carefully marked his place in
"Dillon on Municipal Corporations" and
sighed.
$50 that's it, is 1t. Fanny? / Won
dered what on earth brought you to town
just now
what are you talking about" she de-
manded.
John McCandless Blair received large
sums from corporations for anticipating
the movements OF their enemies. His
wife's complex mental processes did not
battle him. They were, however. excel
lent practice, and they amused him.
"Oh, l see Wayne's finish nov IL you re
going to pull the girl Oft the train here
and bring them together. Which one OF
your proteges is this Jean-the pretty
manicurist with the short upper lip you
wanted to make q harpist Of. or that in
teresting Swedish girl you launched I'm
the delicatessen business? The mani
curist was pleasing to the eye-I won't
deny that she affected me strongly: but
1 hope it isn't the Swede. Her creditors
still pursue me.
You're so unsympathetic, John. You
know Jean Morley we'll enough. You
told me yourself you thought her won
derfully interesting-and MI. Richardson
says she will go far.
Il dare say she will, Fanny. And now