The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1910-08-10
HE FOUND THE MAN.

mya,lf beaten and tho occasional fascinA-
ton which compensated Tor the moro fro
uuept discomfort kept mo in the Office.
But all this was before tho day I was sent
30 Interview tiae wife and daughter of tho
man who had just disturbed society by
disappearing from it.
Mr. Groy, 80 it had been learned from
the notices concerning his disappearance,
had ono evening after dinner gone out for
q stroll around the block. He had mover
porae back. His family was Of course
FRUSTRATED after the manno Of families on
such sad occasions. After giving him
time to come back, sending to his clubs,
bis office and the houses Of his friends his
wife had finally told his lawyers, and sys'
temakc search was begun. Tho family
had retired from public life and donied
themselves to every one, consequently
my chances for an interview with Mira
Grey did not see hopeful, but the city ed"
ltor's air of granting me the opportunity
l had been longing for made me loath to
admit my fears.
took the train for the Greys' they
lived q little way out of town-and pre-
DarSu mySEll w luCCu pAO oo4 - SSNN
and the other attendant evils of such an
assignment. The coach was an ordinary
one, and there were several laboring men
In 1t, evidently travelling to some suburb
where they were to work upon the roads,
for they carried pickaxcs and shovels.
There sat opposite me and slightly for
ward a peculiar type of man to whom ]
found my gaze wandering every few min
utes. His iron gray hair was thick and
very uneyenly cut. His face was covered
with a stubbly growth Of gray beard. he
looked unwashed, unkempt and generally
unpleasant. His blue overalls were stain
I'D with red clay and his red flannel shirt
opened at tho front in a way that revealed
anything but a beautiful neck, burned
and blistered. But the mans twitchlng
lips and convulsive movements of the jaws
attracted my attention, and his deep seS,
steely blue eyes that burned in cavernous
sockets fascinated me. He did not talk to
the other men, but sat with his head sunk
upon bis breast, only occasionally raising
1t to cast q look about him. He, with the
other lahorers, left the train at Forestville,
where the tireys lived, and I soon saw
them, under the direction Of o foreman,
assigned to make various road repairs.
OF course Mrs. Grey would not see ma
I sat in the library while the servant took
my card to her, for there were other callers
In the drawing room. Over the mantel
hung q picture, presumably Mrs. Grey,
done in oil. She was as beautiful as q
cameo and rs hard. Opposite her was the
portrait of q clean shaven man, with line
Iron gray hair brushed off his forehead-a
moro ~plebesan cast Of countenanoe, but
strong and interesting. The face seemed
familiar. ] stared at 1t until the servant
returned.
"Mrs. Grey is sorry, miss, but she can
see no one, and has nothing to say for
publication"
every WE'LL" said I. Then I rose to go
SIS that Mr.. GreyS" I asked, nodding
toward the picture.
eyes, MISS" was the reply, and sud-
denly 1t flashed upon me where I had seen
those deep set, c~uriously shaped. keen blue
eyes. My heart leaped almost into my
mouth. took one long look at the por.
trait and left the house.
The men were repairing the road, and ]
noticed one Of the workmen whose face
| startled me. The resemblance to the por'
| trait I had seen of MIR. Grey was remarka.
| bic. He worked with o fierce delight in
The severe labor. His face scanned more
mad than ever, with the exultation OF mo-
ton and strength deepening the CLEAN ID
his eyes.
There wa q telegraph office al the end
Of the street. + sent a message to the city
editor. "Send q man to Forestville at
once" was my command. Then while /
paced the street and walked about the
square I reflected upon the welcome !
would receive if I had made a mistake
Every minute I became mo. and more
convinced that I had made tho most colos'
sal blunder ON record. By the time MI.
Ellington Ellsworth, the only man who
happened to be available when my tele.
gram was received: had arrived 1 was
nearly hysterical. I told Mr.. Ellsworth
my theory, and he was properly skeptical.
He discouraged me thoroughly in about
two minutes, but I suddenly rallied.
SWELL" I remarked, taking command,
~ want you to keep that man In sight ]
shall go to town and got his lawyer. Find
out what train they go in on, and I'll
most you"
Mr.. Ellsworth didn't wish to aot upon
that suggestion, but he finally consented
TO do 80. I went in, summoned MI.
Grey's lawyer and with him net tho
workingmen's train. MI. Ellsworth, Look
ing bored and unhappy, got out and point
ed out our suspected disappearance" to
his lawyer. My heart stood in my mouth.
Was I to be forever disgraced or made ia
nous forever?
"Mr. Grey" said the lawyer, stepping
forward, what does this mean?'
And when I saw the man start wildly ]
knew that I was not forever disgraced.
"Well," said the city editor toviAlly,
what did they sayP"
"They didn't say anything They didn't
see me-"
$50 you didn't got tho ~interyiew'" uaid
the city editor shortly.
"No,"1 replied n,eekly, "but L found
the missing man."
And now, suoh is the irony of fate, the
city editor, instead Of letting me rest on
my laurels, is always exhorting me to live
up to the reputation I made in the Grey
case, when I found the missing man,
learned how ovcrwork had worn out his
brain and how in his half orazed condi-
ton he wandered away and returned to
his original occupation in life, to tho hor-
ror Of his wife with the cameolike face. II
only l had never been 50 brilliant l-.Ex-
change.