The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1910-07-23
BY Mary Roberts Rinehart
Copyright. 1900. The fobbs-sIerrfn Company

to her, with my hand on the knob;
"You have been misinformed,"
l said coldly. You cannot pos
sibly know, having spent three
hours in a corner yourself-with
Mr.. HARRISON" / abhor jealousy
in a woman.
Well, Aunt Selma ate all the
lobster salad, and drank the port
after Bella had told her 1t was
beef, iron and wine, and she slept
Jail night, and was able to sit up
in a chair the next day, and was
SO infatuated with Bella that she
would not let her out of her
sight. But that Is ahead of the
story.
At midnight the house was fair
ly quiet, except for Jim, who kept
walking around the halls because
he couldn't sleep. I got up at
last and ordered him to bed, and
he had the audacity to have a
grievance with me.
Look at my situation now!"
he said. sitting pensively on a
steam radiator. Aunt Selma is
crazy. only kissed your hand,
anyhow, and i don't know why
you sat in the den all evening;
you might have known that Bella
would notice 1t. Why couldn't
you leave me alone to my mis-
ery?"
every WELL" I said, much Of
Tended. after this l shall sit
with Flanagan in the kitchen.
He is the only gentleman in the
house"
1 left him babbling apologies
and went to bad, but l had an un-
comfortable feeling that Bella had
been a witness to our converse
ton, for the dor into Aunt Sell
mas room closed softly as passed.
l knew beforehand that l was not
going to sleep. The instant
turned out the light the night
mare events of the evening ranged
themselves in a procession, or a
series of tableaux, one after the
other: Flanagan on the roof,
with the bracelet on his palm,
looking accusedly at me; Mr.. Har-
bison and the scene on the roof,
with my flippancy; and the re-
suit of that flippancy-the man
on the stairs, the arms that held
me, the terrible kisses that had
scorched my lips-it was awful!
And then the absurd situation
across Aunt Selina's bed, and
Bella's face! Oh, it was all sc
ridiculous-my having thought
that the HARRISON man was gen.
tleman, and finding him a cad,
land worse. 1t was Gxcruciating-
ly funny. quite got a headache
from laughing; indeed / laughed
until I found / was crying, and
then / knew 1 was going to have
an attack of strangulated emo
ton, called hysteria. So I got
up and turned on all the lights,
and bathed my face with cologne,
and felt better.
But I did not go to sleep.
when the hall clock chimed two.
| discovered was hungry. l had
had nothing since luncheon, ana
even the thirst following the
South American golash was gone,
There was probably something to
eat in the pantry, and if there
was not, was quite equal to go
ling to the basement.
AS it happened, however, /
found very orderly assortment
| of left-overs and a pitcher OF
milk, which had no business there.
in the pantry, and with plenty of
flight l was not at all frightened
l ate bread and butter and
drank milk, and was fast becom,
ling a rational person again; 1 hao
lpulled out one of the drawers part
lway, and with a tray across the
corner l had improvised a COM
lfortable seat. And then l noticed
THAT the drawer was full of soiled
napkins, and 1 remembered the
bracelet. / hardly know why l
decided to go through the drawer
/