The Whitefish pilot. [volume] (Whitefish, Mont.) 1904-current, 1910-03-24

COIilS W PASS tie !IttIe WTllkIeS lUQcI,
the mouth grew sad ard the silver
points no longer danced in her eyes
The pain in her heart was always
shadowing. She had seen her faiiest
dream beaten and crumpled upon the
reef of tlisiIlusion.
Yet again the smile renewed itself.
She was creature of varying moods.
She twisted and UNFINISHED the news
paper. Should she? Ought she? Had
she not always regretted these singu
lar impulses? And vet what harm t.
read this letter and return it to the
sender? She wGs so lonely here. II
was like beir:: among a strange people
so long ago was it that her foot haC
touched this soil. Was 1t possible that
she was twenty-five? Was there not
some miscount. and was 1t not fifteen
instead? Would not this war of wis
dom and folly lie decided ere long?
She opened the paper and smoothed
out the folds. Mime. Angot-There
is a letter for you in the mail depart.
ment of this office" 1t was so droll
1t was unlike anything she had ever
uCstIu Wv kNkSN >puulh
where Cupids and Psyches billed and
cooed. The merest chance had thrown
the original inquiry under her notice.
Her answer was an impulse to whicl,
she had given no second thought till
| too late. She ought to have ignored
| it. But she was lonely: the people she
knew were cut Of town. and the jest
might amusc her.
This man was in all probability n
| gentleman. since he was a member Of
a Eentlemen'S club. But second thou-ht
| convinced her that this proved nothing.
Men are often called gentlemen out cr
compliment to their ancestors. Still
If this man only saw the affair from
her angle of vision. the grotesque hu-
NOR Of 1t and not the common vulgar
intrigue! She hesitated. as we'll she
might Surprising that eventually he
found out who she was? That would
never. never do. No one must know
that she was in America. about to step
into the widest Of Wild adventures
No: she must not be found out The
king. who had been kind to her and
the court must never know. From
their viewpoint they would have de-
clared that she was about to tarnish
a distinguished name. to outrage the
oldest aristocracy in Europe. the
court Of Italy. But she had her own
opinion: what she proposed to do was
in itself harmless and innocent. But
this gentleman who leaned out Of the
window? She had seen the match
fare in the young mans face. Was
1t the face she had seen in that fash
Of light that interested her sufficiently
to risk the note? Against the dark of
the night 1T had appeared for an in
slant, clean. crisp. rudy as a cameo
The face warranted confidence
She had sung because she had been
happy. happy with that transient hap
piness which at times was her portion
Could she ever judge another man by
his looks? She believed not. How
she had run! The man. bareheaded
giving chase and the burly policeman
across the street!
She stepped down from the alcove
wound the gray veil round the ridin.
crop and tossed them into corner
Somehow in the daylight the magi.
was gone from his face. for she had
recognized him that first day in the
park. He rode well. She touched a
bell. A maid appeared.
"Bettina. you will go to the office OF
this newspaper and inquire for iet'2l
addressed to Nine. Angot. And bi
quick. for may change my mind"
The maid was back in half hour.
"There was Il letter. then"' The
points were dancing again in the blue
eyes.
you may 60. Perhaps" and Betti
mas mistress smiled-'perhaps l ma,
let you read it and answer it after
am done with it. That would 1T
= rather neat" a..
The slight nod was a dismissal. ant
the maid went about her duties. which
> were not many In this house.
Meanwhile the lady with the vene
tan hail toyed with the letter. Clul
paper! Evidently he was not afraid t
,. trust her. But would he amuse her
i. The contents gave her genuine sur
u prise. She ran to the window. ltal
y ian! 1t was written I'm Italian. wit
all the flourishes of an Italian bor
= ;, She turned to the signature-Iiillard
= So he had signed his name in full
She Illuminated. How came such
name to belong to man who wrot
Italian so beautifully? She looked !,
:, the signature again. John-(siovann
She would call him Giovanni. Sh
had been rather clever. TO hay
had the wit to look In the librar
IL for the blue book and the clu
= =, list--not every woman would hay
=. thought of that Then a new insrir;
"a ton came to her. She sent Bettin
" for the card basket. She scattered tn
, contents upon the floor and sat dow