The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1910-07-16

The stranger nodded.
Polly hurried across the street into
the tea room. There were only two
persons there and both were strangers
TO her.
Polly sought little table in dis
tant corner of the room. A moment
later the owner Of the casket entered
and sat down at the same table. A
pretty little Japanese girl in gay,
lowered kimono. brought them their
cups OF fragrant tea and some thin
rice cakes.
Under cover of passing the rice
cakes. Polly handed back to the
stranger the casket that had robbed
her of her peace. AS 1t left her pos
session she felt so absurdly happy
that she smiled radiantly at the
stranger. ---r
LET me tell you the whole story"
he said, smiling in return.
Yes, but hurry, please" Polly ex-
claimed, breathlessly. Some one !
know may GOMEZ"
I've got to cut It short on my own
account. ! must take the next boat.
This package" he tapped his breast
pocket. contains a diamond cross
that does not belong to me-"
Polly dropped the spoon she was
holding.
mo; i didn't steal it." the stranger
answered. II got 1t from one of the
dearest little girls in the world"
For some unaccountable reason the
gladness left Polly's heart. But it be-
gan to beat merrily again as the
stranger added: she has brown eyes
and wavy hair like yours, and my
brother. who is now in Europe, is to
marry her She is An orphan AID she
lives with an aunt in Chicsgo, rich,
stingy old termagapt. Last week my
sister that's to be took part IN some
private theatricals in which she had
to wear lot of jewelry. The. old
shrew acted ugly about lending her
gems, SO her niece had to take them
without permission or spoil the play.
AS bad luck would have it, she lost
one of the diamonds out of the cross
AS you may imagine. the poor child
was all broken up over n. She dared
not tell her aunt or take It to jew.
eler for fear of discovery. / have a
friend up at the 500, so offered to
take 1t there and have another stone
put in. But. most unfortunately. the
old lady missed the cross the next
day. She hasn't particle of use for
axte hnv
and she doesn't want her niece ia
marry anyone"
~ How awful" sighed Polly. u
Isn't It? Wen. as I happened the
evening before to be in the room alone
where the cross was, she saw way
to get back at our family. The man
you saw with the ships captain was
an officer she had sent to arrest me
BY good luck friend OF mine man
aged to get me word just before the
boat started II wouldn't have done
for me to have the cross in my pos.
session. so I gave it to you"
But why didn't you come for It be
fore?" demanded Polly.
"Couldn't, The officer took me
back to Chicago and I'm out on bal
now. I'm going up to the 500 On the
next boat and have the diamond put
in. and before my trial comes OF the
cross will be back in the old lady'i
house and she'll never find out ths'
her niece took IT,"
The man made ready to leave. -'Yp,
were brick to act as you did. Thii
fall. when you get back to Chicago
I'm coming often to tell you how CRATE
full / am. I'm sure the vikings In tn,
olden days must sometimes have got
ten into dangerous places. hop,
they were always as fortunate as
In finding a fair lady to help then
out!" He gave a low. amused laugh
as he looked at Polly's face: then b
bent over her.
you know how ouch stories ended
in the olden days." he whispered
THE viking maMied the fair lady i'm
mediately-if she was willing. II no,
well, he married her anyway. and
they lived happily ever after"
y. Polly's face grew rose-red. ~Oh
but girls in those days were weak
silly creatures" she hedged, "wht
thought 1t their bounden duty to mar
ry the first man who asked them"
Human nature is the same yester
day. to-day and forever" quoted The
viking" as he pressed Polly's hant
In farewell.
You'll find ost this fall that yor
are wrong in believing that" insisted
Polly. But deep down in her hear
she knew he wouldn't.