Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-05-11
CHAPTER I.
The Face in the Locket.

stair landing was striking seven.
! ''On time. Fanny? How did it ever
happen" he demanded. as she caught
| his hands and peered into his face. He
| blinked under her scrutiny; she always
gave him this sharp glance when they
met-and its significance was not wasted
on him; but she was satisfied and kissed
him. and then. as he took her wrap:
For heavens sake. what's up. Wayne?
Father was ominously solemn i'm tele-
phOnins me to come over. Johns dining
at the club think father wants to see
us alone
1t rather looks that way. Fanny" re-
piled Wayne. laughing at his sisters
earnestness.
We'll is he going to do it at last?'
There's no use kicking if he is. so be
prepared for the worst"
We'll. if it's that Baltimore wom-
Or that Philadelphia woman. or the
person he met in Berlin-the one from
nowhere
Their voices had reached Col. Craig
hill. and he came into the hall and greet
ed his daughter affectionately.
Give me credit. papa. / was on time
tonight
We will give John credit for sending
you. HOw's the new car working"
"Oh, more or less the usual way,
Dinner was announced and they went
out at once. Mrs. Blair taking a place
opposite her father at the round table,
with Wayne between them.
Roger Craighill was an old citizen: it
may be questioned whether he was not.
by severe standards, the first citizen OF
men. but his Identification with the So
berer past of the City of the Iron Heart
before the greater city had planted its
g,idons as far as now along the rivers
and over the hills-gave indubitable value
and dignity to his name. He was in
terested i'm many philanthropies and re-
FORMS and he had just returned from
Washington, where he had attended a
conference of the American Reform FED
Grafton. of which he was a prominent
and influential member. Col. Craighill
like his son. dressed with care and fol-
lowed the fashion. and tonight in his
evening clothes his daughter thought him
| unusually handsome and distinguished
He had kept his figure. and his fine COL
| oring had prompted Mr.. Richard Wing
field, the cynic of the Anequippa Club, to
| bestOw upon him the subriquet of Rosy
Roger. a pleasantly for which Wingfield
had been censured by the governors. But
Col. Craighills fine height and his noble
| head with its crown of white hair, set
him apart for admiration in any gather
ing He walked a mile day and other
| eminent New York physician assured him
once year was perfect.
Roger Craighill was by all tests the
| most eligible widower in western Penn
sylvania. and gossip had striven for
years to marry him to any one Of dozen
! women imaginably his equals. When the
local possibilities were exhausted atten-
ton shifted to women OF becoming age
and social standing in other cities-New
York. Philadelphia. Baltimore-Col. Craig
hills frequent absences from home lend
ing faint color of truth to these specula-
tions. His daughter, Mrs. John McCand-
less Blair. had often discussed the matter
with her brother. but without resentment.
save occasionally when some woman
known to them and distasteful or par
ticularly unsuitable from their stand
point was suggested. 1t was indicative
of the difference in character and tenn
permanent between brother and sister that
Wayne was more captiOus in his criti-
cisms of the presumptive candidates for
their mothers place In the old home than
his sister. When. shortly after Mrs.
Craighilrs death. Wayne's dissolute hab-
its became a town scandal there were
many who said that things would have
gone differently IL his mother had lived
that Mrs. Craighill had understood
| out of sympathy with him.
Mrs. John McCandless Blair was i'm
| mensely aroused now by the suspicion
that her father was about to bring home
| against the unknown woman. She was
| not i'm the least abashed by her father.
who never took her seriously. He began
describing his visit to Washington. to
| cover the four courses Of the family din
ner that must be eaten before-with
| proper deliberation and the room freed
of the waitress-he apprised his children
of the particular purpose of this family
| gathering.
Col Craishill was a capital talker and
| he gave an intimate turn to his account
of the Washington meeting, uttering the
| names of his distinguished associates in
the federation with frank pride in their
| acquaintance. A southern bishop. far
| famed as a story teller. was a member.
and Col. Craighill repeated several anec-
dotes with which the clergyman had en-
livened the conferences. He quoted one
or two periods from his own speech at
the dinner and paused for Mrs. Blair
and Wayne to admire their aptness. With
| nice sense of climax he mentioned last
| his invitation to luncheon at the White
| House, where there was only one other
guest-a famous English statesman and
man of letters
1T was really quite en- famille. My i'm
| preston of the President was delightful:
| l confess that i had wholly misjudged
| him. He addressed many questions to
me directly-asking about political condi-
tons here at home in such way that 1
| had to do q good deal of talking. AS
was leaving he detained me q moment
4
outlook. 1 was amazed to see how
familiar he appeared to be with the
range of my own interests. He told me
| that II had suggestions at any time as
| to financial policies he wished l would
| come down and talk to him personally.
| But the published reports of my visit to
! the White House annoyed me greatly.
thought Ii only just to myself to write
| him line to repudiate the interview at
| tributed to me. There have. of course.
been rumors of cabinet changes. but
don't want office-all l ask is to be of
| some service to my fellow-men in the
| role of private citizen
Mrs. Blair murmured sympathetic re-
sponses through this recital. Wayne ate
his salad in silence. He knew that his
| father enjoyed nothing so much as these
conferences In behalf of good causes:
they required great deal of time. but
I'Col Craighill had reached an age at
| which he could afford to indulge himself.
If he enjoyed delivering addresses and
making after dinner speeches II was none
of .wayne's affair. Their natures were
antipodal. Wayne cared little what his
father did. one way or another.
| Mrs. Blair fell to chatting her father
about the work OF the federation. Her
curiosity as to the nature of the an
nouncement he had said he wished to
make grew more acute as the minutes
passed. and she talked with rather more
than her usual nervous volubility.
lust think" she exclaimed, ''of drink
ing champagne over the building Of
schools for poor negroes! II you would
send them the champagne how much
more sensible it would be, There's a
beautiful idea. Why not found a society
for providing free champagne for the