St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1911-01-07

| Claiming escaped from the ball
room with sigh of relief and wan
dered aimlessly down the softly light
ed corridor. The alluring strains Of
waltz music arose above the slip Of
feet on the polished floor and the
rustic Of silks and satins.
The ballroom provided SO many
coy anterooms for quiet talk OF
| filtration, that the corridor was quite
| deserted. At the farther end, Chan
ming paused abruptly before narrow
doorway hung with dark velvet. A
faint pencil of light shot from be
tween the hangings and from the
opening the music of the orchestra
came softly.
He pushed the curtains aside and
passing up winding stairway
stepped into a small balcony over
hanging the ballroom. Behind high
bank of palms and oleanders he was
screened from the throng below
Claiming looked down on the NOV
ing, shimmering crowd below, now
and then picking out familiar form
as 1t whirled along. His hostess, Mrs
Bowring, splendid in violet brocade,
was dancing with Ellery Bee. The
diamonds in her white hair sparkled
with thousand points of flame as
she nodded and smiled. Her daugh.
tiers, Evelyn and Florence, fashion
able prototypes of fashionable
mother, waltzed their way under his
vision, flashing and sparkling and
very gorgeous as to raiment.
1t was not until he looked about
for chair that Howard Claiming
discovered that he was not alone.
Sitting among the oleanders, looking
wistfully down into the room below,
was a girl, slender and graceful and
very lovely, with softly tinted cheeks
cupped in her slender white hands.
Her gown was of some soft green
stuff that melted into the foliage of
the oleanders and palms. 1t was no
wonder she had been undiscovered
until now.
At the same moment she looked up
and saw him, and wave of crimson
swept her face from brow to chin.
The wide brown eyes had a frightened
look, and Claiming saw that she was
young.
Il am afraid I startled you" he
said courteously. II did not see you
Il thought was quite alone"
II did not hear you come in she
said in low, embarrassed voice. 1T
did not occur to me that any one
might come here. You need not leave
Il shall go away presently"
"It is your retreat by right of prior
occupancy" he said with one of his
rare smiles. 81 came to get away
from the crowd" He found a chair
and seated himself behind the green
screen
The girl turned her small, we'll
poised head away from him and re-
sumed her observation of the dane
ers
Charming watched her charming
profile, marveling that one so young
and SO beautiful should voluntarily
become an exile from the gay scene
below.
Pardon me. but am sure you are
one of Mrs. Bowring's daughters" he
ventured to say after many minutes
had passed. ST am Howard Chan
ming"
She turned quickly. II knew that
I recognized you at once" She
colored adorably at his surprised
glance.
you are very good" he said puz-
Zled. II know | could not have for
gotten you If we had met"
I'VE haven't met have seen
your picture" she confessed. Mother
has so many photographs, and Flor
ence has told me all about the origi-
nals-'that is how l knew you"
Then you are Mrs. Bowring's
daughter?" he asked once more.
The girl nodded, with a. little
friendly smile that went straight to
Channing's hitherto impervious heart.
Il am Nan-the youngest, and not SO
very young at that! I'm not out yet
you see, SO I simply have to steal
these little pleasures Mother would
not hear of my watching the ball from
this balcony. After it had begun,
just slipped on one of Evelyn's gowns.
l had to have a green one so | might
not be discovered. l suppose you
think am very deceitful"
Charming was thinking at that
several highly important
things. One was that he was glad
that he had come to the Bowring bail;
another, that he had stolen away to
the balcony, and again he was think
ing that Nan herself looked very
much like a pink oleander blossom set
in the foliage of her dark green gown
"Now that you are here, you may
as we'll enjoy the ball. he said hur-
riedly. Next to the dancing one en-
joys something good to eat At least
I do"
Il don't have many opportunities to
taste ballroom fare" said" Nan mis-
"but, of course, you know
school girls are always hungry, and
~~A~~~.-~~~~~-~-~-~-~~ -~~-o>-~~-~-~~~-~~~~