Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-04-30

Palace and San GlOrgio over the way, lay an
Italian cruiser, a German tourist steamer,
and two private yachts. From the taffrail
of the smarter pleasure craft trailed the
Stars and Stripes.
"Americans!" said Mrs. Blair, lettering
with speculative gaze on the landing stage of
| their hotel. II wonder if we know them?'
Her husband withdrew a no less interested
eye from the warship, marked the yacht S
outlines, and broke into great laugh. "Fate
is surely in it!' he declared. "Cant you
guess who they are?"
"Not the Truscotts!"
"Nobody else. I'd know the Don't Care
in the dark"
"But they're in Egypt for the Helopolis
aviation meeting"
"That ended last week They've had just
time to steam comfortably across and join
us. | tell you it's Fate"
Ann stole curious glance at Rodoslav.
To the Others he seemed merely struck by
the coincidence which gave new lease of
life to the we'll worn family joke; but she
read far different meaning in the look he
bent upon the Truscotts' yacht. To him it
was indeed the instrument of Fate!
Chapter XXI.
THEY encountered the Truscotts the
same evening at Florians. The cafe
had an odd air of desertion. The night was
too sharp to draw anyone to the tables under
the arcades, and even the indoor gathering
was small. A handful of Venetians played
checkers or read eye-straining newspapers in
one corner; a contingent from the tourist
steamer drank book in another. Midway
between, disdaining the Germans and trying
to look as much at home as the Vcnctians,
sat Virginia and her husband.
Heaven be praised!" she exclaimed, cut
ting short yawn. an another minute I
should have gone back to the yacht. If
ever come to Venice again out of season,
hope somebody will pitch me in the Grand
Canal"
@Why did you Gomez" Mrs Blair voiced
the family curiosity.
The query touched a sensitive spring in
the stockholders mechanism. Because
we re crazy!" he declared. "The travel bug
has bitten US! We can't stop! Well CAD till
we def we do die! Perhaps we won't be
lucky enough to die. Perhaps we'll 60 on
gadding forever, like that Jew they tell
about. He ought to have married Virginia,
that chap. They would have made good
team"
His wife laid her hand on his sleeve and
he subsidized into rumble. "The poor dear
has cold in his head and rheumatism in his
feet she explained. "When we put in at
Ancona, | wanted him to see the town; but
he preferred to stand on a damp pier and
fish, so naturally"
81 was all right at Ancona," contradicted
her husband. "Those beastly tombs in
Ravenna did me up
"What nonsense! Dante and Theodoric's
tombs were as dry as-as-'
GAS am" said Justin tactfully. @What's
everybody going to drink"
Virginia sought AIMS sympathy. Il
don't know what has come over the man."
she confded Everything pals on him
now. If he gets any worse, | shall have to
take him back to New York and set him to
work."
Seeing the broker absorbed in the mixing
of his favorite beverage, Mrs. Blair required
to her original question. "You haven't told
us what brought you to Venice" she re-
minded.
"Were here" explained Virginia in dis
Greet tones, because, with all our globe trot-
ting we have never cruised along the shore
of the Adriatic. Why we've skipped it,
can't say; but it's fact, and when we left
Alexandria l made up my mind that
shouldn't have it on my conscience any
longer"
Rodoslav left the men to discuss the re-
cent vagaries of Wall Street and dropped