The Elbert County tribune., 1911-03-31
He wondered If Alicia would Ignor.

moment Crushed in his left hand
was a copy of the New York Herald
containing an elaborate account of the
brilliant reception and musicale given
the previous evening at her home.
With an exclamation of Impotence he
rose from his seat. threw the paper
from him, and began to pace the floor.
Was this the end of everything?
Had he reached the end OF his rope?
He must pay the reckoning. If not to-
day, tomorrow. As his eyes wan
dered around the room and he took
mental inventory OF each costly OBJ
ject, he experienced a sudden shock
as he recalled the things that were
missing. How could he explain their
absence? The art dealers were al
ready suspicious. They were not to
be put off any longer with excuses.
Any moment they might insist either
on the immediate return of their prop
erty or ON payment in full. He was
in the position to do neither. The
articles had been sold and the money
lost gambling. Curse the luckl Every
thing had gone against him of late.
The dealers would begin criminal pro-
ceedings, disgrace and prison stripes
would follow. There was no way out
of IT. He had no one to whom he
could turn In this crisis.
And now even Alicia had deserted
him. This was the last straw. While
he was still able to boast of the
friendship and patronage of the aris-
tocratic Mrs. Howard Jeffries he
a hAI HI Lfxh In, fhe.
world. No one would dare question
his integrity. but now she had aban-
doned. him to his fate. people would be-
gin to talk There was no use keep
ing up a hopeless fight-suicide was
the only way out,
He stopped in front of a mirror.
startled at what he saw there. 1t
was the face of man not yet 80, but
apparently much older. The features
were drawn and haggard. and his dark
hair was plentifully streaked with
lived two lives in one. Tonight his
face frightened him. His eyes had a
fixed stare like those of a man he
had once seen in a madhouse. He
wondered if men looked like that when
they we're about to be executed Was
not his own hour close at hand? He
wondered why the clock was so noisy;
1t seemed to him that the ticks were
louder than usual. He started sud
denly and looked around fearfully. He
thought he had heard a sound outside.
He shuddered as he glared toward the
little drawer on the right-hand side of
his desk, In which he knew there was
loaded revolver.
If Alicia would only relent escape
might yet be possible. If he did not
hear from her It must be for tonight.
One slight little pressure on the trig-
ger and all would be over.
Suddenly the bell of the telephone
connecting the apartment with the
main hall downstairs rang violently
Interrupted thus abruptly In the
midst of his reflections, Underwood
jumped forward, startled. His nerves
were so unstrung that he was ever
apprehensive of danger. With a trem-
ulous hand, he took hold of the re-
ceiver and placed it to his ear. As he
listened, his already pallid face turned
whittier and the lines about his mouth
frightened. He hesitated moment be-
fore replying. Then. with an effort.
he said;
"Send him up"
Dropping the receiver, he began to
walk nervously up and down the
room. The crisis had come sooner than
he expected-exposure was at hand.
This man Bennington was the man.
ager of the firm of dealers whose
goods he disposed of. He could not
make restitution. Prosecution was in
evitable. Disgrace and prison would
follow. He could not stand It; he
would rather kill himself. Trouble was
very close at hand, that was certain.
How could he get out of 1t? Pacing
the floor, he bit his lips till the blood
came.
There was a sharp ring at the front
door Underwood opened it. AS he
recognized his visitor on the thresh-
old, he exclaimed:
why, Bennington. this is a sur
prise"
The manager entered awkwardly.
He had the constrained air of a man
who has come on an unpleasant err
rand, but wants to be as amiable as
the circumstances will permit.
You didn't expect me. did your" he
began.
Shutting the front door, Underwood
led the way back into the sitting room,
and making an effort to control his
nerves. said
sit down, won't you?"
But Mr.. Bennington merely bowed
stiffiy. 1t was evident that he did not
wish his call to be mistaken for a So
cial visit.
Il haven't time. thank you. To be
frank. my mission is rather delicate
one. Mr.. Underwood
ITO BE CONTINUED)