Bisbee daily review., 1911-06-10
Gle Alabaster Hand
l. Was the Cause of a Very
 Ludicrous Mistake
By Ciarissa Maekie
Copyright by American Press Asso-
 citation. 1911.


 of rather old fashioned red brick dwellings. the more pretentious faced with brownstone.
 I.ucien Braddock had chosen Blank street as the shortest cut to his apart ments in the Circle hotel. which held itself exclusively apart from the ave nues. where trains rOared above and below the ground and electric cars whizzed on the surface between the two.
 On this particular night Lucien traversed the street with unaccustom- ed haste. The rain fell with slanting. stinging steadiness. The drops drum med on his umbrella and battered against the smooth surface of his mack intosh. Once or twice he poked his head out from under the umbrella to take a survey of his surroundings. On the second occasion he saw it and stopped short in his tracks to stare up at a lighted parlor window.
 Lucien Braddock had heard of beau tiful hands, he had read in novels of marble brows" and ''aiabaster hands and arms but in the course of his IfOS1lC tAlSAtuNt nE udA HtfEA Nt1LE across these marks of feminine loveli- ness. He had seen pretty hands. Some were white. and others were tanned with summer sunshine, but never had he seen a woman's hand that might be likened to the alabaster ones of his novel reading days
 Now he saw it.
 It was white as snow or marble or the alabaster of his novels: perfect in shape. with small fingers. tapering to a point For an instant he saw the whole hand: then the wOman's other hand was lifted. and the shade was drawn to the sill of the window.
 For the first time since he had paus ed before the window Braddock be came aware that he was violating all the rules of p0liteDess. Never before had he stared into window in this manner. and now he turned hastily and resumed his way through the pelt ing rain with mingled shame and GU riosity
 The recollection of tbe white hand he had seen impressed him strangely It had looked so dead white, so lifeless so rigid. as compared to the careless grace of the wOman's other arm as sh' reached up to pull down the shade His mind pictured a dozen situation: that might account for the peculiar whiteness of the hand. The one whicf found most favor with him was tha the beautiful hand was paralyzed and quite bloodless-
 When he arrived at his hotel he dis missed the subject from his mind and went about his evening engagement, with his customary vigorous interest
 Every night as he passed through Blank street his eyes involuutarily turned toward the block where stood the house that interested him. It wa. some time before he could locate tho particular house. because il was mere Iy by the mellow lighting of the room or the figure of tls- woman who had stood there :h1 la hope to rec cEnize the T...- re.
 Then caIer ..-.l. .euinE, when h. was saunteIil- 5...award with a pleas ant anticipaI.Jil of inc excellent dinner that would await his arrival home there flashed on his view the same pie ture that he had seen once before oI that rainy night. The same woman stood there holding back the rose col ored curtains with that dead whit hand
 Once more Lucien Braddock pause, and stared up at the picture. Thi' time he gazed at the woman's heat framed in its mist of dark hair. He face was in shadow. but he fancieC that she must be beautiful, and as sh' did not stir from her position no make any attempt to pull down tn shade. he was suddenly smitten witt A sense of his own Tudeness. and, witt an involuntary removal of his hat. h passed on-
 Then it was that low. amuse' laugh broke the silence of the street Lucien stopped and looked around, r. could have sworn that the laugh cam from the vestibule of the house. Tn front door was slightly ajar. am through the glass panel red iigh shot down upon the sidewalk. Wit a shrug of the shoulders and an ui comfortable feeling he went on. Y resolved that he would not let curiOs ty again tempt him down the length O Blank street He would walk on more block and traverse another stree
 EVeers passed. and Braddock ha quite forgotten the incident of the w' man with the alabaster hand Bus ness affairs Of unusual importance o' .eupied his attention to the exclusio of amusements. and he found life file to inc fsrim with action.
 When the strain was removed. on th evening of the very day on which h had won the case which was to max him famous among lawyers. he rod home on the electric ear and froi Force of habit dropped of st the co ner of Blank street
 He had gone half its length when vos conscious of some disturbance one of the staid red brick dwelling bright light Hickered against II wipdowS. and a maidservant stood C ,h- porch screaming historically