The Meridian times. (Meridian, Idaho) 1909-1938, 1911-08-18
a May Not Have Another Chance to Thank You."

The steel finger Of civilization, of pro-
priety, of visiting cards and formal in
Productions was reckoning us in. Miss
West put on her shoe.
We said little on the car. The few
passengers stared at us frankly, and
discussed the wreck, emphasizing it's
horrors. The girl did not seem to
hear. Once she turned to me with
the quick, unexpected movement that
was one of her charms.
Il do not wish my mother to know
I was in the accident" she said. will
you please not tell Richey about haV-
ing met me?"
gave my promise, of course. Again,
when we were almost into Baltimore,
she asked to examine the gun-metal
cigarette case, and sat silent with it
in her hands, while told of the early
mornings events on the Ontario.
$50 you see," I finished, this grip,
everything have on, belongs to a fell
low named Sullivan. He probably left
the train before the wreck-perhaps
just after the murder"
And so-you think he committed
the-the crime?" Her eyes were on
the cigarette case.
Naturally" I said. "A man doesn't
Jump off Pullman car in the middle
of the night in another mans clothes,
unless he is trying to get away from
something. Besides the dirk, there
were the stains that you saw. Why,
have the murdered mans pocket
book in this valise at my feet. What
does that look like?"
l colored when I saw the ghost of
a smile lowering around the corners
of her mouth. THAT is" l finished,
"if you care to believe that l am i'll
nocent."
The sustaining chain of her small
gold bag gave way just then. She did
not notice it. l picked it up and slid
the trinket into my pocket for safe
keeping, where I promptly forgot it.
Afterwards I WISHED had let it lie I'M
noticed on the floor of that dirty little
suburban car, and even now, when l
see q woman carelessly dangling a
similar feminine trinket, shudder in
voluntarily: there comes back to me
the memory of a girls puzzled eyes
under the brim of Hopping hat, the
haunting suspicion of the sleepless
nights that followed.
Just then was determined that
my companion should not stray back
to the wreck, and to that end l was
determinedly facetious.
do you know that 1t is Sunday?"
she asked suddenly, "and that we are
actually ragged??"
Never mind that" retorted. "All
Baltimore is divided on Sunday into
three parts, those who rise and go to
church, those who rise up and read
the newspapers, and those who don't
rise up. The first are somewhere be-
tween the creed and the sermon, and
we need not worry about the otherk.
you treat me like child" she said
almost pettishly. Don't try so hard
TO be cheerful lit is almost ghast-
ly"
After that / subsidized like a pricked
balloon. and the remainder of the ride
was made in silence. The information
that she would go to friends in the
civ was a shock; it meant an earlier
than l had planned for.
Rut my arm was beginning again. In
uniting her into a cab l struck it and
pritted my teeth with the pain. 1t
was probably for that reason that l
forgot the gold bag. i
She leaned forward and held out
ber hand, 81 may not have another
chance to thank you," she said, land
7 think | would better not try any !
how, l cannot tell you how grateful