The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1912-01-09

soon aILar my gullL-lI 1nQee0 i was
| guilty-that he might the better detect
| it. There was no time to form or
carry out a plan for his deception, GER
tainly not another breakdown. Two
such articles would be a dead give
away. resolved to march straight up
to him, driving all embarrassment out
of my head, acting with absolute ap-
parent Indifference. | made another
resolution. resolved-but never mind
what resolved.
When / was ushered into the room
where again found him sitting be-
hind his rosewood desk think could
have enacted any part-I could have
announced to him that he was to be
decapitated in ten minutes without
showing the slightest trace of emotion
The gray eyes were brought to bear on
me, but / met them with an inquiring
childlike wonder as to why he looked
SO hard at me Then. as If my modesty
! had been touched by such gaze, l call
ed up a faint blush and turned my
eyes away. felt that had conquered
My pantomine would have deceived
Satan himself
Still pretending that Mr.. Constable
was another person than himself, the
secretary took the note out OF the room
and returned with another. which be
handed me unsealed He did not open
his lips to me during my brief stay
but knew that he was watching me-
! acted as though there was no one
present except myself, looking most of
the time out of the window The note
he gave me | dropped at once into my
bag without looking at it, pretending to
be at the moment hunting for either
my handkerchief or my purse.
From this time forward | felt that
was mistress of the situation. The
only mention | made of Mr.. Consta-
BILE was as 1.-THE old gentleman who
did so much for the poor" and this
was not to Mrs Gonagle. but In her
hearing | think this took away any
suspicion she might have had that ]
knew of her plot She did not send
me with any more notes to Mr.. Con
stable, but did send me to him with
verbal messages When | went with
the first of these Mr.. Constable's pre-
tended secretary waxed affable and
endeavored to engage me in converse
ton. l showed no indisposition to
talk with him. though he never gave
me one of those gazes of his but that
/ lowered my eyes. In one of our
chats asked him If he were Mr.. Con
stables secretary and he replied that
he was more than that-he was his
business manager.
'Mr. Constable must be splendid
old gentleman" said. Ito do so much
for the poor"
what else can he do with his mon
eyT was the response. He can't
spend it all on himself"
Then the secretary began to come to
Mrs. Gonagle's on various pretexts.
and every time he came she would
manage to leave us in her office room
together while she pretended to be at
tending to the matter about which he
had called. | saw that he was bent
on wooing. and | permitted him to
WOO He took me out several times.
from the opera on leaving me in the
vestibule he pressed my hand There
was light enough for me tC show him
that ! was very much impressed by
the performance
Time came when he proposed to me
laughed at him. II don't care to
marry a man." l said, who began his
courtship With the idea that he was
a match for woman"
"What do you mean?" he asked
astounded
"Why, you and Mrs. Gonagle form
ed a plot to make me believe that you
are Mr.. Constable's secretary. knew
from the first that you were Mr.. Con
stable himself"
'How7 You surely didn't read the
first note sent by your"
"Of course ! did. Did you take me
for ninny?"
"You played me?"
''That was easy"
"And all this encouragement is
pretended | don't care to marry
am much pleased with my work and
have no intention Of leaving IT.
That was several weeks ago Since
then Mr.. Constable has been pursuing
me. and have at last consented to
marry him. Mrs. Gonsgle Is to give
us a splendid wedding. and we are to
70 abroad on our bridal trip.