The Lamar register., 1912-03-20
ILLUSTRATIONS BY
kLLSWcR YOUNG
ocVxe9oaF 1900 y Iou3S> 5osIPH

INC lAuy III OluueTs puL though Iuo
ships company was small, he failed
to see her in the saloon, at either the
captains. tho chief onicer's or the
doctors table; nor. SO far as he could
determine. was she taking the air on
deck. Was 1t possible. then, that he
had been right, that she had q reason
equally as compelling rs his own for
secluding herself? Or. was 1t simply
land infinitely more probably that
Mrs. Prynne was indisposed, an ener
waited victim Of excessive heat?
The latter conjecture proved ap-
parently the right one. Mrs. Prynne
failing to appear during the two fol.
lowing days, while the Panjnab was
rocking down the Red Sea channel;
and O'Rourke grew interested enough
Che had little else to occupy his mind.
for q duller voyage he had never
KNOWN to give Danny permission to
pursue his inquiries: with an injuno
ton. however. prohibiting too lavish
An expenditure of the boys wealth Of
affection. Whereupon Danny return
ed with the information that the mis-
tress Of Cecile. the maid. was suffer
ing from heat exhaustion.
This was entirely reasonable
O'Rourke accepted the demolition Of
his airy castles Of Romance, laughed
at himself, in part was successful IL
putting the woman out of mind;
doubtless. in time. he would have done
30 altogether. had not the lady chosen
to take the air the night that thu
Panjnab negotiated the Straits Of
Bab-el-Mandeb. For on that same
night, O'Rourke. himself wakeful, was
minded to sit up and watch the lighta
Of Perrin Island heave into view.
oRourke. in a deck-chair on the
starboard side. well cloaked In the
shadow Of the deck above. watch
ed the other passengers. one BY one
quiet their chatter. yawn. stretch and
slip below to stuffy staterooms.
Ho suffered q dreamy eye to rove
where It would. greedy Of the nights
superb illusion.
-Four bells-two o'clock-chimed
upon his consciousness like . physical
shock. He verified the hour by his
watch and, reluctantly enough, agreed
that It was time he got himself to
bed. He half rose from his chair, then
sank back with an inaudible catch Of
his breath. without warning the ap
partition Of . white-clad woman had
invaded the promenade deck. For an
instant he hardly credited his eyes.
then, with . nod Of recognition, he
identified Mrs. Prynne.
Internationally unconscious Of his
presence In the shadow. she fell to
pacing to and fro. Now and again,
she stopped. and with chin Graded in
her small hands. elbows on the rail.
watched the approaching cliffs Of
Arabia; then. with perhaps a sigh. re-
turned to her untimely constitutional.
Partly because he had no wish to
startle her. partly because he was
glad to watch unobserved Che had .
rare eye for beauty. the O'Rourks).
the wanderer sat on without moving.
stirred only by active curiosity. The
strangeness of her appearance upon
deck at such an hour fascinated his
Imagination no less than her person
held his eye. He gave himself over
to vain and pro6tless speculation. :.
Why. he wondered. should she
keep to her cabin the greater part of
the evening. only to take the air when
none might be supposed to observe
her?
Why. If not to escape such observa-
uonf Then. he told himself. he must
be right In his superstition that she
had something to fear. someone to
avoid. What or whom? What was 1t
all, what the mystery that, as he
watched her. seemed to grow, to cling
about her like some formless, I'M
palpable garment?
Events conspired to weave the man
int the warp and wool Of her affairs;
more quickly than he could grasp the
reason for his sudden action, he found
himself a-foot and dashing aft at top
speed. But an instant gone Mrs
Prynne had passed him, unmolested
and wrapped in her splendid isola-
ton; and then from the after part of
the deck he had heard q slight and
guarded cry Of distress. and a small
souming sound.
In two breaths he was by her side
and found her struggling desperately
in the arms of a lascar-a deck-hand
on the steamer.
At first the strangeness Of the busi-
ness so amazed O'Rourke that he
paused and held his hand, briefly