Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1912-11-06

Fdnced On ne as weasel might upon
some larger creature. Then she
turned yiciously on the maid, and
cursed her in French. German and
Italian. until. in the Lorraine peas
ants figure Of speech, a fly passing
would not have lighted on her.
/ CLEANED an explanation from the
lurid damning. The attorney was ex-
pecting his associate TO come for him
Ia motor. the maid had been direct
ed to admit him at once on his arrival
and. naturally. she had taken me for
the man.
The Infatuated woman slapped the
maids face. pushed her out Of the
room, locked the door and turned to
me, her eyes again shimmering bead
ily. like vessels
What do you WANT" she said in
English, biting at each word as it
came out
had no wish to be scratched to
pieces, SO / took the paper out of my
pocket and swiftly explained my err
rand. The pistol, the scalping knife,
the acid bottle, instantly vanished A
moments calm fell aud then the sun
flooded that theater of savagery. Thus
a convict escaping from the death-cell
would have acted. If, as he climbed
the wall, a guard had touched him,
and, turning about desperately to meet
a bullet, he should be handed a re-
prieve. The woman and her attorney
carried the contract to the desk,
spread 1t out, read it and re-read il
absorbingly, surely as that convict
would have done his pardon Then
they talked whisperingly together
while | waited Finally, the attorney
spoke to me, holding the contract in
his hand
If you will pardon me a moment,
Mr.. Parks" he said, until / verify
these signatures. We viii conclude
this matter"
He went out into the hall to a tele,
phone. l heard him call the clerk and
the notary. While he talked j had a
little leisure to examine Suzanne Kin.
sky. Her complexion was of that
deep beautiful olive to be found in the
south of Austria. Her hair was heavy
with the purple-black gloss of dye, al
thought 1t was certainly not dyed. Her
figure, fallen now into repose, was
sensuous and dainty; her hands were
especially tapering and beautiful, but
her ankles were thick-the ankles of
a ballet dancer.
In a few minutes the attorney re-
turned
Mr.. Parks" he said. "this contract
seems to have been properly executed.
My client will accept it, | think you
will find the full consideration packed
in that steamer trunk in money and
securities"
l went with him to the open trunk
and, in ten minutes, had verified its
contents. The bulk of the fund was
in securities and the remainder in
banknotes Of large denominations.
These securities were difficult to val
ne accurately. / thought the trunk
contained some twenty-eight thousand
dollars more than the required sum.
Howell thought it contained forty
thousand more. We compromised fl
nally at thirty-five, and he took out
that sum In currency. l closed the
trunk and carried it myself to the mo-
tor-car
Then l returned up Long Island to
New York, the first man since Kidd
to travel there with a chest Of treas
ure, albeit to the passer l appeared
to be merely one returning to his
town apartment with rather knocked
up steamer trunk. held together by
broad leather strap. ! wondered, as
] went. into what pleasing scene this
changed situation fell at my depar-
ture. had come evidently, by the
maids blunder, upon a flight. / had
entered to the danseuse an instru-
ment of the law with some OBTAINING
writ, and was changed into friendly
herald of surrender. had brought,
against all hoping. peace, the end of
narrowing uncertainty signed in
strument of settlement. Three mil
lions to the adventures for one!
That hour was highly eolored. and
yet the hour arriving passed. think.
beyond It, At three o'clock had set
the trunk down in the Office of Mrs.
Porter's lawyer. and explained its con
tents He called her instantly by tele-
phone, and once more st. George Fair
field Porter came before me with his
retlnue, the only one of us on this
dramatic day a gentleman unmoyed
and yet the one whose fortune was
in peril.
Again saw a woman cast from one
emotion violently to another-a won.
an of higher order. and yet the sit
uation was no less one of desperate
drama Mrs Porter had taken the
message to her for some clean recov-
cry of the money. and came elated as
to a victory. When she had the story,
when she knew that the contract of
settlement had been delivered for it,
she fell upon that instant to the very
grave door of despair. BY this folly of
Randolph Mason she mad lost the ma
jor portion of her boys inheritance.
He had surrendered the paper against
his promise, he had broken his word
Immediately. he had given up for one
million dollars their claim to the es-
tate, The thing in the acuteness of
its Injuries was criminal, and yet
there was here no violence. no bitter
word. 40 rawlings of hysteria. The wo-
man was terrifyingly quiet, her face
fallen into painful stiffness. In that