Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1912-08-30

10 put OH uST lulS, WulSA oAiO AoS
flung across the back Of her chair.
"Mother!" This came in a gasp
from the elder Wadsworth. An under
standing of this strange proceeding
began to filter through his mind. The
young girls mother!
Mrs. Chedsoye drew on her gloves
slowly. She offered them to the Ma
jor to button. He flung the hands
aside. He was not nice under the We
neer. But Ryanne was instantly at
her service. And curiously she
watched his agile fingers at work over
the buttons; they were perfectly
steady. Then, followed by the Major
and Ryanne, she walked easily toward
the hall. Ryanne paused.
Good night, Arthur. I'm sure you
will not sleep we'll. That handsome
safe is irreparably damaged. ! dare
say you will find a way to cover the
loss without any injury to your own
pocket. Old top, farewell! Who was
it, Brutus or Caesar, who said: I go
but to return'?" The banter left his
face and voice swiftly. "You sneak
ing blackguard, you cheater Of wild
ows; yes, shall come again; and
then look to your sleek, sanctimonious
neck! You chucked me down the road
to hell, and the pity Of 1t IS, some day
i must meet you there! Fortune,
child" his, voice becoming sad, you
might remember poor beggar in
your prayers tonight. Perclval.
farewell to you. We shall never meet
again. But when you stand upon
that bally old rug there. you'll always
Zee me, the fire. the tents. the camels
and the desert, and the moon in the
enand the desert. and the moon in the
moment later those remaining could
hear the chug-chug of the motors as
they speed away. The banker was first
to recover from the spell. He rushed
for thehall, but George stopped him
rudely.
1.-TWO hours, if you please. | never
break my word. Your money is all
there. If you do not act reasonably,
I'll throw you down and sit on you
till the time is up. Sit down. | do
not propose that my future wife shall
appear in court as witness against
her mother. Do you understand me
now?"
The banker signifed that he did.
He sat down, rather subdued. Then
he got up nervously and inventoried
the steal. He counted roughly mil
lion. A mllion He felt sick and
weak. 1t would have wrecked the
bank, wiped it out of existence. And
saved by the merest, the most tritilng
chance! A bottle of wine! He re-
sumed his chair and sat there won
deringly till the time-limit expired
The public never heard how nearly
the Merchant Mechanic had gone to
the wall; nor how six policemen had
worked till dawn carrying back the
cold; nor that the banker had not even
thanked them for their labor.
The first impulse OF the banker had
been to send the story forth to the
world, to harass and eventually cap
ture his brother; but his foresight
becoming normal, he realized that
silence was best, even II his brother
ESCAPED. If the depositors heard that
the bank had been entered and mil
lion taken from the vaults. there
would naturally follow terrific run.
When the last bag had been taken
out of the library and the banker ana
the police had gone, the bell rang.
George west to the door. A messen-
ger handed him a small satchel and
q note. There was to be no reply.
The note was from Ryanne. Briefly 1t
stated that the satcbel contained .ths
,emeralds. There had been some diff
ficulty in forcing the Major to surren'
der them. But that much was due to
George for his generosity. Later IN
the day he-George-might inform his
-Horace's-brother that the coup
hadn't been q tota! t1zzle They had
already packed away In suit-cases
something like two hundred thousand
dollars in bills of all denominations.
P'1Tell that dear brother OF mine to
icharge it to our account It will be
less than the interest upon million
in ten years. To you, my boy, add:
fortune favors the bravel"
George" said Mortimer, "you will
mot mind If forage round IN the
kitchen? A bottle of beer and a bit
of cheese would go handy. It's almost
my breakfast time
'Bless your heart, help yourself!
And George turned to Fortune.
"Ah," she cried, selling his hands.
,"you will not think Ill Of me"
"And for what?" astonished.
"For not speaking to my mother.
Oh, ! just couldn't; I just couldn't!
When 1 thought Of all the neglect,
all the indifference, the loneliness, I
couldn't! 1t was horribly unnatural
and cruel!"
nP roiDa Saw