The daily sentinel. [volume] (Grand Junction, Colo.) 1893-current, 1913-05-09


Sometimes her mother would soothe her to- sleep
by merely smoothing her hands while kneeling by
the bed As the year advanced she used TO slip to
her childs side with greater frequency, certain
not being greatly missed in the other room One
night she wrapped her arms loving around her
child Little Mary, weary of much promiscuous fon-
ding cried out seepily, GO away; leave alone"
And Ethel sharply whispered. oh darling. you
haven't turned against too. and knelt with her
face in the pillow until she gathered composure to
return to the outer room. The situation was work.
ing itself out to its inevitable Conclusion.
Little Mary, all unconsciousy, in the great circle
of hotel life had ceased to attach any particular
Importance to the more intimate group of the family
Her old need of her parents the hotel largely sup
piled. When she drifted in to her meals, any one
of the walters brought her food ring of The bell
summoned chambermaid glad to assist her ii+o a
clean frock or with toilette for the night. If hsr
parents went out for the evening. she not alone
among so many Even her little dresses Mrs.
MacLean ordered with Doodles' and her taste every
one recognized as perfection She the prettest
lady in the hotel; everyone said so. even Walter
Gardner who had written it in a note which Doo-
dies had not scruped to read II Little Mary wished
a story, dozen young ladies would tell her one.
IL she wished to play, any place was better than
the bounds of their rooms where Ethel
entertained perforce the ladies dawdling from room
to room. Little Mary always made her escape as
possible.
The great hotel offered endless diversion. If
Mary and Doodles whose liberty was absolute tired
of play. they called from to room on the older
people, sometimes consulting the register for new
acquaintance Each closed door the entrance
to either accustomed pleasures possibilities of
new delight In one room lady kept Jar Of
canded fruit; in another they always offered
kept canary and the children used to press close
to his cage and pity the little futtering life de-
prived of his natural heritage Sometimes they
planned to help him escape back to trees and flow
Some of the inmates of the where the chill
dren boldly knocked did not make them very well
come. One lady especially, upon whose obedient
little daughter they sometimes shed the light of
their presence. decidedly cool. She never left
the room during their visit checking her Helen's
every movement as if to give example to her
guests of watchful motherhood. Helen fingers"
in voice refined it had lost all natural timber
In her fear of hotel influences, Helen for
an instant alone An old nurse took the mothers
place If she by chance absent.
The children pitied Helen deeply. She fascinated
them as the captive canary did. Her little
face often peered out at them between the mother
and nurse as she left them romping behipd the
ciga stand Pert badly reared children" they
heard Helens mother say she passed Nurse,
see that Helen has nothing to do with them
year passed by Little Mary had crown taller
petted her any more though she posed and pirou-
cited and bridled in her hunger for admiration.
Other favorites, younger and more unconscious had
replaced her One night when she pushed her way
into group about the piano and cried Don't sing
SO loud. no one can hear me-" no laughter greeted
her sally, as would have happened year since.
Instead she heard repeatedly "a spoiled, disagree
able child" and once, Neglected little thing Isn't
1t dreadful the way her father carries with Mrs.
her rooms'
Little Mary's knowledge of life like forced
plant so that she had fair understanding of these
words. When Doodles and her mother left the hotel
soon after she asked no questions Nor was she
openly more curious when evening alter evening
her father in his big French machine fortune had
continued to prosper Walter Gardner) drove away
for parts unknown leaving Ethel, white and dry
eyed, in fhe luxury of their handsome suite. When
Walter Two months later removed to his club a
chambermaid informed Little Mary that her mother
90 sued for divorce Ethel, handicapped by the
sineness of her instinct, which two years of
hotel life had not served to blunt entirely had been
playing losing game almost from the first Mrs
MacLean, with no such handicap had made a nom
chalant capture of her husbands affections.
lo,, {lntfN 1lN
for the child Deprived of Doodles' society," avoided
by many of the more carefully reared children, she
from the comments that greeted her appearance
Curled up in the great chairs in the huge echoing
hotel parors. under high electric lights. she de-
voured the novels which the boy at the cigar stand
let her take. The silence of their suite was into
cradle. Her mother was always out, or was locked
in her own room face downward on the bed
One day during this dreary period of time Little
Mary learned from her friend at the news counter
that there had been kind of failure and that
her father had gone down in the crash n was the
! subject of conversation everywhere that morning.
The child. stealing awkwardly about from group to
group. felt herself again the object of attention.
One old gentleman had said carelessly in her hear
ing, "The best thing that ever happened to him.
That vampire will let go fast enough now"
Little Mary, with some instinct of protection.
rushed back to their rooms, where her mother ate
her breakfast. -
Mother" she said, everyone says father has lost
all his money. Oh, mother, everyone is talking
about us downstairs" The nervous child caught at
her mothers hand convulsivey.
q "Mary!' the mother said Are you sure?-
The child nodded. trembling.
Her mother buried her face in her hands, but
when she lifted It, it rosy, almost smiling.
"oh, Mary" she cried. "Fm SO glad for father will
come back. l know he will"
For three days Little Mary ran directly back to
the hotel from school and peeped expectantly into
their room, but no father came. Once the at
the desk was there with papers, speaking gravely
while her mother made some trembling plea. I
1t was on the fourth day that Little Mary found
him there. He sat beside elderly man on the
sofa who Mary OWNED, her grandfather. In
the inner room her mother and grandmother were
Dusty packing. Mary kissed her grandparents in
differently they seemed to her simply elderly people
like many others in the hotel. She sat by the
window trembling and crying out from all
the excitement Suddenly her mother. whose face
was bright and cheerful again, came to the door