The herald-advance. (Milbank, S.D.) 1890-1922, 1914-12-25

IAN right am coureland,
laughed. Come on over 70 the Soui.
Act and have q drink with me-.
I'm not drinking today" tersely.
There's too much ahead for me to
u"
Going to start out to find herl Oh
Sir Galahad!" ironically. Abby, you
used to be . sport. I'll wager . hum
dred against a bottle Of pop that to-
morrow or next day she'll turn up
serenely. with a statement that she
was ~indisposed, sorry not to have mott
fed the directors. and all that. They
do 1t repeatedly every season."
But an errand Of mercy, the
strange automobile which cannot be
found? The engagement to dine with
the barren? Celeste Fournier's state
ment? You can't get around these
things. tell you, Nora isn't that
kind. She's toe big in heart and mind
To stoop to any such Devices" vehe-
mently.
Mora! That looks pretty serious,
Abby. You haven't gone and made a
fool Of yourself, have you?"
What do you call making a fool Of
MYSELF" truculently.
You aren't a sutton, are you? An
accepted suitor?" unruffled. rather
kindly.
mo, but | would to heaven that l
were!" Abbott damned the newspa.
per into his pocket and slung the stool
over his arm. Come on over to the
studio until l get some money"
"You are really going to start .
SEARCH"
II really am. I'd start one just %
quickly for you, If l heard that you
had vanished under mysterious cir
cumstances."
i believe you honestly would"
You are an old misanthrOpe. |
hope some woman puts the hook into
you some day. Where did you pick up
the crouch? Some OF your dusky
prtncesses give you the go-by?"
you. too, Abby?"
"Oh, rot! OF course l never be-
lfeved any OF that twaddle. Only, I've
got . sore head today. II you knew
Nora as well as l do, you'd under
stand"
Courtlandt continued toward the
exit, his head forward, his gaze bent
on the path. He had the air of a man
deep in thought, philosophic thought,
which leaves the brows unmarried by
those corrugations known as frowns.
Yet his thoughts were far from philo.
sophie Indeed, his soul was in mad
turmoil. He could have thrown his
arms toward the blue sky and cursed
aloud the fates that had set this new
tangle at his feet. He longed for the
jungles and4 some mad beast to vent
his wrath upon. But he gave no sign
He had returned with a purpose az
hard and grim as iron: and no OBJ
stacle, less powerful than death
should divert or control him. Abduc
ton? Let the public believe what II
might; he held the key to the mys
terry. She was afraid. and had taken
fight. So be 1t.
9" say, Ted" called out the artist
what did you mean by saying thai
you were a Dutchman?"
Courtlandt paused SO that Abbot,
might catch up to him. II said that
wal . Dutchman?"
Yes. And 1t has Just occurred tc
me that you meant something"
"Oh, yes. You were talking OF Da
Toscana? Let's call her Harrigan. II
will save time, and no one will know
to whom We refer. You said she wal
Irish, and that when she said a thine
she meant it. My boy. the Irish are
notorious for claiming that. They
often say it before they see clearly
Now, we Dutchmen-it takes a Ions
time for us to make up our minds
but when we do. something has got to
bend o. break"
You don't mean to say that you are
going to settle down and get mar
ried?"
FIN not going to settle down and
get married. If that will ease you
mind any"
Man. | was hoping!"
Three meals a day In the same
house. with the same woman. never
appealed to me-"
What do you want, one for each
meal?"
(TO BE CONTINUED.)