The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1914-07-18


body They halted Immediately i'll
front of us and began conyersing in
French
1T is well, Charles" said the elder
that we did not bring your mother
with us. She could never have forced
her way through this loyal crowd
"We might have taken some Of our
friends instead" answered the
younger. Our cards read and two la
dies Who the ladies may be is not
specified"
During this brief conversation the
pair had been standing almost cheek
by iowl with US Angry feelings,
coupled with humiliation, coursed
through my mind, and / felt my face
flush intoIerably. was endeayoring
With all my power to dodge away from
them when. to my horror. / perceived
that E5telie recognized the younger
man. and heard her at my elbow, eA-
claim in plaintige tones
"Oh, won't sou please take US into
the Abbey"
They spun round in astonishment at
this unexpected address / saw a look
OF recognition come into the aviator 3
eyes. He turned to his companion and
muttered something's both raised their
hats. and. with the gallantest Of bows.
our unknown offered his arm to-mel
AT the same time the elder man of
fered his own to Estelle. 1t was ali
done SO apty, and took me SO by
surprise, that | placed my hand me
chanicaly upon the arm that was Of
I fered me and followed the Old officer
and my friend Luckily at that mo-
! ment the crowd was cheering the
huge, black. portly coachman OF the
/ Maharajah Of Trayancore, under the
Impression that he was that potentate
himself and so attention was distract
ed from the little drama In which we
played our roles
Your presence makes this event
seem like my own coronation. my
bright-haired sun.eoddess," whispered
my escort as we passed between two
lanes Of policemen
was SO angry / could have struck
him, My hair is my most sensitive
feature | have been called Carrots
In my childhood. and made miserable
for days thereby, and Mary Jenner in
sists that it is emphatically not what
! the poets call auburn That hovrid
/ little Mr. Spratt, too, who was so smit-
ten with me, had reused my ire one
evening by an untactful allusion which
was meant to be complimentary But
/ ! had never before been mocked by a
/ stranger, by a man whose name i did
not even know. whom l had met once
/ only, and then as competitor No. 6"
in an aviation contest Did he sup
pose American girls to be so shallow
/ and foolish as to accept these half
baked compliments for genuine?
/ loathed and hated him then more than
i had ever hated anybody before.
However. being Frenchman, he
had the perspicacity to read my emo
tions in my face
Forgive me if ! offended. Made
moiselle,' he said, humbly IF you
delay we shall not be able to gain
admittance See, that policeman sus~
poets US. Let us go in.
let him draw my arm through his
own. A fatal indecision possessed
me. own ! did want to see the cor.
onation, and / wanted Estelle to do
80. TOO, if only to save her reputation
in her native city of Cedar Plank
Then, too, ] was faint from the long
standing in the sun and hardly in full
possession Of my faculties. AS
moved onward toward the Abbey
doors, pace behind the elder man and
Estelle, suddenly the cry "Pickpock
cts" was raised again. | clutched my
purse tighter And then, while !
moved on, half conscious, eager only
for the cool seclusion OF the interior
Df the building, as in a dream | saw
the eyil face Of the Greek Zeuxis
swim before my eyes The man
brushed against my companion
/ thought ] saw his hand 90 to his
breast pocket ae though to search it.
It was the act Of moment; i could
not be sure that he had really robbed
him. and then the recollection Of il
( was driven from my mind by the most
humiliatng catastrophe
Zeuxis swept past me, there was a
/ little rush OF spectators; somebody
struck my hand and my purse flew
from it and disappeared right in the
hollow top OF one Of the old gentle.
( mans buff boots And he walked on
.erenely unconscious Of the disaster
carrying my $500 and the key to tho
vault which held nay Panama bonds
Suddenly the murmur OF thousand
auhdued voices broke upon my ears
aud a grateful GOODNESS relieved my
tired eyes We were within the Alb
bey. marching up one of the aisles as
/ though by right equivalent with that
OF the five hundred peers and peer
/ esses "a brilliant robes. Who sat dan.
ding their coIonets upon their knees
and looking uncommonly common
place and uuimportant IN that vast
Gothic building
While my mind hurrledly ran
through an the possibilities OF my sit
uatiuu. the elder gentleman bowed rs
telle to The seat which the usher OF
....r..