The Cairo bulletin., 1914-02-08

ITS Very Coed LIVING Abroad.
There's Boa, Leaving Tomorrow"
cross-street and cifoied into the yawp.
ing mouth of his garage
A little later lhe bulldog Mt hix
heels, he assembled the steps OF his
club, where he lodgcd---he, had dis.
posed of his bachelor apartments a
fortnight ago. The cavernous seats OF
the lounge were all occupied, but he
did not pause as he strobe through
the hall. He took the little pile of
letters the boy handed him at the
desk and went slowly UP the stairway.
He wandered into the deserted libra.
~ and sat down, tossing the letters
on the magazine-lttered table. He had
suddenly remembered that it was his
twenty-ffth birthday.
In the reaction from the long strain
he felt physically spent, He thought
OF what he had done that afternoon
with a sense Of satisfaction. "A re-
versal Of public Judgment, In his own
case, had not entered his head. He
knew his wo-ld--its comfortable facu.
ty of forgetting, and the multitude OF
sins that wealth may cover. To pre-
serve at whatever personal cost the
ons noble monument his fathers
genius had reared, and to right the
wrong that would cast its gloomy
ehcCcw or his name-that had been
his only thought. What he had done
waaid have been done no matter what
the outcome Of the inye stisetion.s But.
now. he told himself, no, one could say
the act had been wrung from him.,
That. he fancied, would have been his
fathers way, 49, M.n.,
!. He smiled-a slow smile OF reminis-
cence--for there had come to him at
that moment the dearest Of ALI those
memories--a play Of his childhood.
He saw himself seated on low
stool. watching a funny old clock with
a moon-face, whose smiling lips curved
up like military. mustachios, and -wish..
Ing the lazy long, hands would hurry.
He saw himself stealing down a long
corridor to the door OF big room
strewn with books and papers, that
through some. balefM and, mysterious
spell could not be made to open az
all hours When the hands pointed
right, however, there was the Open
Sesame"-his own secret knock. two
fierce twin raps, with one little lone
some one afterward--aud this was un-
falling. "a Safe. inside, he, saw himself
standing on a big, polar-bear-shp, thu
door tight.locked against all corners,
An expectant baby figure with his IT.
tie hand clasped in his fathers. The
white, rug was the magic entrance to
the Neyer-Never Country, known only
to those two. .s.g4.
He could hear his own shrill treble:
Wishing House. Wishing House.
where are you?" ~
Then the deeper voice iquiteg unrec-
ognizabe as his father's) answering;
Here l am, Master; here I ami
And instantly the room vanished
and they were in the Never-Neyer
Land, and before them reared the big
gest house in the world. with row Of
white pillars across its front mile
high. 55
John Valiant felt an odd beating Of
the heart and . tightening. Of the
throat. for he saw scene that never
faded from his memory. 1t was the
one hushed and horrible night, when
dread things had been happening that
he could. not understand. when . big
man with gold eyeglasses. Who
smel!ed of some curious sickish.sweet
perfume, came, and took him by the
hand and led him into . room where
his father lay In bed, very gray and
quiet. "a .-
The white hand on the coverlet
had beckoned to him and he had gone
close up to tho bed standing very
his heart beating fast and
hard.
joint" the word had been almost
a whisper, very tense and anxious
very distinct John. you're a little
boy. and father is going away"
Toto Wishing House2" r.
The gray lips had smiled then. ever
so little, and sadly. No, John"
Take me with you, father. Take
mo with you!"
His voice had trembled then, and he
had had to gulp hard, s.,
. /. 'Ltsten, John. Tor what am say.
ing ia very important, You don't
know what mean nov, but some.
time you, will" The whisper had
grown strained and frayed. but 1t was
still distinct. II can't 90 to the Never.
Never Land. But you may sometime.
II you =, ?, IL You do. and. IL you
ind Wishing House. remember that
the men who lived In It be-
fore you and me : were gen
tlemen. Whatever else they were.
they were always that Be .
like them, John. will you
Yes, father tt
The old gentlsman With tbs eve-
glasses had come forward then. hasti.
y. a
Good night, father" IA.
He had wanted to kiss him, but .