The central record. (Lancaster, Ky.) 18??-current, 1914-11-26
A Package Of
Letters
By RYLAND BELL

One cold. clustering day in Novem- |
Der | took my winter Overcoat out OF !
the bag where it had been placed the |,
autumn before to put it in commission /
for the winter. | rammed my right !
haad down into the pockets-why l
know not-and felt kid. Taking 1t out. !
l found a pair of No. 6 lady's gloves |
There was a slight odor of perfume |
about them that the odor of moth balls
had not entirely destroyed But per
haps this was imagination.
Thinking that l might have some
one else's coat, l looked at the makers
name. 1t was that of my tailor. There
was no such mistake. Perhaps there
might be something else in the coat
put my hand into the other pocket and
pulled out bunch of letters. They
were not in envelopes, so l got no ad-
dress.
put on my thinking cap to try to
call up some reason for these articles
being in my overcoat pocket. Where
had l been when spring was coming
on? 1 had gone on a trip to the Pana-
ma 'canal. | had taken the overcoat
with me, using it for the first few days.
During the homeward voyage l had
noticed a young lady travelling with
her mother and young man who was
attentive to her. The girl l admired;
to the man | took a dislike. On the
evening before our arrival at New
York | was seated near this couple.
| The wind was chilly, and l wore my
overcoat Wishing to smoke, l went
below for a cigar, leaving my coat on
| a steamer chair Meeting a friend,
consented to go with him to the smok-
| ing room. l remained there till all had
| turned in, then. remembering my over
coat. went on deck for it and found it
! in the chair where had left it.
My solution was this: The girl near
| whom l had been sitting, feeling chilly,
had put on my coat or thrown it over
| her. The fellow was lover and had
been dismissed. The girls letters had
been returned, and she had slipped
| them temporarily in the coat pocket.
| Having the gloves in her hand, she
| slipped them in the other pocket.
| There were doubtless defects in this
| hypothesis, but it was the best l could
form. 1t was supported by the fact
that had seen the lady go ashore
and the man was not with her.
l had envied him on the ship and
| wished that l was in his place, for
there was something In the girls ap-
| pearance that appealed to me. l felt
that it would be very easy for me to
fall in love with her. Now that
had property Of hers in my possession.
| If / could find her. its return would
serve for an introduction. But / was
between two stools. / could only hope
to find a clew to her whereabouts
by reading the letters, which had no
right to do. If did not read them l
must remain ignorant as to who she
was. I read few Of them; but. gain
ing nothing. I refrained from proceed
ing further.
A year passed, during which I
thought a great deal about the girl Of
the gloves. as called her. but did not
meet her. Then one winter while at
St. Augustine. Fla. strolling past
group on the beach. in one Of them I
recognized her. She did not notice
me, and l walked on, but remained
on the beach till her party left it and
I saw them 60 to hotel The same
evening ] betook myself to the same
hostelry. l watched for an opportu-
nifty to catch her alone and was re-
warded one morning by seeing her sit
ting on the hotel porch. Approaching
her uncovered. addressed her:
81 beg your pardon. but did you not
visit the Panama canal about year
ago"
81 did," she replied. looking at me
as she would at any intruder who was
trying to force an acquaintance.
"And did you not one evening tempo
rarily appropriate an overcoat lying on
a steamer chair beside you to protect
you from the night air?"
81 did"
Then I presume these gloves be
long to you"
/ handed her her gloves. She took
them and examined them. then said
81 have no remembrance of these
gloves"
THAT is not remarkable, since it is
year and half since you put them
in my overcoat pocket Perhaps this
package"-holding up the letters
may stimulate your memory"
WHAT is it?' she asked coldly.
withdrew into my shell.
81 think l must have made a mis-
take in the person." said, putting the
package into my pocket. and was about
to walk away when she called to me:
Excuse me. but | mislaid Il package
of letters about that time"
Love letters?
Have you read them"
"Only two or three in order to dis
cover a clew to the ownership that
might return them"
Her manner changed. She remem-
bered appropriating my coat, but it
had never occurred to her that she
might have slipped the letters into the
pocket temporarily.
The ice was broken l learned from
her in time that she had been on the
eve of an engagement to the recipient
of the letters when she learned some
thing to his discredit and wrote him
for them. He had followed her on her