Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1914-12-07

There was a great swarm of women
at the door. but Helen and Louise
managed to push their way through
into the first room beyond where they
checked their wraps.
Talk about crowds" whispered
Louise over her shoulder, as they
made their way into the large pail
room, have you ever seen anythihs
worse -,
Helen agreed without speaking;
She hated crowds of any kind anu
had only been persuaded to attend
the bridge at the Gilmore because
Louise had told her that it was IN
good cause and she ought to patron
ize it.
Cant you imagine playing cards
with some of the old friends that you
see around here? | know II. draw
some cranky old person. but theh
dote on them, so / don't mind
Don't Louise; you fairly make me
culver Playing cards with lot OF
strange women is bad enough, but
that is worse"
Cheer up, my child; you may WIN
a prize. l understand they're very
handsome; but as l never have any
luck it must be you who will go home
decorated with cut-glass berry oowl
or half dozen bouillon cups, or set
of candlesticks."
Just what l need" said Helen, her
interest aroused DO you really
think they would have IN expensive
prize like that? If so / certainly am
glad l came"
I'm almost positive about it.,
laughed Louise, come on now, we'd
better find our tables. Here you are,
and Louise left Helen at table with
three other women while she hurrleu
off to find her own place.
Ialan was not good bridge player
she was too sensitive and not sure
enough of herself. Any slight mis-
take made her nervous, and she was
sure to play very badly in conse-
quence However, the thought of the
candlesticks which she had wanted
for her dressing table ever since she
could remember spurred her on, and
for the first part of the afternoon she
played very well. Her score went up
rapidly and when she met Louise some
time later, she displayed her tally as
gleefully as child.
81 saw the prizes" said Louise eX-
citedly, "and there are two sets OF
candlesticks. Play your hardest,
Helen, and you're sure to get one of
them" Helen laughed, and all might
have gone we'll if at that moment
Helens partner had not leaned for
ward as she was in the act of shuftl-
ing the cards and said:
Il beg your pardon, but | am afraid
you have lost one of the diamonds out
of your pin!'
Helen started and uttered a little
exclamation as her hand went up to
her throat where the pin was fast
ened. 1t was the brooch that Warren
had given her last Christmas, the one
really handsome gift that he had ever
given her of his own free will.
Helen had never forgotten the
thrill of surprise and pleasure that
had come over her when Warren had
given it to her Christmas morning. 1t
couldn't be possible that she had lost
u stone.
With a sickening little sense of
disaster, Helen hastily unpinned the
brooch from her dress, and stared at
it unbelievngly as it lay in her hand,
one OF the ~larger stones was miss
ing from the outer circle of diamonds.
If ii had only been one of the smaller
ones she could have replaced it with
out any trouble, but the larger stones
cost more than Helen could afford.
What a shame" said one of the
women. Are you sure you had the
stone when you same in? II so per-
haps you will find it
Helen knew just how unlikely that
would be with the crowd as dense as
it had been this afternoon. Of course
there would be a search for it after
the others had gone, but 'she wasn't
even sure that she had lost it after
she and Louise had arrived. Perhaps
1t had been loosened by her coat and
she had lost it in the subway; If so
she would never recover 1T.
The woman at Helen's left sorted
her cards audibly, and Helen realized
that they did not consider the loss of
the stone of enough importance to
stop the game or even delay it. She
picked up her cards and began to ar
range her hand. After all it made
little or no difference to women of
their stamp whether or not they lost
SO unimportant stone as carat dia-
mond Although no one of the wo-
men was dressed any better than
Helen, all three were crowded with
Jewels and bore all external evidence
of being wealthy. Helen could have