The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-01-24

always eluded me. Can you imagine
anything more prosaic than my daily
grind divided as it is between cheap
| boarding house at night and selling
gents underwear by day?
81 have prowled the streets at the
most lonely hours of the early morning
and met only intoxicated gentlemen re-
turning from poker parties; in the
spirit of BoCcaCCio | have strayed FAR
from the turmoil of the city through
shaded country lanes and when ! have
Cuurted the farmers pretty wives and
daughters, have my flattering wiles met
with the success which they deserved?
Far from It, | invariably am mistaken
for a hobo instead of a cavalier and had
the dogs set on me. If the husband or
big brother had been at home | should
probably have been lynchcd.
"Once I spent a night alone in n
haunted house and had a perfectly
placid time. Enjoyed the most beau
tiful drcams and actually oversight so
that | was very late in getting to the
shop. No gloved hand has ever waved
to me from a passing hanson or flee
ing taXicab. No woman's face"
How many taXicabs have you in
KnuNv.lle?" Diana Interrupted
to the nighthawk as a vehicle of pleas
ure, but for the fortunate, even night
hawks have played a part in some Of
our leading mysteries"
You really don't seem to have very
much luck" Diana sa d, especially for
one SO fond of adventure"
De Witt shook his head. Not until
met you but really | had great hopes
that you would develop into a first class
mystery. You had such "A wonderfully
beautiful face. so classic and so arsto-
cratic. What can a girl like that I
said to myself. be doing in the chorus
Of very ordinary comic opera COM
pany?'"
And them" Diana asked
"Thcn-well, then | reported at the
shop early Monday morning and asked
for a weeks vacation without pay. As
business was extraordinarily duh Just
aftf the holidays my request was
granted"
Il can't quite understand" Diana
said, "if | was the object of this jun
keting trip of yours in search of advcn-
ture why you didn't at least attempt to
declare yourself Certainly no one at the
theatre had the least idea of what you
were about"
"Of course not. If they had there
wouldn't have been any mystery. would
there? AS matter Of fact | have fol-
lowed you home at a discreet distance
every night since l first saw you. and IL
was not until the mutt greeted you that
| found an opportunity to address you"
1T has been most interesting" Diana
said, but here we are at the end of the
two blocks and YOU haven't told me as
yet what Saturday night has TO do with
it,"
1t has everything to do with it," our
Johnnie explained. 1T means that my
vacation ~ over, that my financial re-
sources are absolutely nil and that to-
morrow morning | must return To the
boarding house and the emporium
where ! sell gents underwear. Under
the circumstances, could you not let me
continue with you for one more block ?''
Diana smiled, shook her head and held
out her hand.
NO. she said Here is where W.
say s"ud-hy. I'm sorry 10 nave turned
out So poor mystery, but from your
own story you must b. pretty well used
| to dlsappointments by this time
| "0n the contrary" he said II am any
| thing but disappointed, and believe mo.
| | shall always regard my meeting with
you rs a most happy romance, If not "A
mystery. | have enjoyed my week with
The show Girp company hug ly and at
least | can hereafter class myself among
the young men who went broke on ac-
count OF pretty actress, because as
surely as you are pretty just so surely
am | broke
Had ! a photograph OF you 1t would
| be the chief adornm,n OF my bureau
at the boarding house. Not having
such a picture | shall always carry the
memory Of your beautiful face here"
The young man laid his left hand over
his heart, and with his right hand raised
his hat and INDUCED in another low
sweeping bow.
Had | position or means he added
Il should follow you always, but | have
neither, l have not even a name that
| | can call my own. The haberdasher'
/ clerk salutes the coming genius. Good
luck to you. and | wish you an early
success in your chosen profession"
The same TO you" said Diana, land
may you yet meet with a real advcn-
| ture."
Formally they shook hands 81,
parted. once she looked back. In ,--
white moonlight that flooded the sifen-