New Britain herald., 1916-01-14
Why Madge BOIted the Door.

I could not wait to tell Dicky about it- as if l must go down to the taxi cab company and report the man my self. It did not seem possible that any responsible company could have such an unspeakably insolent person in it's employ.
 Fortunately, however, for my nerves and temper, I had no time to dwell upon the treatment I had received. l must summon another taxi at once, and hasten my dressing or l would not arrive at Mrs. UnderWoods at the time l said l would.
 Punctuality is one of my few vir tues. l cannot bear to keep any one waiting, and, on the other hand, It annoys me terribly to have to wait for any one.
 . I took up the telephone receiver again and spoke to the boy who takes care of the switchboard in our apart ment building.
 Would you please get me a taxi as soon as possible?" I queried. Get it from anywhere but the Bronson company I will not take one of it's taXis.'
 All right ma am" The cheery an swer, such a contrast to the surly i'm pertinence of the other man, soothed me I flew about my dressing, bathed my face anew, did over my hair and slipped back on the dress and shoes I had taken off when I laid down Tor my half hours nap.
 I looked at my eyes critically III lhe mirror. Thanks to the cold water and my nap, they did not show trace or tears. I was dimly conscious of ina I b. ably suffer with it later, but it did not bother1me much now
 The Strange Discovery.
 There was just one thing more I wanted to complete my costume, my Iavalliere. the black opal set With tiny diamonds, which had been Dicl<y's wedding gift to me. ....
 I had not put it on in the morning, for it had not seemed just right, some how, to wear Dicky's wedding gift " hen I dined with another man, even so old friend as the cousin who had been the only brother l had ever known But now that I was going to join Dicky and his friends I wanted to wear it. t-... ........... ...~. s.. 4 a I kept the 1avalliere with two or three old pieces of jewelry of my D box which had been my grand mothers The box was at the back of the least used of my chiffonier dra wers. The key to the box was tucked away in a, bag, ostensibly for darning cotton, which was in my work basket. I could not wear the key around my neck in any way, and was afraid to carry it in my purse for fear should lose it.
 Opening the chiffonier drawer l reached back and took out the box The key was sticking in the lock!
 Utterly astonished. I stared at the box and key for a long moment. It did not seem possible that l could have forgotten to lock the box and put away the key upon the occasion of last wearing my lavalliere. I am painfully methodical, as Dicky often reminds me. Such an action would be utterly unlike me.
 With a sudden swift foreboding, l opened the box. The jewellers dainty case, which held the lavalliere, lay on the top. I tore it open, dreading to find my treasurer gone. No, it was there. apparently unharned, but I knew as soon as I looked at it that other hands than mine had handled it since T had last seen it.
 Naturally careful of my things, I had always taken especial pains with this ornament, which l prized, both because 1t was Dickys wedding pres ent and because it was the most beau- tiful thing I had ever owned
 I had always laid the pendant care. fully upon the satin bed first, then wrapped the long slender links of the chain around it. But no such care- ful arrangement met my eyes.
 A Sudden Thought.
 The pendant lay on top, the crumpl- cd links of the chain underneath, one length of it even hanging outside the box. Evidently 1t had been crushed hastily back into the box by some ono who was inspecting it.
 Who could have been meddling with my things? Not even Dicky knew where I kept the key to my lock box I had not told him because I was afraid he would laugh at my femin- inc strategy. There was only one pos sible person, Katie.
 She must have watched me return the 1avalliere back to it's box and put the key away without me knowing it. Then in my absence she must have opened the box. The haste with which the ornament was thrust back showed that she had been afraid of my sud- den return. She evidently had had no chance to return the things as she had found them.
 A sudden thought struck me- Whether she intended to steal the lavalliere or only to put it back in it's place, she would probably return to the apartment in the afternoon when she was sure both Dicky and I would be away. She had the key to the kitchen door. Of course I could not risk that. I considered a nom ent. I knew that she had q cousin on the East side somewhere with whom she had lived before com ing to me. So I would not be doing