Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1916-03-08


yet ended. She turned the corner Of
the deck building and was lost TO
sight. He sat down, only to arise al
most instantly, moved by livelier
curiosity than he ever had felt be-
fore. Conscious of certain feeling
of stealth, he scrutinized the cards in
the backs of the two chairs. The
steward was collecting the discarded
steamer rugs farther down the deck,
and the few passengers who occupied
chairs appeared to be snoozing-all OF
which he took in with his first ap-
praising glance. "Miss Guile" and
"Mrs. CASTOR" were the names he
read.
lady and chapero1, that's it. A real
American beauty, And Blithers loud
" boasts that his daughter is thu
prettiest girl in America! Shades Of
Venus, Can there be such thing on
earth as a prettier girl than this
one? Can nature have performed the
impossible? Is America so full of
lovely girls that this one must take
second place to a daughter Of Blith-
ers? l wonder if she knows the i'm
perial Maud. III make it a point to
inquire.
Moved by sudden restlessness, he
decided that he was in need of eXer-
else. After completely circling the
deck once he decided that he did not
need the exercise after all. His walk
had not benefited him in the least.
ed into the dry, snug corner he came
TO an abrupt stop and stared. Miss
/ Guile was sitting in her chair, neatly
! incased in a mummy-like sheath Of
gray that covered her slim body to
I the waist.
She was quite alone in her nook,
and reading. An astonishing intrep-
idity induced him to speak to her aft
er a lapse of five or six minutes, and
so surprising was the impulse that he
blurted out his question without pre-
amble
"How did you manage to get back
so quickly?" he inquired.
She looked up, and for an instant
there was something like alarm in
her lovely eyes, as of one caught in
the preparation of a guilty act.
81 beg your pardon" she said
rather indistinctly.
utes," he declared, and she was con
fronted by a wonderfully frank smile
that never failed to work its charm
To his surprise, shy smile grew In
her eyes, and her warm red lipI
twitched uncertainty. He had expect
ed a cold rebuff "You must have
dropped through the awning?"
Your imagination is superior to tina
employed by the author of this book,
she said. land that is saying goot
deal, Mr.-Mr."-
Schmidt" he supplied cheerfully
"Many I inquire what book you ar,
reading?"
"You would not be interested 1t il
by an American"
81 have read a great many Ameri
can novels" said he stiff1y. an.
father was an American. Awful.
jolly books. most Of them"
+, al looked you UP in the passenge
list a moment ago." she said coolly
"Your home is in Vienna. I lik,
Vienna"
He was looking rather intently a
the book, now partly lowered. '1sn'
that the passenger list you have con
cealed in that book?" he demanded
at is" she replied promptly. "Yo,
will pardon natural curiosity?
wanted to see whether you were from
New York"
"May look at 1t. please?"
She closed the book. at isn't neces
sary. am from New York"
"By the way, do you happen +
know a Miss Blithers-Maud Blith
ers?"
Miss Guile frowned refectively
; "Blithers? The name is a familia
one. Maud Blithers? What is sh
like?"
She's supposed to be very goo
looking. I've never seen her"
How queer to be asking me II
know her, then. Why do you ask"
1--WE heard so much about her lately
She is the daughter of William Blith
ers. the great capitalist"
ooh, know who he is" she exclaim
ed. Perfect roodles of money, hasn'
he?"
"Roodles?"
Loads, IL 1t means more 10 you.
forgot that you ara foreigner. H
; gave that wonderful ball last weel
for the Prince of-of-oh, some insig
nifcant place over in Europe. Their
are such q lot of queer duchies ant
principakties. don't you know; it I
quite impossible to tell one from tn
other. They don't even appear on tn
maps"
r He took 1t with perfectly straigh
face, though secretly annoyed. az
e was the talk of the town, that ball
IL H4uSI hdSe Coot iuuuitS OF money
| Is that right"
Yes, but it doesn't sound right whel
i you say it. Naturally one doesn't ga
/ -oodles in Vienna"
I'VE say noodles" said he. II an
'ery fond Of them. But to resume
supposed every one in New York kn ry
, Miss Blithers. She's quite the rage
I'm told"