The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1916-07-07


lmbrie stared at the paper It was
the secret treaty with China which
the Japanese government would have
sold its soul to obtain.
lmbrie made an extra carbon copy
and slipped it into his pocket. He
took the remainder in to the high
official, and, side by side, they com
pared the copy with the original.
Imbrie went home in daze
Dolly and he had long talked of
what they would do IL ever, by some
miracle, $4,000 were to come to them.
They had envisaged a pretty little
farm in Virginia. with roses growing
up the walls. horse and buggy and
fields of corn and peach trees. And
now all this seemed about to come
to pass.
As he stepped on the car the little
Japanese came up to him. Silently
1mbrie slipped the carbon copy into
the mans hand and left him.
A month passed. Imbrie had told
Dolly that his uncle had died and left
him that $4,000 which they had al
ways talked about and never hoped
for. Dolly was delighted. The color
came back into her cheeks. She was
happy. But in Imbrie's heart was the
burning shame of betrayal.
1t was three months before he sent
In his resignation. He wanted to al
lay suspicion. He expected to be
watched. He had omitted to dis
charge his debt to the money lenders
for fear that he would come under
suspicion. 1t required all his courage
to send in notice.
Then, toward the end of his last
month, he began to realize what his
treachery meant. He knew that, I'M
der the official silence, somebody was
suspected, somebody was watched,
somebody was suffering wrongly for
his abominable deed. He could not
endure his position. And he told
Dolly.
He confessed to her one evening
when she had questioned him about
his distress. He told her that there
could be no future for them upon the
money earned by his betrayal of his
native land. He bowed his head when
he had ended, for he expected that
Dolly would herself denounce him.
But when he raised his head after
a long silence, 1t was to see Dolly
standing beside him. her face express
sive of plying wonder.
"The bitter thing is that you did
it for me, Ronald" she said, and sud-
denly dropped to her knees. Ronald.
dearest, you know now what you must
do"
"But. Dolly
II know. You are going to say that
my happiness is worth more than the
nation. But It isn't, it isn't"
Il have made purchases. have re-
signed my position. We shall be beg
gars, even after have served my
term Of Imprisonment"
AT least, Ronald, we can hold I'D
our heads" she answered proudly.
On the following morning Imbrie
went down to the ONCE with a reso-
luton to which he had come, as
result of his talk with his wife. He
would confess everything; and the
$4,000 he would turn into charity.
The worlds weight seemed to have
been lifted from his shoulders. Wash
ington had never seemed SO beautiful,
nor life so free. He looked 10 years
younger as he went to his desk, and
his fellow clerks. too, noticed the
! change in him.
1t was long and difficult wait till
he was able to see the high official
who had given him the treaty to copy.
AS he kicked his heels In the mans
Office, watching dignitarles come and
go, little sense of resentment began
to assail him. What right had Mr..
Mowbray had to place temptation in
his path-in his, a $25 clerks? Would
not anyone with sick wife have been
tempted too?
And he had worked himself up to
such a degree of anger that he had
almost decided to turn back when Mr..
Mowbray's secretary came out and
ushered him in.
/ uC GREAT man was bllLiuB dlOu6 at
his desk, and his face was quite i'm
passive; but there was cynical smile
upon the lips of the secretary as he
sat down beside him.
Mowbray. idly turning over the
pages of document, did not look up
for an unconscionable time. All the
while Imbrie was growing more and
more uncomfortable. At last he could
no longer endure the suspense.
"Mr. Mowbray!" he blurted out.
Mowbray looked up. "Yes?" he in.
quired blandly
Then Imbrie told him, without ex-
tenuation.
When he had ended speaking Now.
bray turned to the secretary. will
you read me that letter from File 1877"
he asked.
The secretary read it. 1t was from
the head of Imbrie's department.
with regard to our conversation of
yesterday, / can suggest nobody bet.
ter than Mr.. Imbrie Of our department.
He is fellow of poor character and
in debt, as / have ascertained, to
money lenders. I have little doubt
that he can be trusted TO betray the
document to the person in question"
Imbrie stood dumfounded.
TITS all right, Mr.. Imbrie," said
Mowbray. THAT was a fictitious