Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1916-03-24
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office: singing and laughing and raising
cain: all OF them with typewriter letters
4 FROM"
Kick them OUT" howled Grant, jam
ming his high hat on his head and start
ing for the elevator; kick them out!
The miserable swindlers!'
In five minutes he was busting into
4 downtown office whose outer door
glass wore the legend;
| Max Lamar. crime specialist
Mr. Lamar" began Grant as soon
as he could get his breath That
yelled woman has cinched her thefc by
| this-and this slammng the Brown
and Peterson letters on the desk in front
CT Max land by a lot more of the same
kind. Get her for me. Get her. To
1lazes with the expense! Get her.!
| June Travis emerged from her bed
room, heavy-eyed from sleeplessness,
4 and. in pretty negligee. entered her
sitting room. Mary was standing there,
awaiting her June. as she had done
since babyhood, went over TO kiss the
old woman good morning. Then, and
only then. did she notice that Mary made
no move to meet hen as she came for
ward: that she did not speak, and that
her face was blank with grief
, why. Mary" cried the girl. what is
lit" What's the matter? Is mother?
Mary cut short the queries by thrust
ing forward the charred promissory
note.
"This is the matter" she said grimly.
"Dearie, you must tell me what it
means
June stified little cry of fear: then
limpulsively snatched the bnrnt paper
| from the nurses hand and made as
though to hide it. Mary laid her hands
on the girls quivering shoulders and
looked deep into her big heartsick
Ieyes.
Tell me. dearie" murmured the old
woman. Tell me all about it. You
are unhappy and you've gotten into
mischief. Tell Mary, little girl
The snatched bit of paper futtered
unheeded from June's hand. Under the
nurses tenderness her own troubled
heart cried out for a chance to conide
in this gentle old woman; this lifelong
sharey of all her secrets.
| June put her arm about the nurse
and drew her to couch; making her
sit down and seating herself beside her.
And again she hesitated
II don't know where to begin. "~-she
faltered. IT'S all so strange, so horri-
BILE i don't even understand it myself.
And-and-oh. know you'll hate me-"
E1aIe YOU GGlOGu hCi NOiNC
vibrant with gentle reproach. Hate
YOU. Baby? why. I couldn't hate you,
any more'n I could hate one of the
blessed saints. l want to help you.
And can't help you unless know.
Tell me all about it. Nobody's going
to scold Mary's little girl
The years had slipped away. Once
more the grown woman was a penitent
little child at the knee of the nurse who
idolize6 her and whose chief Joy in life
was to soothe away the little ones
woes June felt this strangely sweet
influence of the protecting love. And
il was like balm to her wrecked spirit.
She knew now that she could tell her
story to this woman who understood
who always understood. And, braVelE
she begun her confession.
II think I've gone mad" said June.
Il can't understand it any other way.
can't account, any other way, Tor
the fearful power that has taken hold
Of me, from time to time, this past
,dav or two. don't understand my
self j can't believe it's really l, who am
swayed by these horrible impulses.
Tiff we lived in olden times, Mary,
Id honestly believe | wasN victim of
lwitchcraft or-or possessed of a
devil, like people i'm Bible days. y
demon seems to have entered into me
to make me want to DO thlnSS-l
never dreamed of doing a few days
ago. You're sure you won't hate me
| if 1 tell your
"a criminal" repeated the nurse in
fine scorn You? You're one of the
salt of the earth. Baby. That's what
you are. You souls white enough 20
stand before the judgment seat, this
very minute You shan't say such
things about Mary's baby girl. It's all
along of spending your time working
over the poor and jails and
ITS true persisted June, miserably.
ct am a criminal. Listen: ! had heard
from so many poor people about George
Grant and the way he bled them, that
I had always hated the man. ] had
longed TO rescue some of his miserable
victims-the people he kept poor by
wringing outrageous interest money.
But / never had thought it would be
sharks robbery. June went on:
Then, i'm a moment, when this queer
criminal impulse attacked me, | saw
how I could punish George Grant and
free some of his slaves. 1t came to me
as an inspiration. / put on my black
motor coat-the white-lined one there