The state herald., 1917-03-23

man looked and saw merely number
Of sheets Of writing paper and envel-
,opes from various big hotels about the
country. They meant nothing to him.
When / stop at a hotel always
annex a lot of its paper and enve-
lopes."
"Yesf And what have your par
simonious habits to do with our pres
ent trouble?" Queried Freneau pa
tiently.
Mulry was disguised. "Why, don't
you see. you poor Don Juan? You
take these letterheads and write love
letters on them to your sick fancee.
l take them with me and mail them
from the different towns l make. Then
Miss Stafford will think you are there.
Meanwhile you can 60 away to the
Catskills and meet your troublesome
Lois. II you can't rig up some story
to get your letters back from her and
keep her quiet until after your mar
riage, why you're not the little bright
eyes always took you for. See now?"
Freneau did see. He was not en-.
thusiastic. but this seemed the only
possible way to tide over the present
reef In his way to the harbor of mat.
rimony.
Freneau was dishonorable. Freneau
was unmistakably an adventurer and
what the world calls cad. but he was
born Of gentle people; he had good
hlnnA IN hfo
graces showed. He truly adored Gloria
and wanted only her. There was
sharp torment in the agonies he en-
dured fearing the loss Of her through
his previous sins. His punishment was
not far OF and he was to meet 1t
with neither peaceful thoughts nor
clear conscience. He had enmeshed
himself in 80 complex a web Of in.
trigue and wrongdoing that the prob
lem Of escape was ever more complex.
who knows? II Gloria had been
a woman when he first saw her, the
woman she now was. instead Of the
child then. she might have saved his
soul and his life. But he had to take
the present as the past gave It to him,
and hope for future Of more straight
forward life.
Late that night in his apartment
Freneau started the batch Of love let
ters and kilograms for Gloria. He be-
came interested in them. and so car
ried away by the fervor he infused
into them that early dawn and his
valet found him asleep at last with
his head resting on sheets Of paper
that bore such messages as:
my darling Gloria: As tele-
sraphed you. ! arrived safely. but
missed you terribly. This week Of ab.
sence will seem an eternity"
This was on . letterhead Of the
Hotel Ten Eyck in albany. Others
were from other hotels. The last one
he had written was on the paper Of
the Fort Pitt hotel. Pittsburgh. In It
he said:
Tho eternity Of this long week is
over. ! return tomorrow to your
arms"
He sealed the letters. wondering
what would be the answer to them.
He took them to the once. and the
next day whom Mulry took his train
TO Albany he carried with him these
letters. He was well pleased with the
network Of lies that he and Freneau
had woven to deceive Gloria. But II
10 m lch easier to carry out plots In
fiction than in fact.
David. Lois. and her father. Judge
Freeman. were going to the opera that
night and they stopped to see Gloria
on their way. Gloria was sitting up
on her chaise Tongue, still pale and
somewhat weak. She submitted,
rather than invited. tho in.law kiss
that Lois brushed over her check.
Then she turned to David and pouted:
"oh. dear. some people have all tho
luck. You aro going TO hear Geral-
dino Farrar in Madame Butterfly
while must lie here doing nothing.
They won't even let mo read. the stin.
~ old things!" sho made q moue at
her nurse. "And I do desplsc to DO
read to. Just wait until got out Of
their clutches. I'll mako up for this:
I'll be Madame Butterfly all over the
place."
David smiled at her innocence IN
tho silusion to Butterfly. but neither
no nor Gloria know that Lieutenant
Pinkcrton was . white wooily lamb
compared 70 0loria's own lover. Fro.
ncau.
Lois had moved away from Gloria
toward tho bedside table. where
framed photograph Of Frcncau looked
tauntingly ut her. A Jealous desire for
possession camo over hcr. Sho longcd
TO take tho image OF the man from
Gloria as well ~ tho man himself.
Tho whim became Immediately q
necessity TO hcr. Hho glanced across
At tho group about Gloria. No one
was looking hcr way. A smile curlod
1t tho cornors Of hor lips and tri.
umphnnt Rieam shot for n moment