New Britain herald., 1917-02-01
Is Madgc Correct in Surmising That Lillian Underwood Once Knew
 Robert Savarin?

Robert Savarin?
 'Its long, sad story, l warn you," | said Dicky. We were seated, Dicky and I and Y, the Underwoods at a. restaurant table chatting of our outing in the Cats 1 kill mountains. MT. Underwood had claimed the payment of a wager he had made with Dicky before we went, 1 that he could not fish for trout after 1 the season had ended and "get away with it." Dicky had insisted that as we had neither paid a fine nor spent any time in Jail he had won. But MT. ; Underwood, suspecting that we had been arrested even if we had paid no ! penalty, had insisted that Dicky tell | him the whole story
 i Cant be too long too sad for me- retorted his friend, If only I | collect at the end of it.
 i -"You ought to be able to weep 1 properly at all of the teary parts," his wife commented caustically, you've been so sentimental all day that you're almost ready to cry on my shoulder now"
 : Not on your shoulder, Lil,'' cor rected her husband with dignity. "Its a nice. broad, comfortable shoulder I will admit, but if I weep tonight I weep on Mrs. Graham's shoulder"
 The words were the lightest of ban ter, bu- the glance that accompanied them, straight from those brilliant black eyes into mine made me shiver . inwardly. But outwardly I fatter my self that I gave no sign of perturba- tion.
 1 ''No tears on this shoulder tonight" {" I declared flatly. 'I know this waist ! will spot. I have a special suit for people to cry on. Hurry up and tell /, them the story, Dicky. It has so many thrills no one will have time to weep"
 The story of our adventures, was thrilling and it lost nothing in the telling Dicky is a born raconteur and he omitted nothing, from my first when we had foiled her attempt te steal the valuable paintings in tht farmhouse parlor, and had discovered that the artist whose genius pro duced the paintings had once called her wife.
 What Lillian Said. Inseniously leading up 'to hi climax. Dicky had not mentioned tn name of the artist, who for so man. years had been hidden in his sister, mountain home, suffering from clouded brain because of the cruelt. and pertidy of the woman he hat loved so madly. As Dicky told hi story, so familiar to me, I had beer watching Lillian's face, for it held { curious startled expression as if sh' were trying to fit together two pieces of a puzzle. And then Dicky sait dramatically:
 And you can imagine all our feel ings when, just as we thought we hat trapped the woman fairly, she drev herself up and said: T am not steal ing these pictures. I am simply talk ing what is my own. I happen to bf the widow of Robert Savarin.
 The rouge and powder which Lillian uses so profusely, and which is the only thing l dislike about her ,suc cessfully hid the pallor which I knew must have spread over her face a: she heard the name of the artist. Fol her lips twisted as if in pain, and he1 eyes glittered strangely.
 Robert Savarin?" she grasped :'And you say that he was alive al the timc Why, I thought Robert Savarin died 15 years ago!"
 "I thought that would hit you be- tween the eyes, Lil," Dicky said com placently. Tt certainly did me when I found out who the carefully hidden recluse was up there. Robert Savarin' {: is a. name to conjure with in the art world just now. I never saw him my self before this week. Did you know him at all? But you couldn't! He was before our time.
 \ ''WistfuP' Note.
 | q have seen him." Lillian re- | turned, and I could see that she had Iregained control of herself after being shaken by some hidden emotion, the reason for which I could not fathom He was a most striking looking man years ago. l suppose the years have changed him much.' | There was a note in her voice that in any other woman's but Lillian Un- derwood's I would have called wistful I looked at her in surprise Could Robert Savarin have had any part in the life story of this woman I loved so well?
 "FIe is still a stunning looking chap,' Dicky replied, all unconcious as was her husband, of anything save the interest of any artist in a figure so romantic, so mournful as was Robert Savarin's. "of course, the 1 years and his aff1iction have told on him, but he is fast reSaining command of himself. He will be the rage when