The commonwealth. (Scotland Neck, N.C.) 1896-1929, 1917-05-08

points country place.
Royce smiled. Pierpont grew mors
furious.
"Oh, I'm not afraid of her lust no,
cause she is only child. She's got r.
obey me and get rid of them"
Iell her so, SIR said Rovce
amused at the Old mans helpless bins.
ter.
! "Oh, I'll tell herr Pierpont swan
gered. ''Where is she?''
No one knew. Royce suggested thar
she had probably gone to the country
place to see her new playmates. So
! Pierpont motored out with Royce. He
told Royce that he would really have
to get rid Of the unwelcome guests. if
only to prove to Gloria that she was
not yet the absolute boss Of the family
That victory will be worth going
miles to see" said Royce.
They reached the country place, onlv
to lind that Gloria had not been seen
nor heard of. Her three guests were
there, however, installed for a long
stay. The butler was so Mortified IT
having a walters family to wait IN
s11dI He ClICIcu HIS uOtlCe.
Pierpont decided to evict the wait.
:er's family and save the butler. He
would do it at once, before Gloria cot
home. He stalked forth like a con,
stable with a writ Of eviction.
The boy StaS caught sight OF him
and ran and flung his arms about his
neck and began to tell him Of the Won
~. Cf+
and flowers and birds and animals
commonplace things to pierpont, but
miracles to the boy from the sIums.
CaSlmir had gathered an armoad of
flowers for his sick wife and he was
aglow with the feeling that she WAS
better already.
Eierpont had q great deal Of Gloria's
impulsiveness and a great deal of her
Astounding tenderness. He lost his
temper in flashes, but his charity
burned steadily and deeply, and now
Stas had won his heart He could not
unclasp that child's arms. In fact, he
lifted Stas to his arm and held him
there While he tcld the butler he could
leave without notice if he did not like
the guests of the house. Also Pier
pont told Royce that he must take par
ticular care Of Casimir's wife. Royce
laughed at the Ole mans complete coli
lapse and said:
Its a pity Gloria isn't here to see
you. 1 wonder where On earth She is"
She's somewhere she 0ughtnt to-
be, that's sure" Pierpont growle2, as
ne stared at his section Of the Hudson,
where, fighting against the current, q
little tug was visible, towing an OLD
canal barge loaded to the water line.
Then he added: "She's probably on
that barge now, adopting the barge
mans family"
He could imagine nothing more ex-
travagantly impossible to say than
that. And yet, the truth kept pace
with his extravaganza. For Gloria was
indeed even then on board just such
a barge being towed upstream by just
such a tug. Only Gloria was not
adopting the bargeman's family. She
was being adopted by it. She was a
prisoner and her life was in pawn.
Gloria's curiosity as to one problem
was solved. She had found out that
her vision of FreneauS murder was
not delirium. She had seen the as
sassin and heard him accused by bis
own daughter. One trouble with salts
flying curiosity is that every curiosity
satisfied opens up new curiOsltIes-
Gloria now was frantic to know why
Gideon Trask killed Freneau and how
TraskS' daughter was involved liz the
~1,o IL
how she was to escape with her knoWI-
edge, once she had it.
When Trask heard GlOria's voice
over his shoulder accusing him Of the
crime he was denying, he whirled as
if an angel had spoken with the
voice Of conscience. An angel W0ulu
have been hardly more surprising tnen
the look Of Gloria On the stairway Of
the barge.
Trask had no idea Of Gloria's iden-
tity. He could not ina CINE who she
was, whence she had come, or Why SIC
accused him. He stood transtlyed d
moment, then moved toward her win
menace. Gloria retreated up the steps.
but he leaped at her and dragged her
down and seized her by the throat, a
he had seized Freneau.
She tried to. scream, but she coulH
not make a sound. Nell attempted
to restrain her father, but he turned
on her with terror and wrath: IL
she gets away, I go to the chair.
He might have throttled her then
and there, but there was a jolt, the
barge shook as the towline dragged
it away, and down the hatchway came
the voice of Trask's helper, Jed.
Trask hurled Gloria against the way
and warned her that Il she made d
sound it would be her last. He Wouiu
wiring her neck and throw her into the
river.
Gloria covered in utter dread OF HIM
and remembered the fate Of her poor
lover, whose body the same stream