New Britain herald., 1918-10-02
REVELATIONS
 OF A WIFE
How Nad@e's Memory Amazed Her Father and Was Rewarded with
 2 Great Secret Reward,

Are you satisfied, Mrs. Under- wood? ?" my father asked d tri1e formally. Perfectly Lillian said, but there Was an inscrutablc some thing in her tone which set me quiver- ing with excitement the sense of some thing hidden. momcntOus. the knOWl- edge of which she alone possessed. ''Thcrc was no one in the hall and l wish you would pardon my feminine fussiness. l will promise not to in- terrupt you this time.'
 Are you ready, Madge?" my father asked kindly, and this time, with my mind keyed to concert pitch. I rccited the combinations of figures I had mentally filched from Allen Drake the night I delivered to him the paper my father had sent him through me.
 My father checked them carefully. and when he had finished he laid down his pencil and stared at me in undisguised astonishment.
 Well. my little girl." he calculated at last, and there was both pride and pleasure in his voice, this is most wonderful feat. indeed. Now tell ne can you confidently assert that you can carry this set of figures in your head without confusion and repeat it whenever you are called on. next week, next month or next year, as the occasion may arsc?"
 "'rEis Is Proyidcntiel."
 If I repeat it once each day to my self I can" I returned quickly.
 lis that what you've been doing ever since Drake decoded this thing?" he asked quizzically
 ''It is,' I returned. unable to keep back an embarrassed flush. IT. thought the knowledge might be use ful some day.
 was conscious that I wasn't speaking all the truth. Nothing had ever so piqued me as Allen Drake's depreciation of feminine brains upon that memorable evening. I had memorized the figures he had directed me to set down in order to put his theories to confusion. His frank praise of the feat had tickled my vanity inordinately and I had resolved that if he ever needed the figures from mo I should have them ready for him.
 This is provjdential,' my father said. almost reVerently. "Of course We could train some one to remember the figures, but it would take a great deal Of time. and unless the person had a, phenomenal memory like yours there would always be the possibility of a slip. And we don't want to trust another soul with this thing"
 He carefully tore out the pages of figures from his notebook and held them in his hand loosely.
 'You're sure now, you have it per fectly?" he said. For here go the originals"
 Absolutely sure" returned al though I was qualIing inside
 He placed the papers in the empty fireplace held a lighted match to them until they blazed, watched them carefully until they were consumed, stirred the ashes until he was sure no fragment of writing remained.
 And now for the original paper' he said. "Madge, will you please un- lock all those carefully locked boxes when you go home. get out the paper and bring it back to me? I will send for Drake, and the four of us will memorize the cipher in which 1t is couched, fortunately T brief one. fo" the rest of Us haven't rrick-and- train ed memories like yours Then if anything should happen to you which God forbid. my dear-Drakc could work it out again as he did be- fore. And I can destroy the original, and be sure that the most momentOus secret of the war is safe from thieves"
 The Secret Revealed
 His manner was sOlemniy impress SiVG. 1 was wild with curiosity to know what the cipher and the figures I had memorized really meant. And l knew from the expression in Lil- ian's eyes that Shc shared my feeling, but was, of course, too proud and too discreet to hint at hor desire.
 l think my father recognized our feeling. At any rate he looked at us fxediy for a minute, and then spoke NurriedlN, lowering his voice even from the tow. deep pitch it had sounded before.