The herald., 1918-06-27
the LITTLE HOUSE
sv JACK LAYTON.

Acr TO Qluc NJ Ae
y. village below. When his work Of
Nv construction should be In prog
..ss he would have to consider some
ss,s Of transition; the present state
= the land made this difficult.
IKE a white square on the hillside
.aod a cottage; he remembered hav'
:. rsssed II on his upward way. What
- strsnge, detached home 1t must be-
:. from neighborlng habitaton. Per-
s.,s II might be possible to procure
y,gbt luncheon there. The door,
snsn he reached the house, stood
.rsr disclosing to the farthest corner
.ss wide room. 1t was a remarkable
s.om for an humble country cottage.
nile the floor was scrubbed guiltless
vanish. the walls were lined with
Aelyes of books.
/ pictorial calendar, with a verse
=, each day, drew his attention; Gu
sously. the verses were printed in Ger
nan. Upon the window seat. among
NJ artistic cushions, were scattered
nr,ous maps and drawings.
Then between two bookcases opened
hat he had fancied to be an outer
soor and a girl appeared from the in
,syor. A glorious creature she was,
mall. vet with an unmistakable air
Of dignity
n am a civil engineer-Richard FL
u,s he explained; 1--WE are going to
.rt through a road. My boarding
a,ee In the village seemed too far
nav at dinner time, and hoped to
~ glass Of milk and some bread at
i /, farmhouse, but" he smiled engag-
Iusly. IT find this is decidedly not a
hrmhouse."
The girl gravely considered. "Still,"
,he said, eve may be able to provide
vcu with a cup Of coffee" She moved
IndIfrently toward the prepared Ia
Ne. make yourself at home" she
invited.
In strange difidence, the usually
uuHdent engineer obeyed. When, with
her regal air, the girl had prepared his
eofFee. she went out into the porch.
4 was all pleasantly mysterious. e.
Is enjoyed the perfect salad, and won
dered who the deuce his queenly
hostess might be. The matter Of re-
muneration troubled him; he could i'm
usine her scorn at the suggestion Of
payment. Yet he felt like an inter-
Icper calmly partaking Of her food.
The girl promptly relieved him on
Ills score. II asked you to stay" she
nId, as he appeared upon the porch,
IN order to gain information about the
new road. Please explain to me con-
cisely, Just how and where It Is go
he"
The engineer stared in establishment.
Her question had the sound Of COM
nand.
1T Is not customary" he began
hestatingly, and for the first time the
rri laughed.
Mop she questioned. as steadily
he faced him. ''Then, Mr.. Ellis, en-
sneer." she challenged, stop in again,
nv tomorrow, and you shall see your
wonderful plans, as they are not now,
but as they will be when completed"
4 do not understand you," Ellis re-
psated slowly. With strange reluc-
hnce he turned to depart.
The girl pointed to the village below.
Down there" she said, mockingly,
hey viii tell you all about me-"
II was impossible to concentrate
spon the duty Of the afternoon because
4 her haunting personality.
Who lives there?" he asked Of
nemmie, associate engineer.
The lady Of mystery" Sammie an
sRered. "Why. haven't you heard?
me comes galloping into town on a
black horse. with a great dog In tow.
nay have 1t figured out here that she's
q the employ of the German govern
nent mapping out the country and all,
nat Look out for the black eyes,
uche. or she'll have you hypnotized."
10 Richards memory came quickly
~ girls boasted knowledge Of his
work. her own avowal that she had
enfertained him in order to gain infor-
nation.
4 came" he greeted, ''to have you
sulnn your promise concerning my out |
line Of work."
~ ner own pretty, serious way, the |
ln bowed, and placed In his hands the |
~npleted blueprint map of the road.
but howr he asked perplexedly.
again the girl laughed, and dropping
q manner Of reserve, seated herself |
= the step at his side.
what am now" she asked naively,
oefauker In hiding, q German
:H or Just disappointed In lover
hse.- - '' "
Eliis gazed tensely into the black
~ What are your" he asked.
mat Is what I wanted to know my
snail only dlsappoint you" the
~ replied. ut is so simple. My
~snef Is Lewis Kahn, chief engineer.
uen learned that he must be away
= s.Om nome long, begged to come with
n ana keep house. He sent on our
,a % nx up this shack, and then was
o away the very night Of our ar
- There was no reason why I
~ NJ NOT walt In this peaceful spot,
e'un. My dog is a fine body
ss.tu helped father with these