The Meridian times. (Meridian, Idaho) 1909-1938, 1919-11-07

sense enough to see ii was an odd
| slipper and leave 1t on the chest
where she found 1t, but you never
can tell what anybody viii do-per-
haps she'd have done just the same If
I'd told her not to: for she mixed
those slippers up and set them in
row beside my bed along with oxford
ties and bath slippers.
It was on the day that Mrs. Jimu-
son cleaned that Claire came tripping
up to see me and tell me that her IA
Their had arrived.
1t was the first time I'd seen her
since we'd parted at the cable office,
and of course had to spare her
few minutes and hear what she had to
say. She was staying with her father
at hotel-mamma hadn't yet come.
because grandpapa was dying every
day and she didn't dare TO leave him.
And then she suddenly wished to know
IL all Americans lived the way Mrs.
Delario did, and did American ladies'
work.
/ had to ask her what she meant,
and she explained that everything at
Mrs. Delario's was $50 unlike the way
they lived abroad" that Mrs. Delario
never left her bedroom unlocked for
single minute; that all the upstairs
rooms were locked; that she made
-Claire-keep her door locked,
because" she said, you never can
tell I" that people, most of whom were
4 str 70 he
all day from nine till five. Mrs. Della
rio called them "sitters" and gave
them readings" in an awfully queer
room where the shutters weren't ever
opened; and she ~ Claire-belieyed
that Mrs. Delario took money for
these readings, though she never would
say what she read; and il she took
money how could she be a lady?
Though she was very nice and kind
and papa wanted her TO keep her
| Claire-till her mother arrived, and
Mrs. Delario wouldn't on account Of
her work, and what sort of work could
it possibly be?
/ saw by that that Mrs. Delario
hadn't taken Claire much into her con-
fidence-Claire said even her father
couldn't guess what Mrs. Delario did,
/ exactly, though he thought he knew
little, only he didn't know that la
dies did 1t in America.
While / was considering what I'd
better say the clock struck and I
bounced out of my chair in hurry
it was the hour of an appointment,
and here / was five miles away, Cos
siping.
l told Claire l had to run, and she
followed me to my bedroom while
got my coat, and it was she who ex-
claimed, why, there's Mrs. Delario's
| slipperl She's hunted everywhere for
it. You picked it up at the customs
house and put it in your suitcase"
I'm the thief" | laughed, slipping
on my coat.
Claire took a couple of steps toward
the slippers and said, 'rll take it back
to her"
| 'sNo, my dear-just leave it. don't
know which is hers-I see Mrs. Jimm-
son has mixed them all up-and
haven't time to find out now"
ooh, can soon tell" and Claire was
about to pounce on them, but headed
her off.
That's matter for me to attend
to, Claire, and entirely between Mrs.
Delario and myself"
BY this time I had on my veil and
| gloves, and hearing the elevator stop
ping at the floor, shooed Claire and
bolted for it.
Now I'd looked at the slippers as
Claire spoke, and they were standing
HEEL TO THE WALL, between a
paid of oxford ties. and a pair of
bath slippers that We're toe to the
wall, as were all the rest but these
three slippers; and | noticed this par
ticularly and remembered it later COM
/ ing home in the cars when the incident
required to me, and wondered Why
since Claire was no longer with Mrs.
| Delario-she had been so anxious to
take the slipper back, and if she need
| ed an excuse-possibly-t her father
! for going to the house to see her
friend, and how if it hadn't been for
/ lAIS. bAluiliNbiA Nbhtu nave let her
take the slipper and been glad to have
her do it; and how Mrs. Jimmson must
have pleased herself in placing the
slippers just that way, backs to the
wall, so they'd show off to best advan-
tage as works of art and decorate the
room at large with their beauty; and
how it must have puzzled her to find
three slippers all alike in my room
not two, not four, but three; and why
three? And what would the good
creature say if l told her I'd stolen the
| odd one?
These thoughts may seem too trivial
to mention, but the point is that I
| thought them and they were so obvi-
ously suggested by the way Jimmson
| placed the slippers, heel to the wall.
But here's the uncanny thing that hap
pened: When l got home one hour
| nftar SppiDe Thorn that yy0v oud fY,rpad