The Taney County republican. (Forsyth, Mo.) 1895-1992, 1919-12-04

ing she'd paid only frame each fol
them. She next asked me TO appraisc
the diamonds in ring she wore.
gave her the value of the stones and
the probable price that had been paid
for 1t, She appeared so much lin
pressed by my knowledge that she fiat.
teringly said as she rose to leave me-
"Tll know where to come if l ever
need expert opinion on stones-and
may some day"
| didn't think anything Of this of the
time-peOple always say it to me out
of pOliteneSS-and no more expected
her TO call en- me as a gem expert
than I looked for her to call me as a
physician or lawyer or anything that
| / professionally wasn't. She knew
was a writer, for l was pCgging away
at Belgian Byways" rs hard as ever
! could to get it ready in time for
Blanks magazine-sO much that | had
| 90 tell Claire frankly she mustn't both
er me while was working. l remem-
ber that / was quite sharp to her one
morning, saying l shOuld not he able
TO 60 out on deck with her till after
noon, and after she had left me. look
ing rather sad, / had to rush to my
stateroom for my forgotten penknlfe,
and there was Claire.
confess 1t surprised me TO see her
there without invitation, but she ex-
CuSed 1t by saying that she thought I
wouldn't mind--shed grown so tired
of her own stateroom ard Mrs. DelariO
was always talking about people she
didn't know-and wouldn't /, Just out
Of pity. let her lie in my berth a while?
My suitcase was open In the berth.
took it out and slowed 1t; and then
just out Of pity laid Claire down In
Its place and stayed with her. That
one trihing act probably changed the
course Of my life; but I'm telling the
story as 1t unwound its length and
Coiled Its entangling meshes over the
straight and narrow path my feet
were treading.
1t was because Of our common in.
terest in Claire that l saw a great
deal more Of Mrs Delario than other.
wise shOIld have done. It was on the
last day out that she first mentioned
her own children 10 me, saying that
one reason why she'd been willing to
take the responsibility Of Claire was
that she was so like her Lila, q girl
Of thirteen IN q boarding school; and
from Lila she went on TO Eugene, who
couldn't meet her at the steamer, un-
fortunately, because she'd come back
two weeks early and he was In the
West
He seemed very near her heart and
after talking of him for half an hour
she either warmed to 1t or let slip by
accident, I couldn't tell which, the
words, "It's the grief of my llfe-and
of his, poor boy-that he detests my
profession so. But what can do?"
"Your profession What is your
professlonl" l exclaimed, thrown quite
out Of my customary reserve In ask
Ing personal questions.
| thought she looked at me In q
queer way, and I saw she hesltated to
answer. l &as on the point Of
apologizing for my lnquisltlveness
when she startled me by replying, "Tm
n cIalrvoynnt."
I was thrown off my reserve still
more and couldn't help echolng, "a
clairv0yant!" In actual astOnishment,
she was so different from what I'd
have expected to find under the name.
She added quickly, 81 saw you didn't
approve of-didn't believe in the oc.
cult the day we talked about your ring
and I've been at pains not tO--not
to bore you with talking shop, there
are so many other interesting things
that we have IN common"
l didn't want her to feel uncomfort.
able and laughed to reassure her, "Oh,
I'm not 'sot ag'in ito tell you the
truth don't know a blessed thing |
about 1t, except what one picks up In
the papers, and of COURSE"
She fairly took the words out of my |
mouth that I was at the moment try.
ing to keep ln--"0f course one gets |
prejudiced and looks on that sort of |
thing as-~all fraud" There were both |
anger and q twinkle in her eye, rs
though she knew she'd caught me In |
the act, and then she added: ITS part
ly what went over for--to look mp |
some new mediums with view to hav-
ing them come to New York and give
seanCes."
And from this she went on and de. |
scribed some Of the phenomena she'd |
actually seen with her own eyes. For |
instance, a little peasant boy In the
south of France--where, she left me to |
guess, and fancled she didn't like to |
trust me with the secret--Jacques lie.
rolls, "whose phenomena were more |
wonderful than Eurapla Palladino's."
He was physical manifestation me-
dium. He twas greater at ten years
of age than Slude,"
nn