Vernon Parish Democrat. (Leesville, La.) 1917-193?, 1919-11-01


ment," he whispered in her ear, he
knew not how long afterward. Her
head was pressed against his shoulder,
her eyes were closed, her lips parted
in the ecstasy Of passion.
"Yes," she breathed, so family that
he barely heard the strongest word
ever put Into the language Of man.
Half an hour later he was speeding
down the avenue in a taxi. His blood
was singing, his heart was bursting
with jOy-his head was light, for the
feel of her was still in his arms, the
voice of her in his enraptured ears.
He was hurrying homeward to the
"diggings" he was soon to desert for
ever. He was to spend the night at
his sisters apartment. When he is
sued forth from his "diggings" at half
past seven he was attired in evening
clothes, and there was not a woman
in all New York, young or old, who
would have denied him a second
glance.
Later on in the evening three of the
countess friends arrived at the Court
ney home to pay their respects to their
fair compatriot and to discuss the
crown jewels. They came and brought
with them the consoling information
that arrangements were practically
completed for the delivery of the
jewels into the custody of the French
embassy at Washington, through
whose Intervention they were to be
allowed to leave the United States
without the formalities usually OBJ
served in cases of suspected snug
Cling. Upon the arrival in America of
trusted messengers from Paris, headed
by no less a parsonage than the am
bassadOr himself, the imperial treas
ure was to pass into hands that would
carry it safely to France. Prince Sc
bastian, still in Halifax, had been APP
prised by telegraph Of the recovery of
the jewels, and was expected to sail
for England by the earliest steamer.
And while the visitors at the Court
ney house were lifting their glasses
to toast the prince they loved, and, in
turn, the beautiful cousin who had
braved so much and Jared so luckily,
and the tall wayfarer who had come
into her life, a small man was stoop-
ing over a rl1ed knapsack in a room
far downtown, glumly regarding the
result of an unusually hazardous I'M
dertaking, even for one who could per-
form such miracles as he. Scratching
his chin, he grinned-for he was the
kind who bears disappointment with
a grin-and sat himself down at the
big library table in the center Of the
room. Carefully selecting a pen-point
he wrote:
ut will be quite obvious to you that
I called Unexpectedly tonight. The
week was up, you see. 1 take the lib
erty of leaving under the paperweight
at my elbow a two-dollar bill. 1t
ought to be ample payment for the
damage done to your faithful travel
ing companion. Have the necessary
stitches taken in the cash and you
will find the kit as good as new. I
was more or less certain not to find
what I was after, but as 1 have done
no irreparable injury / am sure you
will forgive my love Of adventure and
excitement. 1t was really quite diff
cult to get from the fire escape to
your window, but it was a delightful
experience. Try crawling along that
ten-inch ledge yourself some day and
see if it isn't productive of pleasant
thrill. shall not forget your promise
to return good for evil some day. God
knows hope may never be in a DO
sition to test your sincerity. We may
meet again, and 1 hope under agree
able circumstances. Kindly pay my
deepest respects to the Countess Ted,
and believe me to be,
"Yours very respectfully,
"SPROUSE.
"P. ST. saw O'Dowd today. He
left a message for you and the count
ess. Tell them, said he, that 1 ask
Gods blessing for them forever. He
is off tomorrow for Brazil. He was
very much relieved when he heard
that did not get the jewels the first
time / went after them, and immense
~ entertained by my jolly description
of how ! went after them the second.
By the way, you will be interested to
learn Mat he has cut loose from the
crowd he was trailing with. Mostly
nuts, he says. Dynamtting munition
plants in Canada was a grand project,
says he, and it would have come to
something if the ID women had
only left the id men alone. The
expletives are O'Dowd's."
Ten hours before Barnes found this
Illuminating message on his library
table he stood at the window of a
lofty Park avenue apartment building,
his arm about the slender, yielding
figure Of the only other occupant Of
the room. Pointing out over the black
hOusetops, he directed her attention
to the myriad lights in the upper floors
of a great hostelry to the south and