The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1919-06-12


ished. leave you to Dabson's tender
mercies. The saints preserve US!
! Look at the mans boots Dabson.
get out your brush and dauber first Of
all. He's been houndering in n bog"
The jovial Irishman retired, leaving
Barnes to he "done" by the silent.
swift-moying valet. Dabson was young
and vigorous and exceedingly well
trained. He made short work OF "do-
ing" the visitor; barely fifteen min
utes elapsed before O'DOwd's return.
/ Presently they went downstairs to-
gether. Lamps had been lighted, many
Of them. throughout the house. A fire
crackled In the cavernous fireplace at
the end of the living room and grouped
about its cheerful, grateful blaze were
the ladies of Green Fancy.
The girl Of his thoughts was there.
standing slightly aloof from the 9TH
ers, but evidently amused by the tale
! with which De Soto was regaling
them. She was smiling; Barnes saw
: the sapphire lights sparkling in her
eyes and experienced a sensation that
was w0f'i'.y akin to confusion.
But everything went off quite natu-
rally. He favored Miss Cameron with
an uncommOnly self-possessed smile as
| she gave her hand to him, and she In
! turn responded with one family sug-
! gestive of tolerance, although it GER
tainly would have been recorded by n
less sensitive person than Barnes as
tripping"
In reply to his perfunctory delight
ly: "Oh, now i remember. / was sure
had seen you before, Mr.. Barnes.
You are the magic gentleman who
sprang like mushroom out of the
earth early yesterday afternoon"
"And frightened you." he said; |;
"whereupon you vanished like the
mushroom that is gobbled up by the
predatory glutton."
He had thrilled at the sound Of her
voice. 1t was the low, deliberate voice
Of the woman Of the crossroads, and,
as before. he caught the almost i'm
from the blazing logs fell upon her
shining hair; it glistened like gold.
She wore a simple evening gown Of
white, softened over the shoulders and
neck with a fall of rare valenciennes
lace. There was no jewelry-nOt even
a ring on her slender, tapering fingers.
Mrs. Collier. the hostess, was an ell
derly, heavy-featured woman, decid-
edly overdressed, Mrs. Van Dyke,
her daughter was woman Of thirty,
tall, dark and handsome in bold
dashing sort of way. The lackadaisi.
cal gentleman with the mustache
turned out to be her husband.
"My brother Is unable to be with
us tonight, Mr.. Barnes" explained
Mrs. Collier. "Mr. O'Dowd may have
told you that he Is an invalid. Quite
rarely Is he well enough to leave his
room. He has begged me to present
his apologies and regrets to you. An
other time, perhaps, you will give him
the pleasure he is missing tonight"
De Soto's cocktails came in. Miss
Cameron did not take one. ODowd
proposed a toast.
'aTo the rascais vino went cunning
for the other rascals. But for them
we should be short at least one mem.
ber Of this agreeable company"
1t was rather startling. Barnes
glass stopped half way to his lips. An
instant later he drained 1t. He ac-
cepted the toast as compliment from
} the whilom Irishman, and not as a
{ tribute 10 the prowess Of those mys-
terious marksmen.
The table In the spacious dining
room was one of those long, narrow
Italian boards. Enthusiastically antique
and equally rare. Sixteen or eighteen
people could have been seated with.
out crowding, and when the seven took
their places wide intervals separated
! them. No effort had been made by the
hostess to bring her guests close to-
gether, as might have been done by
using one end or the center of the
table. The serving plates were of sill
yer. Especially beautiful were the
long-stemmed water goblets and the
graceful champagne glasses. They
were blue and white erd of design
and quality no longe, o5tainable ex-
cept at great cost. The esthetic
Barnes was not slow to appreciate the
rarity of the glassware and the chaste
beauty Of the serving plates.
The man Nicholas was evidently the
butler, despite his Seventh avenue
j manner. He was assisted In serving
by two stalwart and amazingly clumsy
footmen. Of similar ilk and nationality.
On seeing these additional men serv-
ants Barnes began dguratvely to
count on mis- iingers line retaiDers fas
had 80 far encountered on the place.
Already he had seen six. all Of them
powerful. rugged fellows. II struck
him az extraordinary. and In . way
significant that there should be 90
many men at Green Fancy.
i Much to his disappointment he was
not placed near Miss Cameron at