Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1920-07-22

| some important papers requiring his
signature, conversing busily with Hunt
as he read. He had signed but one of
| them, when, with an ejaculation upon
the warmth Of the weather, he flung
off his cap, and loosening the clasps
of his coat collar, walked into the adia-
cent room.
In a few minutes he reappeared :;
and, having discarded the motoring
buster, he was outwardly transformed
Snow-white ducks, white outing Slip
pers. with silken hosiery shimmer1ng
where 1t showed, a soft white shirt,
through the attached collar of which
was Topped voluminous tie of blood
red hue, crush hat, white as an
Easter lily, turned up in front and
down behind and encircled by Grim
son ribbon-these made up his attire.
You look like the epitome of
comic opera" Hunt laughed, aside
from the phone. "Whither away?
Yachting?"
No replied Fitzhugh, appending
his signature to the rest of the papers.
NO, I'm not going Yachting" He put
down his pen, picked up his cane, stood
up. I'm going into the pitt.
But what the" Hunt. who had
half-risen from his chair, sank back,
bewildered. What the dickens do you
want to expose your hand for, DAMP
Daniel showed his teeth in an odd
grin. For an instant it somehow sug-
gested to the other something sinister
like wolf barring it's fangs.
Better come along and watch me,
Hunt. starting toward the door. I'm
going to give EN- something to talk
about. Coming?" He waited at the
door, Tapping his cane against his i'm
maculate trousers.
And this day began a spectacular
flourish of snowy histrionics unrivaled
before or since on the Chicago Board
of Trade. During the rest of the DAYS
session In the wheat pit, Fitzhugh, the
actor, was the center of all attraction.
Inc visitors in the gallery remarked
MIN and pointed him out to one anoth-
er; the spectators, dealers, brokers'
clerks, officers of the board, all those
whose duties brought them on the
"hoor, soon or late found their atten-
ton directed toward him. His extreme
height, emphasizing his unusual garb.
rendered him strikingly conspicuous
among his fellows. OF them all he
was the only one who stood out dis
tlnctly. He was the only one of his
sort The dramatic scene comported
with him. He was in his native ele-
ment This was the moment he had
dreamed of long ago when he had
stood up yonder in the visitors gallery.
ms whole being keyed to the martial
pitch of gold that screamed to him
from the battlefield
But how different the realization
None of those who clamored about
him. chatting him, seeking to take ad-
vantage of what seemed to them
mental alteration, knew he was being
tortured by ghost. The ghost of
woman of raven hair and olive skin
and sad. accusing eyes that ever re-
preached him, that ever seemed to
say: You We're cruel. Daniel-al-
ways cruel" They did not know that
when often he gesticulated to no end,
or that when he Numbered his loudest
and appeared most abandoned to the
feverish excitement of the pit, the up
braidings of the ghost were cutting
him to the quick, were flashing him the
hardest.
.
AS the days passed Fitzhugh's pas
sion for showing OFF, increased amaz-
ingly. Ever prolific with freaks of act
ing, he kept his associates on tenter-
hooks of curiosity. None could mag
Inc what he would do next He al
ways did the unexpected. Nothing
was too fantastical. Once during a
saturday noonhour he started furore
In the rotunda of the board OF trade
by striding through the crowd playing
boisterously on mouth-organ. while
round him capered several monkeys,
borrowed from some ForQuer street
Italians; anon at a dinner in his apart
ment one evening he received his
guests In war paint and feathers and
the full regalia of an Indian chieftain.
Yet those who knew him intimately
as Hunt and two or three others
were not long In noticing change had
come over him. When he thought he
was unobserved he was given to long
periods of brooding, and as they right
~ supposed, all his bizarrerie was not
the real Fitzhugh, but only mask,
all his theatrical excitement not genu-
inc, but only cloak for an inner I'M
happiness.
1t was during one of these dark
periods that he stole secretly away
not even Hunt knew Of his where
abouts-and for nearly week was I'M
seen In Chicago. The day he returned
he went t. his safety deposit vault and