Cheyenne record., 1920-02-12

sense enough to zee ito1eAs an odd
slipper and leave Il on tho chest
where she found II. but you never
can tell what anybody will do-per-
haps she'd have done just the same II
I'd told her not to: for she mixed
those slippers MP and set them In
row beside my bed along with oxford
ties and bath slippers.
It was on the day that lIrsL Jimm-
son cleaned that Claire came tripping
up to eco me and tell mo that her IA
ther had arrived.
II was the drst time I'd seen bar
since we'd parted at the cable en,ee.
and Of course I had to spare her .
few minutes and. hear what she had to
say. She was staying with her father
at q hotel-mamma hadn't yet come.
becauss grandpapa was dying every
day and she didn't dare to leave him.
And then she suddenly wished to know
II all Americans lived the way Mrs.
DelaSio 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
a single minute: that a11 the upstairs
rooms were locked: that she made
her-Claire-keep her deor locked.
because" she said. .you never can
tell :" that people. most Of whom were
strangers, were coming - the house
all day from nine till iva Mrs. Della
rio called them "sittefS" and gave
them ~Eeadings~ in an awfully queer
room where the shutters weren't ever
opened; and she - Claire-believed
that Mrs. Delario took money for
these readings, though she never would
say what she read: and II she took
money how could she be q ladyf
Though she was very nice and kind
and papa wanted her to keep her
Claire-tin her mother arrived. and
Mrs. Delario wouldn't on account Of
her work, and what sort Of work could
1t possibly BET
saw by that that Mrs. Delario
hadn't taken Claire much into her con-
hdence-Claire said even her father
couldn't guess what Mrs. Delario did,
exactly. though he thought he knew
a little. only he didn't know that la
dies did It in America.
While I 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 nve miles away, gos:
siping.
told Claire I 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. Delari0's
slipperi She's hunted everywhere for
1t. You picked It up at the customs
house and put 1t in your suitcase"
'.Tm the thief" laughed. slippinS
on my coat.
Claire took couple Of steps toward
the slippers and said. "I'll take 1t back
to her"
sNo. my dear-just leave 1t. don't
know which is hers-I see Mrs. Jimm-
son has mixed them all up-and ]
haven't time to ind out now"
"Oh. can soon tell." and Claire was
about to pounce on them. but I headed
her OIL.
'That's a matter for me to attend
| to. Claire. and entirely between Mrs.
Delario and myself"
By this time had on my veil and
gloves. and hearing the elevator stop
ping at the floor, I shooed Claire and
bolted for 1t.
Now I'd looked at the slippers as
Claire spoke, and they were standing
HEEL TO THE WALL, between q
paid of oxford ties and a pair Of
bath slippers that were toe to the
wall. as were all the rest but these
three slippers; and noticed this par
ticularly and remembered 1t later COM
ing home in the cars when the incident
recurred to me, and I 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-to her father
for going to the house to see her
friend, and how II 1t hadn't been for
Mrs. Jimmson I could have let her
take the slipper and been glad to have
her do 1t; and how Mrs. Jimmson must
have pleased herself in placing the
slippers just ti.vt way. backs to the
wall, so they'd snow on to best advan-
tage ms 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
threef And what would the good
creature say II told her I'd stolen the
odd one9
These thoughts may seem too trivial
to mention. but the point is that I
thought them and they were 30 obvi-
ously suggested by the way Jimmson
placed the slippers. heel to the wall.
But here's the uncanny thing that hap
pened: When I got homo one hour