Elbert County tribune and Elbert County banner. (Elizabeth, Colo.) 1920-1921, 1920-07-30

a thrill which nearly found Its outlet
in q paroxysm of wild laughter. And
the newspaper, with Dutout's most
genuine citation in It'll And the old
passport photograph which he had
Endorsed on 1t. might be cabled home.
together with proof to the world that
he hadn't been a hero-that he had
failed In this, as In every other I'M
dertaking of his life. And all the
dates in accuracy And II anyone
cared to trace back the story, where
was the fiaw7 Where was there
loophole? And who would recognize
Dick Morgan in his cloak and mask Of
utter miracie7
Who had?
Lightninglike. his brain included all
the salient items OF the picture in
single flash. There was Dicky Nor
gan, sailing away TO France-which
could be proved. There was num-
Der, and name attached to 1t, and
since billiards. sturdy defense of
Dlcky Morgan had had a grain of
truth in it, and one of the steps of
Piobitoo
omitted-a name had really been as
sumed, and had endured from the date
of enlistment to the date of discharge.
1t was the individuals recorded name
in the army and at Neuilly-and 1t
wasn't Morgan and It wasn't Hilliard
and 1t wasn't Dutout. No one here
knew 1t, or ever would know it; even
Harmon didn't know it; 1t was the
first sobriquet of a shell-torn individ-
ual who had been taken to Neuilly.
and had been made whole again. No
one at Neuilly had ever set eyes on
Dicky Morgan's real facet But GER
tain man named Dutout had been dec
GRATED and died, and that could be
proved-was proved billiard had
borrowed Dutout's name in perfect
safety; and the trail was cold. And
here was a fourth man, Hilliard-to
take mis- word for it-and the world is
larger than the curiosity of sincere
people to encompass.
No-if a Neuilly surgeon ever told
as one of the mysterious chapters Of
the war what had happened to GER
tain gloomy individual that summer,
the name would suggest nothing. And
as far as checking up the visits of
a mythical Hilliard to a very real Du-
tout was concerned. who would pro-
fess to remember? The testimony of
any single witness would be Inmate
rial.
The voice of Carol Durant was echo
ing In billiards ears, and Hilliard
yielding to a tidal wave Of reckless
ness, and of swelling anger at imagi-
nary wrongs, looked squarely into
Carols eyes. and spoke with winning
urgency.
'Yes," he said. IT have news of
Morgan. In fact. I'm here In Syracuse
solely because l have 1t. I've just
been telling Mr.. Cullen-and Miss Gull
len-that was with him when he
died"
She didn't speak, at first; she mere
ly looked at Hilliard and grew very
white. and her lips quivered. Pres
emily she swayed little. and reached
out with her hand toward the back
of convenient chair. Armstrong
stepped toward her. and Angela Gull
len slipped an arm around her waist.
Hes dead" she repeated,
and her tone was not yet free from
certain incredullty, as though the fact
were of itself impossible. and the
statement of 1t subject to discussion.
YES, Miss Durant."
She moistened her lips; her eyes
were very bright, unnaturally bright.
so that Hilliard was fascinated, and
appalled,.
You You know thatT she
asked, again with that queer infexion
of amazed doubt.
Yes, l know It,"
The others were standing as stat
ues Mr.. Cullen, snatching at the first
idea of consolation to present itself.
fumbled for his daughters other hand.
which still retained the trophy bet
ter man had won.
Look! The Croix de Guerrel Don't
let's think of anything but what he
let's be proud of hIml l."
"Oh, yes" she said inertly. and took
the cross in her palm. She dropped
her eyes for a moment, then raised
them to the level of billiards. Didn't
he send some word to me?"
NO" billiards nod was very min
isterial. mo. I'm sorry, but"
Her eyebrows lifted. and her nos
trils dilated the merest trifie. Her
breath was coming more rapidly now
she was nearing the breaking point
Of her resistance, and all of them
knew it. The moment was agonizedly
prolonged. Hilliard, gazing without
quaver at the girl he had thought he
loved beyond all else in this world or
the next, was singularly relaxed as
he observed her symptoms. She had
really cared. then so much
the greater pity that she hadn't kept