Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1920-04-16

| into them: and after ending WIN
Douglas, Douglas" she responded to
my importantly with Ben Bolt and
then dashed into sparkling thing OF
| ChCpin's, played it brilliantly and
rose, laughingly hooking my applause.
l left the house like a man over
| whom an enchantment has been
spoken and was not pleased when An
tome blocked my path: pardon me,
SIR"
Bother my pardon; what's trou-
bling you now?" | demanded.
Its nothing troubling me, sir; not
particularly. If you give me time, |
think I'll grow used to the poetry talk
and playing at being queens. It's like
children in family served once: an
English family, most respectable. But
| in widow, sir"
God knows we ought to be glad
when grOwnups have the heart to play
with it as beautifully as those women
| do! What else is on your mind?"
Its about Elsie, sir" | groaned at
the mention of Flynn's German wife.
I'm sorry, sir; but | thought | should
report it. 1t was a man who came to
see her this afternoon. You was out
for your walk, and Flynn had taken
the ladies for a drive, so Elsie was
alone at the garage. This person rode
In on the grocer's truck from the viii
lage, which is how he got by the gate.
AS it happened. Pierre-he WAS a
waiter at the birmingham. a Swiss who
understands German-had gone into
the garage for nap: he's quite old,
sir, and has his snOoze every after
noOn."
He's entitled to it," | remarked;
"he must be thousand years Old"
From what he heard Pierre thought
the man spy, sir. He wanted Elsie
I to steal something from the house. it
was a fan he wanted her to take most
particular, and it was to be done soon.
today if she could manage. 1t was
for the love of the Fatherland that he
wanted her to do it. Did you notice,
sir, that Mrs. Bashford didn't have
the fan tonight? Not that one she
carried last night"
l had noticed that she had subst-
tuted a tiny japanese fan for the one
that Montani had inspected so eager
~. When | spoke of the change she
had said the other was too precious
for everyday use, and she meant to
keep it locked up.
Il hate to bother you, sir, knowing
you"
The mention of the fan had brought
me to an abrupt halt. / resented hay
ing the thing thrust at me in the
ecstatic mood in which | left the
house, but the visit of the German
speaking stranger was serious, and
Antoine knew that his story had
startled me- He told me further that
the man had carefully outlined to Ell
sic just how she could take advantage
of her freedom of the house to appro-
pirate the fan when the ladies were
out and the servants off the second
floor. She was to be paid for her as
SiStance; two hundred dollars had
been promised; even more had been
suggested. Elsie and the stranger had
left the garage and passed out of ear
shot before Elsie fully consented; but
Pierre had given Antoine the impress
sion that she would make the attempt.
at was to be for the kaiser, for Ger
many" declared Antoine bitterly.
And she was to be careful about
Flynn. | always thought Flynn was
straight did indeed, sir"
Il think Flynn and his wife are both
honest, but Wen take no chance. Warn
the guards to be on the alert. We
don't want Elsie to get the idea that
she's being watched; so tell the men to
keep away from the garage. III keep
an eye on the Flynns. You go home
and go to bed. ;"
The deep calm of the country night
had settled upon the shore, and the
Flynns quarters were perfectly tran
quill. 1t didn't seem possible that an
international episode was in process of
incubation in that quiet neighborh0od.
1 began to think that the general dis
trust of the German woman by her as
sociates might be responsible for
Pierre'S story. But viewed in any
light, had q duty to perform. If Elsie
had visited the house and purloined
the fan, she would be very likely to get
rld of it as quickly as possible, and de-
termined to keep watch. l drew the
blinds, got into my dressing gown and,
reinforcing the lampshade with a
newspaper to deaden the light, pro-
ceeded to read.
1t was on toward one o'clock and
was doing when sound reused me.
| A door on the Flynn side of the hall
| creaked; there was silence, then /
| heard furtive steps on the stair. |
snapped out my light and peered out
| Of the window just as Elsie's robust
| figure disappeared into the shadows.
| was about TO follow when the creak-
| ing of the Flynn door was repeated. In
| a moment another peep through the
| shade showed me Flynn himself, and
| he, too, quickly vanished. Here was a
( situation indeed If Elsie was keep