Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1920-04-08
THE SILVER
YATAGHAN
By LILY wANDEL
%. 1920. by Mcclure Newspaper Syndicate.

WIS not thinking OF WORK. Tomorrow
was holiday and in the evening
there was to be a fancy dress ball.
Phil, her brother, in rare burst of
brotherly interest had promised to
take her to the festivity. You're get
ting to be regular little mouse and
I'm going to take you out among peo-
pie" he had said patronizingly. Nov.
don't worry and be bashful; I'll scare
al. few fellows to dance with you,
but of course you can't expect to be
the belle of the evening and all that
sort of thing. Get yourself costume
something that suits you; be Il
Quakeress or schoolmarm"
She had nodded and thanked him.,
but inwardly resolved to throw OIL
her little mouse cloak and be some
body else just for one evening. I'm
sick and tired of being the sedatc
private secretary; I'm just as fun
loving and jolly as any other gill if
I'd have half chance. And I'm go
ing to have it, too. A masquerade ball
is just the thing!" And then and
there she decided to go as Turkish
vamp!
At home in locked bureau drawer
lay the costume quite handy-yeliow
silk trousers, crimson bolero jacket
and white batiste chemise, red turban
and floating, filmy veil, even turned
| up Turkish slippers and wonderful
black and red sash. 1t was a perfect
outfit; she really would look like a
| Turkish woman, but she wanted to
be vamp! Something was needed, a
little t0ucl-she did not know what.
| So she continued to bite the unOffend-
ing pencil and stare with wrinkled
forehead at the high bookcases,
| antique shields and swords that dec
Grated the somber walls. Right above
| queer looking thing. dagger or knife,
thought Alcina idly. Very black and
furnished, an odd HANDLE too, the
usual crossbar missing and the blade
more than a foot long, feXed in a
| graceful double curve. On the handle
something was engraved, curious char
| acters-she rose to see it better-why
that must be Turkish inscription.
Oh, now she knew, the dagger was a
Turkish yataghan! Suppose it were
polished and cleaning, stuck in her
sash; then she would look like a
vamp-a real Turkish vamp!
That was the touch that her cos
tune needed. The only trouble was !:
Would Mrs. Mawson lend it to her for
the ball? She doubted it. for the old
lady had recently refused to lend her
a book from the well-stocked library.
There was another way. Mrs. Nav
son never entered the gloomy room.
Alcina always went to her employers
parlor or dressing room for dictation
or instructions. If she took the yata-
CHAN home with her tonight and re-
turned it the day after tomorrow no
one would know the difference.
When five o'clock came, Alcina. a
bit conscience stricken, took down
. the dagger, and wrapping it quickly
in a piece of newspaper. stuck it in
, her muff, and without looking right
or left hurried from the house
At home, in the privacy of her room
she rubbed and polished it. and be-
hold, the black melted away and
beautiful. cleaning silver came to
| view! Her eyes sparkled with delight
as she saw herself in her pretty Turk.
r ish suit with silver yataghan stucs
in her sash. 1t was bound to attraci
the attention Of everybody.
!, When they left the dance long
cloak covered her up completely
{ so that not even Phil had an inkline
, of her costume. He was not ever
, curious. for he thought he would
J know her in any kind of dress.
. She fingered in the dressing room
and then conscious that she looked
, very pretty and attractive. took tn,
plunge into the ballroom just in tim,
!, to see Phil benevolently tuck tn,
hand of demure little shepherdes
q under his arm and patter off with he
, under the impression he was doin,
his duty to Alcina.
Alcina was surrounded at once
Everybody was sure they knew her
knights and clowns, sailors an,
| ROIudu SOluIeIS, all were LlSlly III
:, terested in the Turkish vamp witt
the glittering silver yataghan. Al
Gina had not known that any on
: could have such glorious time. B.
and by she realized that she ha
e danced three times in succession wit
u certain fascinating toreador. an
n decided it was time to change, but h
8 persuaded her to sit out dance
' Laughing they found little nook TO
n tete-a-tete.
"That silver yataghan, it attracte
8 me at once when you entered tn
: room; where on earth did you fin
!. anything SO wonderful" he asked.
> Alcina flushed under her veil a
J, loss for an answer, when rattle
t merry Pilgrim strutted up and pulle
8 her off for a fox trot. She gave
o little sigh of relief; the toreador wa
o lovely, but the questioning about tn
v yataghan was embarrassing. She NJ
e ticed with delight that it was nea
! twelve almost time TO unmaSk Sh