Great Falls daily tribune., 1920-10-12

word to offer you just now. The writ
ten proof Of my assertions will not be
here for two or three days. But" I
paused purposely-.'I do not fancy that
my word will be doubted, even against
yours-by Leila or Edith, or the Dur.
KEGS, or Miss Paige, or Major Grant
land"
Why uttered the last name do not
know. certainly did not intend to bring
into the controversy the young army
officer whom Rita Brown was doing her
level best to attract. But speak it did
involuntarily, and the girl facing me
seized upon it Immediately.
Rita Turns on Madge.
ooh. Ho!" she exclaimed exultantly.
and her voice was like rasp in its un-
evenness. Here's the real reason for
this delightful piece of blackmail you're
staging. I thought there was something
fishy about this sudden solicitude for
dear little Leila. But it would be nuts
for you. wouldn't it, dearie. to have me
banished as bold bad liar, while you
are left to nose around as the one, only
and original saint in the deah maiah's
estimation. Noth-in do ing. old dear.
If You dare her voice. still low. was
as venomous as snakes hiss "s2il
one word Of this stuff about me and I'll
go to the Dickeybird and give him an
ear full about you and the major that
he won't forget in hurry. Two can
play at this little blackmail game and
I've got the winning cards
For second or two which seemed an
eternity. the room whirled before my
eyes, and I felt fairly nauseated at the
venomous audacity of the woman before
me- That she should dare threaten me
with telling Dicky things utterly false!
For there was nothing in my friendship
with Hugh Grantland which my husband
did not know. save, perhaps, the con-
firmation Of the suspicion which he al
ready held-that the army officer cared
for me. But that was something which
Rita Brown had no possibility Of know
ng. However, / knew that there was
no lie about me too base for her imag-
ination to conceive. or for her tongue to
reveal. and I realized that she would
hold the whip hand. indeed. if Dicky
were the sort of man TO believe word
she would utter.
Madge Rises to the Occasion.
But-despite the fact that my husband
and I had parted in anger-I felt my
heart glow with the absolute assurance
that Dicky would no more give credence
to anything Rita Brown might tell him
concerning me, than | would believe
anything derogatory to him coming from
the same source.
] rose from my seat, and faced her
with steady eyes
"You have used the smile of a card
game several times said, coolly. Il
think I shall adopt it--now | shall play
my trump car. Here it is:
"You are at perfect liberty to tell my
hubsand anything you please concerning
me. If he were SO gullible as to believe
you-which he is not-I should have no
further use for him .tnd | am going
straigt from here to the Paige house
hold to lay before them all the facts
that you are niasquerading under an
assumed name. that your real name is
Lichnowsky, your fathers Aaron; that
he is an honest, Woodworking Hester
Street huckster, that you are so ashamed
of your origin that you have let your
poor old parents believe you dead for
years There are other sordid details
of your personal history which are COM
ing to me by mail, but I think these viii
suffice. When they have learned the lie
you have lived all these years. they will
know how much credence to give to the
vile things you have told Leila Alfred
Durkee, especially, ought to appreciate |
the touches you gave that story"
Next-"The Contingencies That Made
Madge Feared.