The Beaver herald. [volume] (Beaver, O.T. [Okla.]) 1895-1923, 1920-03-25

meant to take them TO the president.
"Well-are you going down to see
how she is?" demanded Billy. wheel
ing and planking himself in front of
me.
Dear auntie-sweet auntie,"
ilbed. "Please put on your camel's |
hair shawl and bunnit and haste away |
TO Beadty-in-Dlstress that l may In. |
stantly know how she bore up under |
the strain OF meeting the hero and |
how she liked his pink. round cheeks"
Billy gave me u vicious grunt and |
strobe across the room-he wanted to
say something ugly to me but he didn't
dare, seeing how held his fate in my
hands.
"Oh, Billyl" l cried, suddenly re-
membering the latest news. "she
brought back the diamonds last
nghtr'
claire came back2 Good heavens !"
he sank into the chair.
Claire? OF course not. Mrs. Della.
rio" And ! told him how she'd
whipped In and ont like spook while
he and Claire were going down in the
elevator. Then for the first time
showed him the diamonds.
Love and pumpkinsw he ejacu-
lated, overcome by the sight. "Well,
If this doesn't beat the Arabian
Nightsv Are they real-real? Not
paste? Why, If they're real they re
worth about n million dollars !"
"And haven't L been telling you that
all along?" / asked testify. Billy's
words and tone gave 1t pretty well
away that he hadn't believed 1t all
along, no matter what I'd said and
he'd pretended.
"Y-yes. think you have" he admit.
ted, rather stammeringly. but of
course-you realize that a million dol
lars Is a-er-a pretty big order for a
chap in New York to eat at a sitting"
He spread them out on his hand. NUT
tering to himself. Finally he brought
OUT "And you've got these-here =
all alone in the fiat with youl Well,
save my shoestrlngs l don't wonder
your nerves are on edgew
let this pass about my nerves and
gave him the story she'd told me Sun
day morning - about the mahatma
sending her these diamonds through
the air and putting them In her slip.
per; and how she claimed them. alb
solutely, rellgiously. as hers.
"The womans crazy" was the curt
way he disposed of her, and added,
to mitigate this harsh judgment, "Or
else she's thief"
"Shes neither one thing nor the
other" l defended sharply. "Shes
merely deluded-the 'Ss,me as tens of
thousands of other people have been
deluded about things they believed
in."
Cray" he repeated with convlc-
ton.
could only shrug-all I've ever
been able to do; that was her incor-
rigible belief I wasted no more time
on 1t then. for our question was what
TO do next. and / went on to tell him
how I'd decided to take his advice and
lay the matter before the president.
To my astonishment, instead OF the
warm commendation I'D expected from
|
on both my duty and my common
sense not forty-eight hours before
and remember, I'd barely restrained
, him from rushing Off on the midnight
train-he popped out of his chair and
began excitedly pacing the floor. His
first words were, ''Why, you can't dc
hiatt"
"Oh, I see all the risks Tn running
Of getting there alive"
"Rlsksf' he echoed, as II he hadn't
given them thought. 'But how
) much are you going to tell about this
: AFFAIR.""
J Everything, Of course-I mean ev.
erything know. The government will
: have to undertake TO find out the
rest"
, He plunked himself in front of me
and demanded. "You aren't going to
let Miss de Ravenol get dragged into
! mess like this, are your"
/ didn't answer Immediately, and he
ramped on, II ask you-are you, going
TO do 1t? Are you going to be party
to such a--such an outragef'
"If i don't put the case to the presi'
dent what am to do? Here l am
saddled with the diamonds"
swell. just keep them yourself" he
: bluntly offered, as his solution of the
difficulty. keep them--put them in
the safe deposit-and let things take
their course"
For a minute | was really angry
and raped out. "If l thought you
were serious, Billy, I'd ask you t.
leave the house. Your suggestion Is
that frankly become a thief, and
your solution is not only criminal
but-idiotic. What would II accom-
plish? with so many people know
! ing?"
: "Well-say-promise me one thing.
he pleaded. you'll wait--you w0n'i
: try to see the president today--you
| wonft ruch on ,..ttbnut tatI;,o -.