Evening star., 1921-09-25

. the HUDSON anu iOoC iiAA'oSAA
in the great city below.
ITO look at me-" he thought. with
a groan, as he turned into the upper
reaches of Broadway, ''one would
never think that had been wounded
so." And indeed he was right. EX-
cept for his expression. which had
something pathetic in it, you would
never have suspected that he had
just been dealt mortal thrust.
Marry you after this?" Margaret
had said to him. mot if you were
the last man on EARTH" Which
wasn't exactly original. when all is
said and done. 1--WE have absolutely
nothing in common" she had con-
: tinued. watching him closely for
winces: you can't talk: you can't
; ride: you can't understand; you can't
lake a joke: you cant dance He
WINGED then. II don't believe that a
eIumsier man ever stepped out on
you-
Its a Iie"' he had growled. The
next moment she had given him
; back his ring and Nell had left her
with the face of a man who is hur-
. rying out to Self-desruction.
Don't do anything rash" she had
called after him mockingly.
I'D like to see myself he scoffed,
as he swung down Madison avenue.
In his resentment, Nell didn't no.
tice that his speedometer was trem-
bling around 40" nor did he see
the three enormous trucks that were
coming out of the side street, one
closely following the other. like
three friendly mastodons going down
to the river to drink.
Good nightv' said Nell, as he
stepped upon his brake.
1t was too late. Ahead of him the
the street. To the right was
lamp post and a photographers shop.
Nell looked at the trucks and he
looked at the post.
AS the lesser of two evils he chose
the post.
As NIelrs perceptions grew clearer
he became aware that his resting
: place was photographers dressing
room and that. bending over him.
was doctor and business-like
young woman. who was evidently in
charge of the shop.
"a narrow escape said the Goc-
tor.
1t seemed to Nell that the good
physician spoke almost with regret
though TINS 10 uOdot was 1Hl5Sia
tion. for he was still light headed.
'How's the carr" he asked in a
small, faint voice.
~ wreck" said the doctor.
Would you like US to take pho
tograph of it,: eagerly inquired the
young woman.
Nell weakly nodded-in a way it
was a sort of repayment for her hos
pitality-and she and the doctor went
Seems like nightmare" said
Nell, who was feeling as though he
would float if he tried to walk. "and
] guess it will be nightmare. too,
when Aunt Agnes hears about the
car" His mind returning then to
first causes, he added: Lucky l wasn't
killed, or Margaret would always have
thought that 1 had done it because she
jilted me-"
He drew deep breath and looked
up at the framed photographs that
hung around him on the walls.
"I'll bet it took most of them half
an hour to get those careless-look-
ing poses," he thought, with the
trace of grin. But say-here's
The photograph over the couch at
which he was staring showed a
quiet, serious-eyed girl who was
standing by a table on which a pug
nosed Pomeranian was perched,
looking up at the girl with adorlng
eyes. II COuluh pSSh hSi
dress that attracted Nell. for it was
evidently a dark suit of the sim
plest possible design-and 1T couldn't
have been her hat, which was moth
ing but a dark straw with a narrow
band of ribbon around it. And it
couldn't have been her studied pose,
for she had none.
He was still looking at the pic
fure, deep calling to deep, although
he didn't know it-when the brisk
young manageress entered. We've
many prints would you like?"
"Oh. don't know" said Nell care
1essly. "But tell me-" he added.
looking up at the picture which had
interested him SO, who's this? Does
she live around here?"
II only wish I knew!" The young
woman frowned. "She came in here
about three months ago and fool
ishly enough 1 didn't take a de-
posit We made up dozen and
have them yet. We tried to deliver
wrote down for us. but she had
moved away and left no other ad-
dress -. Still it learned me a
lesson. If the Prince of Wales him
self came into this shop for sitting
tomorrow, he would have to pay
deposit"
When Nell left the photographers
shop ten minutes later, he had the
twelve pictures underneath his arm,
and the raised flap on the cash reg
lister said "$20." And not only did
he have the pictures, but he had the
card on which the girl with the dog
had written her name and address.
Miss Molly Ingestre.
351 West 72d Street.
New York City.
It was a dashing. unmistakable
handwriting. The capital ''Y" in
york" looked like Neptune's trident:
the capital M in Molly" resembled
a three-legged stool on which the god
of the sea might rest himself.
X X +
OF course, 1t was reprehensible In
~ Nell to have bought the pictures.
although it might be said that he had
acquired them in much the same
spirit as ne would. have purchased a
painting by Asti. or one Of Benda's
beautiful heads of Miss America. But
when he finally reached his room and
had looked at the pictures longer
than was good for him ne did an ut
terly indefensible thing. for which 1t
can only be pleaded that he must have
been still unbalanced from the shock
of his Academic say nothing of the
sting he felt for having been Tilted
that morning.
told himself. "I'll send one of these
pictures to Margaret and make her
think that I've had another girl all
the time" To which thought he
added the distinctly inelegant rehec-
ton: I'll make her think she's not
the only pebble on the beach,
Disgusting his hand as well as he