The Washington herald., 1921-04-24
The Story of a Wonder
Pearl and Its Strange
Trail of Adventure,
Tragedy, and Romance.

Tragedy, and Romance.
TNDLEss are the Iesends rumors and
stories Of famous Jewels that bring the
- possessor ghastiy utsfortunes. Among
them an none but the record Of one
notorious pearl yields the true solution of
the mysterious influence that lies behind
the lash Of some priceless diamond, the glow
Of q worid~enowned ruby. the giitterins
uxhts of an emerald which has passed from
owner to owner leaving its trail Of terror.
Perhaps the story Of the great Eye Is the key
TO them all
Dolores Tarafa, whose beauty was Of that
warmth. brfliance and light that may be
found In q flower Of a tropic jungle, was the
sole Offspring Of . pureblood Cuban father
and the daughter Of Scotch sea captain.
convent bad given her an education which
contributed to her character that strange
calm and poise that now is 50 rare. and
nature gave her the voice Of q nonpareil as
clear as crystal and as full Of warmth as
Caribbean sunrise reflected in the beryl
green shadows and dark purple depths Of
the Gull
that were the color of those green waters.
clear, holding out the same invitingness, Mt
to reflect the sunlight Of her hair; from her
father she had inherited a skin and contour
as smooth and delicate as carved ivory. but
of that tropic tint that is only produced by
marble white transparency through which
rlovs the olive ana pink Of swiftly coursing
blood
Were It not for the strange fate that put
into this little body a size Of soul that might
have been found in Vikings daughter, 1t
would not be necessary to know anything
of Dolores before she came to New York. A
mere accident Of chance furnishes that brief
picture Of her early life: one Thomas SAT-
ford, q sugar speculator Of Havana who
happened to be the employer Of Tarana at
the time Tara1a died. says this:
Il had her father as superintendent Of the
Los Banos Plantation. His health was bad
enough, heaven knows. II may have ac'
counted for their poverty. As understood
It he was an outcast son Of some family In
Madrid His wife had been named Mcleod.
What q mixture! Everybody frowned on
them I never knew why. They produced
this miracle of a child. But squalor! Al
ways behind; always broke Then he died
and the girl came back to her mother.
"She was beautiful and silent! That bodes
no good. II one is to be beautiful let them
he talkative. Her beauty was positive load
TO carry. You know how 1t is? But her
voice! Naturally enough such voice
such a singing voice-such a contralto-l
Her mother took her to Havana Then the
mother died God knows how Dolores got
to New York Probably some theatrical man.
No doubt he tried Iove-making. That would
account for the girl fleeing from him-being
adrift--
She was adrift. The first time any Of our
particular set heard Of her was when Mrs.
Tremayor Collier picked her up in that very
imitation Bohemian place called The Belfry
The Belfry was a coffee house Of sort-a
smolCy, tobacco-fogged, candleGt atmospheric
little bird house over a plumbers shop. They
make a great to-do over the cobwebs that
hang down from the beams there. A gray
haired poetess keeps the place: she makes
ten thousand a year selling coffee and rice
cakes to a mixed group Of young and
penniless graduates Of Western coeduca-
uopal institutions who are in New York to
write or play or dance interpretatively and
10 grand people from the land Of social
prominence uptown, who try to hide, when in
The Belfry. their white shirt fronts and
white shoulders under coats and wraps
The poetess. who gave up verse for
vtctuals. apparently made a great gesture
OF being kind to the down-and-outs- She
vas generous enough to furnish . few fried
eggs from time to time to Dolores Tarana
the reason may have been that Dolores was
q picturesque little figure in her raggedy
attire, her penniless respectability, and her
beauty. The girl could talk English, Of
course, and above all when the mood struck
her she could Groom Spanish gypsy songs In
way to make the riff-ran guests float Oh
into dreamland-
Mrs. Tremayer Collier was there one might
with Bobby Durant and two Of her othes
weIl-iced admirers. Dolores had q cigar boz
banjo-literally made Of . cigar box and {
few strings on pegs, and lolling back In q
corner she heard the lull in the chatter an<
struck a note She struck a note with hei
fingers across the strings and with hel
voice across the world. 1t might have been
said pretty Mrs. Collier. the keynote Of al
human reminiscence and human aspiration
It was only the beginning Of . soft, low
almost whispered melody that took the eye
Of those who were there far out INTO space
VIZ.