The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1921-12-19
EUening Story
Lost and Found.
BY FREDERICK HART.


larly a young person with as many
reasons not to cry as Helen had,
is shedding tears on the eve of the
greatest holiday of them all, some
thing is seriously wrog some
! where. Helen was pretty; she was
was not poor; around her lay many
ribboned packages, gifts from her
friends, which were religiously not
| to be opened till the morrow morn
tho her heart would break. Some
thing must have been wrong.
Something was wrong. Just a
: year ago the incest man in the world
! had told Helen that she was the only
girl in the whole universe as far as
he was concerned, and had asked her
| certain questions of very personal
nature, most of which Helen has ans
wered in the affirmative and they
! had been happy as only two young
! things, just engaged, can be-. They
| had parted, he for the west, where he
hoped to make his fortune, and she
| for New York where she hoped to
make hers They had written
/ oh, how they had written, She had
his letters still thick bundle. And
then the dreadful thing had hap
pened.
Helen had moved. She had left
a forwarding address and had writ
| ten to Robert telling him her new
| street number. There had been
/ pause and theni Her letter came
| back with all sorts of little red ink
notations on it, to the effect that
| the addressee could not be found,
and no letters came for her That
had been two months ago, and in
that time she had not heard a line
from her Robert. And now it was
Christmas eve, and just a year ago
he had told her that he loved her,
and she didn't know where he was
and he didn't know where she was,
and generally things We're as bad as
they could be.
1t was after noon, but Helen had
no desire to eat lunch. She had
refused all invitations for Christ
mas parties, because Robert had
promised to get back on Christmas
eve and give her the best party that
could possibly be had. She was alone
and heartbroken.
The bell rang. Helen answered
the door, first making sure that her
eyes did not appear to be so very red.
A messenger boy stood without bear
ing a package. She signed for it, and
closed the door, wondering what it
could be. It was addressed to her, but
there was no return address. She
opened it and gave little scream of
delight For there in the box were
dozens of the most beautiful roses she
had ever seen She soon had them in
water, and looked vainly for card,
but the donor evidently preferred to
remain anonymous.
A few hours later when she was
still puzzling over the mystery an
other package arrived. She opened
it; it was small, SO small as to sug-
Sest something previous. And indeed
Its contents were fit to dazzle the eye
"a bar pin, glittering with diamonds
and shining platinum. 1t was so
beautiful that she could not believe |
frVs n Int a. |
dress on the box. The m essenger had !
gone, SO she could not consult him. |
She retired to wonder over this fresh |
mystery.
Evening drew on. Helen prepared |
to go out for a solitary dinner. She |
had her hat fixed in place and was |
drawing on her gloves when again the |
door bell rang. She answered it, and /
there stood the familiar messenger
bearing a third package.
wait a minute" said Helen to him. |
There may be an answer
She went into her room and undid /
the cord. This package was the tiniest |
of all-hardly more than an inch and |
a half on a side. She opened it, dis |
closing little plush box, and in the |
box was-Helen rushed to the door |
to demand of the messenger where he
had come from and who had sent him,
for in the box was a ring-a platinum
f1HB1 SGT WITH one large
such ring as means only one thing |
in this world, and is never worn on |
any finger except the third finger on /
the left hand. But the messenger was
gone!
Gone-but in his place stood a tall /
figure, at the sight of whom her heart |
gave a violent leap and then started |
to pound madly-a tall figure who |
stepped forward and took her in its
arms and comforted her and told her
all the things that a lonely little girl |
most wants to hear. Yes. gentle |
reader-you are right. 1t was the
long missing Robert.
TIE told her how he had gone from /
his first address into wild part of
the country and had written her to
tell of the change, and how his letters
had come back as hers had done; how |
he was nearly in despair; how, at last,
when his work was done and he was
established a rich man, thanks to
some claims he had discovered and |
sold for tremendous prices, he had |
dashed for New York, to her old ad
dress, only to be met by a stupid per-
son who said that he had had Helens
address, but had lost it as soon as
she gave 1t to him, and had simply sent
his letters back: how he had been in
despair; what he had said to the stu
pid person-eXpurgated and how he |
had taken rooms at a hotel and set
himself to discover where in the great
city the Only Girl was hiding.
She told him. in turn, of her sue
cess in her work, and how miserable
she had been when she did not hear
from him any longer; how she had
written and written and the letters
had come backi they compared notes,
and found that by one of those I'M
lucky chances which dog true lovers
that they had changed addresses on
the same day.
Then they went out to dinner-a
wonderful dinner, with all the fix
ings-and they went to a theater and
did not get home till extremely late, as
engaged people will; and they took an
unonscionably long time to say good
night in the hallway and made all
sorts of promises to meet each other
the first thing in the moring, when
they would go and pay a business call
on the nearest minister; and Robert
reluctantly left her.