Evening star., 1922-07-30

his shabby luggage and the
orderly disposal of his entire inven-
tory OF wearing apparel. For sec
ond the valet hesitated. then he slip
ped the cheap celluloid brush into the
top drawer of the chest beside the
imitation leather collar box. At the
doorway Wilkes paused. and his hand
felt along the wainscoting. This
bell is for me. sir" And the heavy
door closed noiselessly.
Then the young man smiled. The
solemnity of the gentleman, he
thought still l suppose he's got to
kid himself. some way. into thinking
he's got regular job"
1t was the first time Stephen Doug
las had ever encountered valet or
visited at a country estate; the first
time. indeed. he had ever beheld the
wonders of material perfection that
great wealth can achieve. Ever since
he had stepped from the dusty Chi
cago local onto the stone tagging of
the station platform at Willowbrook
he had been transported into world
he had never believed existed.
The plains of Illinois had been
metamorphoSed into Normandy
park. At the end of an exquisitely
nodded driveway, bordered by flicker
ing. swaying tipped poplars, rose the
bleak gray walls of the chateau. Ten
years before Michael Higgins. on a
business trip TO France, had admired
it Now it stood. fifty miles from Chi
cago, reproduced with uncompromis
ing faithfulness. unweathered and un-
assimilated, cold. pretentious and un-
real.
After it was finished Michael Hig-
gins knew something was wrong.
so they brought over pear or
chard from Norway and the pop
lars and a vineyard. Twenty garden
ers nursed these aliens into a listlesS
scmblance of permanency, but the
rigors of each winter took their toll
and every spring new orchards were
shipped from France. Michael Hig-
gins was noe a man to be baked
either by climate or geography. His
estate at Willowbrook became, as
triumphant testimonial to his
genius as were his dams and his
mines and his bridges. his railroads
and his steamships. There was that
about Michael Higgins that partook
of superhuman intelligence-and
there was that about him that was
pitifuI and obtuse and defeated.
As Stephen looked about the Louis
NV bedroom he remembered sud
II. ha heard .Iu1Cc
Truman make: Some men are either
great successes or great failures.
Michael Higgins is both suo tempore.'
OF Michael Higgins success there
could be no question. This offspring
of a small-town Presbyterian minister
had created for himself a position
not without national significance.
With no reasons for his deductions.
stephen Douglas suspected that Mi
chael Higgins failure, to which the
Judge had referred, might be bound
I'm with his personal relations. He
knew he was married and had two
sons. the elder of whom was only
seven. He had heard Mrs. Higgins
was beautiful and much younger than
her husband. although Michael Hig-
gins himself was only forty-three. To
have accomplished all that he had at
forty-three might lead one to suspect
other things had been neglected.
stephen Douglas crossed the room
and pressed the button Wilkes had in
dicated. Instantly the valet reap
peared.
DO you happen to know where Mr..
asked
Wilkes nodded I'm the library His
face remained consistently without ex-
preston. The books you brought are
already laid out, sir"
Stephens amazement was patent.
Well" he thought. I've got to hand
it to you. You could probably lay out
n railroad-or a corpse" What he said
was: Thank you. 1 wonder il you'd be
good enough to show me the way. You
come darn near needing a chart and
compass to navigate this house.
Wilkes smiled. against his better
Judgment. This way. sir
The library was a room of exquisite
proportions. French windows gave on to
terrace the grass of which was as
incredibly soft and miniature as the
sward of a putting green. Open book
cases like somber- toned tapestry.
stretched to the ceiling. and around the
room ran a narrow balcony which one
reached by a paneled staircase. On the
north side a great hooded fireplace in
trigued the Imagination with visions of
kissing spruce logs and frantic. adven-
turing sparks.
For an instant Stephen hesitated. 1t
seemed that his whole body responded
10 the beauty around him. Il suppose,
he thought, I'll wake up
True. on the table before him lay
all the books he had worked with back
in Judge Truman's law Office. Just
year ago. timid, incredibly ambitious,
he had been assigned by the judge to
fag for the gentleman in charge of the
traction case Now. Stephen Douglas
was that gentleman. More than one
lawyer in Judge Truman's firm had Ia
bored over the terms of the traction
franchise Mayors and ciY 5ouncils-in
fact, the whole game % spcal politics
were tied up in the red tape of the is
,ue. Judge Truman's firm represented
;he .fnterests'-and Michael Higgins
Has the interests.
EOR a third time the fight was to be
carried to the appellate court and