Sioux County pioneer., 1922-07-13
The Infatuation Of
Dacey
By MURIEL BLAIR
(@. 1921. Western Newspaper Union.)

9Uu SyS0 00iEkSuuSA ao SAAS 2.OOAeSA's
moonlight. It affected the heart like
enchanted music. The hushed dreams
OF youth were awakened and his pulse
bounded at the alarm.
He sat now-he, Norman Dacey-
young, rich in money but dissatisfied
Of soul, telling the story Of 1t all to his
closest friend, Elliott Hughes. 53As he
spoke his subdued tones reminded Of
a poet traversing some sweet and ten
der lay, for into his barren life had
come purpose-to find one woman
he had seen and to tell her that he
loved her. si'5l
1.-TWO months he was saying, "and=
it seems like two years. It was just
beyond the village that the team took
fright at a passing automobile. was
thrown out. It was the cash from q
deep cut that was the most serious. I
was stunned. Then between that and
the: hospital there was one supreme
moment. It was when saw her."
"You have told that, Dacey," broke
in Hughes In q tone Of slight raillery.
"She was lovely as an houri and all
that"
'She was simply girl, an innocent,
beautiful GIRL resented Dacey grave
:, ly. "A man stood at a little distance,
probably q relative. She had torn q
scarf from her throat and was trying
to staunch the blood from my wound.
recall one look into those plying
sOul-like eyes. Then the blackness Of
death again.
/ "And nothing Of the girl since1''
questioned Hughes.
!, Nothing" replied Dacey.
"Well, l am at least glad to see your
mind reused out Of the torpor Of your
habitual ennui. Hughes. II you can
take any interest in pursuing this ex-
travagant phantom, keep 1t up. Let
. rue see, thought believe you told
me that the accident was costly to you
, in more ways than one7"
"You mean the trifie I lost7" OBJ
served Dacey.
,a'aA :Yaa sAl' Rl,,,s aXf ;} hundred dollars in
''rhe money does not trouble me" J"
replied Dacey carelessly. " may have
lost 1t before the accident"
+ The friends separated, Hughes to 60
home to his wife to smile over "the
ridiculous infatuation Of Dacey,", the
latter to still more determinedly seek
/. some trace of the mysterious unknown
whose bonny face was with him every
where.
After that he spent days and then
weeks III b constant effort to trace
down tM ksslRabe ksslRa ,S9 cS,!llq g, ? not dismiss s..
blusteAng November plight, as. he sat
In the library Of his lonely home, he
saw 4 .ferlera form appear before the
easemapt ana fRlter thera. He saw q
i n,Ans agitatAd, face and dripping,
! storm.beaten garments. In an instant
: ! he had drawn open the window; and
/ she, the lady Of his dreams, tottered
into the room and fell to the nearost
chair, where she dropped like wilted
flower. r q, =
She raised her eyes at last to mar
mur his name, to draw from her bosom
i the pocketbook he had lost.
! ayoa "atT slr::s.. RI3aase.sy," Pc she faltered
"This ID yours, ! must g0,n zll.4ss,.ss.
"No! MOI" cried Dacey, blocking
the way. Then he saw her reel With
terrified cry. The windows behind
Dacey opened and a rough.looking
man intruded-the man he had seen
once before with the girl.
l. "Ah, JShave found you. have I. Clio.
ria?" hissed< the intruder. "You had
that all Of the time"
The speaker made a dive for the
poeketbook. pacey put ont his strong
arm.
do not harm him." pleaded the girl
piteously. "He has kept me pris
0ner, he has nearly starved me be
cause would not give up the pocket.
book which wrenched from him. But
| he is my brother-and It was all his
cruel lust ior gald,"
i sTake It and-go" said Dacey to
the brother. M Az & sl:s: Il
With a gloating. cry Of Joy the man
sped from the room, holding the Gov
eted money to his breast like Wild
beast clasping its prey. Dacey re-
closed the windows, pressed a button
In the wall and told the servant who
answered to summon his widowed sis.
ter. i.5 s.ft
"Sit down, please" spoke Dacey, az
wondering .Leah pavelin entered the
room. II have a story TO tell"
How sweetly soft he told til HoY
the synpa thetic tears came to his lov.
Ing sister, how the eyes Of. the breath.
less, marveling Gloria Burley seemed
e take Il all in as II itswere some
beautiful drenm. II. s:s.
Abruptly Dacey left the room, the
woman fhe ll9ysA In the friendly charge
OF his sister. It was a new Gloria,
revived, whom he met the next day
the happy day, the day Of his life I'm
memorial that he asked her to become
hts wife. sss