The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1922-07-18

OlScnarSe my mission. l looked upon my peregrinations partly a sop to myself and partly a blind for others, So IcouId revel in wonders with a mind wholly free from care. feeling that my time of responsibility was far off.
 But in the afternoon of my second day in Munich when I returned from the Maximilaneum, I found a yellow manila envelope. postmarked at Mum ich, addressed in the familiar purple type-script. I opened it. when in my | locked room, and read: Between ten and eleven, tonight, in front of the Glypto-thek, under any 1 lamp-post. I took my black cigar-case from my l trunk, filled it with cigars, and placed 1 it in the inside breast pocket of my coat. I then coupled myself in writ | ing long letter to my aunts until | ten o'clock
 Then I sallied out. and by twenty ! minutes past ten I was strolling about | the Koenig' 's-p1atz. 1 At precisely half past ten I stop ped under one of the lamp-posts in | front of the steps of the Glypothek. l There I took out my cigar-case, ! and one by one scrutinized and spe;t | my cigars. As was eyeing the ! seventh, passer-by halted, facing me, | and remarked in perfect English: You seem we'll provided with ci-
 gars. sir"
 l What is that to your" I retorted. 'No offense, sir," he apologized. | 'No offense intended. No harm done. ! I trust. Seeing you so well provided ! with cigars, I coniectured that you l might have matches also, and might 1 oblige me with one.' 1 Certainly sir," replied; and hold | ing my cigar-case open in my left l hand, I took from my vest-pocket l a small box of wax vestas, which I
 held out to him. | Thank you" he said. Permit
 me-"
 Holding my box of matches in his
 right hand, he ran his left inside his | coat and brought out a black cigar
 case, nickle- e-edged. 1 At sight of it shut mine. and we 1 stood. each cycling the others case. What an odd coincidence" he ex- l claimed. Our cigar-cases are like" l "One might say twins" I replied. l 'And made in Connecticut, I would
 wager he pursued. | "They appear identical" T admit l ted. "An idea strikes me-" he went on. | 'I am an original character. I have
 my whins. Since we meet by chance
 and find our cigar case duplicates, let | us exchange. The hazard seems a
 sporting notion.' | Agreed" I replied. But how do
 you know my cigars will be as good
 as yours?'
 How do you know" he retorte1. | that my case has cigars in it at | an?"
 "Ill take the risk,' I said. Make
 it a swap-pig in a poke" l At this final password he handed
 me the shut case, and I slipped it in
 to my inside coat pocket. He took mine; coolly and delib- | erately he opened it, selected a cigar, bit off the end, lit it, puffed, and re- marked:
 l Excellent" Permit me to return
 you your matchbox. and to offer you
 one of your own cigars | I took one at random.
 ''Hurrah for free choice of ci- gars," I said gravely. | "Hurrah for free choice of cigars"
 he echoed.
 | Whereupon we bowed and parted,
 each going on as he hac been faced when originally approa ching the lamp post.
 At the hotel, most carefully, with
 in closed doors and windows I exam 1 ined the cigar case.
 It could not have been told from the I had had.
 But it was much heavier. heavy
 that I wondered what was in it. I had a small bottle of strong mu-
 cilage.
 Very carefully I enclosed the cigar case in a tight fitting covering of stout paper, pasting all the lappings | generously.
 Then I put the package in the bot
 tom of my trunk. 1 CHAPTER VII | The Dummy 1 Switzerland, Paris and London were r~t ~f dream. All too soon I was at South | ampton.
 On the Kronprinzessin Otillie. on
 my way to my cabin, I encountered Olga Sanoff.
 1 Her exclamation of astonishme ment
 and chagrin was only half sn1othered. As on the out-voyage, I was too | seasick for a day or so to be about,
 I found that our seats in the dining
 room were not far apart, only one of the countless little tables intervening between hers and mine.
 Also. we were so placed that we could not see each other as we ate. Our staterooms were both on the main deck, hers was number 267, on the starboard side of the steamer, nearer midships than mine, which was an in side stateroom for one passenger only, on the port side, farther forward. My feet soon learned the track that | WOuld carry me past the eno or her side corridor on my way to or from the promenade deck.
 The second third time we en- countered, she stopped me and said in the most matter-of-fact tone: | Better arrange for an introduction, and then avoid me as naturally as possible. We shall attract less atten- ton, if you do it well.'
 I tried hard to do it well. To be presented to her. quite casually was easy, with some very simple finesse. I thought her eyes twinkled with
 relish at the routine stupidities of | strangers just introduced which I managed to chatter with her. And
 I thought I saw in them grateful ap- proval and sympathetic comprehen- sion at the natural way in which later I barely greeted her and devoted my self to any one of dozen other wom- en whom I had met on the tour. Once only. we exchanged a few