New Britain herald., 1923-03-07
The Surprising Fact That Lillian
 Disclosed to Madge.

Characteristically, Lillian made no comment upon Claire Foster during my story of the events which had happened on my journey, evidently considering the girl as my affair ab- solutoly, She laughed heartily, how ever, at the tale of Mrs. Rarker's in- generation of the enraged Dr. Petit in the root cellar.
 "I'd have given a fat order to have seen his face when she let him out. '" she said. Mrs, Barker must be an able citizen. I'd like to meet her"
 She's worth knowing" l replied.
 'She must be-" Lillian agreed. "She, or something, certainly tanned Her bies fiery spirit. He was as meek as Mary's little baa-baa when he came to see me the other day. l think he had had the chance 10 reflect upon the seventeen kinds of abysmal asintniry he had exhibited, and he was prop erly ashamed of himself. Incidentally, he said he thought he needed a vaca- tion, and l agreed with him. I be- lieve he's leaving town today or to- morrow for little trip to Georgia. so there'll be no chance of your mecS- ing him.
 A Serious Problem
 Allah be thanked for his good ness !" l said fervcntly.
 Allah be praised :" Lillian intoned with laugh, Then she banished mirth from her face and voice, as a school teacher might sponge chalk from a blackboard.
 Now we'll get down to business" she said. You haven't told me everything. and well I know it. So just give up."
 I flushed painfully. Unwilling to alarm her, I had glossed over the in- cidents in which the inquisitive taxi driver and the yashmak- -veiled wom- an had figured, and had touched but lightly upon Harry Underwood's part in our taxi journey from the Barker house. But under Lillians probing, merciless question, I found myself telling her every detail of the hap penings which had so disturbed me When I had finished, her elbows were on her knees, and her chin cuppst in her palms, in the attitude so fan iliar to me, and realized that in some way the story I had told hei presented a serious problem to her,
 Aliens dope is right she saif engimatically, at last, jumping to he feet, and beginning to pace swiftly ul and down the room. T thought ht was getting a cinema complex in his old age. but after the lesson Smith had he wouldn't dare lift his head ;,, -I.;l sure of protection. And Grace Ora per! Look at what she faces if the police should nab her She's pretty sure of the ground under her feet or she wouldn't be floating around your vicinity, even with salome's seven veils wrapped around her.
 You think. then" I said with what my mother-in-law calls gone feeling, that the yashmak-veiled woman in the restaurant and the gray limousine really was Grace Draper? ?"
 "W'hat Did You Mean?"
 You're sure they weren't two sepa- rate women?" she asked sharply.
 No I saw the same woman in both places," I returned. T noticed little things about her dress which could not have been duplicated"
 Then unless that limousine trai- ing you was all in your imagination and I've never noticed symptoms of lunacy in you--the lady was our dear old friend" she replied with convic- tion. And it behooves you to be strictly on your guard. Harry gave you some mighty good advice. Poor old Harry Fine finish for man of his caibre, glorified stool pigeon in a mob like that, But it's good thing for you he's there, with two such jungle creatures as Smith and Grace Draper roaming around. He'd kill and be killed before he'd permit you to be harmed"
 Her manner was as detached in speaking of the man who had seen her husband to whom she is still legally tied--as if he were but 8 cas- ual acquaintance. But 1 recognized the bitter note in her voice, knew that despite the absence in her heart of anything like love for him, yet there were memories connected with him to which she was not exactly in different. To divert her attention l put the first question which came in to my mind.