The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1923-05-13


IN FAR OFF INDIA, at that moment, the
Keepers of the Word were shaving their
eyebrows and sprinklng their hair with
dust; along the Romany patteran the for
tune-tellers' booths were closing; and the
chosen sons of Confucius in the mountains
Of Asia were lowering their aged eyes from
the stars and bowling their heads in awe
some meditation.
The event of thousand years had hap
pened. Fate had foreshadowed to the mo-
ment the time of mans death; and he had
been told.
This, at any rate, was the curious series
of pictures that rose before John Pyne's
mind while the withered, dirty old gypsy
woman was Speaking. He felt prickle of
gooseflesh even while he tried to laugh at
what she had told him. His forced laugh
stopped rather abruptly when she refused
his silver and with aged haste shuffled her
gaudy clothes and bangles out of sight be-
hind one of the canvas covered wagons Of
the caravan.
He turned at touch on his arm to
find his sister looking up at him with
frightened brown eyes.
''You heard here" he laughed. ri
thought you were looking at the horses"
ooh, John!' she gasped. Her TALL slen-
der figure, in the blue tailored suit, seemed
to shrink. Her brown eyes were wide. John
slipped his arm about her shoulders and
drew her toward their waiting lead-gray
roadster.
.She says 1 am going to die this aft
ernoon at o'clock. 1t is ridiculous" he
insisted. at is supersttious to believe such
stuff. I got her to read my palm just to
pass the time while waiting for you. Helen
Suydam is coming to take walk with you
at 5. Her husband is coming later, in time
for o'clock dinner. And we're going to
play bridge afterwards. Nothing danger
Gus about that! And l was never in bet
ter health. Now for heavens sake don't
worry about it, Constance"
John Pyne, after his football years at
Harvard, had been successful broker. He
knew that in his pepper and salt suit and
stiff straw hat he was at that moment the
picture of health. And he had never felt
better. 1t was funny, though, how these
gypsies could give you the creeps
He and his sister Constance lived to-
gether in . white Colonial house, set back
from the road in rather solitary subur-
ban neighborhood. In the rear of the house
the boulder-strewn green rolled unbroken
to the river; on either side reached de-
serted meadows; and the nearest neighbors
were half mile away. AS they drew up
at their tin garage, Spike, their brindled
bull pup, came bounding across the lawn
and stood with his paws against the mud
guard, lashing himself with his white
tipped tail, yapping and showing the black
roof of his mouth in pleasure and excite
ment.
"Down, Spikew commanded Constance.
Her voice trembled, and Spike, sensing
her fear, dropped his tail and began smell
ing about the yard.
'Tm awfully sorry you're bothered by
this" said John as they entered the draw
ing room, land just to please you I'll do
anything you say. Let's see-it's nearly
o'clock now. Suppose we postpone dinner
till 80, and meanwhile I'll lock myself in
my ROOM"
"The first thing, cried Constance, OPEN
ing the drawer of the writing desk, "is to
throw this hateful thing away!'
"Wait a minute" John objected. He
took the revolver from her and opened it.
"You see, there's one cartridge in it. Bet
ter take that out. Here, we'll put it in
the drawer. Now what shall we do with the
revolver?"
"Throw it ont in the garden"
mo. Someone might pick it up. Happen
to have . cartridge, and fire it At me-"
"Bury It then! Bury it down in the eel
larl"