San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1925-10-18
CONTINUED from Page ~.

at the inn, but when a lighted
lamp was held high above his head
by Carlos, the innkeeper - when
the binding effect of rage had
subsidized somewhat, she recognized
Lady Pinter!
And Sarling was standing i'm
mediately behind her ladyship.
And behind Sarling was the
woman, Marie, the wife Of Charl-
ton, and behind her Groves, the
creature with the bloated, port
wine face. They couldn't speak
for moment; they were stunned
by the extraordinary scene within
the room.
Sarling's face was white with
terror; Lady Pinter, bold a second
before. Maybe, was transfixed;
the woman, Marie was gaping.
And on the floor at their feet,
within yard of the threshold. was
the cowed and beaten Charlton. He
had fallen on his knees, his feet to
the doorway. From where she was
standing, Tina could see the barbed
farpa, hanging down his back; and
a thick, dark stream was trucking
down the blue, silk pajamas.
The crowd in the doorway had no
eyes for the striking figure of the
tortured Tina; they were too
amazed by the unexpected drama
which had unfolded itself before
them the instant the door was
opened.
They had carefully prepared
themselves for the scene of inf
deity which Charlton had been 20
certain he could simulate: their
part in the infamous plot was to
discover" the perfidy and duly
describe it in modest voice when
they should be called to the wit
ness box in the divorce proceed
ings-proceedings which might be
obviated if John Humphrey Were
disposed to pay the price of shut
ting up the scandal.
The subterfuge whereby Lady
Pinter and Sarling were to be re- I
called hurriedly to Lisbon had been
successful to a point; they had
gone no further than the inn
beneath the foot of the hills in the
distance to meet the woman Marie
and her agent. They had believed
that every move in the degrading
plot would work smoothly and with
more than a semblance of veri-
similitude.
Tina, they had reasoned among
themselves, was much too unsophis-
ticated to divine the truth; she
would be caught, flagrante delicto
it would be sufficient for their
loathsome enterprise if the two
were found in the room; their evil
dence would overwhelm hers and
there would be Carlos to support
it. Oh, it had all seemed so de-
lightfully simple: Marie, the wife,
with her outraged feelings; Lady
Pinter struck with horror by the
RIGHTEOUSNESS of Charlton and
the subtle cunning of the sup
posedly innocent country girl
whom she had brought to Portugal
while her dear husband was pur-
suing his business in another con-
tinent.
Lady Pinter was struck with
horror. She had made no allow
ance for the modernity of which
she was so prone to talk-the mod
ernity of a young athletic woman
who is not afraid to match her
physical strength against that of
a degenerate male.
Charlton had been beaten into
a state of utter collapse. His eyes
were discolored, his lips were
bleeding, the wound in his back
where the farpa had struck must
have agonized. from his appear
ance, he might have been the OBJ
jet of a brutal attack by hooli-
gans. 1t was difficult to believe
that his only assailant was the
painting little woman at the other
side of the room. Difficult to be-
lieve? Hardly.
Tina, the red-haired mink, was
magnificent now, as she stood fac
ing her accusers, for such she
rightly judged them TO be. the
innocent mind was innocent no
longer; she had sensed the plot;