New Britain herald., 1925-10-14

: and entered the house, picking UP
: the grip as heidi SO, The bag
vas heavy and evidently well filled.
, The stranger was standing In the
hall. contemplating with plain dis
favor a knight In armor, or, rather,
} 4 suit Of armor that had no Knight
within. He turned as Horace ap-
peared.
where are the Children" he
. asked.
Horace stared. The familiarity Of
the question jolted him. He did not
know this person who asked for
"the children" but he did know
that he was an utter stranger to
the Brooke mansion.
mfr. Brooke is not at home yet,
sir"
Certainly not. He won't be.
Where are the children"
The stranger whipped off his
overcoat and handed that garment,
together with his hat to Horace,
who received them mechanically.
after the fashion of an excellent
servant Yet the butler, for all his
outward calm, was an agitated per-
son within. Mr.. Brooke would not
be there? Extraordinary! Yes, even
ominous. Such thing had never
happened before. Where was he?
Horace inVountarily lance
downward at the grip, which he
lSft al 81
Could it be possible that his master
- Oh. horrors, no!
'"Fhe children are In the library,
sir to the right
The stranger wheeled and walked
quickly in the given direction. AS
he disappeared through the por-
there's Horace was still standing in
the hall, clinging to his burden and
staring with open mouth.
The library of the Brooke man.
sion was very large room, nearly
half OF the width of the house and
more than half its depth. 1t was a
real library; that is, it contained
books. Two PAGES inside the door
way the stranger paused and
glanced alertly about him.
off in the far corner was a young
man, yaWning over newspaper In
the embrasure of a window was
half-groWn girl, staring idly down
at the lawn. Near the center of the
room, directly In front of the visi-
tor sat young woman, carelessly
turning the pages of a magazine.
Hello, daddy" she said, without
looking up. Just SECOND and I'll
kiss you"
VERY good" said the stranger,
Constance Brooke leaped from
her chair with a cry Of dismay and
| confronted a man whom she had
never before beheld. The young man
came out of the far corner, tossed
his newspaper aside and ranged
himself by the side of his sister. |
The girl in the window turned and
| stared.
Il - ] thought you were my
father" stammered Constance, her
cheeks red.
His representative" said the
His rep Isn't he here? Didn't
he come home with your"
mo; he didn't come home with
me. He is not coming home"
He's hurt"
Not at all. He is we'll. Ill ex-
plain Sit down. Here's my card"
There was something brusque as
we'll as brisk about the stranger.
He talked as one with authority.
An air of complete confidence fitted
him as snugly as his well-eut
clothes. His voice was by no means
unpleasant, yet it had a certain ring
of command that was not grateful
to the ear.
Miss Constance Brooke, / be-
lieve?" inquired the stranger, as he
produced his card-case.
Yes-certainly."
Mr.. William Brooke?" glancing
at the young man.
That person nodded.
And Miss Alice" continued the
stranger. with a nod in the direc-
tionuon of the young girl. who had
now Joined the group,
Yes; my sister" supplied the
elder girl.
The stranger took a step forward
and presented a small bit of paste
board. The three Brooke children,
their heads close together read:
Fl. HEDGE, E. E.
Then they looked up at the
stranger, He was unfolding a docu-
ment of foolscap size. In the lower
left-hand corner they glimpsed a
large red seal. The stranger began
to read:
II, John W. Brooke, during the .
period of my absence from home,
do hereby appoint and constitute ar
head of my domestic household one
Henry Hedge, the bearer Of this
document upon whom confer full
authority to manage said household
in every respect, TO care for It,
maintain It, guard it, and In every
manner provide for its needs and
its security. l do designate the said
Henry Hodge as tho personal
= 'ieil uI6liI VI NY CIIIuItut NlllldHl
W., Constance T., and Alice, and |
confer upon him, during my alb
sence, all such authority as ! pos
sess concerning them, l hereby
charge my said children to obey
the said Henry Hedge In all things,
and TO accord TO him that respect
to which he, as their guardian, is
by right entitled, And / do charge
my servants. now in my employ or
who may hereafter be in my en-
ploy, to obey the said Henry
Hedge, so long as this document
shall be of force and effect. And ]
declare that this document and its
possession by the said Henry Hedge
shall constitute full and ample war
rant of authority for him to act as
| have above charged.