Evening star., 1925-02-01

| trayed little signs of age creeping
upon the body OF Mr.. Pogarty. But
| he also spoke mumblingly because
! his teeth were out, and Col. Calhoun
| of the board was quite certain the
| old devil had put on inches and
| a stone since last year"
Sir Wilmot shrugged. We'll, well.
| that's the way of life, Colonel. We
all come to it, you know. Though /
| must say 1 always admired old
Pogarty's fgure-sort OF hoped I
| might wear half as well when the
ffties loomed ahead. But he GER
tainly has cracked up. His teeth have
all gone to pot, too"
'Um-looks bad. Not quite the
thing. Man can't talk decently to
our class of clients. Not quite the
| thing. Looks bad"
Yes. well, there it Is. His articu-
lation, l know, is painfully senile
but / understand he has some miser-
able affection of the gums. They are
| so beastly soft and tender II is abso-
lutely impossible for him to wear
| false teeth. Poor old boy has my
sympathy, but-ah!--as you say"
The other half of Mr. Jerold
Pogarty remained exactly as the real
Mr.. Pogarty always was. The only
thing that changed in him was his
| name. which was Mr.. Wilfrid Wilder
son. He was smart, neat, dapper
little gentleman with a delightful
little place down at st. Albans. He
fell quite in love with the old city;
he loved it's quiet peace and the taste
full tone of its residential quarters.
Indeed, his one regret was that his
Wretchedly plebeian business I'M
posed necessary absences upon him.
for Mr.. Wilfrid Wilderson was a
dried fruit importer with many busi-
ness connections at what he was
pleased to call the smelly end of the
Mediterranean.
For two years without a break he
sedulously cultivated the atmosphere
or his new entity. Two years was the
lowest limit Of time in which he con-
sidered he could safely accomplish
the metamorphosis. He took a metic-
ulous delight in it's gradual develop
ment, while the new conception of
Old Pogarty as gradually materialized
at the bank.
Each evening Mr.. Jerold Pogarty
of Norwood and Threadneedle Street
got into a first-class compartment of
the fast train down from st. Pancras.
and half an hour later Mr.. Wilfrid
| Wilderson of st. Adams and the
smelly end of the Mediterranean got
out.
TOWARD tho end of the second
year it was a very shuffiing figure
that got in; a figure that was over
at the knees. decidedly stout, spoke
with labial senility, wore a little
sandy-buf mustache, and bumped
into piles OF luggage in spite OF yer
strong glasses. He always got into
an empty compartment, an easy task
these days. On the way down he un-
wound a great many swathes OF very
fine silk from around his person
swathes that had been added to
month by month with studied care
He took off his sandy-buff mustache,
discarded his pebble glasses. inserted
double set of very perfect false
teeth, squared his shoulders, straight
ened his knees, and dapper little Mr.
Wilfrid Wilderson got out.
In St. Albans he established his own
perfectly regulated menage. He paid
! a bank account there, posted letters
and circulars to himself there, called
| himself up now and then on the
telephone, and on several occasions
telegraphed to himself to go in a
hurry to the smelly end of the
Mediterranean. He entertained his
own little circle OF friends there, and
was entertained in return. He was
barbered and tailored and haber-
dashed there and registered his vote
| in the council elections. He wrote
letters to the local police, to keep
his eye on his little place during his
necessary absences.
Inspector Gorrel liked him very
nj nlI
ty." he declared in the messroom.
We could do with a few more like
him in the city. Gave me a tenner
for the fund with all the pleasure in
the world. he did. What's that, my
dear Gorrel.' he says; the Police
Orphanage2 Most decidedly I will
give you something. Mustn't let the
little Riddles suffer, must we? I'd
like to make IL more, but this
wretched Smyrna business has played
the deuce with dried fruit he says.
I think I shall make it an annual
subscriptions; come along and see me
every year he says, anu handed me
over a tenner as though 1t was no
more than a tanner"
Good old sport. Dried fruits. is
he?"
YES. Travels goodish deal where
that stuff grows. That's why he has
to go away sometimes. But he says
he is retiring very soon, and maybe
will settle down here permanently"
He always stayed in st. Adams
overnight and had breakfast about
8 o'clock. His housekeeper was a
quiet, staid old soul who superin-
tended such matters for him with
comfortable care. Except at week
ends he never troubled her again till
after tea. He had friends in Harpen-
den, Luton, Hitchin, Watford, and all
the little country towns around, whom
he was frequently visiting. His
housekeeper could testify to that.
But after breakfasting, Mr.. Will
frid Wilderson did not go out pay
o'clock fast train to st. Pancras, en-
route for Threadneedle street, and a
days labor that was an absolute mod
el of dignified propriety.
He took very real delight in per-
fecting his two personalities. They
lived in his heart as completely as a
masterpiece lives in the soul OF an
artist. Throughout the long course
of the two years he applied himself
with infinite care to the detection Of
weaknesses or possibilities of I'M
provements in his plan. Thus one
day it appeared that old Pogarty' s
hearing was not what it used to be.
He Md developed an annoying habit
Of saying "Eh?" with his hand be-
hind his ear when juniors spoke to
him, and II beg your pardon?" when
addressed by the board. That came
about after overhearing a chance re-
mark OF Gorrers to the station SER
geant. Eyes like an 'awk and ears
like a pointer, he has," whispered
that gentleman with proprietary
pride when Wilderson stopped him
in the street to give him another
subscription to the Police Orphanage
Fund He saw in the remark yet
anofher opOortunfty of Creating an