Evening star., 1925-08-12

| mot necessa rily food" he inter
rupted, as they selected their easy
chairs. There were the wines-that
Chateau Yquem, for instance. Ter
rible to drink II after champagne, but
it was a dream"
How long are you going TO stay
in the States?" she asked.
Until you're grown up, he replied
Then I'm coming back to see what
sort of a woman you have become
You will probably find me married
to Bobby Lanca ster." she warned him.
| He proposed to me tonight In an
entirely different way and I was really
touched. / don't see why one should
! wait forever for a man who never
| asks one, and who talks about going
to the other end of the world as
though he was slipping into Correct S
to have his hair cut"
| Meaning me?"
| Meaning you"
For a single moment Grant felt that
he had exchanged his 81 years for her
| 10. She was smiling at him with all
the gentle savoir faire of a woman of
the world. He himself was embar-
| rassed.
Aren't you by way OF being an
extremist" he inquired. Even if one
| Sedate middle age, ii seems rather a
pity for you to marry into the
nursery"
Bobby is "a" she declared indig-
| nantly.
You amaze me-" he confessed.
| But consider those "a years. We will
| leave out the perambulator stages.
| Fifteen to nineteen at Eton-cricket
and raCkets. Twenty to tWenty-four,
| "a guardSman-rather more cricket.
rather more rackets. 1t is a full and
busy life. child, but it makes for
| youth"
She smiled serenely.
You don't understand" she rem
onstrated. Cricket is almost our re-
| ligion. I asked the Captain of the
Australians to marry me when 1 was
| IA"
He spared you?"
She nodded.
HE gave me his daughters photo
graph. She was much older than 1
was, very thin and she squinted. 1t
| wasn't really a romance-it was
cricket"
rs Bobby any good?" he asked.
She sighed.
That's rather the pity of it," she
admitted. He very seldom makes
| any runs and he has 95 different ex-
cuses. or rather explanations, for the
way in which he got out"
Il don't think I'm missing much in
| cricket Grant reflected. Il played
halfback for Harvard. Foot ball ism
bad game. you know"
She looked at him sympathetically.
| That must have been back in the
| dim past" she observed. Long be-
fore the sedate middle-aged feeling
came upon you"
Susan. I want to tell YOU this.
You're a delightful child and an anus
| ing tomboy, and I've often wished that
you were just few years older"
| Why" she demanded breathlessly.
| Never mind. But, in addition to
youth. you have a brain. and you're
one of the pluckiest girls I've ever had
| with me in a tight corner. Don't
think I've forgotten it, because I
haven't"
| Rubbish she laughed.
And I'm going to say this to YOU"
he continued, turning toward her, so
| that she suddenly saw that he was in
earnest, and became very still indeed.
| I've got a half.finished job on my
hands, and how it will turn out I don't
know. 1t will be a matter of six
months before I'm through. When
I'm through I'm coming right back,
And, Susan, 1 don't want to say too
much, but don't think those boys are
/ going to be quite what you deserve in
I life. It's horrible to feel a little too
old"
| She suddenly gripped his hand.
| Idiot" she murmured. You're not
a bit too old. 1 wouldn't marry Bobby
Lancaster if he were the last man on
earth"
She was looking at him with a sus-
picious mistiness in her eyes. Her
mouth was quivering just a little.
And then it all passed. She was her
self again-slim. girlish, delightful,
with the audacity of a child and the
! certain promise of the woman's beauty
in her delicate immaturity.
II don't know how I can trust you
to cross the Atlantic alone" she
laughed How many of the crew of
the Grey Lady have you sacked?"
Not one" he admitted i've for
given them all. You don't think Blum
is going to smuggle himself and a
few desperate plotters on board, do
you? Or put an Internal machine
there to blow me sky-high?"
! She shook her head
| I'm half honest" she said, thought
fully, when 1 tell you frankly that I
don't like letting you go alone. You,
in your sedate middle age, do need a
little looking after sometimes, YOU
| know - somebody with the common
| sense of youth. However, it's just an
| idea, l suppose. wish you luck in
America, Grant"
| will you wish me a safe return?"
he asked.
Once more she looked at him. He
| felt the peace of a great understand
| ing in his heart. Those were not the
eyes of a child.
Yes" she answered. II hope YOU
will come back safe and SOON"
At few minutes after 10 the next
| morning the Blue Peter was flying
| from the masthead of the Grey LADY
and the last of little stream of
tradespeople were leaving the yacht.
There was the usual crowd of loungers
upon the dock TO watch the departure
and on the bridge Lord YeoviI and
Grant were standing a little aside,
talking.
IF anything could make me a. con.
vert to your somewhat alarmist point
of view, Slattery, Blunn's behavior
last night would do It," the former ac.
/ knowledged, after little desultorv
conversation upon the events of the
evening before. II still don't under
stand what was at the back of his
mind"
Il can tell you" Grant said. "You'I
find a copy of that speech will appear
broadcast throughout America. Cor
nelius Blum, the Great Shipping Mag
nate, Entertains Prime Minister oi
Great Britain, to Celebrate Invitation
to the United States to Join the Pact
of Nations That's the sort of head
line you'll see in every paper which
counts. Every word he said will ap
pear verbatim. It's wonderful propa
ganda for Germany"
He stole a march on me, Tn
afraid" was the somewhat rueful ad
mission.
Never mind" Grant consoled him
We've won the first bout, after all
and Blum knows 1t. For all his care