Evening star., 1925-02-22

OO hEE- L.
with flushed cheeks. when you
think you're deserted, and the whole
island is laughing at you -. Oh,
by the way, 1 think he's taking 1t
pretty hard. He's shut himself up
since yesterday, and never come out
of his room"
Hes not the only one" stated
Cameron coolly. "Strake is shut up
in mine, with the door locked"
"Oh! Why"
Thought it safer. He came to me
himself-cringing. Afraid they'd
lynch him or something. once it was
known. Don't tell any one where he is.
Well smuggle him off by the next
boat We don't owe him grudge, do
we. Con?"
NO" laughed the girl. How did
you find out?"
"By the merest chance-a group
photo of your sisters wedding. You
were in il, you know, so l kept It
And a man at the hotel where I was
staying recognized Strake as a fellow
named Smith, who had been dissent
ing minister in little hole in New
Zealand years ago. and left under a
cloud. He didn't remember what IL
was. But he said he could swear to
the face. So / got detectives on, and
they worked il out before the boat
sailed-enough to go on with. any
how. Heavens, If I'd missed the boat"
"Oh. don't think of itt shuddered
the girl Thank Heaven you came in
time. And Smith-Strake-ac
edged 1t when you tackled him."
Pretty well. He cringed a lot and
said Ii was hard on a man, and he
didn't know what to do. ] couldn't
quite get the hang of what he was
saying, But he did acknowledge that
he was Smith, and not Strake. He
seemed sort of hysterical. think he
drugs. / couldn't get him to talk con-
secutively: he only wanted me to
save him. so / saved him by locking
him in my bedroom, where he'll be
roasted alive with the heat, by the
way. and came along to tell about It
My hat, Con, there is a row.
Let them row." said Consuelo with
supreme selfshness. You and 1 are
all right. Hush. here's AL.
X
A LICE came in crying. Almost
n all the women on Tarabora were
crying that day.
"oh, isn't it dreadful" she sobbed
Jim and I aren't married-the Car
ricks-the Sharmans-nobody ist
Don't worry, they'll rush the act
through at once, and it'll be all right.
consoled Cameron. Besides, some
people are married. Strake didn't mar
ry them all. Still, there's a deuce OF
lot of the others. and I don't sup
pose they'll all take it as you and
Jim will.''
How do you mean?"
Well, the same thing happened in
England, once. And when they went
round getting the list of all the
people whose marriages had to be
legalfzed, there were quite a few who
said they'd rather have it let alone
"Oh,"
''Yes, it is oh. There'll be trouble
on Tarabora, or I'm much mistaken
Well, I'm going to. look after that
scaly beast in my room, and shake a
few more details out of him, IL L can. "
Trouble on Tarabora, There was
something more than trouble that
afternoon. 1t happened to be Saturday
IL 1T had not been. I think the staff
would have revolted from duty How
could any one have attended to weed
ing and plowing and bookkeeping
and engine-driving with half the
marriages OF the island in the cru
chile?
Jim. it's awful" confided Alice
to the man she had always called
her husband. Thank Heaven, you're
all right"
Thank Heaven you are yourself. -
How could ] be anything else
But Mrs. Carrick ran right out of
the house when she heard, and said
she was free at last. And the secre-
tary called at once-at once, what
do you think of that?-on- Kitty
Wilson. who they say-they say she
has always
81 know
"And Mrs. Churchill is walking up
and down the road, waiting for the
undermanager of Lararua to come
In. And Joe Winter has gone no one
knows where, but everybody guesses,
and poor Garry Winter-you know,
she's nine years older-has got heart
attack over it. And Jameson, the
tram man, came back from the other
side of the island; he hadn't heard
a thing about it-and his wife met
him at the gate and flung his ring
in his face and said she was going
to the doctor's. But when she got
there the doctor was making love to
the matron, and his Wife"
"Whose?"
1.-The doctor's-was hunting through
the surgery for poisons, SO Mrs.
Jameson ran and told them, and
they only stopped her in time. Jim,
it's like the end of the world"
X X
COME one came up the steps of the
veranda. Alice, overwrought,
shrieked out and chung to Jim. He
patted her like a kitten and look ed
over her shoulder 1t was Cameron
coming back.
Where's Consuelo?" he said, and
passed his tongue over his lips.
They seemed to be dry. In the star
ing light of Garland's cheap kerosene
lamp he looked curiously pale.
Whats wrong now?" inquired
Garland, gently placing Alice on the
lounge.
Everything II mean nothing
answered Cameron. Have you
any"
.1-you're all right. Every ones
all right he said. "You can go out
and tell them. There was something
we--I-didn'e Know. Where's Con?''