Evening star., 1926-08-22
BY LUCIAN GARY
Ahead.

longer hate, but you will quite simply
and courageous::y do the thing that
you have to do
They talked about that endlessly.
! Gertrude went over and over the same
ground with him. trying to make him
see that he could no longer salve his
| pride by concealing the facts about
| Jane. She had to lead him back again
and again to the idea of permitting
| James condition to become public. 1t
| was o'clock i'm the morning when he
looked at bis watch and apOlogiZed for
keeping her so late.
Gertrude felt that she had won her
case; that if Jane Maple had come
home Philip would lock her in her
, room and look at once for a lawyer
and a physician and begin the process
! of having her committed to a sani-
tarium. MeaDwhile, she was tired.
Back III her own room she picked mp
| her novel. but she could not read. She
remembered that she had the next day
Il luncheon engagement in town with
Frieda Remington. Frieda WAS her
best friend. And Archie would be com
ing in on his way home from Virginia.
Gertrude fell asleep.
K x
GERTRUDE entered the lobby Of
~ the St Francis promptly at
; o'clock. but for once Freda's bright
head was there before her.
MY dear" F'rieda cried and her
face took on the deepest concern. you
| haven't heard?"
Il haven't heard anything awful"
Gertrude said.
Frieda put her hand on Gertrudes $
arm as If 10 steady her against a
shock. Gertrude saw that Frieda had
hastily folded newspaper in the
other hand.
LANE Maple is dead
"Wha a-a-at." Gertrude cried
"Come,"' F'reda said, lets get a
table in corner where we can talk"
Suicide" Gertrude asked.
"Appa re,tly not" t'rieda said.
Come, let $ get q table
! Let me see that paper
wait till we've found corner"
f'vieda insisted.
Let me see that paper"
t'rieda reluctantly unfolded the
newspaper. Clear across ran the head
line:
Jane Maple Shot. husband Held"
Gertrude skipped to the first para
graph Of the story as they walked into
the cafe OF the St. Francis.
x !; :: x
DHILIP MAPLE had te!ephoned the
police OF tIS East lt3fNlcn station
at half past in the morning to no.
tify them that he had found his wife
with bullet through her heart. The
police surgeon declared that Jane Ma
pie had been dead for from three TO
four hours when he examined the body
at o'clock in the morning. Philip
Maple said that he had been out of
town: had returned shortly before mid
night to find the house empty: had
gone out again. When he got back
after { o'clock in the morning he had
found his wife dead. But when he was
asked to tell where he had been be-
tween midnight and O'Clock he re-
fused. The police had promptly ar
rested him.
Gertrude looked at F'rieda.
You don't think he shot Jane"
Il can't believe it," F'rieda said
and hesita ted. But" she concluded
"why won't he tell where lie was?"
Because he's a man, and therefore
a fool" Gertrude said sharply.
You think he was with some other
woman?"
Gertrude felt suddenly calm.
Philips refusal to tell where he was
had made everything as difficult as
possible His impulse had been TO
shield her from scandal. He had made
1t certain that when the truth came
out some people would think she had
been having q love affair with him.
But she WAS innocent. II she told the
truth quite boldly and simply, no one
who mattered would doubt her.