The Waterbury Democrat., 1931-01-19

suggested he go look for Sprague." | And how long was he gone from the porch?" Dundee asked. | Less than no time." Penny as- sured him. He was back before Polly had finished playing the hand. He said he'd gone to the hall closet, where Whitson. the butler, would have put Sprague's hat and stick, ard that he had found they were gone. Tracey said he supposed Sprague had ordered his taxi and had decided to walk down the hill to meet t, and he added that that was exa :tly the kind of courtesy you could expect from a cad and a | bCunder like Sprague-walking ;n | urinvited, making Karen cry, then | walking out. without a word, leav- | ing the game while he was dummy Flora spoke up then and said II was no wonder Dexter had left | without Gaying goodby, considering how he'd been treated. Then Tracey said something ugly and sarcastic about Flora's being disappointed because Sprague had decided not TO sEend the whole evening""
 "A first-class row, eh?" Dundee interrupted, with keen interest | Rather! Flora almost cried, said Tracey knew good and well that she had only been playing up to Sprasue before Nitas death, in tEe hope of getting the lead in the Hamilton movie, if Sprague got the jcb of directing it, and Tracey said, 50 you call it playing-up, do you ? It looked like high-powered flirting to me-or maybe it was more than T filtration! Then Flora told him he hadn't acted jealous at the time and that he knew he'd have been glal if she'd got the lead. . . {. Well, just then along came Janet-'
 Janet Raymond?" Dundee ejacu- lated. 'I thought you said she had refused ;he invitation when Mrs Miles phoned her"
 ''So she had, but she said she changed her mind, had been blue all evening and needed cheering up."
 How did she get in?"
 "She walked over from her house, which isn't very far from the Mileses. and simply came up the path to tLe porch" Penny explain ed. "Traccy asked her if she had seen SpTague on the road-its the same road Dexter would have had to take going down the hill to the main road--and she acted awfully queer"
 "How?" Dundee demanded.
 Exactly as she would act, since she was in love with him." Penny retorted. She turned very red, and asked if Sprague had inquired for her, and Flora quite sharply told her he hadn't. Then Janet said she was very much surprised that Sprague had been there, and that she couldn't understand why he had behaved 50 strangely. Then Lois said she might as well go fetch Peter from the library since Sprague was no !; nger there to contaminate the atmosphere. She came back"
 After lew long a time?" | "Oh, ..bout five minutes, I sup rose." Penny answered wearily. "She came in, her arm linked with Peters t-nd laughing. Said she had found him reading 'Deadwood Dick thriller. One of Tracey's hobbies'-she broke up to explain lis collecting old fashioned thriIl- CTS, like the Nick Carter, Buffalo Bill and Deadwood Dick paper bound books. Of course he didn't take up that hobby until lot of other rich men had done it first. There was never anybody less orig inal thaa poor Tracey. '. Well, Flora gave up her place to Janet, and again played anagrams with Johnny, Peter taking his original place at our table. Suddenly Polly threw down her cards-she'd been having rotten luck and seemed out of sorts-and said she didn't want to play bridge any more. So poor Flora had to be the perfect hostess and switch from anagrams 10 bridge"
 And Polly played anagrams with Drake?" Dundee prompted.
 No. She said she thought ana grams were silly, and wandered off the porch and down the path call iLg over her shoulder that she Was going to take a walk. Tracey asked Johnny if he'd mind mixing :he highballs and bringing out the sandwiches. Said Whitson had left thermos bucket of ice cubes On the sideboard. some bottles of ginger ale, and a tray of glasses and sandwiches. Told him he'd find decanters Of Scotch and rye, and 10 bring out both.'
 "So Drake left the room, too," Dundee .rused. "Oh. Lord. I knew I d find 'kat every last one of the six had q chance to kill Sprague, as well as N,ta! How long was Polly Beale gone on this walk of hers?"
 "She came in with a pink water lily-said she'd been down to the lily ponls, and that Flora had enough Co spare her one," Penny answered. "SIc couldn't have been away more than 10 minutes, be- cause Johnny was just mixing the hghballs, according to our prefer ginger aia, which both Ralph and l chose. After we'd had our drinxs and the sandwiches, we went on with bridge. Polly and Johnny just wandered about the porch CT watched he game at the two tables And about five minutes after II Give Hammond arrived, coming up the path to the porch, just as Janet had. After he came, there was no more bridge, but we sat around on the porch and talked until mia night. Give said he was too tired to play tridge that he'd been struggling all evening with a knotty problem
 "I can sympathize with him." Dundee said grimly, as he rose. I've got my own knotty problem awaiting ne. When that call comes through from Chicago. tell Sandersor the bad news, and say I'll telephone him later"
 tTo Be ContInued)