Coulee City dispatch. [volume] (Coulee City, Wash.) 19??-19??, 1939-08-24
CHAPTER VIII


The evening wrap which Jane
wore with her old white chiffon was
of a bright Madonna blue with a
black fur collar. Jane, as has been
said, loved clear color, and when
she dyed dingy things she brought
them forth lovely to the eye and
tremendously picturesque.
Frederick's house was a place
where polished floors seemed to dis
solve in pools of golden light, where
a grand staircase led up to balco-
MES, where the ceilings were almost
incredibly high, the vistas almost
incredibly remote. Frederick, COM
ing towards her through those pools
of golden light blonde, big and
smiling, brought swift memory of
another blonde and heroic figure,
not in evening clothes-but in silver
armor-'Nun sci bedankt, mein lie
Der Schwan," Lohengrin! That was
it.
"a fat Lohengrin, she amended,
maliciously.
Unaware of this devastating esti-
mate, Frederick welcomed her with
the air of Cophetua. He was I'M
conscious of his attitude of conde-
scension. He was much attracted,
but he knew, of course, that his in
terest in her would be a great thing
for the little girl.
And he was interested. A queer
thing had happened to him-a thing
which clashed with all his theories,
broke down the logic of his pre-
vious arguments. He had fallen in
love with little Jane Barnes, at first
sight if you please-like crude boy.
And he wanted her for his wife. It
was an almost unbelievable situa-
ton. There had been so many wom-
en- he might have married. Lowell
er women than Jane, wittier, more
distinguished, richer-of more as
sured social standing. He could
have had the pick Of them, yet not
one of them had he wanted. Here
was little Jane Barnes, bobbed hair,
boyish, slender, quaint in her cheap
clothes, and he could see no one
else at the head of his table, no one
else by his side in the big car, no
one else to share the glamorous
days of honeymoon, and the life
which was to follow.
And so when young Baldwin had
telephoned of Edith's plans, there
had leaped into Towne's mind the
realization of his opportunity. He
would see Jane among his house.
hold gods. And he would see her
alone. He had sent Briggs in time
to have her there before the others
arrived.
And now Fate had played further
into his hands. GIVE had another
message from Edith" he told her;
well have to eat dinner without
them. The fog caught them south
of Alexandria, and they went into a
ditch. They will eat at the nearest
hotel while the car is being fixed
up"
"Baldy's car always breaks at
psychological moments" said Jane.
eff it hadn't broken down on the
bridge, he wouldn't have found your
niece"
"And I wouldn't have known you"
he was smiling at her. "Who
would ever have believed that so
much hung on so little"
And now Waldron, the butler, an
nounced dinner-and Jane entering
the dining-room felt dwarfed by the
Gargantuan tables, the high-backed
ecclesiastical chairs, the tall silver
candlesticks with their orange can
dies.
"Your color" Towne told her.
"You see I remembered your knit
ting"
"I'm crazy about brilliant wools,"
said Jane; "some day I am going
to open shop and sell them"
But he knew that she would not
open shop. "You were like some
lovely bird-an oriole, perhaps, with
your orange and black
(TO BE CONTINUED