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-The Project Gutenberg EBook of It Pays to Smile, by Nina Wilcox Putnam
-
-This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
-almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
-re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
-with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
-
-
-Title: It Pays to Smile
-
-Author: Nina Wilcox Putnam
-
-Release Date: May 23, 2013 [EBook #42772]
-
-Language: English
-
-Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
-
-*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK IT PAYS TO SMILE ***
-
-
-
-
-Produced by Annie McGuire. This book was produced from
-scanned images of public domain material from the Google
-Print archive.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-IT PAYS TO SMILE
-       *       *       *       *       *
-NINA WILCOX PUTNAM
-
-
-
-
-It Pays to Smile
-
-       *       *       *       *       *
-
-By NINA WILCOX PUTNAM
-
-       *       *       *       *       *
-
-[Illustration]
-
-       *       *       *       *       *
-
-A. L. BURT COMPANY
-Publishers
-New York
-
-Published by arrangement with George H. Doran Company
-
-
-
-
-COPYRIGHT, 1920,
-BY GEORGE H. DORAN COMPANY
-COPYRIGHT, 1920, BY THE CURTIS PUBLISHING COMPANY
-
-
-
-
-TO
-GEORGE HORACE LORIMER
-THE ALL-AMERICAN EDITOR
-
-
-
-
-IT PAYS TO SMILE
-
-
-
-
-I
-
-
-Since the very beginnings of Boston my people, who were, as every school
-child knows, an integral part of the original colony, had the
-commendable habit of recording all those events which bore in a manner
-either psychological or physiological upon their households or upon the
-affairs of state, in which they were ever active. In truth I make small
-doubt that but for the Talbots there would have been no Boston, or at
-least certainly no information regarding it recorded in intelligible
-English. And though in my girlhood I conceived my ancestors' style to be
-a trifle jejune and was myself fond of lighter and more frivolous works
-such as those of Emerson and Walter Pater, a weakness to which I confess
-with all due humility, I nevertheless realize the importance of the
-writings of my family and the desirability of maintaining our tradition
-of making an accurate record of such pertinent events as come under my
-immediate observation in order that future generations in their search
-after truth may have a reliable monument to depend upon. And this
-resolve has been greatly strengthened by perusing the ill-written,
-outrageously sensational and ill-considered newspaper versions of the
-affair which has so recently brought our historic name into the public
-notice under such distressingly vulgar and conspicuous circumstances.
-
-Of course Talbot, the chauffeur, has enjoyed it all immensely, thereby
-to my mind proving once and for all that he has no genuine claim upon
-the name, and that his pretension of belonging to a younger Western
-branch is, as I have consistently maintained, absolutely fallacious. But
-I show weakness by digression. Permit me to recount the tale from its
-true beginning, which was, of course, my unfortunate answering of that
-advertisement in the _Transcript_.
-
-When the wretched thing came to my attention Euphemia and I were seated
-at the supper table; she at the head and I at the side--a custom she has
-insisted upon since our parents' death, her position being that due to
-the elder sister and the rightful head of the family; and the table has
-continued to be set thus, though at the time of my rebellion I was fifty
-and she sixty, and it was absurd that she should maintain a formality
-instituted when she was twenty and I was ten. I had often disputed with
-her about it, but to no avail.
-
-"My dear Freedom," she would rebuke me, "I am the elder and I know what
-is best for youth. So long as I am here this household shall be
-conducted properly!"
-
-And nothing served to move her from that point of view.
-
-Well, upon the portentous evening when my rebellion began we were
-sitting as usual, promptly at five-thirty, in the cheerful if shabby
-dining room of our vast and dilapidated old mansion on Chestnut Street,
-with the sun shining brightly upon the neatly darned table linen, the
-zinnias from the garden and the few remaining bits of family silver. It
-can hardly be said that Old Sol spread his refulgent glory upon very
-much to eat, for he did not, there being nothing but a pot of tea, four
-very thin half slices of toast and the evening _Transcript_. According
-to her custom Euphemia looked at this first herself.
-
-"I perceive that the Republican Party is indignant with the
-Administration," she informed me. "And that a mail service is to be
-established by air from New York. How shocking! The postman will very
-likely drop things from the aëroplane! I don't approve of the Government
-taking such risks with other people's letters. It is positively
-unseemly. Letters should be brought to one's door by a person with a
-blue coat and a whistle."
-
-"They probably will be," I ventured. "The radical changes in life only
-affect the big things at first."
-
-Euphemia gave me a sharp look.
-
-"Don't think too much, Freedom," she admonished me. "It is unfeminine in
-a younger person. And take care--your jabot almost went into your tea!"
-
-I set down the cup, which I had in truth been holding in such a way that
-my lace cravat was endangered. I am occasionally rather given to
-daydreaming; a reprehensibly slack mental habit of which I have been
-unable wholly to break myself, and I was grateful for the merited
-reproof. Well, I set down the cup and put out my hand for the newspaper,
-which Euphemia, having glanced at the headlines, had finished reading.
-Again she rebuked me, this time with a gesture, and rang the bell. I
-subsided until the fourteen-year-old colored girl who constituted our
-domestic staff made her appearance, enveloped in a white apron which
-gave her a curiously grown-up appearance when viewed from the front, as
-it had been intended for an adult and reached the floor, but which, seen
-from the rear, revealed her immaturity.
-
-"Galadia, hand this paper to Miss Freedom!" said Euphemia with dignity.
-And when the child had complied: "That is all; you may go!"
-
-And Galadia made her exit, slamming the kitchen door behind which her
-voice immediately rose in song:
-
-  _Kiss yo' Honey-Baby-Doll!_
-
-"Good heavens!" exclaimed my sister, rising in wrath. "What ever will
-become of that child?"
-
-And gathering her woolen shawl about her she swept into the kitchen, her
-cap strings tremulous with indignation, and I was left to a swift and
-guilty perusal of the newspaper. I use the adjective "guilty" because I
-knew how thoroughly Euphemia would disapprove of the section to which I,
-for the seventh time in as many days, turned. It was the advertising
-page that I selected, and my eagerness was resultant from a desperate
-resolution which I had secretly made.
-
-I was going to work.
-
-For the first time in the history of my ancient and honorable family, a
-female Talbot was seeking remunerative employment. Terrible as I knew
-this act to be I was unalterably resolved upon it, and was keeping my
-secret from my dear sister only until armed with actual employment, for
-I was but too well aware of what her attitude would be, and determined
-to waste no time in disputing a theoretical situation, but once
-strengthened by actually being engaged in some capacity I would face her
-wrath. Besides, were she to learn prematurely of my plan, she was quite
-capable of attempting to lock me in my chamber as a preventive measure.
-
-But though so long recreant in my decision to take what after mature
-consideration I deemed the right and proper course, it was not for
-nothing that my parents, despairing of ever being blessed with a son,
-had bestowed upon me the family name of Freedom. There had always been a
-male Freedom Talbot, and his tradition had ever justified his name; and
-at length I was determined to live up to it.
-
-My desperate decision had, of course, a pecuniary basis. We were poor;
-there is no denying it. Our parents had left us the house and an income
-of seven hundred a year, which for two maidens who would presumably
-marry was not insufficient in the day of our inheritance. But no mate
-ever having chosen either of us, or been chosen by either of us, and the
-cost of living having risen so inexplicably, our situation had gradually
-become greatly altered. Euphemia steadily opposed the idea of any
-remunerative work, no matter how genteel, and so far I had unwillingly
-submitted, the more readily because we were utterly without training or
-equipment. But when in a single week the tax on the house was increased
-simultaneously with the price of butter, my resolve took shape, and my
-perusal of the advertising sheets began.
-
-On this fateful evening the "Wanted" column at first appeared to be more
-than usually devoid of possibilities. There were the usual "Perfect
-36-38" for Jewish concerns that apparently manufactured clothing.
-Shopgirls were needed, and houseworkers, but I could not bring myself to
-either of these occupations except as a last resort. Typists were also
-desired, and bookkeepers; but I feared my lack of practical education
-would count against me. A traveling saleslady was wanted, and a book
-agent; and as I was pondering the possibilities set forth by these my
-eye fell upon the fateful notice which led to all my strange adventures.
-It was printed rather larger than its fellows, and set forth an
-extraordinary request.
-
-     WANTED: An indigent old lady of impeccable social standing, to act
-     as chaperon to a common young girl who is motherless. Must be
-     dowdy, incompetent, financially embarrassed, snobbish, and never
-     employed before. No pretenders will be considered. Excellent salary
-     and a chance to see the world. Apply Apartment --, Plaza Hotel,
-     between five and seven P.M.
-
-Conceive, if you can, the astonishment with which I perused this
-advertisement. Had I inserted it myself, stating the sort of position
-for which I was best fitted, I could in all candor have stated my case
-and situation no better. Indeed I was obliged to reread the notice
-several times before feeling able to credit my own senses. Then I tore
-the corner containing it from the paper, hastily concealed it in my
-reticule, refolded the remaining sheets in such a fashion as to conceal
-the damage done, and laid it, as was our custom, upon the files under
-the china closet.
-
-Then with quickly beating heart I got the porcelain tub and suds, spread
-the oilcloth upon the side table and completed my daily task of washing
-and putting away the tea china with fingers which trembled so that they
-were scarcely equal to the task.
-
-Then, when Galadia, who refused to dwell with us continuously, had been
-sent home to her parents, and Euphemia had settled herself to her
-crochet work in the drawing-room I stole upstairs, upon the pretext of a
-slight headache, and in the privacy of my chamber again perused that
-amazing scrap of paper.
-
-Could it by chance be the expression of some dull person's humor? Was it
-possibly a snare of some kind? But no, the last seemed improbable
-inasmuch as the requirements were a direct negation of anything which
-would appear desirable to the kidnapper or any such vicious character.
-Moreover, the address given inspired a degree of confidence, because,
-though I was under the impression that all expensive and fashionable
-hotels must be--well, not suitable for the conservative female element
-of our dear city to frequent, still there could be no real danger
-incident to a visit to them by a person like myself, who sought no evil.
-Considering this point I looked at my dear father's watch, which I
-always carried--Euphemia very properly having pre-empted mother's--and
-discovered that the hour was but six.
-
-Then my resolution took firm hold upon me, and without more ado I got
-out my bonnet and pinned it on with resolute fingers, found my best silk
-gloves, and taking my dolman and reticule crept softly down the stairs,
-excitement high within my breast.
-
-At the door of the once-elegant, now shabby reception room I paused to
-peek at Euphemia's unconscious back which was just visible, very stiff
-and correct, in the lonely drawing-room beyond. Fortunately she did not
-hear me, and having thus, as it were, silently saluted her, and feeling
-uncommonly like an errant daughter about to consummate an elopement, I
-shut the front door behind me with care and stepped forth into the
-roseate late afternoon sunlight and my desperate adventure.
-
-I find it difficult indeed to express the mixture of trepidation and
-elation which possessed me upon this occasion. The very streets,
-familiar since childhood, took on a strange aspect, and the walk to the
-hotel was magically shortened by my excitement, though on its threshold
-I hesitated and might have turned back at the last moment had it not
-been for the inquiring gaze of the large uniformed colored person who
-stood at the doorway. Fearful that he would address me if I delayed
-longer I gathered courage anew and entered through a most alarming
-revolving door.
-
-I had never been in this hotel before, and neither had any of the ladies
-of my acquaintance, with the exception of Annie Tresdale, whose cousin
-from Chicago stayed there overnight and had Annie to luncheon; and she,
-I was aware, had felt the most severe criticism of the place owing to
-the fact that a female had smoked a cigarette in the dining room. I
-afterward ascertained that it was Annie's cousin who had done this, and
-so, of course, we never discussed the subject further. But I will
-confess the place bore no aspect of viciousness beyond a good many
-electric fixtures, and the young man at the desk was exceedingly polite
-and helpful, considering the number of persons who were simultaneously
-trying to engage his attention.
-
-"Apartment B? Oh, yes; for Mr. Pegg!" said he in reply to my query.
-"There is one lady up there already! Boy! Show madam up to Mr. Pegg!"
-
-And at this a youth appareled as a page took me in charge and led me to
-what I at once perceived to be an elevator. At the door I balked.
-
-"I prefer to walk if there are stairs," said I.
-
-The page looked as if he thought I had gone suddenly mad.
-
-"It's six flights!" he said. And so I, realizing that the building was
-indeed a tall one, followed him into the trap, in which were several
-other persons, who appeared to me to be uncannily nonchalant.
-Maintaining as dignified an exterior as I could I concealed my alarm at
-what was a wholly novel experience to me, and was presently disgorged,
-quite unharmed, upon what the page assured me was the seventh story. He
-then preceded me down an interminable blue-carpeted hallway and paused
-before a door upon which he tapped.
-
-After a moment it was opened by a manservant of extremely respectable
-appearance.
-
-"Mr. Pegg?" I inquired.
-
-"From the advertisement, madam?" said the servant.
-
-"Yes," I replied with dignity.
-
-"Is that all?" said the page.
-
-"That is all, thank you, little boy," I replied, at which the child
-departed with an air of disappointment.
-
-And then the manservant ushered me into a magnificent anteroom done in
-gold paneling and mauve velvet upholstery, most beautiful and in the
-best of taste. I subsequently ascertained that I was in the royal suite
-of the hotel, and that it occupied the entire floor.
-
-"Will you be seated, please?" said the servant, handing me to a golden
-armchair. I dropped his arm, which I had taken upon entering, as is the
-custom in my circle where a butler is still maintained. "Mr. Pegg is
-interviewing another applicant in the drawing-room, but I believe he
-will shortly be at liberty." And with that he left me.
-
-I took a tentative perch on the very edge of my magnificent seat,
-clasping my reticule firmly and feeling as though I had suddenly
-discovered myself in the midst of a dream which refused the
-half-conscious mind the acknowledgment of unreality. It was
-extraordinary, really, and I wondered who and what the unseen applicant
-might be, and if the position might not already be filled. I almost
-hoped it was, so overpowering was the room in which I sat, and yet it
-was patent that the advertiser must truly be a person of means and that
-the emolument would be considerable--certainly not less than four or
-five hundred a year--and I trembled at the thought that perhaps fortune
-had already dedicated this to another.
-
-But before many moments had passed the door into the adjoining room was
-opened and two persons entered--a man and a woman--the later
-unquestionably my predecessor.
-
-She was a vulgar overdressed person much younger than myself, and at the
-moment her attractions were not enhanced by a fit of anger. Her language
-was wholly unintelligible to me.
-
-"Of course I thought you was a motion-picture bird!" she snapped, "and
-character parts is my middle name. Me a governess? My Lord--not for a
-gift!"
-
-"Don't trouble yourself; nobody'll try and force it on you," said the
-man. "Good day, ma'am!"
-
-And he opened the outer door for her impudent departure. Upon closing it
-after her he caught sight of me and stared. I confess I returned the
-favor quite involuntarily, for Mr. Pegg was certainly the most
-extraordinary man I had ever seen. He was about six feet four inches in
-height, and so heavy that at first his tallness was hardly remarkable.
-He was perhaps sixty years of age, though magnificently preserved, and
-his ruddy clean-shaven face had a jaw which my dear father would have
-described as "iron." His expensive clothing was worn with a negligent
-air, and his voice was like the roar of a lion.
-
-"Jumping--er--grasshoppers!" he exclaimed, his eyes riveted upon me.
-"Are you made up for the part?"
-
-At once I rose to my feet in proper indignation.
-
-"I never paint!" I exclaimed angrily. "My color is natural, though
-perhaps unusual at my age. If it is your intention to get gentlewomen
-here merely to insult them, Mr. Pegg, I have no further occasion for
-remaining!"
-
-To my surprise Mr. Pegg merely chuckled at this, and then assuming a
-more composed manner held open the door to the inner room, making a deep
-and courteous bow as he did so.
-
-"My dear madam--a thousand pardons!" he said. "You seemed too real to be
-anything genuine. Please walk in."
-
-And so, wondering if perhaps the poor man was insane, and far from
-feeling at ease, I complied, entering an enormous drawing-room and
-accepting the seat on the far side of an incongruously littered
-table--filled with papers, notes, and so on, and all the paraphernalia
-of a business man's desk. Mr. Pegg took the armchair behind it and
-settled to a critical inspection of me, though he did not look at me
-continuously. I faced the sunset, but as my face was clean, and as at my
-age I had got past attempting concealment of my crow's feet, I was quite
-composed--outwardly. Yet I could feel that his glance rested upon my
-hat, my hair, my silk gloves, my walkrite boots, even--though they were
-discreetly covered by my dress. And all at once my terror of him
-diminished. It would be difficult to say just why, but very possibly it
-was the tone of his voice when he spoke again, for though his diction
-was shockingly incorrect there was a certain kindliness, a gentleness to
-it which was unmistakably genuine.
-
-"You ain't a Winthrop by any chance, are you, madam?" he asked.
-
-"No my name is Talbot," said I.
-
-And then as he appeared a trifle disappointed I elaborated, for his
-ignorance was patent. "My ancestors came over a generation before
-Winthrop," I said gently, for, of course, I would not like that family
-to hear that I had in any way classified them as _nouveaux_.
-
-"Ah!" said Mr. Pegg, brightening again. "That's fine! That's fine, Madam
-Talbot--a real aristocrat!"
-
-"I am Miss Talbot," I again corrected him.
-
-"Well," said he doubtfully, "of course, that's not quite as desirable as
-a widow would be, is it now? To take care of my daughter, I mean. Still,
-in some ways an old maid is better. More particular, you'd be. And
-what's more, you are born blue-blooded, not just married to it!"
-
-"Mr. Pegg," said I, "will you not set forth the exact nature of the
-occupation you propose for me?"
-
-"That's it!" he cried, thumping the table. "That's the stuff exactly.
-
-"I beg pardon?" said I.
-
-"Talk like that!" he shouted. "And learn her to talk the same--give her
-some class!"
-
-"You expect me to teach your daughter grammar?"
-
-"Teach her everything!" said the giant. "Polish her up; finish her
-off--but not by instructin' her. My Lord, no! She'd never stand for it!
-Just stick round--be with her--let a little Boston rub off on her, and
-set her right when she makes a break."
-
-"A sort of governess?" I ventured.
-
-"Companion, chaperon--you get me!" said her parent, and leaned back in
-his chair beaming satisfaction. "Now look-a-here, Miss Talbot, I'll put
-the matter straight to you. I am a rich man, but I'm a roughneck and I
-know it. There is a few things I ain't been able to buy for myself, and
-refinement is one of them. But I calculate to pry off a little for my
-Peaches--no culls on this family tree if a little pruning and grafting
-can turn it into a perfect Seedless Apperson. Does that mean anything to
-you?"
-
-I reflected a moment, and though the man's actual terminology was
-unintelligible to me the sense of his imagery was somehow perfectly
-clear.
-
-"You speak of her as a young tree!" said I. "I think I do understand.
-'Just as the twig is bent the tree's inclined.'"
-
-This plainly interested him.
-
-"True!" he exclaimed. "Just that. Well, as I was saying, I've just
-cleaned up the biggest deal the California fruit growers ever heard
-of--and I started out as a picker with a bunch of Hindus, getting four
-cents a lug for oranges! To-day I've got--well, it don't matter how many
-millions; and a daughter that's never been let off the home ranch until
-three weeks ago. Her mother died when she come. Well--never mind that
-either! And now I've made my haul and I've got a little time to give
-her--and to living generally. I'm a practical man, Miss Talbot. When I
-commence grafting a new orchard of Golden Americans on a twenty-acre
-stretch of old wild stock I cut, splice and bind it right, and I don't
-hurry myself until I get the grafts I want and the proper season and
-everything. And the same with the culture of my American Beauty. I've
-left her grow strong and wild for twenty years now, and she's about
-ready for cultivation. And I feel you are the right one for the job.
-You are hired!"
-
-"But my dear Mr. Pegg!" I protested. "You really are not in the least
-informed as to my qualifications."
-
-"You don't imagine that a feller that's been picking men for thirty
-years--Dagos, Greasers, Japs, Hindus, everything that could strip fruit
-or thought they could--needs much wising up about a mere female woman,
-do you?" he demanded. "I advertised for exactly what I wanted, and you
-are it! You are hired."
-
-"But, Mr. Pegg----" I vainly endeavored to interrupt.
-
-"Your salary will be five thousand dollars a year, your keep and all
-expenses," he went on as if I had not spoken. "You will commence work
-to-morrow morning at nine o'clock and the next day we sail for Italy and
-a course in how to be refined though American."
-
-I assure you that my senses staggered beneath the force of his
-announcement. Five thousand dollars a year! Italy! Incredible! Like a
-dream come true.
-
-"My Eastern bank is the Guarantee," said he. "Look me up if you like. I
-have the money and a honest name. Nobody in the world's got a thing on
-me. And as the notice is kind of short, and you might like a little
-advance to buy some knitting or something to take with you, here is a
-hundred to bind the bargain. And now good night, Miss Talbot--I got the
-Eastern Apple Growers coming in ten minutes. See you to-morrow at nine!
-Good night, good night!"
-
-And almost immediately I found myself edged into the anteroom, where
-already several persons--fruit venders, I presume--were in waiting.
-
-"But, Mr. Pegg," I managed to ejaculate, "your daughter may not like me.
-Am I not to meet her before I leave?"
-
-"I should say not!" exclaimed her father. "She doesn't know anything
-about this. I am leaving the breaking of the whole idea to you! Good
-night!"
-
-With these alarming words the door shut behind me; and presently, I
-scarcely knew how, I found myself once more upon the solid reality of
-the Boston street, with only the hundred-dollar bill as evidence that
-the whole experience had been other than a dream.
-
-
-
-
-II
-
-
-As my dear father used to say, it is personality rather than character
-which holds the world's attention, and this was undoubtedly the case
-with Miss Alicia Pegg, or Peaches, as she was termed by her surviving
-parent. It is the unqualified fact that even at this tumultuous period
-of my life it is her personality rather than my esteemed sister's
-character which overshadows my memory. And although without doubt
-Euphemia's impeccable virtue and righteousness should have won the
-struggle I find myself impatient of her just reproaches, her critical
-indignation, and even of her final cold and terrible dismissal of me
-from the house of my fathers as meet punishment for the crime of earning
-five thousand dollars per annum; a feat which she somehow contrived to
-make appear in the light of an outrage unworthy of serious discussion,
-and rendering me unfit to remain longer under the paternal roof.
-
-True, I had already dismissed myself before she did so, the fact being
-implicit in my agreement with Mr. Pegg. And as for my father's roof,
-there had been rather more than a likelihood of its being permanently
-removed from over both our heads had we attempted to remain beneath it
-in idleness much longer. But Euphemia was a true woman--far more
-genuinely feminine than I shall ever be, and her heart ever overruled
-her reason. In fact she had often publicly maintained that it was
-unwomanly to reason very much. Secondly, I had for weeks anticipated
-that the announcement of my intention of going to work would result in a
-terrible scene, and so was somewhat prepared for the deluge, though I
-had hoped it would be less violent than it proved.
-
-I will draw a veil over this section of my narrative, because it
-was purely a family affair, of no possible interest to the public,
-and I do not believe that sister truly meant all that she said.
-Suffice to recount that I left her seventy-five dollars with the
-promise--unaccepted--to send more shortly, and departed at eight-thirty
-the following morning, taking a few belongings in the small trunk which
-I had had at school when a girl, and receiving a tearful farewell from
-Galadia, if not from my dear sister, for whom in reality I was setting
-forth into the wide world.
-
-"Freedom Talbot," said I to myself as the hack which I had felt
-justified in hiring to transport me to the hotel moved away--"Freedom
-Talbot, face the world with a smile--and soon you will be smiling in
-your heart. Freedom should mean more than a name to you--it should mean
-and must mean the welcoming of adventure."
-
-And thus resolutely putting behind me the last vestige of feminine
-weakness I assumed in spirit at least the attitude which I knew my dear
-father would have required of the son he had hoped I would be, and was
-presently set down before the hotel, where I directed the porter about
-my trunk, surrendered my dear father's umbrella, my own folding lace
-parasol and dolman, together with my valise, to the same little boy who
-had so kindly attended me the day before, and for whom I had remembered
-to bring a package of ginger cookies. Even the elevator, that flying
-gilded bird cage, held no terrors for me to-day, and I ascended to the
-seventh floor without a qualm.
-
-So much for character and its hold upon the human mind. The entire
-episode of leaving what for fifty years had been my home is somewhat
-hazy. What I encountered upon entering the anteroom of the
-Copley-Plaza's royal suite for the second time I shall never forget. And
-this evidences my claim regarding personality.
-
-It was precisely one minute of nine by my dear father's chronometer, and
-my arrival must have been expected, and yet several moments elapsed
-prior to the opening of the door outside of which I stood. In point of
-fact I eventually opened it myself, inasmuch as it was not quite closed
-and from the noise inside I deduced that my knocking and the ringing of
-the small boy who accompanied me were not discernible above the clamor.
-The most amazing language came out to me.
-
-"Come on you, seven!" said a female voice excitedly. "Oh baby! Come, you
-loving little Joe!" said a male voice.
-
-It was at this juncture that I entered, the patience and perhaps the
-curiosity of my young companion breaking under the strain, and then we
-beheld a most remarkable picture.
-
-Seated upon either end of the gold-and-marble table in the middle of the
-magnificent and formal apartment were a young man and a young woman. The
-latter was in the very act of shaking dice from the palm of her hand. I
-at once recognized them because my dear father indulged in backgammon,
-and possessed a pair. But the young female who was occupied with them
-resembled nothing I had ever before encountered.
-
-To begin with, she was of tremendous height--the tallest girl I had ever
-beheld or ever shall, standing, as I afterward ascertained, six feet two
-without the unwholesome French heels she later affected. Her exquisite
-face was as clear cut and regular of feature as that upon the shell
-cameo which my dear father gave my dear mother when they became
-betrothed. Her hair was so brilliantly gold as to seem artificially
-gilded--not with chemicals but with burnished metal--and waved low over
-her ears with a grace impossible of imitation by the hair dresser's art.
-Her coloring was perfect and her wide set eyes were startlingly dark
-brown, as were the rather heavy brows above them.
-
-This young Juno was clad in a dress of violet satin heavily embroidered
-in gold and coral beads, a garment clearly intended for the most
-elaborate of afternoon functions, and this costume was further
-embellished by a pair of black-and-white sports shoes, such as are worn
-upon tennis courts. But curiously enough this outrageous costume was not
-the first thing that registered upon my vision. The girl herself shone
-like the sun, dwarfing her garments and almost neutralizing them.
-
-Of the young man I will say only this: He was a chauffeur, properly
-liveried, and though a clean, decent-looking young man, he was a
-distinctly common person, a thought which curiously did not occur to me
-until later. He was an ugly young man with a long nose.
-
-It was a full moment that I stood in the doorway before they saw me, and
-then the girl slid from her perch with a blank look of amazement.
-
-"Judas Priest! Holy mackerel!" she said involuntarily. Then quickly
-recovering herself she came forward politely. "I guess you are in the
-wrong pew," she said. "Did you want anybody?"
-
-"It's for you, Miss Peaches," said the infant who carried my luggage.
-"The new nurse has came."
-
-"What d'yer mean--new nurse?" queried the beauty, wrinkling her handsome
-nose. "Are you sure this is for our ranch?"
-
-"Perhaps your father has been up to something new, Peaches," said the
-chauffeur, sliding from his end of the table and removing the cap, which
-had all the time remained upon the back of his red head.
-
-I felt it time to enlighten them.
-
-"I am the new governess for Miss Alicia Pegg," I said with what dignity
-I could muster under the circumstances. "Mr. Pegg engaged me yesterday."
-
-"There!" exclaimed the chauffeur. "I told you so!"
-
-"Shut up, Dicky!" snapped the beauty, becoming suddenly serious, not to
-say alarmed, and looking down upon me from her enormous height very much
-as if I had been something terrible--like, say, a mouse. "Shut up,
-Dicky, and let me handle this. So my old man hired you, did he?" she
-went on gravely. "Without a word to me! Well, that's not your fault. We
-will have to talk this over in private. Sit down, ma'am; here's a nice
-chair. Get out, cutie!"
-
-This last was addressed to the little page boy, who promptly dropped my
-baggage and prepared for flight. There was that in the young woman's
-voice which betrayed the habit of command. But with a gesture I detained
-him.
-
-"Wait, little boy. I have something for you this time!" I said.
-
-The boy stopped in his tracks and waited quite as promptly as if it were
-a custom with him, while I delved into the depths of my reticule and
-produced six nice brown sugar cookies, which I presented. He was
-pleased, I perceived that. Indeed he was quite wordless with surprise.
-But I knew they were wholesome and that six were not too many, and
-presently he was shut out by the chauffeur, who leaned against the
-closed portal shaking with unaccountable mirth. Miss Pegg seemed to see
-no humor in the situation any more than did I myself, but led me to the
-window and made me sit there opposite her. The Dick person leaned
-against the center table, toying with the dice.
-
-"What's the name, did you say?" she inquired.
-
-"My name is Freedom Talbot--Miss Talbot!" said I.
-
-"Gee! That's funny!" said Miss Peaches Pegg.
-
-"It sure is!" remarked the chauffeur.
-
-"It's Dick's name, too!" said my hostess. "Make you acquainted--shake
-hands with Mr. Talbot, Miss Talbot!"
-
-There was nothing to do but acquiesce, for the young chap without the
-least trace of self-consciousness came forward most politely.
-
-"Pleased to meetcher!" he said. "I wonder are you any relative to my
-Aunt Lucy? That's my father's sister, but he got killed in a gun fight
-up to Nome."
-
-"I scarcely think it likely," said I. "Our family is practically
-extinct."
-
-"Well, never mind the family tree just now!" said Alicia. "And let's get
-down to cases on this dry-nurse business. Of course, Miss Talbot, I
-realize you are not to blame in this. But it's got to be understood
-right here and now. Tell me what the old boy put over on me this time?"
-
-Well, I recounted the tale in as much detail as I could recall, amid
-continuous interruptions from my strange audience, beginning with my
-situation at home, and ending with my quarrel with Euphemia. When my
-recital was complete Miss Peaches gave a long whistle, which feat was
-amazingly expressive of her emotions.
-
-"Well, see here, Miss Freedom," she said. "As I get the dope, it is,
-that you are to take me out and show me the world and everything--to
-teach me what little it is proper for me to know--and how to tell the
-culls from the sound fruit? Well, well! Do you believe you can do it?"
-
-"I, of course, believe that I would be a proper influence and shield for
-a young woman!" I replied quietly. "Else I would not have engaged to
-perform such a task."
-
-"And you'd sure be gosh-awful disappointed if you didn't go to Europe,
-wouldn't you?" she went on.
-
-As I made no reply to this she continued to guide the conversation.
-
-"I think you are a damn good sport to break away at your age," she went
-on. "And it would be a crime to send you back to the corral. I know just
-how it must feel."
-
-"I bet you do!" said the Dick person. "After the ranch!"
-
-"You see, he means our home ranch," the girl explained. "Pa has kept me
-there since I was a seedling. Never been away from it until three weeks
-ago--kept me pure and healthy and everything. But I've got fed up on it,
-and I'm glad to get loose and see life, even with you tagging along.
-Tell you what I'll do. So long as you've got your camp all broke I'll
-help you to see the world if you'll help me to see the world instead of
-preventing it. I'll be reasonable if you will. Are you on?"
-
-"I am!" said I, half hypnotized by her charm. "I'm on!"
-
-"Good! It's a bet!" cried Peaches, suddenly shaking my hand with a grip
-of most unladylike vigor. "Now let's dope this out some more. I've
-bought all the clothes in the stores in San Francisco, at least all
-costing over a hundred dollars each, as befits my new society stunt, so
-we ought to start right off and go some place where we know somebody
-besides the head waiters. Do you really know a lot of swells?"
-
-"I--well, really--I know the proper people, of course," said I. "But I
-don't think that you would fancy Boston very much."
-
-"Oh, Boston is all O. K." she said. "Only, of course, it's not like San
-Francisco--or even Fresno. No pep, and a rotten climate. Don't you know
-any gay ducks some other place?"
-
-"Well, let me cogitate the matter," said I. "I know the Loringstons, in
-New York--two charming maiden ladies."
-
-"Hold me--or I'll die of excitement!" said Peaches. "Nothing doing! If
-I've got to be pushed into the world of fashion and gayety I want there
-to be some class to it--snappy stuff--titles and everything. Do you know
-any titles?"
-
-"Only the dean of Radcliffe," I responded; "unless one were to except
-the Countess Veruchio. But she lives in Monte Carlo. She was my first
-cousin until she married this foreign person."
-
-Miss Pegg's large eyes grew incredibly larger, and instinctively she
-turned her gaze toward the neglected dice upon the center table. I
-shuddered at her words which followed. Had I already, unwittingly in my
-novitiate as guide, mentor and friend, set her upon evil ways? I deeply
-feared so.
-
-"A countess!" she breathed. "Monte Carlo! Why, that's in Italy! Oh boy!
-Oh boy! Say, do they rattle the bones at Monte Carlo?"
-
-
-
-
-III
-
-
-How many persons must perforce get all their romance at second hand! Of
-course, as my dear father often said, gentlewomen should get their
-experiences from books and from the stage, and no lady experiences the
-primal emotions except vicariously. But none the less I had occasionally
-been aware of the desire to live more full a life than hitherto
-circumstance had rendered possible. Now I was brought into such intimate
-contact with a young career that I felt almost as though I were indeed
-living it myself, and not half an hour after my entrance upon my new
-duties I was, as it were, engulfed in the personality of my charge.
-
-"Come on into your room!" she said, picking up my carpetbag as easily as
-if it had been a mere trifle. "Come on, Dicky; bring the box!"
-
-The Dicky person obeyed whistling a jaunty tune, and presently I found
-myself established in a most luxurious bedroom. The chauffeur vanished,
-closing the door, and Peaches, disposing the luggage upon a receptable
-constructed for that very purpose, perched upon the foot of the bed, her
-long limbs making that lofty elevation none too high for her. I soon
-learned that she seldom sat upon a chair if anything else offered.
-
-"Say, Miss Talbot," she began as I laid out my toilet articles--"say,
-Miss Talbot, isn't Dick a king?"
-
-"Eh?" said I, startled.
-
-"I said isn't Dick a corker?" she repeated. "Do you know, I would have
-just about died out on the ranch if it hadn't been for him. Pa picked
-him up in Fresno when he was a hopper--picking hops with a bunch of
-greasers. Brought him home for me to play with. We went swimming
-together and riding together and everything when we were kids. Then pa
-sent him to school with me, and when he got some learning he gave him a
-job as foreman on the home outfit."
-
-"He seems a nice young person," said I, "but he is a chauffeur!"
-
-"You bet he is!" said Peaches enthusiastically. "The first car pa bought
-made him that! He can do anything with a car. I am in love with him!"
-
-"Miss Pegg!" I said horrified. "A servant! What would your father say!"
-
-"He'd say considerable!" remarked Peaches. "But he doesn't know it. And
-anyhow, I don't want to marry Dicky, even if he is your cousin. I just
-like being in love with some one, and he's simply crazy about me!"
-
-Her innocence, not to say ignorance, was appalling. High time, indeed,
-that she had a proper chaperon!
-
-"You must not play with so serious a subject!" I said severely. "And the
-young man is no relation of mine!"
-
-"How can you be sure of that?" asked the terrible young woman. "There
-may have been some live wire in your family that went West, you know!"
-
-To this I had no reply, for in point of fact my father's younger brother
-had indeed been a wild spirit who refused to enter the ministry and had
-vanished to the West, from which region he had never returned nor sent
-any token of his existence except, upon one occasion shortly after his
-departure, a specimen of polished redwood, which at that very moment was
-reposing in our curio cabinet at home. I determined, however, to make no
-mention of the circumstances. One is so seldom able to avoid one's
-relatives.
-
-"Do you not think a simpler frock would be better for luncheon?" I
-asked, changing the subject. Love was rather too personal a matter on
-which to press just at first, but really the girl's clothing was
-certainly somewhere within my legitimate province. "Your gown is very
-beautiful. And you won't be offended, but I am sure your father expects
-me to tell you these things."
-
-She looked at my own costume by way of reply; not rudely, but frankly
-and interestedly.
-
-"I don't believe you know one scrap more about clothes than I do!" she
-said at last. "We both of us look the limit. But after all, what does it
-matter? You are dowdy and I am crude, but we should worry!"
-
-"Come on down or pa will be clawing the air," was her greeting.
-
-She left me then to my unpacking and I did not see her again for about
-two hours. Then she stuck her head in abruptly, without knocking. "He
-certainly can eat, though I don't think much of the food in the East.
-You ought to see the meals in California!"
-
-There was no resisting the young giantess. With no further ado she swung
-me along to the parlor, where her still more gigantic parent gave me an
-absent-minded greeting, quite as if I had been in his employ for years.
-He took a sheaf of papers to the table with him, and we descended to the
-dining room, I vaguely wondering whether or not the young chauffeur
-would join us. Peaches seemed to discern my thought.
-
-"Dick won't eat with us since pa bought him that trick suit of clothes!"
-she complained. "And he says he actually likes wearing them, though I
-know perfectly well he only does it because he thinks it gives us
-class."
-
-During luncheon Mr. Pegg spoke only once.
-
-"All ready to sail to-morrow?" he inquired.
-
-"Yep!" replied his daughter. "Say, pa," she went on, "Miss Talbot's got
-a cousin in Monte Carlo that's a honest-to-goodness countess!"
-
-"Cable her we are coming!" said Silas Pegg truculently.
-
-And though I believe that Mentone had been our original destination the
-cable was actually dispatched, though I wondered somewhat how Cousin
-Abby would receive it. In her girlhood she had been rather formal, and I
-entertained a qualm or two about sending it. But we were not asking to
-visit her, so things might not be too dreadful after all. Besides which,
-I was beginning to experience a distinct liking for these Californians
-with all their native crudities. My world was a magic one now, and a
-visit to the Veruchio household appeared no more strange than any other
-part of my adventure.
-
-Next morning Alicia opened my door quite unceremoniously and disclosed
-herself clad in a nautical costume of blue serge with a sailor collar
-and a little white hat absurdly set upon her magnificent head.
-
-"Heave ahoy!" she called cheerily. "We are about to sail the ocean blue!
-How do you like my pull-for-the-shore effect? Say, have you ever been on
-a boat? Is it anything as bad as a Pullman sleeper?"
-
-"My dear, I have been on neither!" I protested.
-
-"Gee, I hope the berths are longer!" she exclaimed. "They were built on
-the idea that none of the natives would want to leave California, I
-guess, and they were darn near right! So you've never been anywhere.
-Well, I had a hunch I'd be the one to do the chaperoning. Never mind,
-I'll show you the world. I have decided overnight that I really ought to
-take you in charge, and I'm not one to shirk my duty."
-
-"Very well, my dear," said I. "But first may I suggest that a simple
-coat and skirt would be less conspicuous and quite as appropriate? Will
-you not change to it, if you have one?"
-
-"All right; I will if you will smooth out those groups of curls," said
-Peaches, eying me critically.
-
-"But I have worn them always!" I protested, shocked.
-
-"Just the same, they are the limit!" she said stubbornly. "And so are
-those silk gloves. Come on, let me fix your hair! No--I have a bright
-idea. Let's have the girl that does hair here in the hotel fix you up.
-Come on, be a sport!"
-
-I looked at myself in the mirror, and truth to tell my curled fringe did
-appear a trifle old-fashioned. But I refused, with thanks and dignity.
-
-"Miss Peaches!" I said. "Your father engaged me as I am, and I feel it
-incumbent upon me to remain thus."
-
-"Oh, all right!" said she, and strode out of the room. I fancied she was
-angry; but to my surprise, upon our departure she appeared clad in quite
-a lady-like tailored suit and a small hat.
-
-"Oh, I know when somebody gives me a real tip," she said, though I
-hadn't spoken; and then, accompanied by a most stupendous array of
-luggage, including my own small trunk and valise, we set forth upon the
-most perilous journey of which I could conceive.
-
-Indeed, indeed I was grateful throughout it for the thought that our
-minister, Mr. MacAdams, prayed so loudly for the safety of travelers by
-land and sea each Sunday, and that this was Saturday, hence there would
-be but little delay between our departure and the weekly renewal of his
-petition. For we began our travels in no less a vehicle than a terrific
-red automobile driven by the irrepressible Richard, or Dick, Talbot, who
-greeted me cheerfully and somehow not actually disrespectfully as
-"Cousin Mary," which was not, of course, in any sense correct.
-
-I entered the vehicle with much unuttered protest. I did not like motor
-vehicles and had indeed never entered one before, having always
-maintained their inelegance. My dear father kept horses, though it is
-true he died somewhat prior to the invention of automobiles.
-Nevertheless I took my seat beside Mr. Pegg in the rear, and concealed
-as best I might a terror which was not lessened when, stopping at the
-railway station, Talbot, the chauffeur, was dismissed to gather up some
-spare bags, and Peaches took the steering gear. The remainder of the
-ride is a blur in my memory, filled with a horrid realization that we
-upset an apple cart, or I thought we had, until looking backward I saw
-it miraculously intact; that we seemingly murdered two police officers,
-most certainly grazed a load of baled hay, and barely escaped collision
-with a dozen pedestrians. Yet at the conclusion of this momentous
-experience Mr. Pegg, who had calmly smoked a large cheroot during the
-trip, complimented his daughter upon her skill. I was beginning to
-understand their cryptic speech a little better or else I should not
-have comprehended.
-
-"Some speed queen!" he remarked.
-
-"One hoss or sixty, I should trouble which!" said she.
-
-And then Talbot, the chauffeur, or Richard, as I determined to call him,
-reappeared, and together with a crowd of porters and other travelers we
-passed into the gloomy cavern of a covered dock and up a most precarious
-gangway into a ship which differed little upon first acquaintance from
-the great hotel we had just left, except that the apartments were rather
-smaller. I had once before taken a boat trip to Nantucket to see an old
-servant of ours who was ill, and the vessel which conveyed me was not in
-the least like the Gigantic. But the impression of the latter's
-resemblance to a hotel was presently removed from my mind. In point of
-fact everything was removed from not only my mind but from the other
-portions of my anatomy which delicacy prevents my dwelling on.
-
-Suffice to state that the fact of our being in possession of the state
-apartments, the novelty of the compact arrangements, the excitement of
-the trip, the amazing crowds of strangers--all presently were as naught
-to me. Even my princely emolument was as nothing, and the sacrifice I
-had made for my sister appeared of no importance. Nothing appeared of
-any importance except the distress of my body. I longed most ardently
-for the stability of the house on Chestnut Street, and it seemed
-inconceivable that I had ever left my dear sister of my own free will.
-My idea of paradise became distorted from the true conception to a
-vision of any place other than that in which I was. Death, once so far
-removed from my desire, seemed the only tolerable condition. I may
-remark in passing that this state of mind did not develop in me until
-after the boat had passed Boston Light and encountered the waters of the
-Atlantic.
-
-The account of my first impressions of a transatlantic voyage will never
-be written by me, as they contain material fit only for a _materia
-medica_. How people can take such a trip for pleasure is to me a mystery
-as insoluble as the fourth dimension, which was a favorite topic with my
-dear father. But incredible as it may seem, some persons on the boat
-actually laid claim to an enjoyable experience, and among these Spartans
-were my employer and his daughter; and also, by the latter's evidence,
-the chauffeur, who was traveling first class. Peaches came frequently to
-the side of my brass bedstead and bathed my forehead with cologne water
-the while she attempted to cheer me with an account of her doings.
-
-"I told pa I'd have to look after you!" she said triumphantly. "And I
-will. Never mind, Miss Governess, I'll get you to Europe alive and show
-you the country. Couldn't you come on deck? It's a swell deck, and
-there's the nicest young man up there. We've got acquainted, and Dick is
-terribly jealous!"
-
-"Alicia!" I managed to gasp. "Who is the young man?"
-
-"I don't know!" she said truthfully. "I forgot to ask his name, but he's
-a regular sailor in good standing."
-
-"Do you mean to say you've scraped acquaintance with a common sailor?" I
-said feebly. "Oh! Alicia! I fear I am neglecting my duty to you, and yet
-heaven knows I have no choice!"
-
-"If you'd only get up and out you'd be better!" she pronounced. "And we
-might find a captain or a mate or something for you. Couldn't you eat a
-little steak and onions?" she added anxiously. "It would give you
-strength."
-
-Later she returned and sat beside me with a look of rapture upon her
-face. I was in an exhausted state despite the herb tea which I had had
-made by the sea-going chambermaid from my own medicine cabinet, and
-taken with difficulty, yet I was calm enough for her speech to impress
-me.
-
-"The moon is up," she said dreamily. "And the waves are like the Sierra
-Mountains gone mad and reeling drunkenly in their purple-and-black
-mystery, with the foam like the snows that the yellow sun never melts.
-The air is like wine. I am glad he kissed me."
-
-"Oh, Peaches, Peaches! Who kissed you?" I moaned, struggling to my elbow
-in horror.
-
-"Dick," she replied. "Somebody had to kiss somebody on a night like
-this, and it just happened to be us. Don't worry, it really isn't
-important. I never lose my head, though between ourselves I sometimes
-wish I could. When I do I'll marry the clever man. But I've never met
-him yet, and sometimes that makes me sad. I want to be in love. Really
-in love. Don't you?"
-
-Despite my condition I could not but be attentive.
-
-"I do not dwell upon such subjects," I replied.
-
-"Oh, yes you do!" said Peaches imperturbably. "Everyone does! Even cows
-and birds and Chinese cooks. But some of us, like you, don't have much
-luck, and some, like me, have a trick played on them by Nature that
-ruins everything."
-
-"How so, my dear?" I asked.
-
-"I'm too tall!" said Peaches in a sudden burst of indignation at fate.
-"I'd have to lean over to spoon with anybody I ever met! My shoulder is
-the highest and therefore the handiest! My hand is generally the
-biggest! Oh, Lord! How can a girl love a man she has to bend down to
-kiss?"
-
-And suddenly she rushed from the cabin, overcome with emotion, leaving
-me to sniff at a camphor bottle and contemplate an entirely new, to me,
-phase of feminine tragedy. And incidentally to feel more deeply a sense
-of the responsibility of my position toward this amazingly innocent,
-terrifyingly frank young savage, who wanted to be in love and did not
-hesitate to say so, and who kissed the chauffeur simply and solely
-because it was a moonlit night! I felt thoroughly convinced that
-Euphemia would not approve of any such conduct, and that my dear father
-would have condemned it utterly, and I made every effort to rise next
-day and finish out the voyage in close proximity to my charge.
-
-But somehow or other the span of time had escaped me during my
-indisposition, and upon completing my toilet, with the aid of the young
-person who had brewed my herb tea, I learned to my astonishment that we
-were in port and that my ability to rise was founded, not, as I had
-fancied, in my having attained what is rather indelicately known as "sea
-legs," but was due to the fact of the boat being at a standstill. I only
-then realized that I had been ill for five days. Richard, the chauffeur,
-accompanied Peaches when she came to get me, and somehow or other they
-evolved me through the complications of the dock, and at last I stood
-upon foreign soil.
-
-Not, of course, that the English are really foreigners, as my dear
-father often remarked. But I must confess that the soil of Liverpool
-felt quite foreign to me. It appeared, in fact, entirely unsteady and
-of a heaving disposition, more what one might have expected of the
-neighborhood of Vesuvius and the other earthquake countries. But Peaches
-only laughed at me when I called her attention to the circumstance.
-
-"It's you that's unsteady, not the street!" she jeered. "Gee, what a
-town! What a country! They ought to see San Francisco! Why, we've done
-twice as well in half the time!"
-
-I confess I was disappointed with what I saw of England, which was
-little enough, because Mr. Pegg stopped only long enough to pick up an
-English car, which had been ordered far in advance and was awaiting us
-at Liverpool. It was a monstrous affair of black trimmed with vermilion,
-and recalled to my mind nothing so much as the far-famed dragon which
-was slain by St. George--so strong and fierce and capable it looked.
-Richard, the chauffeur, almost wept at sight of it.
-
-"Oh, baby doll!" he said over and over. "If that isn't some engine!"
-
-"Some lug box!" remarked Peaches in that cryptic language in which she
-spoke to her familias. "Must have set pa back a bushel of berries!"
-
-"I want to hit the trail for the Calais boat!" said Mr. Pegg. "We aren't
-going to stay in England. There's no art in England. I had an English
-remittance man working for me once and he told me so. He says all the
-good art is in the Catholic countries, except what has been smuggled out
-of them. He told me so, and he was a educated feller. He educated me out
-of the entire pay roll one week, and is now working for the U. S.
-Government in San Quentin."
-
-"But, Mr. Pegg!" I ventured to protest. "Think of Westminster Abbey and
-the Tower and Stratford-on-Avon, the home of Shakespere, and--and real
-English muffins and English culture generally. Surely you do not intend
-to deprive your daughter of it?"
-
-"Not by a damn sight. Meaning no offense, Miss Talbot!" said Silas. "But
-the trouble is they all speak English over here, and we got enough
-Boston accent right on your person. I figure that foreign travel is
-foreign travel, and I mean we should go right to Rome, the home of art;
-and after we do it up thoroughly, work back along the coast where they
-speak in Italian and French. Somehow it's foreigner!"
-
-There was no denying that, and disappointed as I was I held my peace.
-Mr. Pegg had a way of ordering our existence ahead, as if we were a part
-of his business. And indeed I presently ascertained that the plunge
-toward Italy was at bottom a commercial undertaking. It was the orange
-and olive groves, not the art galleries, that lured him.
-
-"I'm thinking of forming an American-Italian olive crushers'
-association," he confided to me as we sped alarmingly along a toy road
-amidst scenes which I am sure would have proved quaint had we been going
-slowly enough to see them. "And an orange trust that will be a
-world-wide proposition. Oranges are a great little fruit--eat 'em, drink
-'em and preserve 'em--the wood is swell. A great game, Miss Talbot, that
-hurts nobody and is of benefit to all. I'm to meet this here Pagreleri,
-the president of the Sorrento Company; and while Peaches and you trot
-round to the picture shows--I mean galleries--I'll put in a little sight
-seeing on God's green hills! I'd rather see the prospect of a hundred
-thousand vats of brine and oil than the finest picture any artist ever
-drew."
-
-"Are we going to the Ritz, pa?" said Peaches, breaking in with a shout
-from her seat in front beside Richard. "I'm dying to see if the Ritz is
-as nice as the St. Francis, though I bet it won't be!"
-
-"Yep!" said the parent, and began operations upon a new cigar. And that
-is all that I saw of London the historical. The dining room and the
-bedrooms of a hotel that had not twopennyworth of difference from that
-in Boston. We dined at seven in an almost empty salon, and went
-afterward to see a motion picture of some American by the name of
-Charles Chapin or something of the sort, an amazing affair centering
-about a custard pie and not at all to my taste. Mr. Pegg and Miss
-Peaches were enormously intrigued by it, as was Richard, the chauffeur,
-whom they insisted should accompany them. They laughed continuously; at
-what, I could not appreciate. And it was in this theater that we first
-beheld that young man who was fated to play so conspicuous part in our
-lives, and, alas, in the career of many a newspaper reporter as well!
-
-It is my impression that I was the first to notice him, and my attention
-was directed to him by the curious behavior of two men who sat directly
-in front of me. Except for their observations concerning him he might
-easily have escaped my notice. But as the entertainment offered me was
-so far removed from my understanding my interest was focused upon the
-personnel of those members of the audience who chanced to be seated
-nearest me. My dear father was in the habit of saying that observation
-of the human race is the truest form of education and I have ever
-diligently tried to follow whatever precepts he laid down. And so this
-evening I had in turn observed a stout person in a beaded gown, a pair
-of young soldiers in red coats, and then the two men directly in front
-of me. They were unobtrusive in appearance, but palpably of Latin
-extraction. Their clothing was nondescript and they would have passed
-unnoticed in a crowd. One wore a little black mustache and the other
-bore a slight scar near his left ear. As I looked at them I perceived
-that they were giving even less attention to the picture than myself,
-and seemed to be furtively searching for something out in the vast area
-of semidarkness ahead of us. Suddenly one clutched the other by the arm
-and spoke.
-
-"There he is!" he said in a low tone, speaking in French.
-
-Instantly both became alert. Almost imperceptibly the man with the scar
-contrived to point without raising his hand. But I followed the
-direction of his companion's eyes, and made out the objective, a young
-man who sat on the curve of the orchestra seats just under the balcony,
-below us. His position was such that when he turned his head it was
-possible to see his profile against the exit light beyond. And it was a
-profile one would not easily forget. I at once thought of Romeo--that
-daring young Italian lover who met so unfortunate an end, and whose
-tragic story was one of the secret absorptions of my girlhood. Yet this
-young man even in the dimness of the theater conveyed a sense of
-strength which had not been convincing to me in the actor whom I had
-once seen in that part. He sat well above his neighbors in height, and
-there was a certain swing and rhythm to his broad shoulders as he swayed
-with amusement at the projection of the cinematograph that conveyed
-remarkable resiliency and buoyant youth or, as I fear my charge would
-express it, "pep." He was a gentleman, I could see that, of unusual
-elegance, and attractive enough to command my attention without what
-followed on the part of the two other observers. Both spoke in French.
-
-"Sapristi! He will not escape this time!" said the man with the
-mustache, pitching his voice very low. "The eel!"
-
-"Will you do for him at the door?" whispered the other. "Or as he
-attempts to reach the hotel?"
-
-"I have something better than that," said the first. "We know he has it
-on him. The hotel may be too late. He must not get to the theater door
-before we do--or else----"
-
-I heard no more because of the sudden palpitations of my heart, which
-seemed likely to smother me. These two men were plainly robbers planning
-to waylay and perhaps murder that nice-looking young man who sat there
-in such innocent, unconscious enjoyment of the photographic antics of
-the Charley person! It was too terrible!
-
-How could I warn him? Should I attempt to explain the situation to the
-competent Mr. Pegg and the muscular Richard? That would be impossible of
-accomplishment without also precipitating matters with the conspirators,
-who would surely overhear me. As I was rapidly revolving these thoughts
-action was violently put upon me. The picture flashed "The End," and the
-young man whose life was in danger rose to leave, as did several others.
-His seat, as I have stated, was downstairs, while we occupied a box.
-Thus he was far nearer the door than were we. As he rose, so did the
-Frenchmen in front of me. In order to make their exit it was necessary
-for them to pass my seat, which was a step above them. As they turned
-to come up I rose with a little cry and took the only course open.
-
-I fainted most dexterously, knocking down one of them and collapsing
-upon the bosom of the other, and lay there in a determined stupor until,
-according to my calculations, the young man must be quite well away. The
-confusion was dreadful and it was no pleasant matter fainting by intent
-upon the bosom of an intended assassin, but it served to delay them for
-all of ten minutes, at the end of which time I came to under the anxious
-ministrations of my own people and of the two foreigners, whom Peaches,
-an unconscious accessory, pressed into active service much against their
-will. And my apparent accident served a double purpose, thus proving my
-dear father's maxim that virtue is its own reward, for it disclosed the
-fact that I had made a real impression upon the emotional side of my
-charge.
-
-"Oh, Free, you dear old thing!" she was saying as I opened my eyes. "Say
-you are not hurt! Dear--please say you are all right!"
-
-"I feel dreadfully!" I murmured feebly, looking her right in the eye.
-
-And then I did something which, having been reared a gentlewoman, I had
-never anticipated doing. I deliberately winked at her. And Peaches took
-it marvelously. In a flash of understanding that I had some ulterior
-motive behind my behavior she maintained what she calls her poker face
-and winked back, and, assisting me in what she now knew to be my
-pretense, helped me to a cab and back to the hotel.
-
-Needless to say, however, I was not permitted to sleep that night until
-she had the whole story from me. She came into my chamber with her
-heavy hair hanging over her shoulders in two monstrous braids of molten
-gold, and swathed in an outrageous robe of crimson-and-blue satin so
-that she looked like a magnificent animated American flag. She curled up
-upon the foot of my bed and listened eagerly.
-
-"You wild Indian!" she exclaimed when I had finished the recital. "I
-just knew I'd have to look after you! And I'll keep a closer watch from
-now on. Oh you Boston! California was never like this."
-
-In which she was eminently correct. But when she kissed me good night I
-knew our friendship was sealed. The wink had done it.
-
-Next morning we set out for Dover in that terrible car, without having
-heard or seen anything of our hero. I confess I had absurdly hoped that
-the hotel to which the conspirators had referred might prove to be ours,
-but it was impossible to know if or not this was the case, as, of
-course, we had no idea of what his name was, and he was nowhere about.
-
-The newspaper naturally contained no mention of the incident inasmuch as
-it had failed actually to occur, and the press is, of course, unlikely
-to have any mention of a murder unless the crime is consummated. And so
-it appeared that the incident was closed. I had begged Peaches not to
-speak of its true import to either her father or her friend the
-chauffeur, and this she solemnly promised.
-
-"Oh, but Free!" she exclaimed rapturously. "Wouldn't it be wonderful if
-you met again and fell in love!"
-
-"Nonsense!" said I. "Why, he was young enough to have been my son!
-Besides, I shall never marry!"
-
-"That's the girl!" said Peaches. "They all say that just before the big
-event. So cheer up, who knows their luck? Gee, I wish I could see him!"
-
-And there was surely something prophetical in her speech, for Peaches
-was fated to see him, though not for many hours afterward. And then she
-found him for herself.
-
-As I have stated, we set forth in that monstrous car for Dover, where we
-embarked, car and all, upon an innocent-appearing little boat for what
-was promised as a short journey. Possibly it was. I do not remember. I
-only know that nothing in my previous nautical experience compared with
-it. And when at last we landed and I had to some degree recovered my
-equilibrium the most startling incident occurred. We once again were
-seated, Mr. Pegg, Peaches and myself, in the car, ready to leave the
-custom house behind us, and Richard, the chauffeur, was doing strange
-things to the motor, when suddenly Alicia seized me by the arm.
-
-"Free! Oh, Free!" she said in an excited whisper. "There is a man tall
-enough for me!"
-
-I looked, and lo and behold, walking through the crowd in a leisurely
-fashion, a smart piece of luggage in either hand, was the young man of
-the motion-picture theater. At the same moment I discerned the two
-Frenchmen whose plot I had frustrated, and on the instant he also caught
-sight of them, and abruptly changing his course he turned directly
-toward us. Richard got in and started the engine.
-
-"It's he!" I exclaimed excitedly. "It's my young man. Oh, the villains!
-They are after him again! Oh, don't let them get him!"
-
-"I won't," said Alicia promptly.
-
-The young man was very close now, palpably, to our enlightened eyes,
-endeavoring to avoid the appearance of flight. The two men in pursuit
-were gaining on him rapidly. Suddenly Alicia beckoned to him and called.
-
-"Here we are!" she said, and flung open the door of the car just as we
-started to move. The young man sprang forward, threw in his bags,
-slipped into the extra seat, slammed the door, and Peaches touched
-Richard upon the shoulder.
-
-"Drive for your life!" she shouted, and the big black car shot down the
-street just as the two pursuers emerged, breathless, from the crowd.
-
-
-
-
-IV
-
-
-The young man whom Alicia had hailed turned toward her with quite the
-nicest smile it had ever been my fortune to behold, a smile in which his
-white teeth, which were of a character to do any dentist credit, were
-the least important factor, beautiful as they were. It was the way his
-face lighted up which caught one. In any situation that smile would
-prove his shield and buckler. It would have been invaluable to a book
-agent, and a missionary would have needed no other credentials--at least
-certainly not on our street at home. We all smiled back at him
-instinctively, though it was to Alicia that he spoke.
-
-"It was simply ripping of you people!" he said in excellent English and
-a delightfully modulated voice, yet with a curious intonation, as if it
-were not his native tongue.
-
-"Not at all!" replied Peaches, her eyes holding his. "Glad to oblige
-you!"
-
-He seemed a trifle blank at this.
-
-"I didn't expect you to be here," he went on. "But I think it's awfully
-jolly. I suppose you motor a great deal, Lady Gordon!"
-
-"Lady who?" gasped Peaches. "Gee-whiz! Who do you think we are?"
-
-"Great Scott!" said the inadvertent guest. "Aren't you Lord and Lady
-Gordon?"
-
-"Lord and Lady me eye!" remarked Peaches. "We are not!"
-
-"Then why on earth did you call to me?" exclaimed the young man. "And
-who are you?"
-
-Just then the Citrus King leaned forward and shouted a query against the
-wind.
-
-"Who is your young man, Peaches?" he said. "Make me acquainted."
-
-"I don't know who he is!" snapped his daughter. "Who are you yourself?"
-she demanded of him. "I am a low-life American bourgeois in trade and
-every bally thing--name of Alicia Pegg; and this is my father, Pinto
-Pegg, the Citrus King, and this is my chaperon, Miss Talbot, that I'm
-taking abroad to educate. Now who are you?"
-
-"My name is Sandro di Monteventi," he said, getting out a little gold
-cardcase, from which he extricated a visiting card bearing a
-five-pointed coronet and the inscription Monteventi. A duke! As I
-glimpsed the card, which with proper breeding he handed first to me, I
-nearly fainted. We must have made a mistake somehow. Yet he was
-undoubtedly the young man of the theater. I could not have made so
-monstrous an error. As for Peaches, when I handed it on to her she
-simply gave a frank stare and a long whistle.
-
-"Pleased to meet you, duke!" she said. "I guess we may have made a
-mistake. We thought--well, we thought you were a friend of ours--but I
-don't quite see how you fell for it. Dicky, turn round and take the
-gentleman back!"
-
-"No, no!" said the duke hastily. "That is, you are going my way, so if
-you don't mind--my friends will be gone by now!"
-
-"Certainly. Keep ahead, Dick!" said Pinto heartily. "Pleased to have a
-duke along. That's what we came to Europe for, you know--like all
-vulgar Americans. So we'll drop you any place you say."
-
-"That's really frightfully kind, Mr. Pegg," said the duke. "You see, I
-am expected to visit the Gordons, who have rented a château at Deux
-Arbres and when you called, Miss Pegg, I thought they had come to meet
-me. We shall pass there shortly, and if you will just set me down in the
-village I shall be all right and fearfully grateful."
-
-"Why, that's the place where the famous panels by Scarpia are!" I
-exclaimed. "They were painted at the order of Cardinal Perigino in
-1754."
-
-The duke looked at me in some surprise.
-
-"Right!" said he. "Do you know the Gordons, by any chance?"
-
-"No," I replied. "But I know my Burke's History of the Sixteenth Century
-Italian Painters."
-
-"Oh!" said he. "How odd and delightful." And he smiled again that
-delectable smile of his, which somehow drew us into a delicious
-intimacy. His smile seemed at once to compliment my erudition and a
-thousand other lovely things. Then he turned again to Peaches and
-looking at her spoke to her father.
-
-"Where are you bound for, sir?" he asked.
-
-"Monte Carlo will be our final camp," said Silas. "It's a town I've
-always wanted to hit. I understand it's got it all over Hell River or
-even Dogtown, and I used to get a lot of comfort out of them two places
-when I was herding hop pickers round the head of the Sacramento Valley.
-But I understand Monte has them beaten three ways. It ought to,
-considering the game they named after it!"
-
-I am convinced that this statement was as unintelligible to the duke as
-it was to me, but he laughed politely.
-
-"I may be dropping down there a little later," he said. "In point of
-fact my home is not far from it--lovely old place back in the hills. I
-was born there!"
-
-"That so?" said Mr. Pegg. "Well, you do talk English remarkably well!"
-
-"I was educated at Harvard," said the duke. "My mother was an American,
-the daughter of the consul at San Remo."
-
-"I knew you were a regular guy!" said Peaches, and then blushed
-furiously. The duke laughed.
-
-"Thanks!" said he. "But I am an Italian, you know, really, and I love my
-country--as perhaps few men have!"
-
-His eyes grew grave as he spoke. And after a few moments of curious
-silence that fell upon us unwittingly, he held up his hand as a signal
-to stop.
-
-"We are coming into Deux Arbres now," he said. "There is the inn, and
-that trap looks as if it would take one to the château! I am a thousand
-times grateful for the lift!"
-
-The car slowed down at Alicia's command, and the duke, despite our
-protests, insisted upon getting out.
-
-"We could easily take you right to the ranch house--castle, that is!"
-Peaches offered.
-
-"Not a bit more trouble, young man!" said Mr. Pegg.
-
-But the duke would have no more of us. Charmingly, politely and firmly
-he shook us, as Alicia put it afterward. He disappeared within a little
-hostelry and we resumed our journey. When we had done so Alicia's father
-subjected her to a cross examination which I, rather than she, deserved,
-inasmuch as I had really been responsible for the more or less shocking
-performance. But Peaches nobly refrained from in any way implicating me.
-
-"Look here, Peaches, what made you collect that young swell?" said her
-parent in an attempt to be properly irate.
-
-"Why, pa, I thought it was Jake Keeting--you know, Giant Jake from the
-B-2 outfit, and I was so surprised I yelled before I thought," she lied
-with alarmingly casual promptness.
-
-"Well, it's a good thing I and Miss Talbot was along to make it look
-respectable!" he boomed. "This isn't the coast, you know, and people
-round here have old-fashioned notions. But he seemed a mighty nice young
-feller."
-
-Alicia glanced sideways at Richard, the chauffeur.
-
-"I thought he was a wonder!" she said deliberately. And then no more.
-
-That night, in the luxurious bedroom at the Ritz in Paris, which was
-precisely like all the other hotels at which we had stopped so far,
-Peaches and I discussed the mystery of the Ducca di Monteventi to our
-heart's content. And in the end we tacitly cleared him of connection
-with the incident of the London theater, Alicia insisting that I must
-have been mistaken in my identification of him, and I determinedly
-convinced that he was none other than the hero of my escapade, an
-opinion to which I privately held, though I refrained from expressing it
-when I discovered that she disliked the thought.
-
-"Say!" she remarked. "I think he's a prince, that's what. You know what
-I mean--he's a duke, of course, but I should worry about that! I mean a
-prince in the American sense."
-
-And curiously enough I understood her.
-
-But fate removed the object of our interest from our lives for many
-weeks to come. We moved rather more slowly than I had anticipated, owing
-partially to Alicia's sudden interest in Parisian art galleries. We
-would plan our trip for the day within earshot of her parent, and in
-truth we did occasionally visit them as we had announced. But more
-frequently when we said we would go to the Louvre we meant the emporium
-of that title, and very shortly Peaches' wardrobe began to show the
-results of my restraining influence.
-
-She was so beautiful that everything she put on became her, and so tall
-that everything had to be altered. And so it came about that we were
-some weeks in Paris; very pleasurable they were, too, and my knowledge
-of French came in most serviceably. Not for nothing had I taken a prize
-at Miss Hichbourne's Seminary and Finishing School for Young Gentlewomen
-with an essay entitled Un Matin de Mai, for it developed that I was the
-only person in our party possessed of even the rudiments of any foreign
-language, and I was constantly in demand as interpreter, requesting
-everything from _un verre de L'eau glacée_ for Mr. Pegg to _tabac et
-d'allumettes_ for Richard, the chauffeur, and, of course, in the
-purchasing of Peaches' clothes I was indispensable.
-
-Moreover, out of my princely emolument I felt it but right to purchase
-for myself sundry garments of a more fashionable appearance than I had
-hitherto possessed, and to dispatch home by boat mail an embroidered
-shawl for my sister and some fine cambric handkerchiefs together with a
-pair of blue worsted knitted slippers for Galadia, which I purchased at
-the American Woman's Exchange.
-
-I may here remark in passing that Alicia's speech and manner were
-becoming gradually modified under my earnest example and tuition, though
-her fiery spirit and impulsive nature remained the same. Also her
-conduct was impeccable, for with the exception of bringing home a
-perfectly strange young American sailor--a common seaman, he was--to
-dinner for no better reason than that she had found him sitting in the
-Jardin de Tuileries and he had professed to be homesick, she did nothing
-remarkable. It is a fact that upon one occasion she was barely prevented
-from using physical violence upon the driver of a fiacre, who she
-maintained was a dog-faced son of a muleteer and was ripe for admission
-to the nether world, his inevitable landing place. And all this because
-he was using a whip with more violence than discrimination upon his
-apathetic animal. Her extraordinary language was completely, and very
-fortunately, lost upon him, inasmuch as he understood no English, much
-less Californian, and thought she was merely trying to protest at the
-overcharge, and being used to that he remained undisturbed.
-
-During our stay in Paris I wrote to and received an answer from my
-Cousin Abby, who in a dashing hand announced that she would be "charmed
-to see you, dear old thing, as it's a beastly season, dull as ditch
-water, and anything will be a diversion."
-
-I announced the fact of the receipt of this letter but kept its exact
-contents to myself, as I rather feared for our reception. Mr. Pegg,
-however, seemed to consider the mere fact of her reply an encouraging
-sign, and with his customary abruptness of decision gave orders that we
-pack up at once and proceed to Italy by train instead of by motor as we
-had planned, thus expediting the matter of starting upon what he
-persisted in terming the "commencement of Peaches' social career."
-
-"Since your cousin, the countess, is at her castle," he informed me, "we
-will break camp right now, Miss Talbot, and hit the trail for the
-Italian citrus country. I am anxious to start looking the lemon
-situation over, and it's only fair to give the Paris shops a chance to
-restock. So to-morrow we will pull out."
-
-"Very well, Mr. Pegg," I assented. "Though it is a pity to miss the
-château country."
-
-"Not much sense in looking at the outside of châteaux if you don't know
-the folks living in them," the Citrus King commented. "And perhaps on
-the way back we will have a few invites from your cousin's friends."
-
-I could only bite my lip and refrain from going into the question
-further at the moment. Mr. Pegg's social and geographical ideas were at
-that time in sad need of correction. But then correction made so little
-impression on him. If his mind was made up to get a thing he would brush
-aside all else until the attainment of his object. Already I was
-learning not to dispute his decisions. Besides, it was conceivable that
-Cousin Abby did know some French nobility, or the lessees of some, and
-that if she accepted us at all we might possibly make their acquaintance
-in due course. Indeed the circumstances were far less improbable than so
-much which had actually occurred during the past month that I dismissed
-the question momentarily, wrote Euphemia a brief note informing her of
-our prospective change of address, and then sought out my charge for
-the purpose of imparting her father's instructions.
-
-At first I experienced some difficulty in locating her, but after a
-diligent search of our sumptuous suite I at length discovered her in the
-public corridor near the elevator, where she was engaged in explaining
-some game of cards--a form of solitaire--to the youth who operated the
-elevator. They were seated upon a bench near the shaft, and the youth
-was completely negligent of his duty. At my approach Miss Alicia looked
-up and nodded, but continued her explanation.
-
-"The jack on the queen," she was saying; "the ten on the jack; move 'em
-over--that makes a dollar you owe me!"
-
-"Alicia!" I exclaimed. "Stop it at once! What are you doing?"
-
-"Canfield," she replied mysteriously. "Want to take me on?" She gathered
-up the cards, which I then discovered to be part of what I may term her
-personal equipment, being small and easily contained in that part of her
-vanity case usually occupied by rouge and lip stick, for which, thank
-heaven, Alicia had neither need nor desire, though perhaps when one
-stops to consider the matter it is somewhat doubtful if her substitution
-of a pack of playing cards had a greater moral value.
-
-"I don't want to take you on; I want to take you away!" I said. "Come
-back to the apartment and pack. We are to proceed to Monte Carlo in the
-morning.
-
-"Suffering cats!" exclaimed Peaches. "No wonder you don't want to stop
-for any of this piker stuff." Then she turned to the elevator boy, who
-still lingered, seemingly in a state of semihypnosis. "Thanks for the
-paper, captain," she said. "Keep that dollar you owe me for a tip!" And
-then she slid her arm around my neck and strolled down the corridor with
-me, while the youth, with a parting grin, at length perceived the
-buzzing of the indicator, and vanished into his elevator contraption,
-not having uttered a single word since my advent.
-
-"I had him try to find me a San Francisco paper," Peaches explained as
-we returned to our royal apartments. "I get so sick of these Frenchy
-ones that I can't read, and of the London ones that have only news which
-could never have been fresh to me. I wanted to see a good comic sheet.
-Gee! How we used to rush for 'em out on the ranch. When Bill Hovey's
-mule team came into sight over Bear Ridge Dick and I used to commence
-matching for who'd open the bag. And generally we'd look at the comics
-together. Don't you love Krazy-Kat?"
-
-I shook my head slowly, more in despair at her simplicity than as the
-negative she took the gesture for.
-
-"Well, you wouldn't, no, nor Buster Brown, either, I suppose. But we
-didn't have any volumes of Webster or any such light stuff on the ranch,
-and had to take what we could get."
-
-"You have a newspaper of some sort, I see," I replied, feeling it
-useless to explain that I preferred Byron to Webster, and not feeling in
-the least convinced that Peaches knew of the existence of Daniel as well
-as of Noah. She pulled out a copy of the Paris _Herald_ from under her
-arm.
-
-"Not from the coast," she said, "but at least it's printed in American.
-The boy was a nice kid. He comes from Texas. He showed me a peach of a
-trick, and I was showing him a new Canfield when you breezed in with
-something really big. Hello! Here's something about Mr. Markheim!"
-
-She had been scanning the front page of the paper as she talked, and now
-she fell silent for a moment as she read.
-
-"Who is Mr. Markheim?" I inquired. "Not Sebastian Markheim, the great
-banker?"
-
-"Yeah!" said Peaches assentingly. "But it's nothing much. He's bought
-another picture, that's all. And paid the price of a couple of
-first-class orange-groves for it."
-
-"Why, Alicia Pegg!" I exclaimed. "What an extraordinary young female you
-are! Sebastian Markheim is one of the greatest collectors of antique
-paintings in the world. He is an authority on the subject. How do you
-come to know him?"
-
-"He came to know us!" she averred cheerfully. "Bought a ranch near our
-home outfit, and came over to get some pointers from pa. We see him a
-lot whenever he's in California."
-
-"How amazing!" I exclaimed. "Sebastian Markheim, the great millionaire!
-What manner of man is he, Alicia?"
-
-"Oh, he's a widower of about fifty or so," she said carelessly. "He's in
-love with me."
-
-"Alicia!" I exclaimed. "Can you never learn to be more reticent about
-these--these delicate personal matters?"
-
-"He isn't a bit delicate!" she responded mildly. "In fact he's awfully
-rough. He hounds me, but I can look out for myself."
-
-I felt the subject too dangerous to pursue. As my dear father used to
-say, most unpleasant subjects thrive on reproof. So I diverted her
-attention from her immediate theme.
-
-"What picture did he purchase that is worthy of such comment?" I
-inquired.
-
-"It is called the Madonna of the Lamp by some bird named Raphael, last
-name not mentioned," replied the young heathen cheerfully. "What's all
-this about Monte Carlo to-morrow?"
-
-But I had taken the newspaper from her.
-
-"The Madonna of the Lamp!" I exclaimed. "Why, Alicia, child, that is one
-of the most famous paintings in the world. It was done in Italy,
-hundreds of years ago, by one of the greatest artists that ever lived.
-The extraordinary part of such a sale is that any private individual
-should own it. Its proper place is a museum. I am surprised it ever got
-out of Italy. They have a strict law which prohibits any important works
-of art from being taken out of the country, you know."
-
-"I do not know," said Alicia. "But you'd think they'd be glad to get
-such a price for a thing as old as that, wouldn't you? Now if it was an
-original by Gibson or Christy----"
-
-But I did not attend to the remainder of her sentence. My eye had fallen
-upon another item of even greater importance, which had evidently
-escaped her attention. It was small and inconspicuously placed, but its
-interest was overwhelming. It ran thus. I copy from the original:
-
-  "SCARPIA PANELS STOLEN
-
-     "Calais, March 15th. The commissioner of police here was informed
-     last night that the four famous panels by Scarpia had been
-     mysteriously removed from the château belonging to Baron Richt at
-     Deux Arbres, seventeen miles from this city. The house has been
-     rented to Lord and Lady Ellis Gordon for the past two years. The
-     uttermost mystery surrounds the disappearance of the four panels,
-     which have been one of the show features of the place. How the
-     panels could disappear in the brief interval between the
-     announcement of dinner and the return of the guests to the
-     drawing-room is one of the most baffling features of the case. The
-     fact of the theft was discovered by one of the house guests, the
-     Ducca di Monteventi. Every effort will be made to discover the
-     criminals, for whose capture Lord Gordon has already offered a
-     large reward."
-
-That was all, but as Peaches put it, it was "an eyeful." In other words,
-it was sufficient. Or almost so, for, of course, our native feminine
-curiosity was enormously piqued. We stared at each other in amazement
-for a moment, and then Peaches heaved a long sigh.
-
-"That tall man!" she said cryptically. "Why, it was the place we left
-him at; the Gordon outfit! It seems like every time we hear of him he's
-mixed up in a mystery."
-
-"It certainly does," I assented. "And here we are headed for the
-Riviera, while I don't suppose he will get away, now that he's mixed up
-with that theft."
-
-"How do you know he's mixed up with it?" demanded Alicia with quite
-unnecessary violence. "He--he's a corker--couldn't you tell? Mixed up,
-my eye!"
-
-"I meant as a witness or in some similar capacity," I protested. "If he
-were not a duke, Alicia, I should be inclined, upon mature
-consideration, to believe him a detective."
-
-"Secret service?" she said doubtfully. "Sleuth? Why, no. He's a swell,
-that's all. You mustn't let your girlish imagination run away with you,
-Free. And anyhow, why worry, as we probably'll never see him again?"
-
-"That is probably too true," I assented. Then I consulted dear father's
-chronometer, discovered that time was pressing, and proceeded to the
-packing of my bags and the problem of getting into my trunk some new
-materials which I had purchased with the intention of having Miss
-Stimpson, our local seamstress, make them up for me the very minute we
-returned to Boston. I had also a new coat which Alicia had insisted upon
-presenting to me, and some garments of a more private nature which I had
-secretly purchased to gaze upon occasionally, though I would never wear
-such unladylike garments, for suppose there were to be a train wreck,
-how would one explain that a pink satin ah--er--interior was not belying
-a respectable alpaca surface, if you divine my meaning?
-
-Well, at any rate, I found that my small trunk could not possibly be
-made to hold all these new possessions, and so packed a few substantial
-petticoats with handmade crochet edging and my second-best dolman into a
-paper parcel, which I addressed to Euphemia and having thus completed my
-visit to the French capital I was ready to, as it were, conquer Italy.
-
-
-
-
-V
-
-
-My dear father used justly to observe that clothes made the man, but
-that woman made the clothes. A witticism of which he was most fond,
-inasmuch as he clung to the custom of employing a tailoress, which was
-the almost universal method of procuring outer garments in his early
-youth. But it is possible that he intended to imply that the beauty of
-some females was insurmountable by bad taste in dress. I hardly know
-which interpretation may be correct; but I am sure that either Cousin
-Abby was tremendously affected by her clothes or that they were
-tremendously affected by her. At any rate they were as amazing as she
-was, or she as they, if you comprehend me. And the reaction which I
-experienced upon first beholding the Eiffel Tower was as nothing beside
-that incident to my first meeting in twenty-five years with my relative.
-
-It took place almost immediately after our arrival at Monte Carlo.
-Indeed we were scarcely settled in the royal suite of the hotel before
-she paid her visit. Mr. Pegg and his daughter had stepped out to undergo
-the preliminaries of obtaining a card to the public gambling hell, and
-I, unwilling to countenance their project, had remained behind
-ostensibly to supervise Richard, the chauffeur, in the disposal of our
-things, and so was alone when the countess was announced.
-
-The Richard person admitted her and came in whistling under his breath
-as he gave me her card.
-
-"Oh, you beautiful doll!" he sang sotto voce as he did so.
-
-I flew to the mirror, gave my hair a pat, and assuming a dignified
-deportment entered the drawing-room. It was empty save for a young girl,
-very much overdressed, who was standing with her back toward me, looking
-out of the window. At sound of my entrance she turned and pounced upon
-me with a shriek of delight.
-
-"Freedom Talbot, old thing!" she exclaimed. "How glad I am to see you!"
-
-And sure enough, that young girl was Cousin Abby! How true it is that
-the troubles we experience are seldom those we expect! I had been living
-in dread lest my titled relative should not prove hospitably inclined,
-and here she was already, upon the very first day of our arrival,
-greeting me literally with open arms. So much for the trouble I
-anticipated--it was gone like a wreath of smoke! But as I took a good
-look at her an entirely unforeseen difficulty began to force itself upon
-me. That Cousin Abby was willing to receive us was apparent, but were we
-going to return the compliment? For Abby had changed far more than I
-had.
-
-When she left Boston twenty-five years ago Abby Talbot had been
-considerably older than I. But upon renewing her acquaintance as
-described I found her to be at least twenty years my junior. Not
-literally, you will understand, by some miracle of arrested growth or
-phenomenon in the actual defeat of time, but by sundry artificial aids
-such as were never countenanced by my dear father and mother, or indeed
-by Euphemia or myself, all such so-called aids to beauty being unknown
-to the gentlewomen of our acquaintance and recognized only upon the
-persons of outcast females and constituting the outward and visible
-signs of inward and spiritual disgrace. Of course it must be admitted
-that some of even Boston's very best people, particularly in the younger
-generation, where it was palpably unnecessary, resorted to these
-artifices, and I had several times been shocked at large receptions by
-observing this fact. But that a member of our family should stoop to
-such a course was incredible; or would have been except that I was at
-that moment beholding it with my own eyes.
-
-Abby's hair was golden, and her cheeks were pink as Peaches' own. Her
-lips! Gracious goodness! I trembled for her immortal soul as I beheld
-them! And sinful-looking diamonds dangled from her ears almost to her
-shoulders. The hat she wore might better have been fashioned for a maid
-of sixteen, and her short gown swung above a pair of slim silken ankles
-and slippers with glittering buckles and outrageous heels.
-
-But though I struggled to experience the disapproval which I knew to be
-the proper reaction to these bedizenments I could not but admire the
-brave spirit they also undoubtedly represented. There was that about
-Abby which gave one the belief that one need not grow old except through
-lack of the desire for youth. She seemed to stand there before me with
-the spirit of her unconquerable youth radiating, as it were, through the
-painted shell she had put upon her body. I at once, and for the first
-time in my life, seriously contemplated abandoning my curled fringe. All
-this which I have recorded passed through my mind in a flash--while she
-was embracing me, to be exact. Then she withdrew her perfumed person a
-few inches and laughed like a girl!
-
-"Free, you duckie!" she cried. "You haven't changed a bit. It's
-fearfully amusing, your coming over. And to this iniquitous spot! How is
-poor dear Boston? I feel a million æons away from it! And how is Cousin
-Euphemia? And the dog--what was his name; Rex?--that she used to fuss
-over so when he got his feet wet, do you remember?"
-
-She meant that she was trying to remember.
-
-"Rex has departed this life," I replied, "on the initiative of a very
-rude and heartless dog catcher with a barred wagon. Euphemia is well
-except for her rheumatism and asthma and indigestion; or was when I left
-home."
-
-"Doesn't she write?" asked Abby quickly.
-
-"She was exceedingly disapproving of my enterprise and has not written,"
-said I. "But I had somewhat anticipated the circumstance and am not
-unduly worried. The maid, Galadia, is to inform me should anything go
-wrong."
-
-Abby laughed again. It certainly was a pleasant thing to hear.
-
-"Tell me everything!" she exclaimed, drawing two chairs close together.
-"What on earth made you do it, you rebel? And who are these Peggs you
-are with?"
-
-It was delightfully gossipy. I sat down beside her and soon explained my
-action, in reply to her first question. But when I came to enlarging
-upon the second, I found myself, most unexpectedly, at a loss. What was
-my relationship to them anyhow? It was like trying to analyze one's
-relationship to the sunlight. And yet, had I merely seen them without
-knowing them, I should have unquestionably characterized them as
-impossibly vulgar; that was the plain truth of the matter. To Abby they
-must inevitably seem so at first glance. And knowing this I
-instinctively rose to their defense. I discovered within myself a sudden
-warm glow of affection and appreciation which was so normal and
-comfortable in its character that I had positively been unaware of its
-existence until criticism threatened them. I spoke slowly and
-deliberately, choosing my words with care.
-
-"The Peggs are Americans," said I, "from California. And their hearts
-are as big as their--er--oranges."
-
-"From which I gather they are millionaires and vulgar," said Abby
-shrewdly--"but that you like them."
-
-"I do indeed!" said I, though how she deduced so much from my remark I
-cannot imagine.
-
-"And it is equally evident," Abby went on, "that I, your titled cousin,
-am to be induced by hook or crook to introduce them to an assortment of
-foreign titles. That's so, isn't it? And you are in an agony of
-embarrassed bewilderment about how to broach the subject?"
-
-"Abby!" I gasped. "How can you!"
-
-"My dear, I have to!" she cut in, laughing again, though not so
-pleasantly this time. "My wits are about all I have with which to make
-good my bridge losses! I suppose you know Constantine left me nothing
-but the villa?"
-
-"What!" I exclaimed, really aghast. "I was not even aware of your
-husband's demise!"
-
-"Polo accident," she said briefly. "Five years ago."
-
-"I'm sorry," I said softly.
-
-"Well," said Abby, "never mind that! So you see you need have no
-reticence about offering me money. I can earn it, I assure you."
-
-Of course this was astonishing, but at the same time it really was an
-immense relief. For I knew dear Mr. Pegg never hesitated to pay a proper
-price for the genuine article, as he himself was wont to put it. And I
-had in truth been most anxious as to how I should approach my
-distinguished relative upon so delicate a matter as remuneration for the
-peculiar services which we required. And so, though in a sense I was
-shocked by her frankness, it made my path far easier, particularly since
-her own lack of delicacy in the matter warranted a larger degree of
-out-spokenness upon my part. And I had something important to say. Her
-opening gave me an opportunity not likely of renewal, and so I at once
-rushed into the breach.
-
-"My dear, I grieve for your loss," said I; "and for the unfortunate
-condition of your widowhood. And it is a most happy circumstance that we
-can be of benefit to each other at this time. Mr. Pegg intends to offer
-you a thousand dollars each for introductions to titles. And a bonus, I
-think he called it, of ten thousand dollars for--er--I believe he termed
-it 'working capital.'"
-
-"Splendid!" exclaimed Abby. "Now go ahead and tell me the buts."
-
-"The buts?" I queried. "Do you infer that there are restrictions to Mr.
-Pegg's offer?"
-
-"By the gleam in your eye I know there are!" Abby affirmed.
-
-"Well," I admitted, "Mr. Pegg has not expressed his desire that there be
-any; but I have one of my own."
-
-Abby gave me a most peculiar look at this, her eyes narrowing and her
-lips curling in a distinctly unpleasant smile. It filled me with an
-acute, though undefined, sense of discomfort.
-
-"Very well," she said quietly. "How much do you want?"
-
-"What?" I asked.
-
-"What commission do you want?" said she, speaking very distinctly. I
-felt as though someone had struck me with a whip. Instinctively I got to
-my feet.
-
-"Abby!" I exclaimed in horror. "A bribe! How could you? A Talbot!"
-
-To my amazement and further distress she stared at me for a long moment
-and then burst into tears.
-
-"Forgive me, Cousin Free!" she sobbed. "Forgive me, if you can--please!
-One gets so hard, so used to things like that out here! I ought to have
-known better! Please say you understand!"
-
-She was not like a little girl any longer. There was something behind
-the tone in which she spoke which frightened me; something terrible and
-sinister and cruel--something which could break even a Talbot! I
-perceived its nature though its substance was beyond my experience, and
-at once the instinct to rescue and help her was uppermost in my mind. I
-fussed over her much as I used to fuss over Rex, our pet, when anything
-ailed him, for he had been my dog, not Euphemia's, as Abby had supposed.
-And presently she grew quieter, though she still held on to my hand. But
-though I felt sorry for Abby and was determined to be of assistance to
-her I did not let the most unfortunate incident divert me from what had
-originally been in my mind to say when she made her terrible mistake.
-
-"Now, my dear, I will forgive you," said I. "But please brace up and
-allow me to state my condition, which is simply this: The young lady,
-Miss Alicia Pegg, must be most carefully guarded from fortune hunters
-and all questionable company. You must guarantee to me that you will
-introduce her to no one who can harm her. Her father has a faith in her
-ability to take care of herself which is founded in his knowledge of her
-singularly beautiful nature, but he is almost as unworldly in our sense
-as she is. I simply won't have any scallawags hanging round her. Her
-father trusts me to look out for her welfare, and I mean to see that his
-trust is justified."
-
-"You seem pretty deep in his confidence," Abby remarked. "He is a
-widower, you said?"
-
-"He is," I replied, though I did not see what that had to do with the
-subject. "And Alicia's motherless condition places a great
-responsibility upon me. So you must promise what I have asked, Abby, and
-keep the promise faithfully."
-
-"All right, old dear!" she answered, her self-possession rapidly
-returning. "And it won't be hard, for I know an awfully decent set,
-really. I'll have you all out to dine this very week. I'm at San Remo,
-you know. Just a short motor drive from here; a duck of a house opposite
-the old German Emperor's place. How about Saturday? That ought to give
-me time to collect the proper people."
-
-"That will be lovely, Abby!" said I. "Mr. Pegg will be delighted, I am
-sure." Then a sudden wonderment struck me.
-
-"Don't you ever wish you were back in the security of your life in
-Boston?" I asked curiously.
-
-"Not when I'm sane!" she replied lightly. "Do you?"
-
-This was both unexpected and disconcerting. But I strove to be honest in
-my reply.
-
-"No," I said; "I cannot truthfully say that I do."
-
-And long after she had taken her departure, buoyant and apparently
-light-hearted once more, I pondered my reply. But I found no explanation
-for my change of heart. Never, no, never, did I expect to utter such a
-sentiment, much less to have felt it! But the harsh fact was that I had
-somehow become estranged from my native city and the human element which
-represented it, and did in truth already prefer the Riviera.
-
-In point of fact it appeared to me to be the most beautiful place of
-which the mind could conceive, despite that I was rather surprised to
-find the chief foliage to be cedar and other evergreens, and that the
-whole effect was less tropical than I had imagined. Also I had expected
-that the natives would be rather more like those in a production of
-Cavalleria Rusticana, to which my dear father had once escorted Euphemia
-and myself upon the occasion of her birthday; and even after several
-weeks of continuous residence in Monte Carlo I was unable to be rid of a
-feeling that the management, or rather government, was somehow to blame
-for not making the reality more like the opera.
-
-But oh, how beautiful it was! I was unstinting in my praise. Not so Mr.
-Pegg and Alicia, however.
-
-"Pretty good!" was Alicia's comment. "But you ought to see California.
-They'd better bring over some of our poppies to liven up the hills."
-
-"It's real pretty," her father admitted, "but awful small. It's
-something like a pocket edition, as you might say, Miss Free."
-
-"I scarcely believe that anything could be more lovely," I declared.
-
-"Well, of course you haven't been West yet," said Peaches cheerfully.
-"Then you'll see the real thing!"
-
-"I shall never become a Californian, my dear," I put in mildly. "Do you
-know, sometimes I fear you tend to exaggerate in describing your native
-State?"
-
-"Well, we produce the biggest crops in the world," she declared. "So why
-not the biggest liars, as well? Wait until you've been out on the coast
-yourself!"
-
-And never to this day have I clearly understood what she meant by that.
-A great deal that Alicia said was difficult to understand. And nothing
-was more so than this insistence on her part that anything Californian
-was superior to everything European. After our visit to the Villa d'Este
-I gave up. She looked it over pleasantly and gave her verdict.
-
-"I guess they copied it from the Gillespie place at Santa Barbara," she
-said; "only, of course, these hills are nothing as compared to the Coast
-Range for height."
-
-It was just after this that I abandoned all effort to force a course in
-architecture, or indeed in any of the arts, upon Peaches. I began dimly
-to perceive that it was not only useless but that her education was not
-really impaired by the secession of my efforts along these lines. She
-possessed a faculty for picking out what she wanted to learn and
-learning it thoroughly. And after all that is the truest education, as
-my dear father used to say.
-
-But I digress. Let us take up our sequence where Abby left me on that
-first afternoon.
-
-Scarcely had she departed, driving off in a smart little red automobile
-of the type which I had learned to distinguish as a roadster, as I
-observed from the window, and which gave no clew to the newly disclosed
-fact of her poverty--scarcely had she departed and I had partially
-mastered the emotions which her extraordinary visit had engendered in my
-bosom when Alicia and her father returned.
-
-They had been out, as I believe I have mentioned, for the purpose of
-procuring cards of admission to the public gambling hell. They had also
-got cards for a place called the casino, one of which was offered to me.
-I accepted it with gratitude, for at home there was a casino out at
-Duxbury where we spent our summers; a very charming place it was, too,
-with a fine view of the ocean from the veranda, and a dance for the
-young people every Saturday night, and I had greatly enjoyed taking my
-knitting there. I was at present secretly at work upon a pair of socks
-for Mr. Pegg, intended as a small appreciation of all he had done for
-me, and I felt sure that this casino would be an excellent place in
-which to complete them, particularly when Mr. Pegg and his daughter were
-away gambling. I had, needless to say, protested against their avowed
-intentions in this matter, but to no avail.
-
-"Why, Miss Talbot, of course you object!" Mr. Pegg had said, kindly but
-firmly. "Objecting to this sort of thing is part of your job. If you
-didn't object you wouldn't be the woman I hired you for. But this is one
-time you're not wise--you don't get it at all. This gambling joint is
-strictly high class. The layouts at Dogtown have nothing on
-it--absolutely! To lose a little something at Monte is like losing a
-little at monte with a small 'm' over to Dogtown; and allow me to inform
-you that no California native son's education is completely polished off
-without that experience. Only over here is where the crowned heads get
-trimmed--I mean polished. And I propose to have my daughter visit that
-historic spot so's she can talk intelligently about it at big dinner
-parties."
-
-Well, when Mr. Pegg assumed that tone I knew that further argument was
-useless. Besides, Peaches herself was very much set on going, and all
-that was left me was the manifestation of my unalterable disapproval by
-steadfastly refusing to accompany them or to discuss their experiences
-in that den of iniquity. Even Richard, the chauffeur, was infected with
-the dreadful spirit of the place, though I ascertained that the vicious
-resort which he attended was of a less pretentious order.
-
-There was considerable coolness between us that evening because of my
-attitude, and when Peaches and her father had departed upon their
-nefarious errand I read my Bible and went to bed greatly fortified. This
-coolness lasted into the next day, despite the arrival during breakfast
-of Abby's invitation to dinner, at which Mr. Pegg and Alicia both
-evinced great satisfaction. I hoped to divert them into a visit to the
-churches, but all in vain. Mr. Pegg had lost several hundred dollars, it
-seemed, and both he and his daughter evinced a strong wish, as they
-expressed it, "to show these wop gamblers where they got off."
-
-The result was that after luncheon they again left me to my own devices
-after a second fruitless attempt at persuading me to accompany them, and
-when they had been gone for half an hour I decided to take my knitting
-to that casino for which they had given me a card.
-
-The afternoon was exceptionally mild and fine, even for that part of the
-world, and I anticipated spending it out of doors. I therefore put on a
-shade hat and a light wrap, packed my fancywork into my knitting bag
-and making sure that my working specs were in my reticule I set forth
-into the mildly sunlit avenue.
-
-I had no difficulty at all in locating my destination. Indeed the very
-first native boy of whom I made inquiry directed me volubly. I thanked
-him and passed on in the direction which he indicated. But when I
-reached the spot I confess I was astounded and felt obliged to confirm
-the building's identity by a second inquiry.
-
-It was far, far larger than the casino at Duxbury. Indeed it looked
-rather more like one or rather several of the houses which the _nouveau
-riche_ have erected at Newport. But this was not altogether surprising
-when one realized that the number of tourists was undoubtedly far
-greater than on the Massachusetts coast. And as I approached I noted
-that a large number of cars were waiting outside. It seemed probable
-that this indicated a hostess day, or possibly even a private euchre
-party; so I decided against going in, and entered the gardens instead.
-
-These were amazingly beautiful and extensive, with winding paths and
-pleasant seats. Here at least I could not complain of any lack of
-luxuriance in the semi-tropical growth, and selecting a sheltered bench
-that was shielded from the light breeze by a mass of camellias in full
-bloom I settled myself for a pleasing period of rest and observation.
-Very few people were about, and a lovely peace reigned over all.
-
-First I took out the finished sock and regarded it critically in the
-strong light. It was really well made if I do say so myself, and
-tasteful, too. The sock itself was black, but round the top the purling
-was in alternate stripes of black and red; an effort on my part at once
-to meet Mr. Pegg's taste for the exotic in dress and at the same time
-offer a conservative surface in that part which would be exposed to the
-general public. Having then satisfied myself that my work was as my
-mother would have desired, I counted the setting-up stitches anew to
-make certain of their number, and began the second sock, my heart
-content at thought of the pleasant surprise my gift would be. I had
-completed the top line of red and the first line of black and had just
-begun on the second line of red when I observed the most dreadful thing.
-
-I think I have mentioned that my seat was sheltered by a semicircular
-bed of evergreen bordered by tall camellias, and was situated in a
-remote corner of the gardens. The band on the plaza was playing a gay
-tune and the atmosphere was pleasantly exhilarating. And so I was not
-paying very diligent attention to my work. Indeed my eyes were ever
-prone to rove from my knitting, a fact for which Euphemia has often
-chided me, though I do quite as well without watching my stitches, the
-occupation having become second nature with me. Therefore it was by no
-means unprecedented that I should be contemplating the beautiful shrubs
-at my right, while nodding my head to the music of the distant band,
-though my hands were busily engaged.
-
-At first I thought my vision must be at fault, for something stirred
-just the other side of the bushes, and a hand containing a revolver was
-slowly lifted, the index finger upon the trigger.
-
-For the first second I felt as if I were stricken by paralysis, and the
-next I had sprung to my feet and rounded the corner to where the hand
-was.
-
-"Stop it at once!" I shouted instinctively, though it is a fact that I
-hardly knew what was to be stopped.
-
-And my command was obeyed. The man who stood there actually did stop,
-though why in the moment of his surprise that dreadful pistol did not go
-off I cannot understand. But the hand containing it dropped to his side,
-and for several seconds we stood staring at each other, he with the
-pallid daze of one who has been halted on the brink of destruction, and
-I with the trembling indignation of a respectable female with a most
-unfeminine situation suddenly thrust upon her.
-
-He was a tall thin man, no longer young, and dressed in the extreme of
-fashion save for a large rabbit's foot that dangled incongruously from
-his watch chain. His eyes were large and dark and overbrilliant, and his
-disheveled head was hatless.
-
-"What were you doing?" I asked severely, though I knew perfectly well.
-"Don't you know that it's a sin?" I went on before he could answer.
-
-"Who are you?" the man asked in English, his voice hoarse and remote.
-"Go away and allow me to kill myself!"
-
-"Stuff and nonsense!" I replied tartly. "You put that--that weapon into
-your pocket this minute! Don't you know you are apt to cause us both to
-be arrested if a police officer should come this way?"
-
-Mechanically he obeyed, slipping the dreadful thing into his coat
-pocket, and continuing to stare at me in that helpless, dazed fashion.
-
-"Now come and sit down beside me on this bench!" I commanded, gathering
-my worsteds out of his way. He obeyed like a person in a trance. "There
-now!" said I. "You poor man, you are all upset! Wait a minute and I'll
-give you just what you need."
-
-Fortunately it is my habit always to carry a dose of aromatic spirits of
-ammonia in my reticule in case of emergency, and at length an emergency
-had arisen. Hastily retrieving the little phial from its hiding place I
-uncorked it and offered it to my strange companion.
-
-"Here--drink this quickly!" I commanded.
-
-He took it and gave a hurried look about to see if anyone observed.
-There was nobody in sight.
-
-"You are right, it is less noisy!" he whispered. And with a single gulp
-he drained the phial and returned it to me.
-
-"How long does it take to work?" he whispered feebly, relaxing upon the
-bench.
-
-"Just a moment," I said soothingly. "There! Don't you feel better
-already?"
-
-"I do, strangely enough!" he replied, straightening up. "What kind of
-poison is it?"
-
-"It's aromatic ammonia," I said briskly, "and it won't poison you in the
-least. Never have I met such a silly person as you are!"
-
-"Baffled again!" he groaned, burying his face in his hands. "Oh, how
-much better I feel! What a shame! Why could you not let me die?"
-
-"Because it is the business of sensible women to take care of foolish
-men!" I returned. "Sit up now and tell me all about it. Was it love?"
-
-He obeyed and stared at me in that silly blank way of his.
-
-"Love?" he said. "Worse than that. Money. I have one hundred napoleons
-left in the world. I decided there were only two courses open to me.
-Either I must get a sign, an infallible sign how to play, or shoot
-myself. I decided to wait until two o'clock and if the sign had not
-manifested itself I would end my life. It was exactly three seconds to
-two o'clock when you spoke!"
-
-He groaned and dropped his head again.
-
-"Well," said I as placidly as I could, "perhaps I am the sign you were
-looking for. Who knows? See here now, I am going on knitting, and
-suppose you watch the stitches for a few moments. It's excellent for the
-nerves. That's it. You'll have yourself well in hand presently."
-
-And indeed even as his eyes fell upon my fancywork he seemed to take a
-new lease of life. Gradually he became animated. Color returned to his
-pallid cheeks and a new, though I cannot say a saner light, came into
-his eyes.
-
-"The sign!" he muttered. "Perhaps it is the sign!" This cryptic remark
-seemed to be addressed to himself. Then suddenly--he did everything
-suddenly--he spoke directly to me. "Red and black!" he said, fingering
-the wool on which I was at work. "Red and black. How many stitches do
-you take of the red, strange woman?"
-
-"Ten," I said, "and then ten of black and then ten on the red!"
-
-He sprang to his feet with a sudden strange conviction in his manner.
-
-"Twenty on the red! Ten on the black!" said he. "It's a sign. It may be,
-it must be a sign! I'm off!"
-
-He tossed the sock back to me with a gay gesture and started away. But I
-was too quick for him. I caught him by the coat tails before he had gone
-twelve inches.
-
-"Hey, my good man!" said I. "I'll just thank you to hand over that
-pistol before you go!"
-
-"All right, you can have it!" he exclaimed lightly. "There you are.
-Don't do anything rash with it. I may need it later!"
-
-He slipped the weapon into my reticule with an amazingly swift gesture,
-and before I could say "jiffy" he was gone in the direction of the
-casino.
-
-Nervous excitement has always exhausted me more than physical exertion,
-and I have acquired the practice of taking a short nap wherever I may be
-when the occasion necessitates it. And so when the poor crazy man had
-gone and seemed little likely to return I settled myself for a cat nap,
-determined to compose my nerves and not allow my afternoon to be ruined
-by the disturbing incident. But though I roused myself at intervals and
-did a few stitches I must have drowsed much longer than I had thought
-to, for when I awoke thoroughly it was sunset.
-
-I got out dear father's chronometer and was horrified to find the hour
-past six. Here I had been a public spectacle for goodness knows how
-long! I at once began to gather my things together, preparatory to
-leaving for the hotel when I perceived that there was a great to-do at
-the casino. People began pouring forth and cheering, headed by a wild
-figure in a black coat.
-
-And then things began to happen fast. Before I could realize that the
-procession was headed for me it was upon me, lead by my suicidal
-acquaintance, his pockets bursting with money, his hat, mysteriously
-retrieved, also brimming with lucre, his vest bulging with it, and his
-hand full of bank notes. Straight toward me he came, and dropping upon
-his knees he flung both hands full of money into my lap, the crowd
-closing in about us despite the police officers, who ran about wildly
-shouting, "Ladies and gentlemen, order, please!"
-
-"My benefactress! My good angel!" shouted the kneeling man. "My sign
-from heaven, accept a few miserable hundreds as your inadequate reward!"
-
-"You have been gambling!" I said severely, while gathering up the money
-from my lap.
-
-"Yes, I broke the bank on your advice!" he shouted. "Twenty on the red,
-ten on the black. Take, oh, take your reward, my angel!"
-
-"I will take this shameful money for the foreign missions at home!" I
-said severely. "It ought to be turned to holy uses, and you will only
-lose it again! And please get up. You are making us both ridiculous!"
-
-But before he could comply, to my unspeakable horror Alicia and her
-father pushed their way through the crowd, accompanied by a young man.
-At sight of me Peaches gave a whoop of joy.
-
-"What price a chaperon!" she yelled. "Free, you little hellion!"
-
-She turned from me to the young man in attendance.
-
-"Good Lord, what'll I have to get her out of next?" she asked him
-whimsically. And then I recognized him.
-
-It was the Duke di Monteventi!
-
-
-
-
-VI
-
-
-Even amidst the excitement incident to my personal predicament I could
-not but be surprised at that young man's being there--and with Peaches!
-He had the most extraordinary way of turning up unexpectedly. And even
-more remarkable was the way in which he appeared equal to whatever
-situation he dropped into the midst of, for now it was he who maneuvered
-my extrication from the embarrassing attentions of the bank-breaking
-person, and it was on his arm that I departed from that iniquitous spot
-to which I had so inadvertently wandered. It was not until we returned
-to the hotel that I learned what had happened, and then dear knows it
-was nothing to his credit.
-
-It appears that they had met him at the gaming table. But, of course,
-that could not be counted as wholly against him, inasmuch as Peaches
-herself had been there, and even I had been near by, though, of course,
-without intention. Obviously I was not in a position to reprove either
-of them, though I took the greatest pains to explain in minute detail
-just how the situation in which they found me had arisen, omitting only
-the exact nature of the work upon which I had been engaged.
-
-"Never mind, Free!" said Peaches soothingly. "Don't bother to alibi.
-Both father and I have played hunches ourselves, haven't we, dad? Only
-it's generally been in person."
-
-This was perfectly unintelligible to me, but the duke apparently
-understood, for he smiled that wonderful golden smile, which made me
-feel as if I would do simply anything for him. Then he counted what they
-persisted in calling my winnings for me. It amounted to nearly two
-hundred francs.
-
-"Are you really going to send it to the missions?" he asked. "You might
-double it at the tables, you know, Miss Talbot!"
-
-"My dear duke," I informed him promptly, "I wouldn't gamble for the
-world! I intend turning this money in at once to charitable uses!"
-
-"What a lack of philosophy!" he cried, throwing out his hand in a
-despairing gesture. "How much is furnished to charity from sources as
-blind, isn't it? But for that poor gambler where would your donation be?
-Don't you believe the end often justifies the means?"
-
-Peaches took this up.
-
-"You mean a person has to fight the world with its own weapons lots of
-times," she said quickly.
-
-"I do," he said.
-
-"Well, my dear father always held that fair means made clean profits," I
-said, rising. "And I believe that no matter what the end, the process to
-it should be honest."
-
-And then I left them to make out a money order to Doctor Andrews, as I
-did not like having all that cash upon my person; and anyway the
-receptacle in which I carried such things would not contain so much.
-
-In the corridor I ran into Mr. Pegg. I would have passed on my way, but
-he detained me.
-
-"I wanted to ask you, Miss Talbot," he began, "what was the dope you
-gave that feller that he won on?" His voice was low and eager.
-
-"I didn't tell him a thing!" I responded indignantly. "I know nothing
-whatever of gambling, Mr. Pegg, as you are perfectly well aware!"
-
-"I'm not so dead sure about what you know and what you don't," said Mr.
-Pegg slowly. "But I am disappointed you won't tell me what you told that
-feller to do."
-
-"I assure you I imparted to him no information of any sort whatsoever!"
-I repeated with dignity. "I am beginning to think every one has gone a
-little mad in this climate!"
-
-"Well, of course the climate ain't like California," murmured my
-employer automatically. "But I'd like to know what you told him."
-
-Well, I wasn't going to discuss that crazy man or my conversation
-regarding the socks I was making, and so I fled to the seclusion of my
-chamber and the completion of my errand.
-
-But when I had written my letter and addressed my envelope I fell into a
-reverie in which my thoughts were occupied by the Duke di Monteventi. It
-was perfectly apparent that he was going to see something of Peaches--in
-all likelihood as much as she would permit--and unless my premonition
-and intuition were wholly at fault that would mean a good deal.
-
-And why not? That was the question. Was there any reason why not? Of
-course Alicia had her parent, who was naturally the prime factor in any
-restraint that might be put upon her. But then, Mr. Pegg did not know of
-the incident of the motion-picture house. Not that there was anything in
-it to the young man's discredit. But suitable bachelors did not
-generally have a mystery attached to them anywhere. Of course we did not
-as yet even know that he was a bachelor, though from the way he looked
-at Peaches I earnestly hoped he was.
-
-Should I inform Mr. Pegg of what I knew? But what, after all, did I
-know? Nothing except that two quite unattractive foreigners seemed to
-have designs upon him. And those friends of his, Lord and Lady Gordon,
-were presumably highly desirable. Well, Abby might know something about
-him. I felt my responsibility toward Peaches heavily. And yet I longed
-for a romance. Or at any rate, at least for the spectacle of one. Such a
-time and such a place demanded it. Through the window of my unhomelike
-hotel bedroom crept the scent of exotic blossoms on the wings of a
-gentle breeze which stirred my letter to the minister to a faint
-fluttering. I looked at it hard for a long moment, a trifle saddened
-that so much sweetness should be wasted on anything less than a love
-epistle. Then I collected my emotions, put them, metaphorically
-speaking, away in dried lavender, where they belonged, sealed my letter
-and made myself ready for dinner.
-
-When I rejoined my little family the duke had gone, but Peaches could
-talk of nothing else.
-
-"Isn't he a regular guy?" she challenged the world from her seat upon
-the end of a high table. "He's two inches taller than I am! We measured.
-And he's the goods--absolutely! Got an old ranch that was staked out
-during the pioneer Christian days, back in the mountains. But it's been
-let run down."
-
-"Orchards?" inquired her father, his interest quickening.
-
-"Some," said his daughter. "But mostly human livestock, I guess. A
-tenantry, they call it."
-
-"Italian for rent hog," commented her father.
-
-And we went down to dinner.
-
-One of our more popular, less erudite poets, has remarked that "There's
-nothing half so sweet in life as love's young dream." Or perhaps it was
-a classic poet. I am not certain which, and must for once confess to
-ignorance as to the origin of a quotation. But it is one--the sentence,
-I mean--for which I have long cherished a liking. It is ill-expressed
-perhaps, but profoundly true. Love's dream is always young: that is one
-of the finest things about it. The tenderer emotions have a curious
-faculty of restoring youth, or at least temporarily renewing it. Even
-love at secondhand, by observation or by inference as it were, is
-capable of producing a reformation of the spirit which in its new-found
-vitality at once questions the body as to its actual age and state of
-decrepitude. Is one ever really old? Does one pass the period when
-romantic love can obsess one without one's justifying ridicule? Is
-there, indeed, any such period? Does not true love always dignify its
-victim? These are the questions which such a contact must invariably
-engender. And I confess to being no exception to the rule as I watched
-Alicia and the duke.
-
-What a romance! How pleasing in every way! Two such handsome young
-people might have been, as it were, taken bodily from the drawings in
-Godey's Ladies' Book, so incredibly beautiful were they; or from the
-decorative cover of a more modern magazine, so athletic was their
-appearance.
-
-One of the very first items to catch and hold my admiring attention in
-the progress of their affair was the bouquet which he sent her the
-morning after his arrival. Here in a land where flowers were cheap and
-plentiful, instead of sending a bushel of blossoms, as the average
-admirer would have done, a small box appeared containing an exquisite
-corsage bouquet. She was almost bound to wear it. And she did. So far so
-good, but what was in even better taste and a further sign of breeding,
-there was a handful of roses for me!
-
-"My dear," said I as Peaches gave them to me, "that young man is a
-thoroughbred, take my word for it, even if he is a foreigner!"
-
-"Well, he's only half Italian, you see!" replied my lovely giantess in
-cheerful explanation. "His mother was a Miss Winton, from Cambridge, the
-daughter of the American consul at Nice. She married a title, that's
-all."
-
-"A Winton of Cambridge!" I exclaimed, a great light dawning upon me.
-"That explains it, of course. The Wintons were very decent people, my
-dear; very decent, though not very old. I am sure I remember that
-correctly. I will write and ask some one at home for further
-particulars. Meanwhile I know no reason why you should not see something
-of him if you wish."
-
-"Thanks!" said Peaches. "I believe I might. In fact we had thought of
-taking a ride this afternoon. He's got a friend here in the Besseleri
-and can borrow two horses. Would that be quite all right, as the English
-say?"
-
-"Certainly, if you take a groom along," said I, recalling what little I
-knew on this particular point of etiquette.
-
-I had never indulged in equestrian sports in my own youth, nor had
-Euphemia, and so my authoritative tone was derived from surmises I had
-made from pictures I had seen on the subject--pictures, it must be
-confessed, in an English magazine, where a groom in pen and ink always
-figured in the sketches of Rotten Row.
-
-Yet when Peaches had departed sniffing at her bouquet, to write him a
-note, because, as she averred, the telephone service was so bad--much
-worse than the Los Angeles system--I wondered vaguely if she had not
-been making game of me in asking my permission and advice. Ordinarily I
-should have been certain that she was, but this time there was a genuine
-anxiety on her part to do the correct thing--a faint doubting of her own
-omnipotence which was new and wholly delightful.
-
-I yearned over her with an unuttered blessing, and returned to work upon
-my, or that is to say, Mr. Pegg's sock. How delightful the world seemed!
-And, of course, his being a Winton made such a difference!
-
-Of Peaches on horseback I have little to say besides the fact that she
-and the duke required the two tallest horses in the regiment. Words fail
-me when I attempt to describe how she looked, for there she was in her
-element. By some mysterious process she had acquired a hat belonging to
-one of the officers--a strange hat indeed for a man to have worn at any
-time, for it was covered with cock's plumes. And Peaches wore it with an
-air of nonchalance difficult to describe. But it certainly did look very
-like the pictures to which I have referred as my authority on the
-subject of horseback riding. There was no groom with them, but Mr. Pegg
-had decided to go along, so that was all right. I saw them start and
-then decided to have the yellow brocade which I had purchased in Paris
-made up for the wedding.
-
-As things were, I was not altogether surprised to find the Duke di
-Monteventi at Abby's house on the first occasion of our going there for
-dinner. I was glad it was so magnificent an entertainment with music,
-because when those two young people met in the beautiful hallway there
-should have been music and flowers, and there were! I have positively
-never seen anything so handsome as the duke in evening dress, except
-Peaches in that simple Nile-green satin gown! They came together
-like--like two branches of a stream--at once playfully antagonistic and
-blending! Yet their language was curiously unromantic.
-
-"Cheero!" said the duke. "You look ripping!"
-
-"You're not so dusty yourself," rejoined Peaches.
-
-And then Abby bore down upon us; Abby in a perfectly outrageous black
-evening gown with diamonds as big as pigeons' eggs in her ears, and very
-little else. She sailed up like a small sloop, all trig and confident,
-and after pecking me on the cheek extended a flower-like hand to Mr.
-Pegg.
-
-"It's awfully good of you to come!" she said. "Dear Freedom has talked
-of you so often!"
-
-"Charmed!" murmured Mr. Pegg, his eyes riveted upon her smooth head.
-"Delighted!"
-
-It was quite perfect, and I experienced a tremendous sense of relief.
-One would never have suspected that he was paying for this gorgeous
-entertainment. But I did not like the look he gave her, nor the way his
-eyes followed her all evening. Somehow it made me unpleasantly conscious
-of my own hair, in which I had always heretofore maintained a good deal
-of pride. And somehow my gray corded silk with the collar of real lace
-and mamma's cameo pin did not seem quite so lovely as I had always
-thought them, either; though they were undoubtedly more modest and more
-suitable to our age than Abby's costume was. Fortunately my walkrite
-shoes did not show under my gown, and I managed to keep them pretty well
-concealed through the evening. But I digress.
-
-Abby's villa was a delightful one, situated, as she had said, at the
-back of the pleasantly cosmopolitan little town of San Remo, and
-nestling high on the sheltering hills, the miniature garden being built
-on terraces and inclosed by a whitewashed wall against which the
-evergreens of the mountain crowded sharply, and over which the roses and
-geraniums and clematis flung abandoned sprays of sweetness, as if the
-little inclosure were an overflowing bowl of goodies. There were minute
-statuettes in the garden, veiled and softened by moss and the winter
-damps of a century, and a little fountain half choked with water
-flowers, but tinkling endlessly from a broken conch shell. There were
-hidden benches, too, set as though for lovers; and, incongruously, a
-smooth bit of turf near the veranda where Abby practiced putting, which
-is, I am informed, a section of the game of golf.
-
-But though the garden was old and steeped in romance the interior of the
-villa was modernized and gay. And on the night of this, our first
-entertainment there, a sense of festivity was diffused by a clever
-profusion of half-hidden lights, quantities of flowers, sporting prints,
-magazines galore, for Abby read nothing else, and a general crowding
-together of old and new furnishings, even to pictures and hangings,
-until the little house seemed incapable of holding another thing. But it
-was brave and gay and being made the best of--very like Abby herself.
-
-Of the guests besides ourselves there was not much to be said in the way
-of charm, but a great deal in the way of distinction and quality. For
-there was Sir Anthony and Lady Spier, who did nothing in the world
-except live in San Remo each winter and compare it unfavorably with
-Sussex, to which, however, they seldom returned. They looked a good deal
-alike and ate heartily. Sir Anthony had set views on California, where
-he had never been, and he positively refused to accept Mr. Pegg's
-statements about it, which circumstance gave rise to quite a lively
-discussion.
-
-There were also present a Mr. and Mrs. H. DeVere-Poole, of New York;
-expensive-looking people who Abby afterward assured me were very
-fashionable. And no doubt they were--in New York. But in Boston I had
-never heard of them, though of course Mrs. Poole was familiar with my
-family and asked a few vague questions about some Boston people named
-Cabot, after which she lapsed into the cigarette-infested silence which
-appeared habitual with her.
-
-Then there was a voluble captain of the Queen's Bodyguard, in uniform,
-an acquaintance of the duke's, and of a distinguished but broken family,
-I believe. However that may have been, I do not know. But I can vouch
-for the condition of his English, which was worse than broken; it was
-shattered. And that was the company.
-
-As for the food--I never saw so much food so thoroughly disguised in my
-life. It resembled an edible patchwork quilt made out of whole cloth.
-But it was delicious. All in all the venture was a huge success and my
-protégés behaved splendidly.
-
-It was only after dinner, under the influence of a cigar--Abby permitted
-smoking in any part of the house, it seemed--that Mr. Pegg relaxed into
-his natural manner, and I began to fear disaster. Peaches was
-smoking--every one was smoking, in fact, except myself. And Mr. Pegg,
-sticking his thumbs into the armholes of his black and white striped
-silk vest, refused to be seated, but strode about the crowded
-drawing-rooms, asking questions about all that they contained. I am
-mortified to confess that he appeared chiefly interested in the
-intrinsic value of the objects which attracted his attention, and showed
-no hesitancy about asking their price.
-
-"Since I come over here abroad, countess," he remarked to Abby, who
-followed languidly in his trail, a cigarette in an immensely long holder
-between her artificially reddened lips--"since I come over I sure have
-had an eye opener about secondhand pictures and furniture and such
-stuff! That's why I'm interested in your things. I thought I knew
-something about commercial values, but I see I can learn."
-
-"Why, I thought Sebastian Markheim was a great friend of yours!"
-commented Abby. "And he's a famous collector."
-
-"He's a famous collector of culls and worn-out stock," chuckled the
-Citrus King. "Bought a ranch near one of mine, and the hoppers ate what
-trees he had, the first year. Then I got him a flock of turkeys to keep
-'em down and he done better next year. But all the secondhand antiques
-he had over to his ranch house come from a fire sale in Oroville, and
-consisted principally of a slightly scorched set of real genuine
-varnished oak dating way back to 1910."
-
-"Who is this that possessed such a treasure?" asked the duke, strolling
-up and joining our little tour of inspection--for I was with them, being
-anxious to hear what Mr. Pegg and Abby were talking about.
-
-"Sebastian Markheim!" replied Abby quickly. "He is a friend of dear Mr.
-Pegg's."
-
-Dear Mr. Pegg indeed! And she had never met him before that evening! I
-determined to do something about this at once; though just what, and
-about what, I did not quite know at the moment, but you will understand
-me. Mr. Pegg, however, beamed at Abby, and then turned to the duke.
-
-"Neighbor of mine on the coast," he explained. "Nice feller, but knows
-nothing at all about citrus fruit."
-
-"But he does know about antiques," laughed the duke. "His collection is
-world-famous. Are you interested along those lines?"
-
-"More curious than anything," Mr. Pegg admitted. "You see, I don't
-intend to let any branch of knowledge go untouched if I can help it.
-That's one of the traits that makes us Americans so remarkable."
-
-"I see," replied Monteventi. "Have you shown him the Mantegna?" he went
-on, turning to Abby.
-
-"Mantegna!" I exclaimed; "A genuine Mantegna! How wonderful!"
-
-"Let's have a look!" said my employer.
-
-"It's in here!" assented our hostess, and led the way into a little
-alcove room, where upon the bare plaster wall the masterpiece hung--a
-strange, melancholy primitive of the ascension, the agony of the dark
-ages in its solemn coloring, and struggling for technic. I stood in
-silent awe,--it was such a precious thing to be in private ownership,
-and of all persons, in Abby's! I sighed and turned, to see a curious
-look upon the face of the young duke, who towered beside me. Never had I
-seen anything so amazing as the transformation which had taken place in
-him. There came into it a look of reverence mixed with a passionate
-fire which seemed almost for the moment to consume him. His face was
-that of a saint, a religious fanatic, a young crusader. His eyes burned
-and the color had receded from his cheeks. To say that I was shocked and
-fascinated at this transformation is to put it mildly. Then he caught my
-eyes and his color came back.
-
-"You understand pictures, Miss Talbot," he said quietly. "I remember."
-
-"Pretty homely, I call it," said Mr. Pegg's voice behind us. "But I
-suppose that makes it all the more valuable. How much do you calculate
-it is worth?"
-
-In an instant the duke had turned to him, his expression normal once
-more.
-
-"An Italian work of art of such a character as this is beyond price," he
-declared, a deep note in his voice; "though that little painting would
-easily fetch a hundred thousand dollars in the market--which it will
-never reach, thank God!"
-
-"You seem to think a lot of it," replied Mr. Pegg. "I wouldn't give five
-dollars for it, but I suppose some people would."
-
-"Markheim, for instance!" remarked the duke. "But he couldn't get it.
-One of our charming hostess' chief claims to distinction is that though
-an American by birth she has the Italian loyalty about such matters."
-
-He bowed charmingly.
-
-"Sandro means that no matter how hard up I was I wouldn't break the law
-by selling an Italian work of art for export," she explained lightly.
-"And this one, least of all. It came from my late husband's home," she
-went on, "and is one of the few things I managed to save."
-
-"Is there a law about taking such things out of Italy?" asked Mr. Pegg.
-
-"I should say there was!" exclaimed the duke. "The country was being
-stripped by moneyed foreigners until it was enforced. We natives feel
-strongly on the subject, Mr. Pegg. But it is a dangerous thing to
-smuggle a masterpiece out of Italy now, I am happy to say."
-
-"Then how do you suppose Mr. Markheim succeeded in getting the Madonna
-of the Lamp," I put in, "which he bought last month?"
-
-"Markheim has Raphael's masterpiece!" he cried sharply. "Since when?"
-
-"Well, young man, you needn't look at me like that," I said. "I didn't
-smuggle it for him, I'm sure! He bought it in New York; why, on the very
-day that you discovered that robbery at the Gordons'!"
-
-"Curious that I didn't see the notice," he murmured, still staring at
-me. "I beg pardon, Miss Talbot. I didn't mean to be rude, I'm sure. But
-this was the first I had heard of it, and such things interest me
-greatly."
-
-"They would interest any Italian," declared Abby. "You see, things are
-occasionally smuggled out in spite of an eternal vigilance on the part
-of the secret service. Though as I remember, it's a good long while
-since the Madonna of the Lamp disappeared. It was reported to be in
-Berlin years ago, but this is the first time it has actually come to
-light. Very interesting, I'm sure. And if we really should go to war
-with Austria I expect we would have the opportunity of bringing back a
-great many things across the mountains yonder. Let's go out, by the way,
-and have a look at them in the moonlight."
-
-She tucked her arm into that of Mr. Pegg in the most exasperatingly
-familiar way, which he did not seem to resent in the least, and together
-they went out through the window into the moon-filled garden. And even
-as they went Peaches appeared in the doorway, her hair wind-blown and
-her magnificent dress a trifle disordered, but if possible even more
-lovely than ever.
-
-"Oh, there you are, Sandro!" she said, catching sight of the duke. "Come
-outside, quick! There's an aëroplane flying right into the moon. They
-say it's Caproni himself!"
-
-And forthwith they vanished, leaving me to absorb a detailed description
-of Sir Anthony's indigestion, delivered by himself, which description
-lasted for the remainder of the evening. But my thoughts were on other
-things, though I said "Yes?" and "Indeed!" automatically whenever Sir
-Anthony came to a full stop.
-
-So it was "Sandro" already, was it? And that same Sandro, who loved
-famous paintings so, and knew such a lot about them, had been somewhere
-that newspapers did not reach from the time the panels were stolen from
-the château in which he was visiting, until he reappeared at Monte
-Carlo. But where had he been during that period, and what doing? I
-puzzled the matter over all the while as we said good night and climbed
-into our high-powered motor, at the wheel of which Richard, the
-chauffeur, sat like a sullen schoolboy, while Peaches, abandoning her
-usual place beside him, climbed into the back with the duke, whom we
-were dropping at his hotel.
-
-And the puzzle stayed in my mind after Peaches was asleep that night,
-she having first talked herself tired about her Sandro, she describing
-him in turn as a king, a sport, a Greek statue and a bearcat. And I was
-still puzzling over him for an hour after Morpheus had claimed her,
-which hour I occupied in trying on various pairs of her high-heeled
-French shoes, and finding them less uncomfortable than I had anticipated
-and certainly more becoming to the foot than my hygiene walkrite
-footwear. Of course Peaches' shoes were too big for me, as my foot was
-smaller than Abby's, considerably smaller, in fact; whereas Peaches'
-footgear was--well, Californian. But it did well enough to practice in,
-and I took advantage of this solitary hour to do so.
-
-But all the while that I walked up and down my chamber, the heels
-occasionally almost betraying me, my mind was on the duke. I determined
-to ask Abby all about him, for I deemed it my duty. And besides that, I
-wanted to see Abby soon again; I wanted to find out where she got her
-corsets.
-
-
-
-
-VII
-
-
-At this point in my narrative I call to mind the fact that my dear
-father ever laid the greatest stress upon the importance of the effect
-which the pursuit of reading has upon the human mind and upon the minds
-of juveniles in particular. He was convinced that if Euclid were read to
-a point of thorough familiarity at the age of twelve years by every male
-American the result would be a marked effect upon the political life of
-the nation, I remember; and he recommended that girls from the age of
-nine to nineteen be made thoroughly conversant with Saint Paul. In his
-famous treatise on the subject, entitled The Education of Freedom
-Talbot, he dwells at length upon the supreme importance of young people
-having access to books of the best quality without "let or hindrance,"
-and devotes three chapters to the influence upon the later life of the
-individual of those books which are perused during the preadolescent and
-adolescent periods.
-
-And unquestionably his deductions in this matter, as in all others, were
-sound. For in looking back upon my conduct from the time of my leaving
-Euphemia, my home, and the carefully regulated routine of my existence
-in Boston I perceive that my course was unquestionably influenced by a
-volume of which I obtained possession at the age of eleven, though I
-have greatly feared since--indeed I was, in point of fact, greatly in
-fear at the time when I perused its fascinating intricacies--that it was
-not a book which my paternal parent would have selected as suitable for
-the sprouting of the young idea--especially for a sprout of the feminine
-gender. The title of this dubious but well-remembered literary
-production was Daisy Dashforth, the Girl Detective, and was the fruit of
-the pen of some lesser literary light whom Fame has allowed to sink into
-oblivion.
-
-But there was in it some quality of keenness, of wit, of relish for
-adventure, of sharpness of observation, which remained with me, and
-which I refuse to dismiss as of no importance. Indeed it is quite
-possible that without the subconscious influence upon my mind of this
-book, which had remained in abeyance through the years until occasion
-called it forth--it is quite possible, I say, that without it I should
-never have had courage to take the initial step which pried me loose
-from the home of my ancestors and set me forth upon a career at a time
-of life when most females are drawing such careers as God has appointed
-for them to a close. Of course I had the incentive of keeping the
-ancestral roof over Euphemia's head to drive me forth from under it; but
-that was no doubt reënforced by the memory of Daisy. Moreover, the book
-had sharpened my taste for mystery and my instinct for seeing beneath
-the surface of things, which faculty, in more commonplace surroundings,
-would in all probability have been turned to the viler uses of village
-gossip.
-
-So it was from a combined motive of scientific research into a situation
-which to me at least had begun to savor of mystery and a sense of duty
-to my employer that I went to visit with Abby. Nobody could suspect me
-of the desire for gossip. It was simply my plain duty to discover what I
-could about this handsome young duke before my charge became hopelessly
-involved in his toils--in other words to find out if they were really
-toils, or merely addresses. And incidentally I wished to confirm my
-impression of how Abby dressed her hair, achieving that youthful effect
-with such success.
-
-So packing up my knitting I put on a pair of Alicia's high-heeled shoes
-for practice, strapping them on with elastic bands; without, however,
-mentioning the circumstance to her for fear that she would ridicule my
-enterprise; and requesting of Richard, the chauffeur, that he convey me
-to San Remo, we set forth in company. Alicia was nowhere about when I
-left, but there was no doubt in my mind as to who was with her, wherever
-she was. Apparently there existed no doubt in the mind of Talbot,
-either. I was seated beside him so as to be nearer help in case of an
-accident, and as we bowled along over the perfect road with its
-enchanting vistas of sea and fascinating walled gardens I could not fail
-to note the grave look upon his clean, if somewhat rough profile. His
-long nose was particularly expressive. I was not surprised when he broke
-the silence with his customary freedom but without his habitual gay
-carelessness.
-
-"Say, Cousin Mary," he began, using the absurd form of address of which
-I had been quite unable to break him--"say, Cousin Mary, lookit here.
-What do you think of this he-duke of Peaches'? Do you think she likes
-him pretty well?"
-
-"It is a trifle dangerous to surmise what a young woman may think about
-a young man until a definite announcement is made," I replied.
-
-We rode a little farther in silence and then he broke out again.
-
-"He's a foreigner!" he said with all the distrust that a good American
-is capable of imparting to the term. "A foreigner! I can't see how he
-came to be such a bucko! But he is, all right, all right, and she's
-crazy over him! Damn it, I might have known I couldn't hold her!"
-
-"Talbot!" I exclaimed. "Don't swear! And you must remember that
-democracy is for the poor. Upon becoming so rich it was but--but
-American for Peaches to acquire a proper sense of her social superiority
-and to confirm it by marrying a title. Though in her case I believe we
-can feel sure that her affections would come first. If she marries this
-young man it will be simply and solely because she loves him. We can
-depend on that."
-
-Then I caught sight of his face and wished I had not spoken.
-
-"I guess he's a fine chap," he said slowly. "And he can give her a fancy
-handle to her name. Judas Priest! What can I give her? I'm--I'm a
-servant, I am. I've learned a lot since I came over here. Let's go back
-to California!"
-
-"I know, Richard," I replied soothingly. "California, where there are no
-servants! I'm really sorry, dear boy, but remember we don't know
-anything definite yet. And we don't know anything against the duke,
-either."
-
-"Do you know about his older brother?" asked Richard, the chauffeur,
-abruptly.
-
-"No! What about him?" I answered quickly.
-
-"He disappeared very mysteriously about ten years ago," said Richard.
-"Two guys that was on the boat coming over from England was talking to
-me about it. They are here now. I met them in a saloon and they told me
-a little something."
-
-"Repeat it all, Richard!" I commanded. "What did they say?"
-
-"Well, it seems this brother was the duke," elucidated my informant. "He
-was last seen in Africa on a hunting expedition with our duke. And then
-the both of them disappeared for a while. When the duke come back he had
-the title. There seems to be some doubt about his having a honest claim
-to it."
-
-"What nonsense!" I said. "Talbot, you no sooner convince me that you are
-not a servant than you begin to talk like one. My Cousin Abby receives
-him, and that is enough! You should not listen to such wild stories!"
-
-By this time we had reached the Villa Bordeaux, and taking my workbag I
-descended. Richard, the chauffeur, parked the car and settled back in
-it, presumably to dwell upon the unhappy course of his love while he
-waited for me; and I entered the villa, much disturbed by what he had
-just told me, and determined to find out the whole truth at once.
-
-I found Cousin Abby immersed in newspapers, cigarette smoke and a most
-attractive negligee; and though I could never endure to see a woman
-lounging round the house in a wrapper I confess she looked charming. At
-my entrance she glanced up without rising.
-
-"Hello, Free!" she greeted me over the dangling filthy weed that clung
-to her lip like--like Richard's! "Hello, old thing! Sit down. Smoke? Oh,
-of course not! I've been reading about this beastly war we are going to
-have. Won't it be a bore?"
-
-"Do you really think England and Germany will break?" I said. It was
-what every one said in those days, a sort of formula of greeting like
-"Good morning" or "How do you do" without meaning it too seriously,
-don't you know? And then more vital matters would be taken up.
-
-"Oh, I don't really suppose so!" she said. "I'm glad to see you, my
-dear. Did that charming Mr. Pegg enjoy my little party?"
-
-"I am sure he did!" I replied, stiffening a little. Her tone was
-altogether too intimate. "So did I, and so did Alicia. It is about her
-that I have come principally, Abby."
-
-"You mean about the duke?" inquired Abby, with surprising astuteness. "I
-noticed they were pretty thick."
-
-"I assume you would not have invited the young man unless you knew him
-to be desirable?" I said earnestly.
-
-"I didn't invite him!" said my sprightly relative. "He called me up in
-the afternoon and insisted upon coming! I would never have dared to take
-the responsibility of inviting Sandro to meet any woman--but he simply
-said that he knew them and knew they were coming, and so was he."
-
-"But my dear!" I exclaimed. "He is simply a chance--a very chance
-acquaintance with us. You must know him well to call him by his first
-name. Tell me all about him!"
-
-"I do know him well!" she admitted, lighting a new cigarette as I
-started a new row on my sock. "Everybody who is anybody knows Sandro. He
-plays about with the very best people. I've known him for ten years. But
-I know absolutely nothing about him. He has a good figure and a charming
-smile and never borrows money, though he gambles heavily at periods.
-And that's all I can say."
-
-"But my dear!" I protested. "Who are his family? Surely you know that?"
-
-"That's simple enough!" said Abby. "His mother was a Miss Winton, as you
-know--the daughter of the American consul here at San Remo. His father
-was the holder of one of our very oldest titles. There was a brother who
-was killed in Africa in a game accident--an older twin, I believe.
-Really, my dear, I don't think there is the faintest mystery about
-Sandy, as we call him. No money--land-poor with an old rat's nest of a
-castle back in the hills, and not fit, they say, for human habitation; a
-Harvard education, expensive tastes and an aptitude for recouping at the
-tables here--a clever amateur of the arts and a dear fellow. And that's
-all. Why, what more is there to know about any unattached young male?"
-
-"Poverty would be no crime in this case," I observed. "Though I think
-that if he is so hard up he ought to go to work."
-
-"He's not hard up, except for a duke!" laughed Abby. "At least he always
-seems to have enough to get by with. There's no talk of debts, he
-doesn't keep a car, and lives extremely modestly."
-
-"And you have never heard anything peculiar about him?" I persisted.
-
-"Well, I wouldn't go quite as far as to say that!" said Abby, "for it
-was very vague. About a year ago I heard that the secret service was
-supposed to be shadowing him. We were staying at the same country house,
-the Welch-Finleys, and he left utterly without warning, and it gave rise
-to some talk. People remembered about his brother, and, of course, no
-one has ever understood quite how he died. They were devoted,
-however--mad about each other; I know it for a fact. And Sandy often
-speaks of him most affectionately.
-
-"Still it isn't usual for the secret service to shadow people--the best
-people, is it?" I protested.
-
-"Oh, quite!" said Abby. "At least in Europe it is. Nowadays everybody is
-suspected of being a Prussian or an Englishman or a Frenchman or an
-Italian, according as they proclaim themselves to be the other. You see,
-everybody is in the secret service of at least one nation, or say they
-are, and to be overlooked by the police would be rather a slight. So
-don't worry about the smiling duke, because he is quite all right as far
-as we know, and that is a long way in this wicked, sophisticated old
-world. And now do tell me more about dear Mr. Pegg! He has promised to
-drive me out to Sorrento to-morrow. And tell me all about lemons!"
-
-"I'd rather you'd tell me who makes your stays, my dear!" I replied.
-"They are so youthful!"
-
-Well, that was all I could learn from Abby--I mean about the duke. Upon
-the secondary subject she was most generously full of information. And I
-came away reassured to a certain extent.
-
-On the other hand I did not like Abby's calling Mr. Pegg by his intimate
-name of Pinto, which she did once or twice during the remainder of our
-talk. Because I could not bring myself to the belief that Abby would be
-the proper stepmother for Peaches. Their tastes were too much alike. And
-though I had very little against Abby except her clothes, I was as yet
-unconvinced that clothes would make a man happy. And while I worked on
-the socks I was making for Mr. Pegg as I sat up late that night waiting
-for Peaches to return from a moonlit walk with the duke, I wondered
-again and again how a woman of Abby's age could think so much of such
-things.
-
-When Peaches came in at last and I had helped her out of the dress of
-light gray satin which she had worn, I could not but think that the girl
-was daily giving greater justification to her pet name. Her skin was as
-smooth and soft as the satin from which it emerged, and as gleaming. The
-garment itself was like a piece of the silver night outside, and her
-eyes were deep soft pools, her head like a golden star. It hardly seemed
-right that any woman should be so beautiful. She had taken some
-softening quality from the Italian skies as if this corner of the globe
-which was so like and yet so unlike her native heath had rubbed off the
-crudities left by the sharper climate, and done so the more readily
-because the country was all so familiar to her--far more so than to
-Boston-bred me--and she was ripe for impressions, whereas I was merely
-ready for comparisons. She was unusually silent, though her glowing face
-was as easily read as a printed page. I helped her into a soft white
-negligee.
-
-"Sandy!" she said, going to the window and looking down at the dimly
-twinkling town and the black, moon-cut shape of the sweeping coast line.
-"I am going to call him Sandy! I can put my head on his shoulder without
-leaning down, Free!"
-
-"Eh?" I said sharply.
-
-But the wretched child wouldn't tell me another thing. Not that it
-needed much telling. When they were together, which was practically all
-the time, one could have cut the atmosphere with a piece of wedding
-silver it was so thick and soft. When their eyes met suddenly it made my
-heart jump and I wanted to cry. It was lovely, lovely! And she said so
-little about it that I knew it must be serious.
-
-One day in the garden at San Remo, where we now spent much of our time,
-she asked him to pick her a rose which was growing just out of her
-reach, but not out of his. It delighted her to confirm his superior
-height, and she did it at every conceivable opportunity. He reached the
-rose easily and she gave him her little gold penknife, which she had
-been using to gather a bouquet, to cut the stem with. It was a beautiful
-knife, with her name on it in diamonds, a most characteristic gift from
-her father.
-
-"By jove, what a jolly one!" said the duke.
-
-"Keep it, Sandy," said Peaches.
-
-And while he smiled his protest she fastened it to his watch chain by
-the little ring through the end.
-
-"Oh, don't do that!" I cried, getting to my feet. "Don't give a knife! I
-am not in the least addicted to superstitions, but really you must not
-give him a knife!"
-
-"I'll give her a penny for it, Miss Talbot," said he. "That makes it
-quite all right, you know."
-
-And laughingly she took the coin and slipped it inside her girdle. I
-found it there that night, and it had made an ugly red mark which must
-have been painful. But girls are such absurdly sentimental things that
-it is quite--quite, well, charming. And as for the little gold knife, we
-had later good cause to remember that it was in his possession.
-
-What a gay month it was! Such _festas_, such expeditions into the
-country, such evenings of excitement, with the beautiful romance between
-Alicia and the duke weaving in and out through all our adventures like
-a golden thread in a bright embroidery! The duke was as care free and
-gorgeous a lover as any princess could have desired.
-
-Only two things marred what would otherwise have been a perfect period,
-and one was the absurd way in which Abby set her cap for Mr. Pegg. The
-other was my personal discomfort in becoming accustomed to the
-strait-jacket furnished by the corsetiere to whom Abby sent me. But the
-effect unquestionably justified the means, and they did make me look
-younger. Not that Mr. Pegg seemed to observe the circumstances. He was
-monopolized in the most outrageous way by that unscrupulous cousin of
-mine. Not that I cared in the least, but the way men can be taken in by
-a lot of falderals and clothes and artificial aids to beauty is
-certainly astonishing; and Abby made no scruple of using them all.
-Indeed, she was a most worldly woman and was infecting us all with her
-worldliness. Perhaps the culmination of this tendency occurred at a
-garden party which she gave, and at which a great many things happened
-that had far-reaching consequences.
-
-I may say at once that wine was one of the primary causes for the
-phenomenon which developed during the course of the evening. I recall
-that my dear father had a very concise philosophy concerning wine and
-its effect upon the human system, though, of course, the feminine
-portion of his household never partook of it with the possible exception
-of a glass of port at Christmas; or a portion of gin upon the occasion
-of a fainting spell, when it was considered most beneficial in its
-medicinal effect. But outside of its uses as a restorative for the
-vapors, we never used it, and I may state in the interests of accuracy
-that though my father referred to the substance which he imbibed in the
-masculine seclusion of the dining room after the departure of the ladies
-as "wine," it was in truth rum, imported direct from Jamaica, in which
-he indulged, if indeed so lax a term may be properly employed in
-connection with him. Nevertheless, "wine" was a sort of generic term
-with him for all alcoholic stimulants, and he believed in its judicious
-usage and even quoted from the Old Testament in its behalf, referring in
-particular and most frequently to the incident of Noah's having planted
-a vineyard immediately upon the opportunity for so doing having arisen.
-
-"Wine," my dear father would often remark, especially when in argument
-with our worthy pastor--the subject was often debated between
-them--"wine is the immemorial link which man has made with which to
-hitch himself to the gods; it is the weak man's courage, the poor man's
-wealth, the coward's glory and the failure's apology. Through wine man
-becomes the things he dreams of being--great, strong, powerful. The
-grape absorbs the sun, and the wine puts sunshine into men's hearts;
-without it the world would begin to look for vices to take the place of
-conviviality."
-
-It will thus be seen that we were reared in a proper attitude toward
-Bacchus--indulging mildly ourselves, but properly condemning any misuse
-on the part of our neighbors. Of course we knew how to use it, but so,
-too, did we know how to act toward those weaker ones who could not
-discriminate between discretion and Saturday night.
-
-This is not a digression. It is rather an explanation of how and why I
-came to be a participant in the festival which Abby gave in the gardens
-of her villa at San Remo.
-
-Up to the date of her entertainment I had never touched a drop of any
-alcoholic stimulant except in poundcake or ignited upon plum pudding,
-partially because I had not felt that my dear father's dissertations
-applied to the gentler sex but were intended principally for what
-Peaches was wont to term an "alibi" for his own.
-
-But in Europe things were so different. Women smoked without loss of
-reputation, and even mere babes were given claret in their drinking
-water in the superstition that it prevented fever or bowlegs, I forget
-which. At any rate the taboo was lifted--I mean the lid, again to quote
-my charge--and being so near Rome I thought it no harm to do as the, as
-it were, Romans did.
-
-And hard indeed must the heart have been to refuse any part of the
-conviviality upon such a night as this was. The moon was marvelous
-beyond words. All the flowers in the world seemed to have gathered
-together in that little pleasance between the gleaming whitewashed,
-vine-burdened walls. Lanterns hung like strings of dull golden moons
-from tree to tree. Dear Mr. Pegg walking with me beneath them compared
-them most poetically to oranges.
-
-"Almost as big as Golden Americans!" he exclaimed jokingly.
-
-Below us, down the moon-swept hillside, lay the Mediterranean,
-reflecting the mystery and romance of Italy almost, as it were, audibly.
-And audible also, but not too violently so, was the gayly costumed
-orchestra which sang as it played, and swayed with the rhythm of its
-own music. There were uniforms and beautiful dresses everywhere, picked
-out and accentuated by the sombre formal clothes of the civilians.
-Indoors there was laughter and dancing. The ballroom was a pool of
-yellow light in which the dancers seemed to swim in a melted sweetness
-of sound. Every one was gay. I was gay because of that lovely romantic
-reference of Mr. Pegg's to the lanterns. And then a series of events
-rose out of which my gayety seemed curiously to increase.
-
-I was sitting outside alone, my escort, Sir Anthony, having gone off to
-speak to some one, when I saw Peaches and the duke emerge laughingly
-from the ballroom. I have often seen her beautiful, but never so
-beautiful as on this occasion. She was clad in an amber satin gown of
-the exact hue of her marvelous hair, and her only ornament was a huge
-string of amber beads. She looked like the incarnation of all the gold
-and sunshine of her native State, and the duke was gazing upon her in a
-way that sent shivers up and down my back. They came along the path
-slowly, utterly absorbed in each other. The dance music inside had
-ceased and the orchestra was singing again--a sweet agony of sound with
-the ancient words: _O dolce Napoli_!
-
-The lovers passed into the darkness just beyond me--the darkness
-pulsating with that utterly unrepressed foreign music. And then somebody
-opened an upper window, from which came a ray of light. It lifted the
-heads of the two out of their seclusion as though with a knife. But they
-were oblivious of it. Never have I hoped--I mean, expected--to witness
-anything like those two blind faces pressed together. They were mouth to
-mouth, immovable, like Rodin's statue. There is something very terrible
-in seeing a thing like that--in seeing something which even the
-participants close their eyes upon. I staggered to my feet and made a
-run for the house--as efficient a run as my new high-heeled slippers
-would permit, and there encountered Sir Anthony on the terrace.
-
-"Miss Talbot!" he exclaimed. "You look quite upset! Allow me to get you
-a glass of wine!"
-
-"I am upset--but oh, so happy!" I exclaimed.
-
-But I accepted the wine. It was a very mild yellow fluid which tickled
-the throat pleasingly and, far from administering any shock to the
-system such as I had anticipated, it seemed to have no effect whatsoever
-beyond creating a feeling of thirst. I took a second glass, which only
-increased my need, and as it was so light and harmless I partook of a
-third.
-
-I then began to realize more fully what a truly delightful evening we
-were having, and even whispered to my escort that I had good reason for
-believing that Peaches and her Sandy were engaged. I even called him
-Sandy, I recall. Sir Anthony at once proposed that we drink their
-health--quite between ourselves, of course. Which we proceeded to do,
-and followed it by drinking that of Nedra, a race horse belonging to His
-Lordship, which was to--er--perform in some race on the morrow.
-
-And after that my memory becomes a trifle dimmed, except for dancing
-with dear Mr. Pegg. It was a species of quadrille, I recall, except that
-we seemed to be doing it alone. There was great applause, so it must
-have been successful, and I remember Cousin Abby exclaiming, "Just see
-what Europe does for us Boston girls!" but that was only her jealousy
-because of Mr. Pegg's stealing my slipper.
-
-My entire being was diffused with a marvelous sense of well-being, and I
-made an engagement to ride muleback with Sir Anthony next morning at ten
-o'clock--indeed to ride with him at ten precisely every morning for the
-remainder of our sojourn upon the Riviera. And this was the more
-remarkable inasmuch as I had never ridden upon any animal whatsoever and
-have a peculiar aversion to mules. But at the time nothing seemed
-difficult. It was a wonderful night.
-
-I completely forgot my charge; or when I thought of her at all it was
-only to recall that she was in safe hands, if not arms, and to pursue my
-own amusement. Then abruptly and most annoyingly the party was over. I
-can't think why they wanted to end it. I, for one, was not in the least
-ready to go home. But once out in the open air I had a dim realization
-that all was not quite well with me. I became possessed of a sudden
-desire to be alone, and a distaste for allowing either Peaches or her
-father to see me until I was in some way different from the way I was at
-the moment. And actuated by this motive I managed with uncanny cunning
-to elude my party and find our automobile ahead of the other members of
-the family. Richard, the chauffeur, was sitting in it alone, and I
-begged him for assistance.
-
-"Dicky," I said, "I want to go right back to the hotel an' get my
-handkerfish. You take me, and come back for the resh."
-
-"Lit to the eyelids!" exclaimed Richard.
-
-I haven't the faintest idea of what the boy meant, but he was most
-helpful, I will say that. He got me into the car, and somehow we reached
-the hotel. The wind in my face had revived me and I managed by the
-exercise of great dignity to give a sufficient appearance of
-self-reliance. Richard, the chauffeur, left me with reluctance, but it
-was necessary for him to hurry back at once for Mr. Pegg.
-
-I experienced no difficulty in reaching my floor of the hotel, but once
-there I realized to my annoyance that I had forgotten my key. I somehow
-disliked the idea of calling upon the office for assistance, and
-determined to chance the door being unlocked. It was possible at any
-rate.
-
-The corridor was a long one--altogether too long and with too many doors
-in it. I remember thinking Mr. Pegg ought to speak to the management
-about it in the morning. But after some hesitation I selected my own
-door, opened it without difficulty and entered, to face the two rascals
-of men whom I had tripped up in the London theater.
-
-"What are you doing in my room?" I demanded.
-
-"Madam, this is not your room," said the one with the mustache. And as
-he spoke I dimly realized that though it was an hour when most persons
-are in bed, both were dressed--even to hats and gloves. And they seemed
-profoundly disturbed at my appearance.
-
-"It is my room!" I insisted, sitting down by the door, which remained
-open. "It's my room, and I'd like you to explain what you are doing in
-it."
-
-"Madam," said the other imploringly, "you are mistaken. I assure you
-this room is ours. I can prove it----"
-
-"I don't want to dispute you," I replied with dignity, "but leave my
-room at once!"
-
-I don't know how long we sat there arguing but it seemed like months.
-And then all at once I heard Peaches' voice behind me.
-
-"Good heavens! What are you doing there, Free Talbot?" she said,
-striding in and seizing me by the shoulder.
-
-"I'm trying to put these brigands out of my room!" I said. "Don't
-interfere, my dear!"
-
-"But it's not your room!" shrieked Peaches. "Oh, pa, come help me to get
-my chaperon out of these strange men's room!"
-
-Mr. Pegg was close behind her, and as she spoke I realized that she was
-quite right. I got up with dignity and left, accompanied by the Peggs,
-and the next thing I knew somebody was putting ice on my forehead, and
-it needed it.
-
-I opened my eyes, feeling very ill, and there was Peaches, in street
-clothes. It was broad noon and she had been crying. I felt as though
-I--as though all of us--had been going through vast experiences of
-misery for ages and ages. With a tremendous effort I struggled to a
-sitting posture in the bed, and addressed my charge.
-
-"Peaches," I said, "I saw you kissing that young man last night! Now, my
-dear, though I feel very ill this morning--I think I must have eaten
-something at Abby's last night that disagreed with me--still, I am well
-enough to protest at your behavior!"
-
-Peaches stared at me for a moment and then burst into unaccountable
-laughter.
-
-"Free!" she said. "I hope we can get you home a fit woman to take up
-your foreign missions work. We'll have no back talk from you to-day!"
-
-And then she suddenly burst into tears, throwing herself on the bed and
-sobbing hysterically. Now thoroughly alarmed I forgot my own
-wretchedness and comforted her as best I could.
-
-"My dear, my dear!" I said. "Don't take on so! What if you did kiss
-him? There is no real harm done! You love each other! You can be married
-soon. You have everything in the world to be happy about!"
-
-Slowly Peaches straightened up to her glorious height and dried her eyes
-on the cold towel from my head.
-
-"Free," she sniffed, "Sandy has gone! Gone, do you get that? After our
-promising to marry each other, after his dating up Pa to talk it over
-this afternoon, after promising to come and take me to lunch and to buy
-a ring this noon--gone without a word except this."
-
-Dramatically she handed me a note written in a clear firm hand. I read
-it as well as my throbbing head would allow.
-
-     "_Dear Alicia_: I regret that I shall be unable to keep my
-     engagement. Unforeseen circumstances have arisen which make me
-     realize I have been living in a fool's paradise. Forgive me and God
-     bless you.
-
-  "SANDRO DI MONTEVENTI."
-
-"His things are gone from his hotel," she said bitterly. "He's not
-coming back!"
-
-"Nonsense!" I said as vigorously as Nature permitted. "Nonsense. No man
-could have got such a kiss and forgotten it. Once engaged to you, always
-engaged to you. Peaches--he'll be back this evening."
-
-"If he does it'll be in chains!" said Peaches. "You see, he shot a man
-at the depot--winged him as the train moved out. It was your friend of
-the black mustache whom you were visiting with last night!"
-
-
-
-
-VIII
-
-
-One of the most annoying things which the outbreak of the war of 1914
-did was to completely ruin our tour of Europe.
-
-We had planned to visit Belgium, where Mr. Pegg intended to launch some
-citrus project or other, and afterward make a tour of Germany. And, of
-course, that ungentlemanly, uncalled-for war entirely upset our plans.
-To say that it was an annoyance is to put it mildly. I was terribly
-provoked, especially as my collection of the flora of Europe was far
-from complete. I had been gathering specimens whenever opportunity
-afforded, pressing them, and pasting them in a blank book. Then I would
-write in the proper names, both Latin and popular, in a neat lettering
-of black ink picked out with red. It promised to be a most interesting
-souvenir of my trip and was intended as a gift for Euphemia. But the
-interruption of this small personal enterprise was, of course, only one
-of the many annoyances which the outbreak of the war occasioned.
-
-It was terrible that Peaches should be cut off in the midst of her
-education, and terrible, too, that I should have the prospect of a
-return to Boston staring me in the face. Also Peaches needed diversion.
-Ever since the disappearance of the duke she had drooped like a--well
-like a eucalyptus tree, let us say, though she, who as a rule was so
-free in pouring out exact statements regarding her inmost emotions, was
-absolutely silent on this most interesting subject. I had fully
-expected that she would make a sort of confessor of me and postpone my
-nightly slumbers to the point of ultimate endurance upon every possible
-occasion, as she had during what I may call the chauffeur epoch, when
-she imagined herself in love with Richard. But from the day of the
-duke's disappearance she became singularly reticent about her emotions,
-and as is always the case with a woman who refuses to allow herself to
-talk, it made her quite ill, though she kept up and about and all that.
-
-Mr. Pegg, Abby and myself consulted about what was the best course to
-take, and after failing utterly to elicit any information from the
-police regarding the crime, if any, of which our gallant Sandy was
-accused, we tried the government officials, the American consul, and
-even went so far as to drive to the homestead of the Monteventi, in hope
-of obtaining a clew as to what had caused this mysterious performance.
-But in no direction was any information to be gained.
-
-The castle of the missing duke was closed--a desolate, half-ruined place
-it was--the villagers proved as dumb as the authorities, and we
-concluded that they were so for the same reason--to wit, because they
-knew nothing. If only some definite fact concerning Sandro could have
-been ascertained even though it had been to his detriment, Alicia's mind
-would have been given an opportunity at least of escaping the thought of
-him by a definite rejection. The terrible uncertainty of the cause of
-his action was what troubled her the most, I felt sure.
-
-But having failed to gain any real information we had simply to conclude
-that either Sandro was mixed up in some private feud or that the police
-were just too reticent for anything. Foreign police are that way--not a
-bit like democratic America, where, Richard, the chauffeur, assured me,
-the police statements to the newspapers are the native criminals' most
-reliable source of information.
-
-Well, at any rate, as we could get hold of nothing to tell Peaches
-either for her comfort or disillusionment we conspired for her
-diversion. And just as I had arranged to take her upon an exhaustive
-tour of the cathedral towns of Germany that annoying war broke out and
-spoiled everything. A rush of appreciation of America seemed all at once
-to overwhelm even the most ardent tourists, and Mr. Pegg did not escape
-being affected by the contagion. With his usual decisiveness we were
-told to pack for home, and then I was summoned for the private interview
-with him which I knew was inevitable, and to which I looked forward with
-dread, as it could hardly mean anything except my return ticket to
-Boston.
-
-We were at Nice at the moment and Mr. Pegg awaited my coming upon the
-balcony of the royal suite of the hotel. He was chewing a cigar and very
-serious about it--our interview, that is. As I appeared he gave me a
-curious look which took me in from my newly waved hair to the tips of my
-high-heeled slippers, and I do verily believe that he observed them for
-the first time. My dear father used to say that men always see things
-suddenly or not at all, and this was one of those cases. Mr. Pegg always
-saw very clearly what was going on in his own mind, but perception of
-outside things seemed to be, as it were, cumulative.
-
-However, though he made no remark upon my appearance I saw him change
-his mind about something or other in the transparent manner so common in
-men, and he abandoned the overworked cigar.
-
-"Miss Talbot," he began, "in a couple of hours more or less we are going
-to be in the refugee, or immigrant class, because we are fortunate
-enough to be able to go home steerage, which is a damn sight better than
-not going home at all. And what I mean to say is that I think it would
-be awfully good for you to spend a few months in California. It would
-sort of round out your European experiences by giving you a real genuine
-standard of comparison--show you a country worth talking about. So I
-suggest that you stick by this outfit and take a little graft of Boston
-culture out to the home ranch for us, where maybe we can improve some of
-the wild stock with it."
-
-This was so different from what I had anticipated--the polite apology
-for the war's having interfered with our trip and being so sorry that we
-must part, and so on--that I could not refrain from an outburst of
-appreciation.
-
-"Oh, Mr. Pegg!" I exclaimed, clasping my hands in delight. "How truly
-wonderful! Indeed, I shall be most pleased to remain in your employ and
-to see Golden California. The more especially as dear Alicia needs me to
-look after her in her affliction! I accept!"
-
-"Good!" said Mr. Pegg, beginning upon a fresh cigar, a sure sign that
-our business was at an end. "Good! And you can get a lot of specimens
-for that dried-flower morgue of yours out there, too, if the Germans
-don't put us to picking seaweed instead, on the way home!"
-
-But the Germans didn't.
-
-Abandoning Europe was a relief for many reasons. There was Cousin Abby,
-whom we left behind, for one thing, and I confess I admired her attitude
-and encouraged it. You see she had been traveling with us, and Mr. Pegg
-had quite unnecessarily, I thought, offered to get her back to America.
-But Abby was firm in her refusal. A strange fiery look came into her
-eyes and her head went up like--like a battle horse, I do declare.
-
-"No, thanks awf'ly, old dear!" she said. "But I'm off to San Remo.
-That's home now. I've lived there twenty years and it's part of me.
-We'll go into this war any day, and somebody has to be there to see that
-it's on the side of the Allies!"
-
-It was extremely noble of her, or, as Peaches put it, thoroughly
-sporting. And so she left us, and we all upheld her in so doing, I'm
-sure. It was a fine sacrifice and we all admire the spectacle of a
-sacrifice, especially when some close friend is making it, if you
-understand me.
-
-Well, so much for the war. At least so far as it concerned us for a long
-time. The next phase which directly affects my story is my own first
-impression of the golden state, which began of course when our train
-left Chicago on the Santa Fe. I don't know why, but the West seems to
-reach East that far. Perchance I am mistaken and the Western influence
-really begins at Buffalo, but at that point I was not in a state of mind
-to make the usual traveler's observations, being wholly obsessed with
-the problem of trying to obtain a little privacy in a sleeping car.
-After the first night I entirely abandoned the hope, and therefore was
-more sensitive to other impressions. A great many people had, it seems,
-decided to go to California that week, and the war had necessitated Mr.
-Pegg's immediate return to the coast, as he called it, though I would
-have said we had landed upon the only real coast--well, at any rate, he
-had to go on at once, and Peaches insisted that we all go with him, but
-we were unable to obtain staterooms, and Mr. Pegg's attempt to buy up an
-entire car was a complete failure. Indeed he was able to get only three
-lower berths, with the result that Richard, the chauffeur, was parked
-above me. The term is his own. I should have said, to follow out his
-chosen symbolism, that he was parked, but with the engine running, and
-not too well throttled down, either. In other words, he snored; and I
-think I have mentioned that he had an extremely competent nose. Of
-course that trip in the steerage had inured me somewhat to hardship, but
-I had not anticipated that America would be so quickly affected by the
-war--or so slow in noticing that it was affected.
-
-At any rate, my real observations did not begin until we left Chicago
-behind us, and then, not unnaturally, the first thing I observed was
-Peaches' extraordinary behavior.
-
-She was not flirting. The fact speaks for itself and gains in importance
-when I make mention of the circumstance that there were no less than two
-very attractive strange men in our car, and that one of them was a
-well-known motion-picture actor. But Peaches paid them absolutely no
-attention despite that before we were two hours out Richard was growling
-at them like an angry watchdog--usually a sufficient reason for Peaches
-to exercise her love of tormenting him. Instead she sat by the window
-and stared out into the swift-moving blackness.
-
-Mr. Pegg at once disappeared into a den where I have a deep-rooted
-suspicion some sort of card game was in progress, and he hardly
-reappeared again, except for food, during the remainder of the trip.
-
-At any rate the lack of necessity for actively chaperoning my charge
-left me free to make notes upon that part of America which was foreign
-to me. Indeed, I was glad of the opportunity, for though I had been
-several times from Boston to Plymouth, and had once visited an aunt in
-Philadelphia, I felt there was yet much of my native land for me to see.
-And there was. Very much.
-
-How very, very much I had really no conception in advance, nor can any
-language adequately describe it. To do so would be like reading the
-unabridged dictionary aloud. Indeed, the term "unabridged" is the only
-one which conveys any sense of the country one crosses. And it was so
-amazing to find it really existed. One had been told about Kansas plains
-and the northern Arizona deserts, but the statements made by travelers
-were somehow not convincing. Nobody's statements about travel ever are.
-But now I saw those, as I may call them, illimitable spaces and
-stupendous mountains. There were actually Indians! Upon my word of
-honor, though not nearly so realistic as the ones who used to sell worm
-medicine in Bigelo's drug store window on Bank Street. Still they were
-undoubtedly genuine, and even accepted a little money from me at
-Albuquerque. It was most thrilling.
-
-I felt singularly small and incompetent and ignorant, whirling along
-through this infinite territory. It made me ashamed, curiously enough,
-to realize that I had ever thought that the original thirteen colonies
-were America; that I had actually once entertained the supposition that
-that portion of the country situated west of Buffalo was something to
-be vaguely apologetic for! It made Europe seem small and insignificant,
-with its toy railways and funny little huddled towns and neatly
-apportioned fields--even its terrible present situation; or rather made
-America seem enormously safe, sane and resourceful.
-
-I had always been proud of being a New Englander, and now I began to be
-impressed with the stupendous fact of being an American. In one thing
-only was I disappointed.
-
-My dear father used to say that absence made the heart grow fonder
-because there was no reality present to hamper the imagination. And I
-believe that this must be particularly true of Californians.
-
-All during my time with them in Europe, indeed since my joining them, I
-had heard little comment on anything European from either Peaches or her
-father except in disparaging comparison to the Californian equivalent.
-And now upon the train, from the moment of our departure from the Grand
-Central Terminal, everything I admired elicited a chorused response,
-"Wait until you see California!"
-
-Naturally I waited. In the nature of things I could not do otherwise.
-But happily the railroad train did not. Meanwhile I existed in excited
-anticipation of a degree scarcely to be endured. Never shall I forget
-the first morning when casaba melons appeared in the dining car, and
-Peaches and Mr. Pegg exchanged a half-pleased, half-contemptuous glance
-over the first spoonful. To me it tasted like nectar but----
-
-"Santa Clara fruit!" said Mr. Pegg in the same tone in which Euphemia
-might have said "Those common people!"
-
-"Yes!" nodded Peaches. "Wait until you have a San Bernardino melon,
-Free!"
-
-"Can it be possible that California is divided against itself?" I asked,
-aghast.
-
-"You said it!" spoke up Richard, the chauffeur, who had doffed his
-uniform and imperceptibly slipped back into his earlier relationship
-with the family, even to the point of eating with us; a fact which
-seemed curiously without offense. "You said it, Aunt Mary! Los Angeleans
-are the Smiths of California, and San Franciscans are the Talbots. And
-yet I come from Los Angeles myself."
-
-"I should say so, if I get you right!" exclaimed Peaches. "Why, Free,
-southern California has nothing but the climate--absolutely nothing!
-While San Francisco is full of--of----"
-
-"Fogs," said Richard promptly; "and earthquakes!"
-
-"It was a fire!" said Peaches fiercely.
-
-"Hey, you!" interrupted Mr. Pegg, laying down his Kansas City paper.
-"Hey, you two--you was both raised in Oroville ever since I knew you."
-
-"But, dad, I don't want Free to get a wrong idea about the south,"
-replied Peaches. "You know it's just one vast mixture of real estate and
-movie enterprises."
-
-"Better than living among a lot of hop pickers!" retorted Dick. "Burning
-up in summer and getting your trees frozen in winter!"
-
-"Thank the Lord!" said Mr. Pegg reverently. "There is some doubt as to
-if I was born in Santa Monica or Oroville. It has kep' me unprejudiced,
-what with owning orchards in both ends of the State. Let me tell you,
-Miss Freedom, that our golden land is a bower and a horn of plenty from
-one end to the other. It is all good enough for this native son!"
-
-Now, of course, when people discourse to you in such a fashion of any
-land you expect it to be green, at least. You anticipate great groves of
-trees, wooded hills and flowery dales with rushing streams, o'erhung
-with primrose and--er--tortillas and other native fruits and flowers.
-
-But California was not green that particular first week in September.
-There were not even any trees to be seen except an occasional lonely
-yellow clump of cotton-wood or a thin straggling line of eucalyptus. We
-were headed straight for San Francisco, and from the moment when we
-branched north I looked in vain for redwoods such as I had seen pictures
-of in geography books and other printed sources of information. Indeed,
-I began to fear that there existed but the one redwood I had seen
-pictured and that it was not situated near the railroad track.
-At the railroad stations were a few palmettos, and as for the
-rest--brown--brown--brown; burned hills and almost improperly naked
-purple mountains. It was a shock, a disappointment beyond belief. I felt
-I had been deliberately misled and made game of.
-
-But Peaches suddenly came to life. Her drooping figure had straightened
-and her eyes glistened. Her eager golden head turned this way and that.
-She seemed to see things in the barren landscape that were invisible to
-me.
-
-Her father, too, was strangely affected by the fact that we had passed
-the State boundary line, and abandoned his game, which I discovered to
-have been named after a famous Boston confection called Black Jack, and
-stood upon the rear platform in company with other returning native
-sons, all looking eagerly at--something! The brown grass was all I saw.
-
-As for Richard, the chauffeur, he had shed the last vestige of his
-servitude and he, too, seemed looking at something--something very
-beautiful. And then all at once I realized what it was. When California
-is wet she is green and they were looking at her through a veil of happy
-tears that transfigured the landscape. I ventured, most delicately, to
-intimate my understanding to Peaches, when to my amazement, she turned
-on me with a laugh.
-
-"Think I want to see it green?" she said. "Why, it's just as beautiful
-when it's brown! Just as much home, just as big and bountiful and full
-of promise. Want to see it green? When the time comes. But do you always
-want New England to be green? Don't you ever want to see it white?
-Well!"
-
-I thought then that I understood, but I didn't. Not until long after.
-But as I stood beside her, abashed, a gentleman whose acquaintance I had
-made when he first got on the train the evening before, and with whom I
-had had a most pleasant and innocent chat without either of us revealing
-our names, approached us with an expression of surprise.
-
-"Peaches!" he exclaimed, flushing up to the roots of his thin gray hair.
-"How are you!"
-
-"Mr. Markheim!" said my charge in her turn astonished. "When did you get
-aboard?"
-
-"I'm just up from Coronado," he replied. "Got on last night! What luck
-to find you! What luck, what luck!"
-
-"This is Miss Talbot, my chaperon," said Peaches sweetly. "Meet Mr.
-Sebastian Markheim, Free."
-
-"We have already met!" he exclaimed blandly. "But I had no idea
-that----"
-
-"We spoke in the observation car last night," I said as primly as the
-awkward circumstances permitted.
-
-"Free!" exclaimed Peaches severely. "You picked him up! I tell you I'll
-breathe easier once I have you safely on the ranch!"
-
-
-
-
-IX
-
-
-My dear father used to maintain that true love seldom dies chiefly
-because it is so seldom born, which I take to be an aspersion upon the
-average love affair.
-
-This would scarcely be fair to widows, or maidens who have been bereaved
-before betrothal, would it? For, of course, it is conceivable that such
-a one might in time recover from the shock of her loss and form a second
-genuine attachment. But whether I was justified in putting Peaches into
-the latter class or not I could not judge at the time. Because, of
-course, we should have been extremely lonely on the northern ranch
-without Mr. Markheim, especially after Richard, the chauffeur, enlisted,
-and dear Mr. Pegg began his increasingly frequent trips to Washington,
-where he had something to do with supplying the Army with fruit. The way
-that man constantly ran over to Washington from California was simply
-too--too--well, too Californian for words. For the natives of this
-region save time in every conceivable fashion, yet regard distance as
-nothing. He spent almost all of his time either there or in the southern
-part of the State, where his principal groves of citrus fruit were
-located.
-
-At any rate we should have been tremendously lonely on the home ranch
-without Mr. Markheim. Really I should not have supposed that a
-millionaire could be so human or a _nouveau riche_ so condescending, or
-rather, so tolerable. But I suppose his being in love with Alicia had
-something to do with it, for before we had been twenty-four hours at the
-King-Pin ranch I saw how things were.
-
-On account of his name poor Mr. Markheim took no active part in the war,
-though I understand that he lent somebody a great deal of money--the
-Belgians or Irish or some one, I forget just who.
-
-But at any rate he used to ride over to our place frequently every day
-when it wasn't twice a day, and at first Peaches would have nothing to
-do with him beyond mere politeness.
-
-I settled myself to watch the progress of the affair, because I do love
-a lover even when I don't like him, and I felt sorry for Mr. Markheim
-and interested in his attentions to Peaches, though, of course, he was
-of an age which would have rendered his devotion to an older woman far
-more suitable, and I was confident that nothing could shake her fidelity
-to the dear duke, that handsome and romantic rascal--that is, if he was
-a rascal, which now seemed plain enough. But every woman loves a rascal
-at some time or another, and though friends and family may succeed in
-persuading her to give him up she goes on nursing her fondness in secret
-just as long as the flavor lasts.
-
-At any rate Peaches thought only of Sandro; that was plain to any woman,
-and though she seldom spoke of him I could see that we never went to the
-little dust bin of a town for the mail but she looked for a letter in
-his handwriting. But she did not discuss him, even with me. And when Mr.
-Sebastian came over from his toy ranch she would ride with him, talk
-with him, swim in our pool with him or accept the little things he
-bought her with a sweet, gentle acceptance which brought me to the
-verge of tears, it was so unlike her old fiery self.
-
-And thus we dragged through a long, long period which has nothing to do
-with my account of our particular affairs--the period of the war, in
-point of fact. I feel it is not incumbent upon me to make a record of
-the war though it occurred at this time, inasmuch as several quite
-competent persons, including Mr. Wilson and the Associated Press, have
-covered the matter pretty carefully and quite as accurately as I should,
-the more especially as I spent the entire span of the war in California,
-and the Golden State was curiously removed from any sense of actual
-warfare.
-
-Not that I mean to say that we Californians were in any way lacking in
-patriotism or that we failed to do our part, for goodness knows we just
-about fed the entire nation, and prices didn't go up, either, the way
-they did in the East. You could still buy at pre-war prices in 1918, and
-we were so rich as a community that we could do without the scandalous
-increases of which we read in our week-late New York Sunday newspapers.
-But what I mean is that somehow war seemed to belong to the East rather
-than to us. And I think we worried more over Mexico than over Flanders,
-and who can blame us when we were so near to Mexico that we could
-actually see what went on there? Or the result of what went on, at
-least? And the European war was just like some horrid rather
-unconvincing nightmare which the East had got itself into and that we
-had in consequence to help her out of.
-
-Peaches and I ran the home ranch, and hardly left it, after Richard's
-enlistment. When I reflect upon our life there it seems punctuated by
-two great events and nothing else, though at the time of living through
-it I seemed to be in a continuous crisis, my upbringing crashing against
-my environment.
-
-The first momentous occurrence to which I have referred was news of the
-duke. It came in a letter from Abby, who mentioned him casually in
-passing. The Chinese cook had brought the mail up from Oroville and
-Peaches and I had carried it outside to the edge of the swimming pool
-which Mr. Pegg had built into an angle of the ranch house, a gaunt
-white-painted frame building, very like a big New England farm-house, as
-are many of the homesteads of northern California. It was a heavenly
-mild late September day, with the barren hills turning faintly green
-already, though the rains had been tardy and scarce, and the roses in
-the garden had still to be irrigated regularly. The roads, hub deep with
-dust in summer, were bad now, honeycombed with mud holes, and the mail
-was late.
-
-As I sat there with a corduroy jacket about my shoulders, my muddy boots
-heavy on my tired feet, and held the letter with the Italian postmark
-unopened for a moment in my hands it seemed as if the past four years
-were a dream, and the scene before me an utter unreality. At the gate to
-the road stood a pair of orange trees upon which the fruit was being
-left to ripen for home consumption. The orchards were stripped weeks
-earlier, for we picked green and sweated our oranges. Beyond the
-sentinel trees with their yellow fruit glowing like lanterns in the dark
-foliage, a flock of runner ducks squawked noisily in the head ditch,
-which had flowed by the house since the early days when Peaches' mother
-lived there and used to get the water for her household from it.
-Distantly a file of turbaned Hindu pickers, bound for a neighbor's
-walnut grove, passed, silhouetted against the sky, and vanished into the
-more overbearing outlines of a row of eucalyptus trees upon the ridge,
-and a pair of smartly overalled, immaculate Japanese laborers equipped
-like aviators, and gloved against the orange thorns, passed along the
-road, chattering unintelligibly, their picking equipment strapped to
-their shoulders like knapsacks, their sturdy boots swinging rhythmically
-to their chatter.
-
-I could see all this, and the environment, which had once been as
-strange as a prism seen through a kaleidoscope, yet which was the only
-reality I had known for four years, now took on its pristine strangeness
-once more, and the letter in my hands brought a wave of homesickness
-upon me--not for Italy, but for Boston, I scarcely know why. For several
-moments I sat so, and then at length I opened the envelope where the
-censor had closed it, and read.
-
-It sounded tired, that letter did, though, of course, it told very
-little, being censored.
-
-"We are frightfully busy," Abby wrote, "but hopeful of an end to it all
-before long. I hope it may be true that peace is near, for we have
-suffered enough. We are not so gay as once we were, my dear, but just as
-brave. Things have changed so, and people are gone. I hear among others
-that our gay, mysterious and gallant Sandro was killed at ---- Sir
-Anthony told me, and he got it from Captain Silvano, whom you may
-remember at Mentone. Killed in a very brave bit of action, I believe,
-too. Ah, well! So many people are making reparation for sins known and
-unknown by heroic sacrifice in the war. It is the great confessional."
-
-I did not read further just then. Something impelled me to look up.
-Alicia was standing in front of me with grave golden eyes, her body
-actually seeming to give off a magnetic force which compelled me against
-my will to an immediate confession of what I would have preferred to
-break to her in a proper fashion.
-
-"Free!" she said too quietly. "Is he--dead?"
-
-It was the first mention which had been made of the duke in almost a
-year. I had begun to think she had forgotten--or at least determined to
-forget. I should have known better. I handed her the letter. It was the
-only thing I could do. She took it and read it silently, still looking
-off at the purple cloud bank of the coast range with its snow patches
-melting into the fleece of the little clouds which seemed to rest upon
-them--the barren gold-and-violet mountains, so infinite, eternal,
-restful and inspiring. Her face was like marble and I thought of the old
-psalmist: "I lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my
-strength," and knew she would get strength from the coast range, from
-the infinite expanse of Nature, even as I had got it before now.
-
-"In a very brave action," she said automatically. Then she threw her
-head back in a proud gesture, as though somebody had tried to strike her
-and failed; and without another word she turned and went into the house.
-I allowed her to go alone. Somehow I had gradually come to recognize a
-difference between Alicia and other young women of my acquaintance--and
-I knew that there was nothing I could say to her just then. She had the
-strength of those hills, or rather mountains--she was made of their
-very substance. I felt helpless. Besides, it was time to go through the
-lower orchards, where the Hindus were stripping olives in fear of a
-possible touch of frost, and somebody had to attend to things. So I
-rose, much depressed but urged by the duty before me. That was women's
-salvation during the war--the pressure of work to be done. And Pinto was
-again in Washington.
-
-But that night Peaches became humanized. I suppose the darkness was too
-much for her. I was unable to endure her sobbing unless I could
-participate in it. And so I went into her room toward morning, and we
-were wretched in company. It was then that she showed me the wallet.
-
-"Oh, my dear!" I said. "If only you had a souvenir or something of his!"
-
-"I have!" replied poor Peaches unexpected. "I'll show it to you."
-
-She turned on the light and reached under her tear-stained pillow--an
-incongruously gay figure in her striped pyjamas--and produced an
-envelope from which she drew a worn case of black morocco leather. It
-was thin and flat and no bigger than the palm of your hand.
-
-"I have this, and two letters, and the rose he picked with the little
-gold knife I gave him," she said.
-
-"What is it?" I made inquiry.
-
-"I don't know," she said. "There's something written in Italian inside.
-He left it by accident on the day before he disappeared."
-
-"By accident?" I said. "How?"
-
-"Well, I found it on the sofa," said Peaches. "And it has his name in
-it. I was going to return it next day at luncheon--the luncheon to
-which he never came."
-
-Then she broke down again.
-
-"I guess it's only a Dago mileage book," she sobbed, "but it's all I've
-got of his! He must have used it a lot!" She buried her head in the
-pillow, the wallet clasped tightly to her breast, and I stole out of the
-room without seeing the contents. If only I had looked--insisted on
-looking at it then, what a lot of trouble we would have been spared! But
-as my dear father used to say, it is easy to be wise in retrospect. At
-the time I thought merely of Peaches getting a little sleep and that
-somebody had to get up and start the Chinaman or the foremen wouldn't
-get their breakfast by five o'clock, and there was still one sheltered
-flat of oranges to be picked.
-
-Though the lugs were already in the orchard I knew that if we were ever
-to get through in time to make a complete shipment we must begin work as
-soon as it was light enough to see the yellow glow under the green on
-the fruit, and work until it was so dark that the prime oranges were
-indistinguishable from the unripe ones, and the Mohammedans would come
-out of the orchard and pray, in their heathen manner, facing where they
-supposed Mecca to be. Somebody had to see to things, even in time of
-sorrow, and I was what Peaches cryptically termed the "goat."
-
-Mr. Kipling may not have known it, but the dawn comes up like thunder in
-California, too, so it is really no effort to rise early, once you are
-accustomed to so doing. It is a common observation that when one does
-get up at sunrise one wonders why one does not do it always. And for
-almost three years such had been my continuous habit.
-
-I set about my duties this morning, however, with a heavy heart, for I
-anticipated a long siege with Peaches and her grief. But by the time the
-foremen had gone to their sections and I myself had ridden the rounds of
-the various orchards to see that all was well, and given the Chinaman
-instructions about the meals, which instructions he would later pretend
-not to have heard, and had ridden over to the sluice at the top of the
-head ditch to see why the new feed to the seedling flat wasn't working
-properly, and taken a look at the flock of turkeys which I had imported
-to keep the grasshoppers down and which had lately been depleted by
-coyotes, I returned to my second breakfast; and there was Peaches
-already seated at table, well-groomed in her riding clothes, and
-prepared to accompany me to the packing sheds at the railroads.
-
-She was a trifle pale perhaps, and rather quieter than ever, but
-perfectly composed, and even smiled a little as I sat down beside her
-and attacked my meal.
-
-"I'm all set now, Free," she whispered. "I'll just do my bit, as he did
-his."
-
-And then we got out the car and went to town. I drove, at her request,
-and between bumps and mud holes watched her out of one corner of my eye
-for any signs of a breakdown. But none came, either then or later in the
-long sheds where the sweated fruit roared down the channel of the
-separator, falling into the bins like golden hail, which the wives and
-daughters of the neighboring ranchers stood swiftly packing; a most
-competent lot of females, very swift and precise and earning a good bit
-of pin money thus every year.
-
-Peaches stood outside all day, checking up the lugs as they arrived,
-arranging about freight rates, overseeing the allotment of box cars to
-the various growers, and generally doing a man's job. And never once
-during the twelve months which followed did I know her to fail in her
-work--her magnificent constitution helping, no doubt, to pull her
-through. But I could see that a permanent change had taken place in her
-from the day of Abby's letter. She was no longer the madcap, and though
-she was even more beautiful she was different--and through love, the
-great tamer--as Blake would have it.
-
-This was the first incident to which I have referred as punctuating the
-monotony of the war for us. The second occurred more than a year later,
-in November, 1918, when we, like many another group of ranchers
-throughout the country, thought the town hall was on fire when all the
-time it was only the armistice.
-
-Mr. Markheim, Pinto and Alicia and myself were indoors, an unusually
-cold snap having offered us the treat of an open fire, a not unmixed
-pleasure by reason of our being under some anxiety about the trees. But
-on the whole it was what some modern poet whose name I cannot at the
-moment recall has termed the end of a perfect day.
-
-To begin with, I had dispatched three pounds of wool to Euphemia, whom
-Galadia, my only source of information about my sister, had written was
-doing great work for the Red Cross; her chief natural gift, that of
-knitting, had suddenly become of immense importance since the outbreak
-of the war, and she had to her credit and the honor of the family three
-hundred pair of socks. The achievement appeared almost foreign to me,
-inasmuch as I had not knitted any socks since that momentous pair at
-Monte Carlo, a surprising faculty for a more active existence having
-developed in me during my sojourn on the ranch. At any rate I had sent
-out the wool, finished my last jar of marmalade, of which I had made an
-experimental thousand for a market which Mr. Pegg intended the
-development of, and Mr. Markheim had returned from a visit East in
-company with Pinto. Peaches had that day succeeded in breaking a pony
-she had long desired as a saddle horse and had hitherto been
-unsuccessful with. Mr. Pegg had a special design for the marmalade
-jars--a crystal orange, of the natural size and shape, the preserved
-fruit to furnish the color, and he and I were most enthusiastic over it.
-
-Mr. Markheim also credited himself with a successful trip, though from a
-wholly different cause. It appeared that he had at length contrived to
-install in his house a picture which he had long coveted, and this
-picture was none other than the Madonna of the Lamp, for which he had
-paid five hundred thousand dollars. Since his purchase of it the picture
-had been stored, and it seemed to me a strange time to trouble with
-getting it out. But Sebastian Markheim, with the fervor of the true
-collector and the madness which seems the hall-mark of his kind, was
-apparently oblivious of this circumstance and became wrapt in his
-description of it.
-
-"You must have seen it in Vienna," he said. "Good heavens, don't say you
-have seen photographs of it! You cannot imagine the beauty of the thing
-itself. I have given directions for the remodeling of the south wall of
-my library in the Ossining house for its occupancy. It will hang all
-alone on that wall--it's only a small picture, you know, so I have had
-Hasbrock, the architect, design some panels to encircle it I hope it is
-going to please you, Alicia."
-
-"What?" said Mr. Pegg twirling round suddenly from the bowl of ripe
-olives with which he was occupied. "What's that? Why should Alicia be
-pleased?"
-
-"She's going to live there with it!" said Markheim. "She promised this
-afternoon!"
-
-"Oh, no!" I said getting to my feet. But nobody seemed to hear me.
-
-"Yes, father," said Alicia. Then Pinto's face broke into a sort of
-crooked smile and he held out his hands to both of them.
-
-"Well, I'll be damned!" he said. "Think of my Peaches picking out a
-friend of her father's! Why, Markheim, you must be somewhere near my own
-age!"
-
-"Why, pa, how rude!" said Alicia. "Aren't you going to kiss me? And you
-too, Free! Stop standing there like a dummy! People get married all the
-time--there's nothing unusual about it, you poor nuts! Come on,
-congratulate us!"
-
-Well, of course, I recovered myself as best I could, and pecked her on
-the cheek. But I didn't feel my congratulations--I simply couldn't feel
-them. To marry that old man. And a foreigner! And a German Swiss! And
-everything! It was too dreadful! Nothing could make me feel that she was
-doing it for any reason except pity and because he had nagged her into
-it with his ceaseless attentions. Of course we had nothing against him,
-absolutely nothing, because after all being a millionaire art collector
-is not in itself strictly criminal. But with the memory of that
-beautiful romance in Italy still fresh in my own mind I could not
-understand it--I simply could not; and every fiber of my being resented
-it. Youth and age! It was all wrong. She had a silly notion that her
-heart was dead, and that it didn't matter what she did. That if it gave
-Sebastian happiness to marry her--why, he was good and kind and rich and
-cultured and famous, and why not give joy since one could no longer
-experience it?
-
-I could see in a flash what had gone on in her simple, honest, generous
-mind, and it nearly drove me wild, while all the time I had to stand
-there grinning and patting her on the shoulder, and saying how wonderful
-it all was, when in reality I wanted to drag her out of the room and
-shake her for being such a great silly fool, and force her to stop it
-before anyone else heard of her folly and she found herself in the
-complications of public knowledge of her engagement.
-
-Instead of which I stood round and admired the wonderful five-carat
-diamond ring which Markheim produced, and behaved like an idiot
-generally.
-
-"Well, well, when is it to be?" Mr. Pegg wanted to know.
-
-Alicia turned her big eyes slowly from her marvelous jewel to her
-father's puzzled face.
-
-"I have promised Sebastian," she said slowly, "to marry him as soon as
-the war is over!"
-
-Her tone had, to my ears, the expectancy of a long reprieve.
-
-And it was at that minute that the fire bells began to ring.
-
-You can be sure we all rushed out at that, crying, "Where is it? What is
-the matter?" and many other similar exclamations natural to the
-situation. But at first nobody seemed to know. The Chinese cook came
-out, frying pan in hand, and began running round in circles. The hands
-were soon straggling in from their camp in the gulch by the river.
-Somebody, Mr. Pegg, I think, tried the telephone, but could get no
-answer. By this time almost everybody on the ranch had assembled before
-the house, shivering with the frost and searching the sky for signs of
-the incendiary glare, but in vain. An automobile dashed by down the
-Letterbox road with two prospectors in it. One was firing a gun like mad
-and he yelled something unintelligible at us in passing but ignored our
-invitation to stop.
-
-Then from the direction of the town a flivver emerged out of the swiftly
-falling dusk, and as it stopped in front of our gate a man in the
-uniform of an American captain jumped down with the aid of his uninjured
-arm, the other being supported by a sling, and came running toward us,
-flinging his cap into the air, the lights from our porch gleaming upon
-his excited face and upon the decorations on his breast.
-
-"Victory!" he shouted. "Victory! Schoolhouse fire? Hell! The armistice
-was signed at two o'clock to-day!"
-
-It was Richard, the chauffeur, and I assure you that it was at that
-moment that I recognized the strong family resemblance and decided that
-he might after all be a Talbot--one of our Talbots.
-
-You can imagine the wild riot into which the news and the bearer of it
-threw us. I cannot describe it. Everyone went crazy and I have a blurred
-recollection of kissing several persons, the Chinaman among them. But
-only one thing remains clearly in my mind--Alicia standing like a stone
-in a corner of the veranda, her white face lifted to the rising moon,
-and Markheim running toward her with burning words which seemed to fall
-upon deaf ears.
-
-"Alicia, Alicia, it's the end of the war!" he was shouting.
-
-
-
-
-X
-
-
-I recall upon one occasion my dear father having said that love in a
-cottage was better than politeness in a mansion, and this came at once
-to mind upon the occasion of our visit to Sebastian Markheim's palace on
-the banks of the upper section of the Hudson River.
-
-This took place just six months after that wonderful night when my dear
-nephew, as I was now convinced he was, returned, so to speak, with the
-armistice in his pocket. Sebastian, as I was now instructed to call Mr.
-Markheim, had desired us to come sooner, in order that Peaches might
-herself assist in selecting the plans and furnishings incident to the
-remodeling of what was to be her home.
-
-But Peaches was reluctant to go. Of course there was a good deal of
-readjustment to be done on all her father's ranches, and while he was in
-the south, where the big orchards were, we set in order the home ranch,
-which had been practically in our charge for a year and a half, and she
-gave as excuse for the delay the necessity for making these
-readjustments herself. Richard was to be left in complete charge and she
-busied herself quite unnecessarily in showing him a thousand details.
-Every week she would promise to be ready, and when the time came she
-would have discovered something that nobody else could take care of,
-which was all nonsense, because a citrus ranch practically takes care of
-itself during the winter months. But by hook and crook she held us off
-until April, and then at last we were ready to go.
-
-I will state that I for one was unreservedly eager to go home--to go
-East. I was, in point of fact, so excited at the prospect that on the
-night before our departure I found myself unable to compose myself to
-slumber, and rising from my uneasy couch I donned a robe and ventured
-forth from my bedchamber, which was upon the ground floor.
-
-The moonlight, which flooded the garden, gave it an uncanny distorted
-aspect, and all at once as I sat there, huddled upon a bench close to
-the wall of the house, I seemed to see the ranch and its surroundings
-with the same eyes which envisioned it upon my arrival so long ago. This
-sudden clarity of vision was doubtless due to the subconscious influence
-of my impending departure. At any rate the place, which I had grown so
-accustomed to that I beheld it only with the blindness of familiarity,
-seemed once more the impossibly crude wilderness that it appeared to be
-upon my arrival.
-
-For in the northern part of California there is little of the induced
-luxuriance of the South. There is something of the Eastern farmer's
-fight with the elements and a Nature that is not always overly kind or
-utterly dependable, and our garden was not a thing of lovely lawns,
-dense shrubs and misty glades. Far from it. Our flower beds were as
-practically irrigated as our orchards, standing deep in mud and lifting
-their wonderful blossoms from the mire we so religiously provided for
-them. There was none of the trimness of an Eastern estate about our more
-than practical, enterprising organization. Rather it bore the general
-aspect of Boston Common after an August holiday. It was, in plain truth,
-shockingly untidy, and I was horrified to realize that even I, who had
-been so carefully reared by the immaculate Euphemia, had made only the
-most feeble sort of effort to tidy up. I had been unable to see the
-molehills for the mountains, as one might say. But now, with the thought
-of the concentrated, condensed East before me, I perceived the
-unevenness of our paths, the forgotten bundle of old papers outside the
-storehouse, the broken gate which everyone cursed at but forgot to mend;
-and the olive and orange clad hills beyond grew dim in my mind's eye
-even as they formed but indistinguishable black patches in the
-cloud-changing moonlight. A deep longing for my own kind of living swept
-over me, and I even went so far as to experience a desire for Euphemia's
-breakfast room on Chestnut Street, and the mended table linen--the
-careful little things of life grown dear through years of painstakingly
-careful usage.
-
-Moved by this overwhelming impulse I was on the verge of rising and
-gathering up that disgracefully untidy bundle of papers and carrying it
-to the trash bin where it belonged, thus at once satisfying a normal
-impulse and proving to myself that my upbringing had not been in vain,
-when I became aware that the window above my head had been opened softly
-and that someone--Peaches, without a doubt, since that was her
-chamber--was standing there, crying softly.
-
-My first impulse was to speak--to go to her with what comfort I was
-capable of offering, but having for an instant refrained I could not do
-so. Since the announcement of her betrothal to Markheim a wall had
-sprung up between us as far as her intimate life was concerned. Indeed
-she seemed to have withdrawn into herself curiously, though I doubt that
-anyone realized it as keenly as did I.
-
-And then having failed to speak immediately I found myself in an awkward
-predicament. Should I move or not? I had no desire to eavesdrop for the
-confidence she withheld, and yet I felt it my bounden duty as her
-chaperon and guardian and older woman generally to know all about her by
-one means or another, for her own good, and not out of mere female
-curiosity. And so allowing my sense of responsibility to conquer my
-delicacy I kept very still, and before long my diligence was rewarded.
-
-"A clean sweep!" whispered Peaches at her window. "No use kidding
-myself. I'll make the break clean. It's the only thing to do!"
-
-There was a short silence punctuated only by a few sniffs, and then an
-object flew through the air over my head and landed in the pool with a
-splash. The window above was closed with a snap. Whatever ritual she had
-been at was over. But not so the fulfillment of my duty as her
-protectress.
-
-No sooner had I made sure that she was not going to change her mind and
-come down after it, than I crept stealthily to the water's edge, having
-carefully noted the very spot where the object fell, and kneeling on the
-concrete basin's brim, greatly to the detriment of that portion of my
-anatomy which bore the weight, being clad only for private life, I
-fished determinedly for the best part of half an hour, my sleeves rolled
-up but not escaping the effects of my earnest endeavor, and my curls
-getting thoroughly soaked.
-
-Fortunately Peaches' aim, usually so accurate and far reaching in the
-pursuit of the national sport of baseball, or in any other emergency
-such as reaching a high-hung apple, had fallen a little short this time,
-her secret having hit the shallow end of the pond. And so it was that
-after a very considerable period of effort I did retrieve the object,
-and retreated with it to the seclusion of my room.
-
-Once there I lit the lamp, drew the curtains, locked the door and
-proceeded with my duty still further. It was a terribly moist little
-bundle, done up in a silk handkerchief and weighted with the bronze
-paper-weight I had given Peaches for Christmas. But I was too much
-interested to mind this slight. For inside the bundle were two letters,
-already a mere pulpy mass from the soaking they had sustained, a brittle
-something which might once have been a rose, and the duke's wallet!
-
-The latter was still intact, but before examining it I made a little
-fire on the hearth, and by diligent coaxing managed to consume the
-remnants of the other souvenirs. They were no one's affairs except that
-of the lovers and no other eyes should behold them unbidden. And when
-they were quite concealed in the ashes of the fireplace I returned to
-the light and examined the wallet carefully. It seemed to me that there
-simply must be more to the matter than appeared. In any of those books
-which had so deep an influence upon my early thinking the discoverer of
-such a wallet would have surprised a jewel of value, secret documents
-popularly referred to as 'the papers,' or a marriage certificate which
-cleared the honor of the hero's mother, or something equally vital. And
-I must confess that I, in opening my find, rather anticipated some such
-discovery, but my expectations were doomed to disappointment, for it was
-in very truth what Peaches had suggested--a mileage ticket of some sort
-made out in Sandro's name!
-
-I will say that this end to my exciting evening was a trifle flat, but
-as my dear father used to say, our chief pleasure lies in anticipation
-and no disappointment in the event can cheat us of that. So I simply
-decided to put the thing carefully away in the bottom of my reticule in
-case it was ever needed. What with the war and all, one never can tell
-who is going to turn up a hero; and just think what souvenirs of Rupert
-Brooke, for example, are worth to-day, not to mention Napoleon and
-General Grant, and so forth, whose hero-value has, of course, been
-augmented with age.
-
-Well, at any rate, that was all there was to it at the time. I slept the
-sleep of duty well done, because I was determined to take care of
-Peaches in spite of herself, and the next morning rose refreshed, to
-make the early train for San Francisco, where we were to join Mr. Pegg
-and turn our faces eastward.
-
-The house which Sebastian Markheim had remodeled for his bride-to-be was
-already a sumptuous structure worthy of the famous collection of art
-treasures which it housed, and his efforts in altering it had been bent
-rather in the direction of improving its livableness and making it a
-cheerier spot to which to bring a young wife. The object of our visit
-was that Peaches be given the opportunity of making it completely to her
-liking in advance of her possession of it, and incidentally to make the
-acquaintance of her future neighbors, and of Mr. Markheim's set
-generally.
-
-He had planned a large house party as the means of introducing his
-fiancée to his social world, and she intended to procure her trousseau
-in New York during the intervals of gayety. Mr. Pegg was enchanted at
-the prospect thus opened up before him, and I was myself much elated at
-the thought of experiencing some real social life once more, for Abby's
-hospitality in dear old Italy, so lavish and yet in such excellent good
-form, had given me a taste for the gaieties my restricted youth had
-lacked. Even Peaches was gay, though not as of yore, but rather with a
-mature, stately gayety, and her manner toward me had become positively
-motherly.
-
-"There now, Free!" she soothed me one day when I had expressed a mild
-concern about her state of mind. "There now, Free, don't you worry about
-me! We all have to grow up sometime, don't we? Can't stay young plants
-forever--especially we women. Comes a time when we got to be grafted on
-to old stock and get ready for bearing--eh? Well, that's me, old thing!"
-
-I was shocked at her indelicacy and did not hesitate to say so.
-
-"If that is how you regard your forthcoming nuptials," I said stiffly,
-"you ought to dissolve your betrothal. One should marry only for
-love--for love alone!"
-
-"Oh, should they?" said Peaches. "That's all you know about it. I'm very
-fond of Mr. Mark--of Sebastian, and he is the typical good husband."
-
-"But you don't love him!" I protested firmly.
-
-"I love him as much as I am likely to love anyone," responded
-Peaches--like a young Portia, so stately and serious. "And even if he is
-half a head shorter than I am he has a kind heart and he's a gentleman."
-
-"And not over sixty years old!" I retorted. "Oh, Peaches, do you really
-want to do it?"
-
-Suddenly she was serious. The defensively bantering light went out of
-her changeful eyes.
-
-"Don't, Free!" she pleaded. "Yes, I do want to. I want to be a
-reasonable being--to make the best life I can for myself since I must go
-on living. I don't want to be a coward. I am still young and I haven't
-seen much of the world. Riches, art treasures, cultured people, and
-things--social position--there must be joy in these things or folks
-would not struggle for them so! And since they must be filling up the
-emptiness in a whole lot of lives I'm going to have a try at them too.
-Don't be afraid for me. I know just what I am doing. I know that I shall
-never care again. But I can like. And I can live, and I'm going to use
-my old beau to help me get the most out of life that I can
-when--when--well, you know, only don't say it, please!"
-
-She was wonderful. So big and beautiful and full of health and common
-sense. I could not but admire her, though, of course, a few maidenly
-tears and vows of lifelong fidelity to the heroic dead would have been
-more suitable. But things had already gone too far for that. At the time
-the above-recorded conversation took place we were standing upon the
-steps of the Ritz in New York, waiting for the car which was to convey
-us up the river. Mr. Markheim had not expected us for another week and
-so hadn't been at the hotel to meet us, but was sending his chauffeur.
-
-And in a way Peaches' words reassured me. After all one must eventually
-resign oneself to fate, and if one had the good sense to take fate by
-the horns and as Peaches would say "beat him to it"--why, so much the
-better. We could all settle down to watch her live happily enough ever
-after if her program worked out.
-
-But would it? Despite her assurance I felt a faint misgiving. My dear
-father used always to say: "Never you girls marry until Mister Right
-comes along." And we were brought up to honor and obey our
-parents--with the result that at the respective ages of fifty and sixty
-we girls were still single. However, I digress.
-
-In my youth, following the precepts of my father and seeking knowledge
-of the world through the medium of literature, I came upon the works of
-a lady of rank whose writings had for me the greatest fascination. As to
-what her actual name was I have to this day remained in ignorance, and
-her title, The Duchess, is all that I identify her by. But this
-estimable lady, while somewhat given to the recounting of scandalous
-episodes and the misfortunes peculiar to innocent maidens, had a wealth
-of descriptive power when she undertook the description of rich and
-aristocratic mansions or the interiors of castles of the less modest
-variety. But nothing ever recorded by her, not set forth for public
-inspection in the Boston Museum, could compare with the sumptuousness of
-Mr. Markheim's establishment.
-
-I had been prepared for something very fine, but this gorgeous replica
-of a famous Italian villa built upon terraces, its lovely low white
-façades rising in a symmetrical group one above the other, the whole
-nestling into the budding verdure of the hillside, its formal gardens
-descending step by step almost to the broad sweep of the Hudson below,
-was a veritable dream-palace.
-
-And the interior! Words almost fail me when I seek to describe it.
-Perhaps the most fitting thing I can say of it is that it was a home
-good enough for Peaches. Her great height, her gold-and-marble beauty,
-here found at last a fitting habitat. And then when I saw that little,
-comparatively speaking, Markheim man trotting about in front of her and
-giving her the place with a gesture as he displayed each treasure in
-turn, I felt sick and faint in my mind. And yet he was most kind and had
-never given me the least cause to criticize him, and certainly the house
-was enough to tempt any girl. I sighed, however, to think of the day
-when she would be married and living there.
-
-"Mr. Markheim--Sebastian, I mean," I said--Mr. Pegg and I followed in
-the wake of the happy couple as they made the tour of the
-house--"Sebastian, this place looks as if you had dug up the rich heart
-of Italy and transplanted it to America!"
-
-Sebastian laughed.
-
-"You have the right idea, Miss Freedom! The right idea--yes!" he
-exclaimed with pride. "More than half my collection is Italian--and if I
-do so say myself, it has taken a lot of patience and trouble to gather
-it--not to speak of the cost in money. They have a strict law against
-taking objects of art out of their country, you know, and it's been nip
-and tuck getting hold of a lot of this stuff--smuggled of course. Oh,
-don't look so shocked! If it's genuine it's smuggled--at the Italian
-end. But one doesn't call attention to the fact except in the privacy of
-one's own family!"
-
-"It sure is swell!" said Mr. Pegg.
-
-Sebastian laughed again--a sound which never got him favor with me--and
-opened the door into the newest addition to the house--the library wing,
-which he had remodeled for the especial purpose of housing the Madonna
-of the Lamp.
-
-When I entered I could not refrain from an exclamation of delight, nor
-can I forbear to describe the place in some detail. To begin with it was
-almost round and very large, the ceiling being domed and the books
-being carried in long narrow stacks sunk into the paneling between the
-French windows as high as the carved molding. Above this an exquisite
-tone of blue with a few cleverly distributed stars gave a sense of
-infinite space, and despite the cumbersome old Florentine furniture the
-room was neither heavy nor dull. There was just enough gold to furnish
-flashes of light, and the warm old amber brocade on the chairs seemed to
-catch and hold the sunlight which poured through the long narrow windows
-at the west, all of which opened directly upon the first terrace of the
-rose garden. But the real triumph in lighting was the rose window of
-plain leaded glass on the north side of the room--the wall of which had
-been reconstructed to accommodate it in order that the Madonna might be
-properly illuminated by day. We gasped our admiration of its perfect
-lacery, and then turned about and faced the picture itself in reverent
-silence.
-
-Of course it is ridiculous to suppose there is anyone to whom the
-Madonna of the Lamp is not perfectly familiar, being, as she is, one of
-those paintings which are impressed upon the popular mind in spite of
-itself through endless repetition upon postal and Christmas cards,
-engravers' windows, magazine covers and Sunday-school prizes, to say
-nothing of Little Collections of Great Masters, gift photographs,
-furnishings for college rooms and appeals for public charities.
-
-Nevertheless, I will describe it, because as my dear father used to say,
-the collective mind of the public is not the public mind of the
-collector. It has to be told, in other words, when it can't be shown;
-whereas, of course, you can tell a collector nothing--and get him to
-admit it.
-
-Well, at any rate, in case you do not recall it, the Madonna of the
-Lamp is a round canvas, not more than two and a half feet in diameter,
-and represents the Virgin with the Child curled up in a robe of sapphire
-blue which falls from her head in thick sweeping folds and crosses her
-knee in such a way as to give the appearance of being blown from behind
-by a wind and aiding in the circular effect. She is seated and bending
-over the Infant, protecting both him and the flickering lamp from the
-wind. Above her head is a single star visible through a patch of leaded
-window.
-
-Now you recall it, I am sure. It was painted in Florence by Raphael
-about the year 1506 and is one of the most famous monuments to his
-genius.
-
-And Markheim had provided a most wonderful setting for this jewel. The
-great window was of a design made from that behind the Virgin's head,
-and the carved panel upon which the painting hung was a skillful
-variation of the beautiful old carved frame about the canvas--the
-original frame, it was believed to be, and the motif of the design was
-carried out in a molding which diminished into a faint bas-relief at the
-outer edges of the large wall space above the mantel where it hung. Nor
-was the picture hung too high. Even I could have touched the bottom of
-the carvings; and the mantelpiece had no other ornament except two
-gigantic polychrome candlesticks of the same period. Truly it was a
-wonderfully successful arrangement and reflected great credit on the
-owner who had conceived it.
-
-"Do you like it?" was all he said, looking not at the Madonna but at
-Alicia. "Do you like it, eh?"
-
-Mr. Pegg took the question to himself.
-
-"And you paid five hundred thousand dollars for that little picture?"
-he asked incredulously. "Why, from the price I expected something as big
-as a barn door!"
-
-"Pa--don't be a boob--it's a diamond without a flaw," said Peaches,
-going closer, her face alight with pleasure. "It's a real mother and
-child," she added. "How big would you want them to be? They are
-immortal--isn't that big enough?"
-
-Through the crudity of her rebuke I got one of those rare glimpses of
-her golden heart.
-
-Her crude parent, however, was unimpressed.
-
-"Of course it's real pretty," he said. "Which is more than can be said
-for most antiques. But five hundred thousand! My Lord, look at the
-profit? There can't be over ten dollars' worth of paint in it! Where is
-this feller, Raphael?"
-
-"Where the profit is doing him precious little good," chuckled
-Sebastian.
-
-"Must be hell!" commented Pinto.
-
-"Very possibly, in spite of his choice of subjects!" replied Markheim.
-
-Whereat he and I exchanged our first glance of thoroughly sympathetic
-understanding. I, of course, at once lowered my eyes, a burning sense of
-shame at my implied disloyalty struggling with my desire to spare Mr.
-Pegg the mortification of instruction. I had not forgotten and shall
-never forget how gently he led me to see the error of my ways when I
-first hit the ranch--as, for example, when I unknowingly made culls of
-his best tree of home fruit and he urged me to make marmalade of them
-and never told me until afterward that the way I had picked them by
-pulling them off the tree instead of clipping the stem made it
-impossible to use them for anything else. So now in my own realm I
-wished to lead him gradually into the paths of erudition and allow him
-to learn by inference whenever possible.
-
-Well, the rest of the house was beautiful as could be, and after we had
-finished inspecting it we had tea in a wonderful glass room filled with
-gay cretonnes and flowering plants, wicker chairs and caged canaries.
-Two menservants served the refection. Mr. Sebastian Markheim had a
-considerable household, that was plain, and I began to regret that I had
-steadfastly stood with Peaches on refusing her father's suggestion of a
-personal maid.
-
-"There's something too public about it," had been her objection, which I
-had sustained.
-
-But here amid all these servitors I felt differently. Not that I felt
-any indignity attached to our maidless condition, being, as I was, a
-self-supporting female well able to afford one if I desired such a
-thing. I could now live as I chose instead of as I aught, if you
-understand me. But I knew that Peaches would have to get a female
-attendant after she was married. Markheim was not the man to allow his
-wife to live in comfort when he could provide her with luxury. And at
-this juncture of my thought I stopped halfway through the sugared tea
-biscuit, a terrible realization overwhelming me for the first time.
-
-When Peaches was married she would no longer need me. Who then would
-need me? Nobody? Not Euphemia, who never answered my letters, though she
-always mutely cashed the inclosed checks. And would there be any checks
-to send her? Where would they come from? It was a chilling thought, as
-will readily be admitted. Why I had not thought of it sooner I cannot
-say. It must have been evident from the moment of Peaches' engagement
-that when the affair reached its consummation I would be, to put it
-vulgarly, out of a job.
-
-Of course I did not so greatly care for myself, but there was Euphemia,
-the dependent, to consider, whose tradition of useless gentility must
-not be disturbed in her declining years. True, I had saved a very
-considerable portion of my salary and had almost twenty thousand dollars
-distributed among six savings banks. That might conceivably tide us over
-for the remainder of our lives. But I had acquired the habit of
-remunerative occupation and close companionship with dear friends; also
-a taste for French heels and facial massage whenever practical. And the
-thought of the Chestnut Street house was, the more shame upon me for
-saying it of my father's home, almost intolerable. And Mr. Pegg--dear
-Pinto, how I should miss him! in a purely friendly way of course.
-
-Fully realizing for the first time the bitterness of my situation I
-refused a second sugared bun and rising remarked that as Sebastian
-expected dinner guests we had best retire and obtain a little rest
-before it was time to dress.
-
-Of course my intention was in part to leave the lovers together for a
-properly brief interval, but somewhat to my surprise Peaches rose also
-and said she would accompany me. My heart was heavy, and for once I
-would have preferred to be alone. But she slipped her arm about my neck,
-and we started for our rooms, chatting amiably while the men settled
-down for a cigar.
-
-Now one of the peculiarities of the Markheim palace was that it gave no
-appearance of modernity. Though it was in point of fact less than ten
-years built, it was so cunningly designed, so convincingly arranged,
-with such perfection of detail that it possessed an air of old mystery
-difficult to define, and under ordinary circumstances most
-fascinating--a real achievement on the part of architect and decorator
-alike. The ancient furniture stood so easily in the background provided
-for it that one could have sworn the walls had been made before it; the
-modern lighting was so well handled as to be absolutely unobtrusive.
-
-Slowly, affectionately, we crossed the main hall, pausing to look at the
-chased armor on the two silent figures at the foot of the beautiful
-winding stairs. A Gobelin tapestry fluttered faintly on the wall above
-us, stirred by the gentle sunset wind from the spring-scented river
-below, and the lingering twilight filled the great hall with mysterious
-shadows. There was not another soul in sight and not a sound to be heard
-except the distant murmur of the men's talk and the voice of a pleasure
-boat distantly upon the water. I accompanied Alicia up the stairs,
-feeling as if I were in some enchanted palace of medieval days, and
-above, the long dim corridor in which the lamps had not yet been lit was
-ghostly in the pale glimmer from its high mullioned windows.
-
-"Isn't it spooky?" said Peaches in a low tone.
-
-"Yes!" I replied, whispering involuntarily. "One might almost expect to
-see a ghost!"
-
-And scarcely had I spoken the words when Peaches, the supernormal, who
-was a trifle ahead of me by now, uttered a shriek and leaned trembling
-against the stone wall of the passageway. But for a moment I could not
-come to her aid. My limbs seemed frozen, paralyzed. For there suddenly
-and soundlessly a form was towering vaguely before us, its white face
-luminous in a shaft of uncanny light.
-
-It was the Duke di Monteventi!
-
-
-
-
-XI
-
-
-After one horrible endless moment the figure moved slightly and the
-corridor was flooded with the soft mellow light from half a dozen
-electric sconces.
-
-With a half-choked cry of "Sandy!" upon her lips Peaches moved toward
-him, only to stop short, her face going completely blank. The man was a
-servant, a valet presumably, carrying a folded suit of clothing
-carefully over one arm and wearing soft felt shoes, which had been the
-secret of his noiseless approach. His hair was thickly gray and his face
-was lined and scarred. He looked perhaps ten years older than
-Sandro--and yet the likeness was there--unmistakable, though in the full
-light not by any means so perfect.
-
-"I beg pardon, ladies," he said in a measured voice, withdrawing another
-step. "The lights should have been on."
-
-Then with a little bow he passed noiselessly down the corridor and
-entered one of the bedrooms, presumably that occupied by Markheim
-himself.
-
-Peaches made a little involuntary gesture as if to follow him,
-stretching out her hands toward his unconscious back, and then, as the
-door closed upon him, turned to me, her amber eyes afire. She seized me
-by the wrist in a manner positively painful and dragged me into her
-room, where she caused me to sit down abruptly and without personal
-selection upon a sort of hassock, the while she towered over me, fairly
-glowing with animation--far, far, more like her old self than she had
-been for almost six years.
-
-"Free!" she said. "Was it? Was it? Oh, Free--say something!"
-
-"It couldn't have been!" I replied shakily. "And yet the resemblance--it
-was extraordinary!"
-
-"It was a miracle!" said Peaches. "No two people could look so much
-alike."
-
-"He had a brother," I began doubtfully, "who was merely supposed to be
-dead. Sandro would have known you at once."
-
-"But didn't he?" she questioned, striding up and down the room with her
-long, clean gesture of body. "Why didn't he speak at once? He was too
-much amazed!"
-
-"Nonsense!" I exclaimed. "How could he be amazed, when as a servant in
-this house--in all probability Sebastian's valet--he must have known in
-advance all about your coming here!"
-
-"That's so," said Peaches. "And, of course there are differences--the
-grayness, the lines in his face. But something may have happened to
-him."
-
-"Very likely!" I replied dryly. "Considering we have heard from Cousin
-Abby that he was killed in action."
-
-"But it may have been a mistake," she whispered. "Stranger things have
-happened. And a servant! No--even if he had gone quite mad and forgotten
-everything that would hardly be possible."
-
-"Servant or not, if it is he, why on earth shouldn't he recognize you?"
-I demanded. "That's the sort of encounter which is supposed to bring
-people to their senses, you know."
-
-"But didn't he recognize me?" she replied with a doubt willfully
-sustained. "Just for an instant, I was so sure! Well!"
-
-"What are we going to do about it?" I said. "If by chance it really is
-Sandro it's a nice situation, I'm sure! With your wedding only a few
-weeks off and, and--why, good gracious! It's simply terrible!"
-
-But Peaches didn't look as if she thought it was simply terrible--not in
-the least. She was terrifically excited, but more beautiful than ever.
-
-"Free!" she cried. "I know it is he! Do you suppose I could feel as I
-did--as I do, at the encounter unless it is Sandy? Lots of times people
-know things without evidence. And this is one of those times. I feel it
-is he. I don't care how differently he looked when the lights went up."
-
-"But how on earth are you going to find out?" I urged. "Surely, Peaches,
-he cannot have forgotten you!"
-
-"Forgotten!" she exclaimed, stopping short in her pacing of the floor.
-"Forgotten! Good heavens, Free, you don't suppose that is it, do you?"
-
-"Of course I don't!" I snapped, even though I was not entirely sure but
-that a young man who was capable of taking French leave in the way that
-Sandro had six years previously, was not capable of anything, including
-having an _affaire de coeur_ with Peaches and then failing to
-recollect the incident. Some men are that way; I have it on the
-authority of The Duchess.
-
-"This man is older!" I went on. "And we don't know for certain what his
-position in the household is. The best thing for you to do is to
-question Sebastian about him."
-
-"Won't he think it strange if I let him on to the fact that I'm stuck
-on his valet?" Peaches considered in her disconcertingly frank way.
-
-"Good gracious, you must do nothing of the kind!" I interposed.
-"Besides, you don't know that you are, as you vulgarly put it, stuck on
-him. You only think it may be Sandy. Kindly keep that in mind, my dear!"
-
-"I think there is something damn funny about the whole shooting match!"
-said Peaches vigorously. "And I'm going to the bottom of it mighty
-pronto!"
-
-With which she flung from the room to don one of her majestic evening
-gowns, leaving me in great distress of mind for fear of what she would
-do next. To array myself for the evening's festivities and to descend to
-them in a becomingly dignified manner was no easy task, but by the
-greatest effort at self-control I accomplished both the arrangement of
-my toilet and the adjustment of my manner sufficiently to reappear in
-polite society in the state of composure due to my name and heritage and
-the responsible position which I occupied toward the Pegg family. It is
-one of the penalties of a great name that one must ever maintain the
-aspect of a painted ancestor, no matter what tumult may be going on
-within one. And though I admit that I was in a profoundly disturbed
-state of mind, and indeed I may say, shaken to the very depths of my
-romantic soul by what had occurred and still more by what might occur, I
-believe that my conduct and appearance as I stood smiling beside the
-unconscious Mr. Markheim, aiding him in the reception of his guests,
-would have been wholly approved by my dear father. And I rather relished
-the sense of standing upon a species of social volcano.
-
-When Peaches appeared on the, as I may call it, haunted stairway, a gasp
-of delighted astonishment went up from the assemblage. She was arrayed
-in a sheathlike gown of golden sequins that rivaled but did not surpass
-the glory of her hair, and though she was without jewels except for her
-ring, she shone with a radiance such as can scarcely be imagined. Her
-wonderful hair lay close and glistening upon her head like a helmet of
-burnished metal, and this taken with her--er--martial though décolleté
-costume gave her somewhat the appearance of a young Pallas Athene with a
-redeeming touch of--er--jazz, if you know what I mean. At any rate she
-was magnificent. And if a trifle pale, it was from the intense wave of
-new life which had flooded her during the past few hours, and her eyes
-were like those of that terribly incoherent tiger of Blake's.
-
-Well, I will not digress by describing the feast which Sebastian gave as
-a housewarming for his lady love. The field of such description has been
-widely covered by every chronicler from Balzac to W. D. Griffiths.
-Suffice to say that it was a very sumptuous affair, attended by a more
-or less cosmopolitan crowd, comprising friends and neighbors alike, and
-affording, I dare say, a reasonable amount of enjoyment to those
-present.
-
-Under different circumstances I should have enjoyed it myself, being, as
-I am, possessed of a very profound sense of the solemnity of social
-functions and their proper conducting. But upon this occasion I was so
-taken up with being on the outlook for a glimpse of that mysterious
-valet among the other servants that I only succeeded in performing the
-mechanics of a pleasant evening. But nevertheless I was aware that the
-affair, considering that it was more or less impromptu due to our
-unexpected arrival, went off very well, and without my once seeing the
-person for whom I was automatically seeking.
-
-Well, at about half after eleven that night, when the last guest had
-departed and we four--Mr. Pegg, Alicia, Sebastian and myself--were
-assembled in the library for a good-night discussion, Peaches laid her
-trap, if so I may call it, for the information she desired. She became
-suddenly domestic and affectionate over a glass of milk and vichy and I
-watched keenly as she led up to her subject with a deceitful air of
-innocence of which I would not have believed her capable. Markheim was
-in the seventh heaven at her interest, and dear Mr. Pegg stood under the
-Madonna chewing on a big cigar and nodding his approval.
-
-"It was a wonderful dinner, Sebastian!" said Peaches, her big eyes
-limpid pools of approval. "What a peach of a chef you have!"
-
-"I am glad you approve!" said the banker. "We will keep him on."
-
-"There are an awful bunch of servants here," Peaches commented. "It will
-seem funny, keeping house with them after one Chinaman, and sometimes
-none, out on the ranch. I suppose I'll have a maid. But if I do I'm
-going to teach her pinochle! Have you a valet, Mark?"
-
-"In a way," replied Markheim. "In a way I have--and then again I
-haven't!"
-
-At this astonishing announcement you may well believe that a painful
-sensation occurred in my breast. I positively started out of my seat,
-though controlling myself instanter, and even Peaches gave a funny
-little gasp, which she, however, contrived to turn into a species of
-inane giggle, spluttering over her milk.
-
-"What--what do you mean by that?" she said.
-
-"Only that he's given notice," Markheim replied. "Nothing unusual about
-that nowadays, I assure you, my dear. And I'm sorry he's going," he
-added. "The best chap I've had--came to me six months ago, and been
-absolute perfection ever since!"
-
-"Why do you let him go?" asked Peaches, her eyes fixed upon her fiancé
-as if she would like to hypnotize him into telling her more than she
-asked. "Why not give him more wages or something?"
-
-"It's not a question of money," Sebastian explained. "It seems he
-dislikes women--regular misanthrope. It's all your fault, my dear. He
-gave notice as soon as I told him I was going to get married!"
-
-"Oh!" said Peaches. "Then it was some time ago that he--he quit? Not
-just to-day?"
-
-"About a month ago," replied her lover. "He expected to leave before you
-appeared upon the scene, only you are ahead of time. Great Scott,
-Alicia, you seem fearfully interested in the fellow? Have you seen him,
-or what is the idea anyhow?"
-
-"No," lied Peaches calmly. "I just got to thinking about servants in
-general and about the personal-servant idea in particular. I don't know
-that the plan has my O. K. It's an embarrassing idea--makes me feel like
-a boob to have anybody dress me, unless to hook a fool dress up the back
-perhaps. And a Chinaman could do that, you know. What do you call the
-bird--by his front or hind name?"
-
-"I call him Wilkes," said Markheim, laughing. "And you are too amusing,
-my dear. You are not obliged to have a maid, you know. It's quite
-conceivable that I can learn to hook a gown!"
-
-"Or unhook it!" laughed Mr. Pegg.
-
-This was too much for me. I bade them all good night and departed in
-high dudgeon.
-
-The enormous main hall was but dimly lighted and I crossed it, not
-without hesitancy, and when at the foot of the staircase a hand was laid
-upon my arm I nearly screamed aloud. In fact I attempted to scream but
-was so frightened that I only accomplished a squeak. However, it was no
-supernatural apparition, but Peaches, who had overtaken me, and who
-dragged me to my room, where she slammed the door behind us in
-breathless triumph.
-
-"There!" she cried. "Did you hear him?"
-
-"I did!" I replied. "And I think your father ought to be ashamed of
-himself, at his age, too!"
-
-"Oh, forget dad!" she cried impatiently. "I know he's a roughneck, but
-that's not a weakness. I mean about Sandy?"
-
-"Oh!" said I. "Well, what about him--if it is he?"
-
-"If it is?" said Peaches. "Have you any doubts now? Leaving as soon as
-he heard about me, and then being caught by my unexpected arrival.
-Didn't you listen?"
-
-"It may be just a coincidence," I demurred, though in truth I was deeply
-interested. "And he's been here six months. He must have heard of your
-engagement before--or at least been aware that Sebastian knew you."
-
-"Perhaps," admitted Alicia, pacing up and down like a substantial
-sunbeam. "But that doesn't satisfy me. There's only one way to settle
-the question. I've got to have a private talk with that man."
-
-"But how?" I gasped.
-
-"You've got to arrange it," replied Peaches firmly.
-
-"Impossible!" I squeaked. "What an idea! Though, of course, you could
-meet him secretly in the garden!"
-
-"The very thing!" exclaimed my charge with enthusiasm. "Here--I will
-write a note and date him up, and you will see that it gets to him. I'll
-meet him in the rose garden at midnight to-morrow."
-
-She sat herself down at the exquisite old Moorish escritoire and taking
-pen and paper wrote in her labored, painstaking fashion, her head on one
-side, her tongue firmly between her teeth, the hair curling at the nape
-of her neck like that of an innocent child rather than a desperate
-maiden in a most thrilling situation.
-
-"There!" she said at length, slipping the missive into an envelope and
-handing it to me. "There you are, Free. Now be sure he gets it, and let
-me know how he acts. It doesn't need any answer!"
-
-With which she actually had the impudence to kiss me gayly on the cheek
-and run away to bed, leaving me standing as if paralyzed, the note in
-one hand, and the problem of handling the preposterous situation staring
-me in the face.
-
-My dear father used to say that only those who must be ashamed need be
-afraid, and as this matter of the note was really none of my personal
-affair I need not, I suppose, have feared for the consequences; and yet
-I confess that I was filled with fear. The day had been interminable,
-and now it seemed that it was not yet over, though the clock pointed to
-a quarter after twelve. At such a circumstantial hour I had no mind to
-venture out into a corridor in which I had recently encountered a very
-fair imitation of a ghost. Indeed, there had been from the start of our
-acquaintance something very mysterious about the Duke di Monteventi, and
-death, it seemed, did not offer any solution, but rather extended the
-obscurity which surrounded him.
-
-It was my personal opinion that he was dead, and that this valet
-creature who had startled us in such a fashion merely bore an accidental
-resemblance to Sandro. Yet then again it was so much more romantic to
-consider his being resurrected as a possibility. But if it were Sandro,
-why on earth should he, who had the entrée to every fashionable house in
-Europe, reappear in the capacity of a servant?
-
-Perchance it was not Sandro, but his supposedly murdered elder brother.
-That would, of course, account for the resemblance. This idea struck me
-as being remarkably intelligent, and I at once began to search my mind
-for its literary beginnings. My dear father used to say that all ideas
-had literary beginnings and all beginnings contained a literary idea.
-But neither Deadwood Dick, Edwin Arnold, Walter Pater or The Duchess
-seemed to have supplied me with the thought, strive as I would to place
-it among them. I was forced to claim it as original, and perhaps merely
-the theme for a story's beginning. And despite my dear father's precept,
-I do verily believe that I am at times productive of ideas quite my own,
-as, for example, in the realm of love, wherein my manifold ideas must
-have no other origin than my own brain, inasmuch as the only books on
-the subject which we possessed at home were written by a Frenchman named
-Balzac, and though ostensibly in English translation they were mostly
-set forth in asterisks, dots and dashes.
-
-But I digress. Let us return to the privacy of my chamber at the villa,
-and the note to Wilkes, which somehow must be disposed of.
-
-My first inclination was to procure a two-cent stamp and mail it--an
-obvious solution. And yet I hesitated, because if by chance it should
-miscarry and fall into the wrong hands, what dreadful consequences might
-not ensue? What a, as one might say, roughhouse might it
-not--er--precipitate! No, mailing would not do, because at best I might
-be unable to find a mail box or post office before late the next day,
-and I would certainly be unwilling to offer a note so addressed to one
-of the other household servants.
-
-Furthermore, I was hampered by a lack of familiarity with the house.
-Doubtless there was a servants' mail box somewhere about the service
-stairs, if only I knew where. But to wander round looking for it would
-be both nerve-racking and indiscreet, particularly at such an hour.
-Finally in desperation I was half tempted to burn the wretched thing,
-and forbore only because of my promise to Alicia. My brain felt as if it
-were on fire. I did not know what to do.
-
-All at once the great room with its wide spaciousness and light hangings
-seemed suffocatingly hot. I crossed to the window, and first
-extinguishing the light in order not to attract the night insects,
-opened it and sat down beside it, the better to meditate upon my course
-of action. I was half determined to take the whole matter to Pinto Pegg
-in the morning and allow him to settle our minds for us, even against
-Alicia's will.
-
-But as I reclined upon the window-sill the vision of my own somewhat
-barren girlhood rose before me like a reproachful ghost, and I had no
-heart to stifle the sequel to that romance which I had seen bud, unfold
-and blossom in the tropic air at San Remo. Holding the letter in my lap
-it seemed to burn through the heavy silk of my gown, such was the fire
-which had inspired its writing. No matter what might come--what
-disillusionment, what disappointment--it should be delivered. I vowed
-that through no fault of mine should Peaches be cheated of her love; and
-I felt myself to be an excellent judge of love. I had looked on at a
-good deal of it. Indeed as I sat there it occurred to me that I had
-accomplished a great lot of looking on in the course of my life. And
-scarcely had this commentary crossed my mind when, quite in line with my
-usual fortune, I found myself once more an observer, though unobserved.
-
-I have remarked that Mr. Markheim's villa was built upon several levels,
-thus permitting the windows on one wing to overlook those on a different
-story in another portion of the building, and that there were several
-wings or sections to the place, so arranged that the main portions were
-well isolated from each other in accordance with the modern ideas of
-comfort and quiet. Thus the living rooms were in the main body of the
-house, the library was at the extreme end, the bedrooms in one wing, and
-the kitchen with the servants' quarters over them in another wing at the
-extreme opposite end of the house but facing the guest rooms across a
-wide garden space. For the most part the service quarters opened upon a
-hidden court of their own but the wide row of windows must be, I
-decided, the rooms of the upper servants.
-
-Once possessed of this thought I began to visualize the interior plan of
-the house, particularly that of the corridor which would lead to those
-rooms. By a little figuring I came to the realization that they were in
-reality on the same level as my own chamber, though actually on the
-story above--that is to say, the third story while I was on the second.
-To reach them from within the house meant the ascent of one flight of
-stairs, whereas if one were to get out onto the little balcony below me
-and cross the roof of the porte-cochère, one would bring up on a ledge
-running level with the third story of the opposite wing; a by no means
-perilous journey unless one were to be observed from the garden below,
-which was not likely at night, modesty being the only thing subjected to
-any serious danger.
-
-While I was meditating upon this architectural curiosity a light
-appeared in one of those third-story windows, and against it stood the
-figure of a man. It was Wilkes--or Sandro, as Peaches insisted upon
-calling him. I could see him very plainly, as indeed the whole of the
-rather small simple room was perfectly visible and he stood directly
-under the electric light. At this distance his resemblance to the lost
-duke was certainly remarkable. He was alone in the room, which was
-evidently his bedroom, and had plainly just finished with Markheim, for
-he carried the light gray suit which Sebastian had worn that afternoon,
-and several pairs of boots.
-
-Fired by a thought which offered to solve my problem I counted the
-windows between me and that before which he stood. There were fifteen;
-his was the sixteenth along the ledge. To walk the distance along the
-balcony, over the intervening roof of the porte-cochère was no task at
-all to one who had been living a life in the open for six years, and
-there was very little danger of my being observed since none of the
-windows which I should be obliged to pass were those of bedrooms--except
-in the servants' wing. I would wait until the light was extinguished and
-then play my part.
-
-The interval between my resolution and the moment for its execution was
-but brief. In a surprisingly short time the light in the man's room was
-extinguished, and then I had only to wait until I might reasonably
-suppose him to be asleep--a half hour, for surely, I thought, a tired
-servant would take no longer. At the termination of this period I
-removed my shoes and put on a pair of knitted bedroom slippers with felt
-soles--a welcome Christmas offering from Galadia and Boston--and
-gathering my dress about me with little regard for the dictates of
-modesty, I stepped forth from my window and began my circumlocution.
-
-I am aware that this performance of mine would not have been looked upon
-with favor by Euphemia, nor yet by the members of our home-mission
-sewing circle, yet my conscience was clear, and I had ever been somewhat
-at a loss to confine my behavior strictly within the limits of the
-society in which I had been reared. And furthermore, there was but
-little chance that the sewing circle or indeed my sister would ever
-learn of the incident, and as my dear father used to say, there are more
-Lorelei in the social sea than ever come out of it. I infer that he
-intended some reference to social shipwrecks.
-
-And had my circle of acquaintances ever become aware of my behavior upon
-this particular occasion without clearly understanding the motive which
-actuated me they would undoubtedly have wrecked my standing. In point of
-fact they might even have done so with the fullest understanding of my
-motive--the act being itself father to the ostracism, if you know what I
-mean, and motives are seldom if ever considered when the opportunity for
-passing judgment occurs.
-
-But at the moment of emerging upon the narrow ornamental balcony I was
-concerned with none of these possibilities, which occurred to me only at
-a later date. I was too thoroughly occupied with making a noiseless,
-inconspicuous progress, and with wondering whether the valet was high
-class enough to sleep with his window open. I trusted that he did so,
-and expected it, for he was a clean, bronzed sort of man, and in truth
-it would prove utter frustration for me if he should be in the habit of
-sleeping with it closed.
-
-It was with something of the emotion which I fancy that a participant in
-a motion-picture drama must experience that I, not without some
-difficulty in climbing the intervening railings, approached my goal,
-silently as the--er--wings of night, as one might say, feeling my way
-along the wall and taking careful count of the windows as I went, the
-garden a still pool of blackness below me, in which the few scattered
-stars of the overcast sky found no reflection. It was really very dark
-for such an enterprise, and though the fact was undoubtedly of advantage
-in one way it made my progress uncomfortably slow, the more so as I had
-now no lighted window to guide me, and was compelled to advance by the
-sense of touch alone.
-
-I passed the roof of the porte-cochère with success, climbed on to the
-ledge leading outside of the servants' wing, the letter safe within my
-bosom. There I began again my feeling of the window sills, this time
-with the added wish for clinging to them for support as well as their
-enumeration, for this was the most perilous portion of my undertaking,
-there being only a gutter along the ledge, and no railing of any sort.
-And after an interminable period I reached my goal--the sixteenth
-window. It was open!
-
-With infinite caution I slid past the shutter, holding my breath lest I
-be heard; and flattening myself against the wall I extracted the letter
-from its hiding place and peered round the side of the aperture,
-doubtful how best to dispose of it soundlessly.
-
-The casement was not only open but open to its widest capacity. And
-while I was rapidly considering whether I should simply lay the letter
-on the sill, trusting that the wind would not blow it away, or if I
-should drop it inside, risking some sound that might waken the sleeper,
-the moon slid from under a cloud, and on the instant the whole interior
-became visible to me.
-
-It was empty!
-
-The bed had not even been disturbed, and the door was closed. As well as
-I could see in the dim light the only clothing lying about was that
-which the man had brought from his master's room, and this was neatly
-placed upon a chair, even as I had observed him to dispose of it nearly
-an hour since. It was a most perplexing matter. But without waiting to
-consider it further I reached within and laid the letter upon a chair
-beside the window where the occupant could not fail to observe it upon
-his return, and forthwith withdrew the upper portion of my body. As I
-did so I heard a sound which, in the language of my favorite authors,
-froze my blood. Someone was walking upon the gravel of the path directly
-beneath me.
-
-I stood as if petrified, listening intently. For a moment, nothing, and
-my heart relaxed a little, as the supposition occurred to me that it
-might have been some animal bent upon nocturnal adventures. But hardly
-had this reassurance registered in my brain when it came again. Without
-doubt someone was making a stealthy progress along that side of the
-house upon which I stood in an unusual, not to say compromising,
-position. And in another moment my fears were justified, for out of the
-abyss below me darted a dark and noiseless figure, followed at close
-range by a second one. Both crossed the moon patch like wraiths,
-vanishing instantly into the shadows of the shrubbery beyond. Two men!
-What were they about? No good, that was certain. And what, in merciful
-heaven's name, was I to do about it?
-
-To give the alarm from my present position was impossible. Moreover, if
-I were to remain where I was the two in the shrubbery might at any
-instant discover my presence upon the ledge, for the moon in
-illuminating the room behind me was, of course, also rendering me
-clearly visible. To retreat to my own quarters by the route by which I
-had come was now obviously impossible. There remained but one course,
-and I took it. Without further ado I picked up my skirts and climbed
-into the bedchamber of my host's bodyservant.
-
-
-
-
-XII
-
-
-Once inside the room I sank upon a chair for an instant, gasping for
-breath and quite all of a tremble. But after a little I regained some
-control of my faculties, which I now directed toward effecting my
-escape.
-
-From the adjoining room came the noises of a heavy sleeper--snores and
-wheezy breathing. The head butler, without doubt; a great hulk of a man
-whom it would be no easy task to rouse even if I were in a position to
-rouse any one, which, of course, I was not--now less than ever. Aside
-from his strenuous slumbers the wing was silent, yet somehow
-portentously so, as only a house of sleepers can be. Beyond my refuge a
-night light was burning in the hall. I could discern this from the crack
-beneath the door. Obviously I had no choice but to leave in that
-direction, even though it was highly probable that I should encounter
-Wilkes in the corridor. Still, such misadventure must be chanced. With
-madly beating heart I crossed the room and stealthily tried the handle.
-Imagine my amazement when I found that the door was locked--from the
-inside! The man must be in the room with me!
-
-This thought so filled me with terror that throwing caution to the winds
-I unlocked and opened the door, fleeing down the dimly lighted corridor
-like a bat out of Hades, as Peaches would put it, and plunging down the
-first staircase that appeared.
-
-The hall below was completely dark, and I must have taken a wrong
-turning, because in what seemed about two minutes I was completely lost.
-For once my nerves gave way completely. I wanted to shriek but could
-only make a little clicking sound which nobody seemed to hear. Then I
-began to run, because I thought something was after me--I did not know
-what. I couldn't see anything, and yet I felt overpowered by terror. It
-flashed across my brain that perhaps Sandro--or rather, Wilkes--did not
-need to unlock his door in order to leave his room; perhaps he came
-through the closed door and only kept it locked to prevent people from
-discovering that he didn't really exist.
-
-The thought gave new impetus to my speed, and for time uncounted I flew
-about that horribly vast and silent mansion as noisily and irrationally
-as if I were myself some poor lost spirit. I seemed wholly unable to
-find my way back to my own apartment or to locate any familiar door at
-which I might venture to knock and beg for help. And the realization
-that those two night prowlers in the garden might at any moment break
-into whatever part of the house I was in at the instant did nothing to
-induce a greater serenity of mind.
-
-Moreover, I could not seem to find a flight of stairs leading upward,
-and when at length I emerged from the service wing it was to find myself
-in the ghostly main hall once more. And there it was that a sudden
-unexpected encounter with reality shocked me back to some degree of
-common sense.
-
-From this main hall, which was two stories in height a corridor led
-directly to the library at the extreme left end of the main building.
-
-Other rooms opened from the corridor, of course, but the door directly
-at the end was that of the Madonna room, as I called it, and as I,
-emerging from the servants' entrance, advanced toward the foot of the
-main stair I stood as if rooted to the ground, for from that far doorway
-gleamed a faint light.
-
-Now though it is true that anything pertaining to the supernatural,
-mesmeric or ghostly is capable of upsetting my equanimity to a very
-considerable degree, in the realm of obviously human activity I have
-never been a coward or a laggard. Never shall it be said that the last
-Freedom Talbot, the tenth to bear that illustrious name, ever disgraced
-it by cowardice, though but a mere woman. Not for nothing did I bear the
-title of those men who had given their lives and made their fortunes in
-the cause for which they were baptized.
-
-"In time of danger an ounce of action is worth a pound of theory," my
-dear father used to say; and his precepts are in my blood no less than
-in my mind. And upon this occasion I was not backward.
-
-There was no time now to give the alarm; it was, as the saying goes, up
-to me. Waiting only long enough to put my right foot back into its
-knitted slipper, the heel of which had come off during my flight, I
-immediately stalked to one of the suits of armor which guarded the
-staircase, and removed the great sword which lay within its hollow
-grasp. Thus armed I began a stealthy progress toward the library door.
-
-The sword was heavy and difficult to carry but I was in no mood to be
-put off by a trifle of that kind. Whatever those two villains were up to
-in that library I was determined to put an end to immediately. I had no
-fear that a common thief would dare to shoot at my gray head, and the
-now perfect respectability of my situation gave me confidence.
-Nevertheless I took care to make no unnecessary noise. Grasping my
-weapon in such a manner as to be ready for any emergency I sidled along
-the wall of the corridor, concealing myself behind the portière which
-hung at the door, and cautiously peeked within.
-
-On the mantelpiece a little electric lantern was burning, and before it
-stood Wilkes the valet, his forearms resting upon the shelf, his chin
-upon his hands, and his face upturned to the Madonna as if in worship.
-Never have I seen a face more, as it were, glorified than was his at
-that moment. His very soul, if I may be so indelicate as to mention such
-a thing, seemed to be in his eyes, and an inner light illuminated his
-countenance, almost obliterating the lines and making him appear far
-younger than I had at first thought. The scar on his temple blazed like
-a white star as the lamplight struck it, giving him an uncanny aspect
-that was yet beautiful, and I could not but note the easy grace with
-which he maintained his posture. But most remarkable of all was the
-hunger with which he feasted his eyes upon that painting.
-
-In the feeble illumination the Madonna herself was smiling back at him,
-and seemed almost to waver and lean gently toward him. It was a
-strangely intimate scene--almost I felt as if I had intruded upon an
-interview between lovers. And yet that was all nonsense, as I presently
-realized. Immensely relieved that the intruder was, after all, no
-intruder but one of the household servants, I quietly hid the sword
-behind the folds of the portière, leaning it against the inner wall as
-unobtrusively as possible. But the man before the picture would not, I
-think, have noticed had I dropped the clumsy thing, so absorbed was he.
-And then, when I had disposed of my armament, I entered the apartment
-and came within three feet of him before I spoke.
-
-"Wilkes," I said quietly, "what are you doing here?"
-
-The man jumped as though he had been shot, and spun round to face me.
-All self-control was momentarily gone from him, and that was a terrible
-thing to see. His jaw had dropped and the lips quivered pitifully, his
-whole face shook convulsively and his shoulders heaved. Then by a
-supreme effort he regained his self-mastery. His figure grew quiet, the
-shoulders drooped in the manner which seemed habitual to them, and the
-lines of his face hardened, adding the years which his enraptured
-pre-occupation had temporarily stripped from him. Once more he was the
-unobtrusive body servant.
-
-"I beg pardon, Miss Talbot," he said. "I was startled."
-
-"So was I," I commented dryly. "I thought you were--well, never mind.
-What are you doing down here?"
-
-"I fancied I heard some one, miss," the man replied. "Prowlers, or
-cracksmen, perhaps; and thought I'd better just take a look round."
-
-"H'm!" said I, unconvinced. "So you heard them, too, eh?"
-
-A curious look passed over his face. I could have vowed the emotion was
-fright--that he had not the remotest idea I would have said such a
-thing.
-
-"Did you hear anything, miss?" he asked.
-
-"I certainly did."
-
-"Perhaps it was myself you heard then, miss!"
-
-"I don't know!" I replied, looking at him sharply. "Perhaps it was. At
-any rate I know positively that I saw two men stealing in the direction
-of these windows not over twenty minutes ago. But there is only one man
-here now, it seems."
-
-"You saw two men!" he snapped, his voice keen with concern. Then he
-dropped it to his usual modulation. "Are you quite sure there was some
-one in the garden?"
-
-"As sure as that I am standing here!" I retorted. "I saw them
-perfectly--at least plainly enough to be sure they were men; and up to
-no good, I am equally certain of that!" Surely there was nothing
-mysterious about this man--he was all too plainly just a stupid servant.
-I could have shaken him from sheer irritation, and began bitterly to
-regret having left that note in his chamber.
-
-"Well?" I said impatiently. "Aren't you going to do something about it?"
-
-"Ah--er--yes, certainly, miss," said he, "I'll have a look round of
-course. Did you say they came this way?"
-
-"Headed for these very windows!" I said firmly.
-
-He crossed to the long French casements and tried the fastenings, which
-were long bars that crossed them at two levels, making entrance
-impossible without breaking the leaded glass. They were undisturbed. The
-great rose window was, of course, impenetrable, both by construction and
-because of its height from the ground.
-
-"It is all quite secure, miss," said he. "And the beggars will be
-frightened off by now, I think, for they will have seen the light."
-
-"Look here, Wilkes, my man!" I said sharply. "If you were down here on
-a burglar hunt, why were you looking for them in the frame of the
-Madonna of the Lamp?"
-
-He must have been prepared for that, for he replied composedly enough,
-with downcast eyes.
-
-"I inadvertently stopped to have a look at it, miss," said he. "I have a
-liking for fine pictures, miss."
-
-"Well, I suppose that's all right enough," I said, still somehow very
-much troubled in my mind, I scarcely knew why. "A love of art is
-probably one of the requisites in newfangled help, but dear knows
-Galadia never showed any! Well, be that as it may, we'd better make the
-round of the house and be sure that everything is safe!"
-
-"Very well, miss!" said he. "But need you come, miss? I'll just find the
-watchman--he's usually in the back hall."
-
-"Well, I'll go that far with you," I compromised. "I want to make sure
-that he thinks everything is all right before I go to bed."
-
-"Very well, miss," said Wilkes again. But I could not help feeling he
-was uncommonly anxious to get rid of me.
-
-Switching the lights on ahead of us as we went, and revealing the
-cheerful normal aspect of the house as it really was, composed my nerves
-to a considerable extent; and finding the watchman at his post in the
-back hall was also reassuring. One thing struck me as curious, however.
-The man, a Latin of some sort, was not dozing in the expected manner of
-night watchmen, curled upon a comfortable chair or nodding over an
-extinct pipe. He was standing in the middle of the floor, knocking one
-boot against the other, and though the door, leading presumably to the
-kitchen garden, was shut I at once got a strong impression of his
-having been out of doors a moment before. There was that waft of fresh
-air that comes in with a person from the coolness of the night clinging
-to his clothing, and the room itself was fresh instead of close as might
-have been anticipated. This in itself was, of course, in no way
-extraordinary, and might indeed have passed unnoticed had it not been
-for what he said.
-
-"Everything all right, Pedro?" asked Wilkes, who had entered ahead of
-me.
-
-"Yas--was' ell matt'?" replied the fellow, evidently surprised by having
-visitors at such an hour. "You tink you hear sometin'?"
-
-"Yes--Miss Talbot saw two men in the garden--and I also thought I heard
-something out of the ordinary--someone breaking in--like at a lower
-window."
-
-"No--no!" said Pedro. "Everytin' all ri'. Me just maka da round."
-
-"Then you must have seen those men," I said quietly. He gave me a stare
-and laughed, white teeth gleaming.
-
-"No, no!" he said again. "No two--me--you see one men--das me--you see
-me, signora!"
-
-His confidence was perfect, and argument failed to move him. Finally I
-gave it up and went to bed, thinking it unnecessary to rouse the other
-members of the household, for after all were not two of the menservants
-awake and in charge? And what could I prove? Nothing except that I was a
-nervous, imaginative old woman. It was not until I had actually got into
-bed that I recalled one fact which was sufficient in itself to justify
-the most alarming conclusions.
-
-Wilkes' door had been locked on the inside, and yet I had found him
-inside the house, while his window had been opened wide. The thought
-caused me to sit bolt upright in bed. And once this wide awake again, I
-realized further that the obvious conclusion that Wilkes had left by way
-of his open window was absurd. How could he possibly have left the third
-story of the house in such a fashion? I was positive that no rope ladder
-or such contraption had been attached to the sill. If there had been it
-would scarcely have escaped my notice. And even if he had got down in
-some way how could he have got back?
-
-Yet there had been two men in the garden. I had positively seen them
-with my own eyes, and no Italian watchman could persuade me in broken
-English to the contrary. Also there had been two men downstairs and
-awake in the house--Wilkes and Pedro. Still further, Pedro was an
-Italian and had just been out of doors. Were the two whom I had seen in
-the garden these two? If so, what had been their object in meeting
-outside, when both had the run of the house and were already in it?
-
-On the other hand, Pedro had been obviously surprised at seeing us. Or
-had it been merely my presence which had occasioned the surprise?
-
-By this time my head was simply stupid from thinking, and when I at
-length composed myself to sleep I had formed but one line of action--to
-do nothing and say nothing until somebody else did. I would hold my
-tongue in the morning and see what sort of report of the night's
-activities the two men made before I said a word. And upon this resolve
-I at length fell asleep.
-
-My dear father used to say that often the best way to prove the guilt of
-a suspected party is to give him the opportunity of denying something
-of which you have not yet accused him. And with this axiom in mind next
-morning when I descended to breakfast, I held high hopes of having a
-practical demonstration of its truth. Buoyed up more by my lively
-interest in the situation than by the brief slumber in which I had
-indulged, I dressed in a printed gingham as a refreshing, light and
-springlike costume calculated to improve my appearance, which showed
-some ravages from the night before, and with mind and marcel all
-composed and in good order, I presented as calm and cheerful an
-appearance to the company which slowly gathered in the charming
-breakfast room as if nothing at all out of the usual had occurred during
-the night.
-
-Peaches was at the table, looking lovelier than ever in sports
-clothes--a form of unsexed semifemale attire most distasteful to me
-ordinarily, and as I took my seat beside her she managed a brief
-whisper.
-
-"When are you going to?" she breathed cryptically.
-
-"I already have!" I whispered back, and then could say no more because
-Mr. Pegg emerged from the produce sheet of the newspaper behind which he
-had been growling, and attacked the orange upon the plate before him.
-
-"Florida! Bah!" he commented, scattering the seeds wildly. "Mornin',
-Miss Free. Can't raise anything down there but the kind of stuff we
-refuse to market! Ugh! Surprised at Markheim's Chinaboy. Well, Miss
-Free, you look like you'd just eaten the canary. What's up?"
-
-"Why, Mr. Pegg!" I protested. "How you talk!"
-
-And then mercifully, before he had any opportunity of enlarging further
-upon the subject, Sebastian Markheim came into the room, his face red
-and moist with excitement. He seemed fairly about to burst out of his
-light gray tweed clothing, and his walk, usually a waddle, now assumed
-the proportion of a trot.
-
-"Good morning, good morning!" he said, taking his seat. "Dear me, what
-on earth do you suppose? Attempted robbery here last night, 'pon my
-word! But the beggars don't seem to have got away with anything
-except----?"
-
-Here he paused, unaccountable.
-
-"Except what?" I asked sharply.
-
-"Most curious thing!" he gasped. "Very extraordinary, very
-extraordinary! A Damascus sword!"
-
-"Holy mackerel!" said Mr. Pegg impatiently. "Damn it! Orange juice in my
-eye--stings like the devil. California orange juice never stings you
-like that! What did you say, Mark?"
-
-"I said that the only thing the burglars took was one of the swords from
-the suits of armor!" yelled the banker. "What did they want it for, what
-did they want it for, that's what I'd like to know, eh?"
-
-"Who told you such a nonsensical thing?" I asked.
-
-"My man Wilkes," replied Mr. Markheim. "It seems the watchman, Pedro,
-has disappeared as well, but it's hardly likely the robbers took him."
-
-"More likely he was one of them!" said I. "And as for the missing
-sword--it's too bad your servants don't dust more carefully. Sebastian
-Markheim, that's all I've got to say about that!"
-
-"What do you mean, Free?" Alicia put in. "Do you know anything about the
-burglars?"
-
-"Only that I heard 'em and came downstairs," I said. "What else did your
-man Wilkes tell you?"
-
-"Why, it seems he heard a noise," replied Markheim, "and came out of his
-room to listen. Then the sounds ceased, but he thought best to make the
-rounds. He had got as far as the library when he encountered you, Miss
-Talbot. Then he saw the watchman and you left him and went back
-upstairs--right, eh?"
-
-"Yes, that's right," I admitted.
-
-"The watchman denied having heard or seen anything out of the way,"
-Sebastian went on, "and they went over the whole place together, to make
-sure everything was all right. But the funny part of it is that
-Pedro--that's the watchman chap--Pedro can't be found."
-
-"Well, he's done nothing to send a posse after him for, far as I can
-see," observed Mr. Pegg. "And if you do send one he's likely to slew at
-it with that sword--better lay off him."
-
-"I took that sword myself," I announced with dignity. "It is behind the
-portière to the library, where I left it. I am sorry to have been so
-untidy, but in the excitement of the moment I confess I neglected to put
-it back in place."
-
-There was a general laugh at this, though I must say I failed to see any
-humor in a maiden lady having armed herself before facing a supposed
-burglar.
-
-"You didn't take the watchman, too, did you?" asked Mr. Pegg.
-
-"Of course not!" said I. "But I think he was a very evil,
-suspicious-looking character, with a decided accent and quite unwashed.
-I would never have engaged him as a watchman myself. He seemed to me
-obviously a bandit."
-
-"Not at all, not at all!" exclaimed Sebastian. "Came to me with the very
-highest credentials--recommended strongly by the Italian consul
-himself."
-
-"When did he come to you, Mark?" asked Peaches.
-
-"Let's see," said he. "About three weeks ago."
-
-"Then you don't know if he is a good burglar hound or not," said she.
-"But he may turn up, you know. Don't judge him too soon."
-
-"I shan't," replied Markheim. "Devil his due, innocent until guilty and
-all that. But it's odd they can't find him. Generally sleeps in the
-gardener's cottage. Room's down there."
-
-The subject being then to all appearances exhausted it was dropped, and
-in as short a time as would decently avoid suspicion Peaches finished
-her meal and strolled out of the room on to the terrace. Ostentatiously
-avoiding all appearance of haste I joined her a few minutes later and
-slipping my arm about her waist strolled out of earshot. The morning was
-exceedingly mild and fair, and choosing a secluded nook where the sun
-beat down warmly we seated ourselves upon a stone bench.
-
-"Free!" Peaches demanded. "What happened? Shoot me the whole story, and
-be quick or they'll be getting too damn sociable before you're through."
-She nodded back toward the breakfast room.
-
-Well, I told her as briefly as was consistent with accuracy. And when I
-had finished she simply sat and stared at me for a moment, quite
-wordless, though her mouth was open.
-
-"Freedom Talbot!" she gasped at length. "I am horrified. The only safe
-place for you is the ranch. The moment I take you out into the civilized
-world it becomes necessary for me to sit up nights chaperoning you."
-
-"Never mind chaperoning me!" I retorted. "My character is perfectly
-sound, no matter how my actions may at times appear. The main problem
-before us is to extricate you from the position you have got yourself
-into through making an appointment to meet this man who I am now
-absolutely convinced is simply a common servant."
-
-"Who you have got me dated up to meet," corrected Peaches. "And believe
-me, kid, I'm going to meet him. There's more to this than you think, my
-worthy nurse!"
-
-"But, Peaches!" I wailed. "When did you tell him to meet you, and where?
-Oh, why did I ever suggest such a thing?"
-
-"How did you ever do such a stunt as walk that gutter? That's what gets
-me, old thing!" she retorted. "Free, you--you little gutter snipe! And
-as for my date, it's for one o'clock at the fountain."
-
-"One o'clock!" I said. "Why, everybody will see you."
-
-"Then they'll have some eyes!" said she. "I mean one o'clock to-night.
-And you are to come along with me, dear confidential companion, and
-listen in on the whole thing."
-
-"Well, if you are determined to do it, of course, it is my duty to
-accompany you," I replied. "But I am beginning to be more and more
-convinced that you have simply let yourself in for a situation which is
-going to have dreadfully embarrassing consequences. If I had talked with
-that man before I delivered your note I would never, never have
-consented. You are merely making a fool of yourself."
-
-"Suppose I am mistaken?" said she with a sudden fierceness, the irises
-of her golden eyes contracting as if she were a female tiger cat.
-"Suppose I am? Isn't it worth risking? Heavens, how I have suffered
-these six years! You don't know! You can't know! And now perhaps--a
-miracle! I feel, I know without proof, that this man is my man. I could
-no more stay away than I could stop breathing. And if you refuse to go
-with me I swear I will go alone--yes, if I go by the same route you took
-last night!"
-
-"Alicia!" I exclaimed, shocked at this strange and unladylike upheaval.
-"Of course I will go with you and make it as little improper as the
-circumstances permit. If nothing develops--er--nothing need be said, if
-you understand what I mean."
-
-"I get you!" said Peaches with sudden weariness.
-
-And a few moments later the gentlemen joined us, preferring to take
-their after-breakfast tobacco in the open air; a habit which I trusted
-Peaches would encourage when she became mistress of the mansion, as most
-beneficial for her rugs and hangings.
-
-At any rate while they chatted and smoked, my charge maintaining a most
-casual, undisturbed exterior, I bent my energies upon the problem of
-just how Wilkes had reached the ground the night before, scanning the
-service wing of the house with critical eye, though ostensibly engaged
-upon my crochet work, for I was completing a handsome set of table mats
-which I intended as a wedding gift to Peaches. But being skilled in the
-art of crochet I could do it automatically, a gift which now served me
-well. But study the wall as I might I could not discover how he had come
-down it, much less returned by the same route. He simply must have gone
-in at another window. But why? It was a puzzle.
-
-Somehow--I scarcely know with what series of small incidents--the day
-was passed. To me, and no doubt to my charge, it was but a channel to
-the goal of our midnight tryst. As for me I kept, as it were, mentally
-upon tiptoe, hourly expecting that some word would come from Wilkes;
-that he would show some sign signifying that he knew of the impending
-meeting, or perhaps send a note, his opportunity for answering Alicia's
-missive being so infinitely greater than had been ours in conveying it
-to him. Indeed all he had to do was to choose a moment when she would be
-comparatively unobserved, and present his own note upon a silver salver.
-As a matter of fact I fully expected some such incident, but the day
-passed without any occurring.
-
-Of course there was not much time offered for such a trick, inasmuch as
-we were out in the motor all morning, lunched at a hospitable neighbor's
-who entertained in Peaches' honor, while during the afternoon Peaches
-and Sebastian played golf together, remaining on the course until almost
-dinner time.
-
-During the dressing hour that preceded that function, which was to be
-held at the house next door but was to terminate early by agreement
-because of Mr. Markheim having a most important appointment in the city
-at nine o'clock the following morning, I ran into Peaches' room to
-inquire if any developments had occurred unknown to me. She replied in
-the negative.
-
-"Haven't even seen him all day," she replied. "Have you?"
-
-"No," said I. "And I wish I never might again! I am terribly upset about
-the whole thing!"
-
-"You don't look upset!" said Peaches, unexpectedly coming over and
-kissing me through the golden cloud of her loosened hair. "You look
-sweet in that gown. I'm glad you put it on again."
-
-"Our hosts were not here last night, so I thought it would be all
-right!" I declared, smoothing it down. "And I thought it was good and
-dark to wear later," I added significantly.
-
-"I've decided we will leave not later than eleven o'clock," Peaches
-announced, choosing a black dinner gown, doubtless with the same end in
-view as that with which my own costume had been selected. "I'll have a
-headache--and that will give 'em two hours to go to bed and settle down
-to sleep before the fatal hour. Here, hook me up, will you?"
-
-"I understand that watchman has never shown up," I commented as I
-obliged her. "I hope to goodness he won't be round to-night!"
-
-"It's a merciful providence that he chose this for a night off!" was her
-reply.
-
-And then presently we descended to the world and a hollow pretense of
-careless gayety, including a game of bridge, at which I was rapidly
-becoming an adept under Mr. Pegg's kind tutelage, and must confess to a
-hearty enjoyment of. And if I did win a few dollars at it occasionally,
-I always turned the money right over to the home mission, so nobody
-could have accused me of gambling in any moral sense, the more so as Mr.
-Pegg always most gallantly insisted upon paying my losses. But I
-digress.
-
-Promptly at eleven Peaches' headache developed according to schedule,
-and presently we four of the villa found ourselves walking the short
-distance which lay between the two houses, the night being uncommonly
-fine and the moon on the river a sight to see.
-
-"Isn't it wonderful?" I breathed as I clung to Mr. Pegg's arm, the
-lovers, if so I may call them, walking ahead, much to Sebastian's
-ill-concealed disgust.
-
-"Pretty nifty," replied Mr. Pegg reluctantly. "But you ought to see the
-moon in Calif--of course, that is, you must admit it's not a patch on
-California."
-
-"Oh, I'm not so certain!" I replied. "The moon is the moon, you know,
-and I am addicted to it. It--er--renews my youth, as it were."
-
-"You said it!" replied the dear man.
-
-But unfortunately we reached our own door at this juncture, where
-Peaches and Mr. Markheim were waiting for us, and there was nothing
-left, under Peaches' firm direction of matters, but to say good night
-and separate at the foot of the stairs.
-
-For what seemed hours Peaches and I waited in my room listening to the
-low rumble of the two men as they sat upon the terrace and indulged in a
-final smoke; and then, presumably, in another final smoke and another.
-
-"Will they never go to bed?" Peaches asked more than once, keeping her
-voice down to a whisper, however, as we had extinguished the lights and
-opened the windows in both rooms in order to give the appearance of
-having retired. Across the court the servants' wing showed an occasional
-lighted window, including that of Wilkes, the valet. Of course he would
-not be free until Markheim dismissed him for the night. It seemed as if
-our vigil would never end. But at length we heard a crisp voice below
-articulate in the fact that the owner was going to bed, and
-three-quarters of an hour later the light in the valet's room snapped
-out. Our time had come.
-
-Never in all my born days had I imagined that a well-built staircase
-could make so much noise when trod upon by two of the gentler sex as
-did that stair in the Markheim mansion as Peaches and I made our
-stealthy--or at least comparatively stealthy--descent of it. Nor could I
-have believed it possible that the floor of that majestic hall was so
-ill laid as to squeak; but it did. As for the French windows of the
-library, which we selected as our means of exit, they appeared, to our
-hypersensitive consciousness, to be one chorus of rattles and groans.
-Unbarring them was simple enough even in the dark, for we did not dare
-to use any lights save that from Peaches's pocket flash, and once
-outside we took good care to close them after us, first making sure that
-the latch was open.
-
-The garden was glorious in the moonlight, even though the barrenness of
-early spring was still upon it. A wealth of hyacinths sent up a heavy
-sweetness in the still night air, and on the lawn toward the river
-crocuses were whiter than the moonlight itself. Keeping close to the
-wall Peaches led the way to the fountain--a lovely thing, brought, like
-most of Sebastian's treasures, from overseas, and nestling against the
-wall as perfectly set as in the place for which it had originally been
-intended. A group of cedars, tall and dark, stood in a martial row on
-either side of it, casting a black shadow which afforded us perfect
-shelter from any prying eyes, and the tinkle of the water from the pipes
-of the ancient little Pan against the ivy-covered wall fell into the
-basin below with a sound that was music. A perfect night, a perfect
-spot, a perfect ladylove, Alicia--her face a white blur against the
-darkness--detached, ethereal, utterly lovely. And what of the man? Was
-he going to prove the ghost of a dead romance, or common clay? I fairly
-ached to know, being for once so absorbed in her love that I forgot to
-feel old and out of place.
-
-But advancing years will manifest themselves, and often in the most
-annoying manner and at times least convenient. And as time went by and
-no lover appeared upon the scene I grew very, very tired.
-
-"What do you suppose is the matter?" I asked at length.
-
-"Something has detained him," Peaches replied. "Have patience. He can't
-be long now!"
-
-Another period of silence went by, punctuated only by the hoot of a
-night boat going up the river like some great golden water beetle, and
-the occasional rustle of the budding branches overhead as a cool breeze
-sprang up and sent little clouds flecking across the wide face of the
-moon. Then came the sound of a step upon the gravel.
-
-"There he is!" whispered Alicia, seizing me by the arm. Her hand was hot
-and trembling.
-
-But the sound was not repeated, and no one approached, though we waited
-with straining ears.
-
-"It's past the time now," said Peaches at length.
-
-"Oh, Peaches--let us return!" I besought her. "I don't believe he's
-coming. Besides, I'm getting so tired!"
-
-"Nonsense! Of course he'll come!" she said. But now there was a note of
-defiant doubt in her voice. "Wait--you must wait. There's a bench
-somewhere."
-
-Fumbling about presently she found it, and together we sat down and
-again waited in a silence that seemed as if it would never end. The wind
-was growing more brisk and the clouds were thickening, hurrying across
-the irregular roof of the house like frightened sheep over a wigwag
-fence, and herding together in a rapidly growing mass beyond. There was
-a storm brewing; I could feel it in my bones. At length, when more than
-an hour had passed I could bear it no longer.
-
-"Do you intend to wait all night for that--that servant?" I at length
-demanded in a fierce undertone.
-
-"I'm going to wait a hundred years!" replied she. "If he got that letter
-he will come, servant or no servant."
-
-"Peaches, you're a silly goose, and you have no consideration for me," I
-said. "My feelings are deeply wounded, and I'm quite worn out, what with
-two such nights in succession!" And with that I felt in my pocket for my
-handkerchief preparatory to beginning to cry. As I did so my fingers
-seized upon quite another object, which I drew forth with a sickening
-sense of what I had done--or rather of what I had most miserably failed
-to do, for the object which I drew forth was nothing less than the
-letter which Peaches had intrusted to me the evening before!
-
-"Peaches!" I gasped painfully, confession coming hard. "Peaches, I
-climbed out of my window and risked my neck last night----"
-
-"Yes, yes, I know," she said soothingly. "I appreciate it."
-
-"But you don't!" I said. "I crossed those terrible ledges and endangered
-my reputation, to leave a set of directions for making a slip-on sweater
-in his room!"
-
-"You what?" said Peaches, now thoroughly alive.
-
-"Galadia sent them!" I endeavored to explain. "And it was my mistake.
-Here was your letter all the time!"
-
-For a long period of silence I awaited the storm of her wrath. But it
-didn't come. Instead she drew a long sobbing breath of relief.
-
-"Thank heaven he didn't turn me down!" was all she said.
-
-And then slowly we made our way back to the house, our footless errand
-ended. Peaches stepped inside and feeling for the electric button
-flooded the room with light.
-
-"No need for secrecy now," she remarked, "so we don't have to break our
-necks over the furniture as we----"
-
-Her voice broke off into a shrill little scream, and raising her hand
-she pointed to the mantelpiece. The frame was there, but the Madonna of
-the Lamp was gone!
-
-
-
-
-XIII
-
-
-At first I could scarcely believe my eyes--but there was the space where
-once the beautiful picture had hung, the gape showing the paneling
-behind all too plainly. Aghast I turned to Peaches, who continued to
-stare.
-
-"What has happened to it?" I asked in an awed tone. "Has it been
-stolen?"
-
-"You bet your life it has!" she replied, recovering herself. "People
-don't lock oil paintings up for the night with the silver spoons, you
-know. Gosh! What a shame! Such a pretty picture, too, and worth a young
-fortune. Won't Mark be wild though! Do you suppose it was gone when we
-came through in the dark?"
-
-"Dear me, how should I know?" I demanded. "Though, of course, they will
-ask us that."
-
-"Yes--sort of awkward, our not having made any light on the way out,"
-she replied. "I suppose we ought to wake Sebastian up right away though,
-don't you?"
-
-"Certainly!" I responded. "Those men I saw last night the missing
-watchman--it's all too suspicious to be allowed to wait another moment."
-
-"I'll say it is!" replied Peaches vigorously. "You wait here while I run
-up and pound on the door!"
-
-"Oh, Peaches! Send a servant!" I implored. "The burglars might be out
-there in the hall!"
-
-But before the words were fairly out of my mouth she was gone, lighting
-the house as she went, and in an incredibly short time I could hear her
-pounding and shouting in the upper hall with a noise that was fit to
-wake the dead. Shivering with fatigue, but enlivened by the amazing turn
-which events had taken I occupied myself with switching on all the
-lights and making sure that the picture had not simply been lifted down
-for some reason and left in the room. But this was not the case--indeed
-I acted merely automatically and not because I really expected to find
-it. In a very few moments Peaches was back, a trifle flushed and
-breathless.
-
-"They will be right down!" she announced. "I stirred up pa as well. Now,
-Free, old thing, what's our story when they do appear? We've got to
-stick to the same lie, you know, and we've got to say something
-plausible, because here it is two-thirty in the morning and it's quite
-obvious that we haven't been to bed, though we went up long before they
-did."
-
-"Well," I responded hurriedly, for already the two men could be heard on
-the stairway, "though I deplore the use of untruth I fear we shall have
-to resort to it in this case. We will say--what on earth shall we say?"
-
-"I had a headache and couldn't sleep," suggested Peaches. "So we came
-down!"
-
-"Rotten!" I whispered fiercely. "In these clothes? Bah! We sat up late
-talking and came down intending to get something to eat, and you
-remembered a book you wanted. Here it is! Sh! They are here!"
-
-Hastily I seized at random a volume from one of the shelves and laid it
-beside her on the sofa, and an instant later Markheim came bouncing into
-the room, a purple satin dressing gown flapping about his heels, his
-scant hair disordered. Closely following was Mr. Pegg, a lean but
-majestic figure with nightshirt tucked into his dress trousers and a
-raincoat thrown jauntily over one shoulder--presumably the first
-garments at hand--his magnificent shock of gray curls giving him
-somewhat the appearance of a lion roused from slumber.
-
-"What's all this, what's all this?" cried Sebastian, running up to the
-mantelpiece. Then he clasped his hands over his bald spot in a gesture
-of despair. "Oh!" he moaned. "How perfectly terrible! How perfectly
-terrible!"
-
-"Great Snakes, ain't that too bad!" observed Mr. Pegg. "Lucky thing you
-got them picture post cards of it, Mark! Where d'you s'pose the sons of
-guns got in anyways? And how comes it that you girls are burglar-hunting
-in your party clothes when you ought to be tearing off a little beauty
-sleep?"
-
-"We talked so late!" explained Peaches, gazing into her father's eyes
-with a wonderful, direct, innocent look. "And we got so hungry that we
-came down to forage--and on the way I dropped in for this book"--she
-held it up toward him--"and, of course, we noticed right off the bat
-that the Madonna was gone."
-
-"She ran right up and got you," I added. "And now you know as much as we
-do."
-
-"Humph!" said Mr. Pegg, still looking at the book his daughter had
-offered him. "Couldn't sleep without it, eh?"
-
-"This is terrible, this is terrible!" exclaimed our host, paying no
-attention to anything except his loss. "Ring the bell! Summon everybody!
-Where is Wilkes? I told him to come down at once."
-
-"You told him?" asked Peaches swiftly. "Where was he?"
-
-"In his room, of course!" snapped Markheim. "Spoke to him on the house
-telephone! What did you suppose? Oh, my precious painting! This is
-outrageous--outrageous! Did they take anything else?"
-
-Peaches and I exchanged a glance of relief. Wilkes had been in the
-house. Whatever his mysterious mode of egress, the step we had heard in
-the garden was no evidence that he had used it to-night.
-
-This thought passed between us in a flash as she replied: "Haven't the
-faintest idea, old boy. Let's have a look!"
-
-"I want to make sure!" he said. "But first let's see how they did it."
-
-Climbing upon a footstool which he dragged forward for the purpose,
-Markheim then proceeded to an examination of the picture frame, while we
-gathered about curiously.
-
-"Can't understand it!" he puffed after a moment of silence. He shook his
-head like a Japanese doll.
-
-"Can't understand what?" I asked.
-
-"Why, the whole canvas has been removed--stretcher and all!" he cried.
-"Extraordinary! Extraordinary!"
-
-"Why?" Peaches wanted to know.
-
-"Shows they took their time!" Markheim explained. "Able to unmount the
-canvas--and it takes skill to roll an old painting! By jove, yes!
-Usually simply cut it out of the frame, like the Mona Lisa, you know.
-Only way, really, if you are in a hurry. Yes, they took their time!"
-
-"Then the frame--I mean the stretcher--ought to be somewhere!" suggested
-Mr. Pegg brightly.
-
-"Nonsense--utter nonsense!" exclaimed Markheim, climbing down. "And now
-let's give a look round. Heaven only knows what else may be gone!"
-
-He preceded us into the corridor, an absurd figure in his gorgeous
-negligee, and I could not help but note how much better Mr. Pegg
-appeared by comparison. It is not only women whose appearance is
-governed by clothes, and, as my dear father used to say, clothes may not
-make the man but, thank the Lord, they hide him.
-
-Well, at any rate we two timid females followed the stronger members of
-the exploring party out into the main hall, where we encountered Wilkes.
-He was fully dressed, perfectly composed, and the very picture of quiet
-correctness.
-
-"You wished me, sir?" he said.
-
-"Yes. Why the devil were you so long?" snapped Markheim, wishing to vent
-his annoyance on someone.
-
-"Sorry, sir, I was dressing!" replied the man.
-
-"Well," snarled the master, "there's been a burglary. Most valuable
-picture in the house's been taken. Call police headquarters at Tarrytown
-and tell them to send someone out at once. Then get every servant in the
-house down into the front hall and see that no one leaves the premises!
-Meanwhile, we'll take a look about."
-
-"Yes, sir," replied the man, after a little gasp of surprise. "Nobody
-hurt, I trust, sir?"
-
-"No," said Markheim briefly. "I expect it's the same gang you thought
-you heard last night. Anything heard from Pedro?"
-
-"Nothing, sir," said Wilkes. "I'll telephone at once."
-
-He retreated through the servants' hall entrance, where I assume a
-telephone was placed, and the door swung silently to behind him. I
-stared after him hard, feeling that I would like to watch him through
-the thick oaken paneling if only I might. To be sure, the man's demeanor
-had been perfect; and yet somehow I was not satisfied. My mind kept
-straining at something half forgotten, as if I were subconsciously
-endeavoring to hitch him up in my memory. To all appearances this was no
-concern of his. He had been in his room when Markheim called him on the
-service phone. He had been just about long enough in making his
-appearance to tab up with the completeness of his toilet. To have at
-once answered the ringing of his bell he must have been in his room
-before Peaches and I returned to the house, and our position in the
-garden, coupled with our alertness while there, seemed to warrant the
-supposition that we must have observed any unusual activity either in
-the service wing or in the library, through which we had passed an hour
-and a half earlier.
-
-It was plain that sooner or later questions would be put to us, and to
-others, which would give rise to the problem of confession or of
-withholding of the facts concerning our exact movements between the time
-of our returning and of the announcement of our discovery.
-
-For example, if the police were allowed to work on the supposition that
-the theft had been committed between twelve and two-fifteen, some clew
-of inestimable value might easily be discounted by them, for it seemed
-more than likely that the time was really that between our entrance
-into the garden and our return to the house. Moreover, there was
-certainly someone moving about on the garden path while we were
-concealed by the fountain. Of that there was now no reasonable doubt.
-Both Peaches and I had distinctly heard a footstep which we thought to
-be that of Wilkes, while we still expected him to join us; we had even
-commented on it. And now it was going to be extremely difficult to
-convey this information without involving ourselves in a very delicate
-but entangling mesh of complications. As I was turning these facts over
-in my mind and wondering what course a Talbot ought to pursue under the
-circumstances Mr. Markheim was taking charge of affairs in a masterly
-manner, and giving orders with the assurance of a Napoleon in negligee.
-
-"You stay here with Miss Freedom, Peaches," he commanded, "while your
-father and I make the rounds of the place. Sit right there on the big
-sofa and tell the servants to wait, as they come down. Don't let any of
-them go out of the hall."
-
-"We better take a couple of shooting irons along," remarked Mr. Pegg,
-producing a revolver from each pocket of his raincoat in a nonchalant
-manner. "Never can tell but what there may be an ambush some place."
-
-"All right!" agreed Sebastian, accepting one. "No harm, no harm to have
-it. Where's that man Wilkes?"
-
-Again as though in answer, Wilkes appeared from under the stairs.
-
-"The police will come at once, sir," he reported. Then, seeing the
-revolvers: "Shall I go along with you?"
-
-"No," said Markheim. "Get the other servants down, and count noses, damn
-quick. Then tell Jorkins to make a double shaker of cocktails and some
-sandwiches and bring them here. We will be back as soon as we can."
-
-The three men then departed upon their several errands, leaving us alone
-for the moment.
-
-"What'll we do--'fess up?" asked Peaches. "I have a feeling that there's
-going to be hell to pay."
-
-"Alicia!" I remarked. "No lady uses such language, as I have reminded
-you at least a hundred thousand times! No, I don't think we will say a
-word about our futile adventure--or, to be accurate, our attempted
-adventure. At least not unless something brought out by the police seems
-to demand that we do."
-
-"Have you been taking a good look at him?" she then wanted to know.
-
-"Who? That man Wilkes?" I said.
-
-"No--my ex-fiancé," responded Peaches calmly.
-
-"Which one do you mean?" I demanded.
-
-"Mark," said she.
-
-"Alicia Pegg, what did you say?" I asked severely.
-
-"I said did you take a good look at Sebastian in that purple dressing
-gown?" she repeated patiently.
-
-"How could I help doing so?" said I with indignation.
-
-"That's just it," she remarked in a tone of finality. "That finishes
-it!"
-
-"Finishes what?"
-
-"Our engagement," she said firmly. "The combination of temper and
-dressing gown."
-
-"But with all due modesty you must have expected to see him in a
-dressing gown after you were married," I protested as delicately as I
-could.
-
-"And he not only looks like the devil in it but stands there and tells
-me to sit quiet until he comes back, just as though I wasn't a better
-shot than he is! Ugh--that dressing gown!"
-
-"Well, what did you expect?" I asked helplessly.
-
-"Sandro is dressed," she retorted with apparent irrelevance.
-
-"Don't call him that!" I exclaimed, fairly exasperated with the girl.
-"You have absolutely no proof that it's Sandro."
-
-"I'll get proof," she said. "You wait--I'll get proof."
-
-"Nonsense!" I said. "Hush up! Here he comes."
-
-But it wasn't the creature after all, but the cook--a distressed and
-excitable Frenchman in a pointed nightcap and an unconquerable belief
-that the house was on fire; and for several minutes we were fully
-occupied with dissuading him of the idea. And after him came the rest of
-the crew--a straggling, shivering, sleepy, indignant lot, in varying
-degrees of dishevelment, appearing in twos and threes and huddling in a
-little group at the foot of the stairway, ready to dart back through the
-swinging door to their own quarters at an instant's notice, and no doubt
-planning to give notice as soon as anybody appeared to whom it could be
-given.
-
-One Irish girl, a kitchen maid, I think she was, had somehow got the
-idea that a murder had been committed, and called upon her patron saint,
-whose name seemed to be Ochsaveus, at irregular but emphatic intervals.
-I think I cannot convey a sense of the complete demoralization of these
-underlings more dearly than by stating that the chambermaid whose duty
-it was to take care of my room was wearing one of my own boudoir caps
-without the least particle of self-consciousness. The only one who had
-shown any poise at all was Wilkes, who had not reappeared. I was
-beginning to wish he would come back and set a good example, when at
-length Sebastian Markheim and dear Mr. Pegg returned unharmed, and
-announced that they had discovered nothing out of the way.
-
-"And not a trace of the horse thieves, either!" said Mr. Pegg. "It's
-clouded over outside--rain before long, and no use going off without a
-trail of any kind before morning. Better wait for the sheriff."
-
-"I'd say so, pa," said Peaches. "I wish you'd speak to the help, Mark!
-They act like a bunch of scared steers."
-
-"Sit down!" commanded Mr. Markheim to his household generally, his hair
-wilder than ever, his eyes fairly popping out of his head with anger.
-"Nobody is to leave the hall until I give permission. Where the hell is
-that food I ordered?"
-
-Somebody rang a bell for him, and after a very short wait Wilkes
-entered, accompanied by one of the footmen, who bore a tray containing
-some most welcome refreshment. Peaches and I declined the drink, but
-Sebastian took three in quick succession.
-
-"Terribly upset, terribly upset!" he remarked as he set down his glass
-and refilled it. "Somebody is going to pay for this! Where the devil are
-the police?"
-
-"They are coming a long way pretty late at night," remarked Peaches. "I
-don't know that I'd come at all in their place, Mark."
-
-He simply glared at her and bit into a cheese sandwich. And then we
-settled down more or less restlessly to a quarter of an hour of waiting,
-dividing our attention between the sandwiches, repetition of the obvious
-facts of the situation, and glances at Markheim's wrist watch.
-
-At length we heard the siren of an automobile at the gates below the
-hill, and in a few moments more, Wilkes, still the most self-possessed
-servant present, opened the door to admit the inspector from Tarrytown,
-who came accompanied by an officer and a third man in plain
-clothes--presumably a detective.
-
-"Good evening--or rather good morning, inspector!" said Mr. Markheim,
-rising to greet him. "Sorry to have brought you out, but it's not a
-common burglary at all."
-
-"It's usual to report such things," replied the inspector. "We came as
-quickly as possible. Nobody hurt, was there?"
-
-"No," said Markheim. "But a picture has been stolen."
-
-The faces of all three newcomers expressed a disgust that was so
-apparent as to bring a smile even to the face of our profoundly troubled
-host.
-
-"Wait!" he said. "Did you ever hear of the Madonna of the Lamp,
-inspector?"
-
-"Can't say that I did," the police official admitted. "And I'm a pretty
-good Catholic myself."
-
-"Well--it's a painting," Markheim explained, concealing his impatience
-as best he could, which in point of fact is not saying a great deal for
-his power of self-control. "It is not only a painting but a very famous
-one."
-
-"Kind of an antique, eh?" suggested the officer.
-
-"Not only an antique but one of the most famous and valuable paintings
-in the world. I paid five hundred thousand dollars for it."
-
-At length officialdom seemed impressed.
-
-"And it's been stolen?" said the spokesman of the law.
-
-"What else under God's heaven did you think I sent for you about?"
-Markheim exploded. "You don't seem to understand this at all!"
-
-"Italian, eh?" said the man in plain clothing. "International
-complications are very possible if the thing gets too much publicity.
-That's about the idea, isn't it?"
-
-Markheim turned on him in some surprise.
-
-"You seem to know a lot about the Italian Government's theories of
-ownership!" he snarled.
-
-"So it was brought into the country illegally!" commented the detective.
-"Captain," he went on, addressing the now frankly bewildered officer,
-"you see this picture is not only far more valuable than most great
-jewels but it has a past almost as complicated as the Hope diamond. It's
-not unusual that a world-famous work of art should find its way out of
-Italy in spite of the Italian law, which forbids the export of such
-things, but the theft is far more remarkable than that of any jewel
-could possibly be, inasmuch as the supreme difficulty of disposing of
-the painting once it was stolen is obvious--that's right, isn't it, Mr.
-Markheim?"
-
-"You explain it very well, very well," replied Markheim, nervous and
-excited--and truth to tell not a little affected by the cocktails he had
-imbibed. It was most precarious, taking so many upon an empty stomach,
-as he should have known. "You have a very clear idea, young man--though
-allow me to make it plain that I was in no way involved in the original
-affair of bringing this canvas into the United States. I had nothing
-whatsoever to do with it--nothing."
-
-"You merely paid five hundred thousand for it after it got here,"
-remarked Peaches. "I see."
-
-The remark, however, seemed to pass unnoticed by anyone save myself.
-
-"Have you any suspicion as to who the thief might have been, Mr.
-Markheim?" asked the inspector, visibly impressed by the huge sum at
-which the picture was valued.
-
-"Not a very clear suspicion," replied Sebastian.
-
-"Then there is some one?" queried the officer, taking out his notebook
-and pencil in an important manner.
-
-"We had some trouble last night," replied Mr. Markheim. "Miss Talbot
-here thought she saw two men in the garden, and came downstairs."
-
-"Ah!" remarked the inspector, scribbling. "Did you get a good look at
-them, Miss Talbot?"
-
-"Just a glimpse," I replied.
-
-"And where were you when you saw them?" he went on.
-
-For a moment I was nonplussed. Then I recollected that I was not under
-oath, and told as much of the truth as I deemed warrantable or indeed
-necessary.
-
-"I was at an upper window," I returned with dignity. "I had gone
-upstairs for the night."
-
-"Ah!" said the inspector, writing it down. "Could you identify them?"
-
-"Well, one had a funny hat," I said. "I think I would know it again. It
-was straw--like this young man's." I pointed at the detective, to whom I
-had taken a dislike--he was altogether too clever to be satisfactory. At
-once everybody stared at him with suspicion, and the fact gave me
-considerable comfort. Even the inspector glanced at the young man
-unpleasantly as he wrote down "straw-hat."
-
-"Did you see anything else?" the inspector went on.
-
-Again I hesitated, for Peaches' eyes were upon me, forbidding me to
-speak. I could plainly discern that if I told of the circumstances under
-which I had come upon Wilkes in the library she intended to have what
-she would have called "an all-round showdown"--a card term, I believe.
-And so on second consideration I decided to hold my tongue. After all I
-was not a professional detective; let those who were go ahead and
-detect.
-
-"I merely met one of the menservants who had also seen the intruders," I
-replied. "And together we roused, or rather found the watchman, and
-informed him of what we had seen."
-
-"Where is this manservant?" asked the officer. And Wilkes stepped
-forward.
-
-"Now what did you see?" asked the inquisitor.
-
-"I was awake late, sir," replied Wilkes, "and fancied I heard an unusual
-noise. It might have been Miss Talbot, sir, but I rather think it was
-the men she speaks of, sir. The watchman, Pedro, and I went the rounds
-together but found nothing. He hadn't heard anything, it seems."
-
-"That will do for now," said the officer. "Now, for Pedro--is he
-present?"
-
-"He has been missing since this--I mean since early yesterday morning,"
-put in Markheim. "Very good man, very good man--I can't understand it,
-really!"
-
-"Well, perhaps you will understand when we locate him!" replied the law
-grimly. "And now, if you please, is there any other member of the
-household missing?"
-
-"No--all here," replied Markheim. "Would you care to take a look now at
-the room from which the picture was stolen, Mister Inspector?"
-
-"If you please," said that official. "If you will just show me."
-
-Without more ado Sebastian Markheim led the way down the corridor to the
-library, followed closely by the police and that nasty smart little
-detective, while Mr. Pegg, Alicia and myself brought up the rear. I
-noticed that Peaches scrutinized Wilkes' face with a long, searching
-glance as she passed him, but the man remained motionless and
-expressionless as a wooden image. I could have slapped her for her
-behavior! But I was not fated to have the opportunity for any such
-chastisement, or even to think to rebuke her properly, for a cry from
-Sebastian Markheim's lips as he entered the library door sent us all
-hurrying after him pell-mell.
-
-And no wonder he had called out in his amazement, for upon entering, lo,
-there was the Madonna of the Lamp smiling down from her frame as
-serenely as if she had never been disturbed from it at all!
-
-
-
-
-XIV
-
-
-In one of his discourses upon the art of narrative, whether of fiction
-or fact, my dear father remarks on the difficulties pertaining to
-narration in the first person. "For it invariably happens," he says,
-"that some portion of those events to which the narrator is party, or
-which directly affects his subsequent actions, will be enacted while he
-is absent, but which must nevertheless be described by him in order that
-the sequence of the tale be fully comprehended by the reader.
-Nevertheless the events so recorded must perforce be obtained at
-secondhand, and suffer to a certain degree in their quality of
-convincingness by reason of their losing direct contact with the author;
-and however credible the witness from whom the facts are obtained, they
-must naturally take a certain color from his own personality, and hence
-a deplorable lack of continuity occurs, which greatly weakens the
-credibility of the tale."
-
-Very interesting, too, and eminently correct, though I confess that the
-paragraph, while perfectly familiar to me because of my diligent study
-of my dear father's writings, was never so clear to me as when I came
-upon a practical application of it in my own experience; a thought which
-has very likely occurred to more than one person who has had some sudden
-occasion to perceive the fundamental truth of a familiar copy-book
-axiom, such as "Honesty is the best policy," if you understand me. But I
-digress--or rather, what I mean is this: That while I undertook the
-writing of this chronicle in order to refute a false impression which
-the newspapers had created regarding the name of Talbot, and also to
-retrieve the fair and unsullied name of the Peggs, I find to my dismay
-that as I reach the crux of the whole matter, I was not actually present
-at some of the most important events with which my narrative has to
-deal, and that I must therefore rely on Peaches' account of it. That she
-was fairly accurate in her statement I feel reasonably certain; but I
-must confess to some chagrin at missing the best part of the story. It
-seems to have been my fortune through life to take an active part merely
-through inadvertence.
-
-And yet I scarcely perceive how I could very well have been there when
-it happened. Two elements intervened to prevent it--an overwhelming
-desire for the sleep of which I had been deprived for the best part of
-two nights, and the natural desire on Peaches' part that she have
-privacy for what she was about to do. Which, of course, did not develop
-until after the departure of the police inspector and his henchmen.
-
-In the first place, of course, we were simply dumfounded at finding the
-Madonna of the Lamp in her proper place. How it had got there and by
-whom it was returned was an overwhelming mystery. No less astonishing
-was the question as to where it had been during its absence. I am quite
-sure that the policemen felt that a hoax of some kind had been
-perpetrated and they were not to blame for experiencing a very
-considerable annoyance at being pulled out of bed or out of office or
-some such thing and motoring all that long way for nothing. They were
-distinctly annoyed. That is, all except the little one without a
-uniform, who it later developed was not a detective at all. Indeed at
-the time we should have realized that he was altogether too clever for a
-detective. He was, in point of fact, a newspaper reporter. And it was
-through his efforts that we were subjected to all the mortification of
-so much publicity.
-
-Well, at any rate, he was the only person who did not seem to think he
-had been disturbed for nothing. On the contrary, he made a number of
-notes about the picture, the painter of it, the name and status of every
-person present, with a fiendish correctness; no detail of possible
-interest to the public eluded him. And no wonder his printed version was
-so completely correct, as, under the impression that he was an officer
-of the law, I myself supplied the information.
-
-It was almost another hour before the excitement died down, the three
-men took their departure, and the servants were packed off to bed.
-
-I regret that it is here necessary to chronicle the fact that Mr.
-Markheim had taken rather too many cocktails; but such is the painful
-truth. His wealth having made a large cellar possible, he was inclined
-to prodigality in this direction, and each of the series of nervous
-shocks which he experienced served as an excuse for another drink. And
-when the last servant, including Wilkes, had gone upstairs, he was, I
-must admit it, quite elevated by the alcoholic stimulants in which he
-had indulged upon his own prescription. In rather simpler language, Mr.
-Pegg crudely referred to his prospective son-in-law as having "a
-considerable snoot full." An unscientific but descriptive statement.
-
-"Well--I am going to hit the old alfalfa!" Pinto announced. "Time for
-everybody to turn in!"
-
-"I'm going to sit on this sofa all night!" announced Sebastian with
-alcoholic determination. "Can't tell, can't tell, they might come back!"
-
-"Oh, might they!" said Mr. Pegg. "Well, I don't care to see the
-beauties. I have an idea that they will let that oil painting alone for
-quite a season now. Good night."
-
-"Come, Peaches," I said stiffly, for Sebastian was not a sight to
-inspire much liking or approval. "Come on to bed, that's a good girl."
-
-There was a curious gleam in that young woman's golden eyes, however,
-and her mouth had a set look about it which I had never seen there
-before except upon one occasion; and that was on the ranch when one of
-the Japanese foremen was insolent to her. He went away like a whipped
-dog, I recall, and afterward proved himself the best man we had. And to
-do this with a Jap is an achievement, I assure you. And all she had done
-was to speak to him. She was no shrew, but she had a sharp way of
-presenting an unpleasant truth. I glanced at the recumbent Markheim in
-pity, even before she answered me.
-
-"I have something to say to Mark," she replied quietly. "I will come up
-later. Don't wait for me."
-
-Well, what could a chaperon do under these conditions except comply?
-Besides, I have not the vitality of extreme youth, and sleep was on the
-very verge of overwhelming me. Besides, which, Mr. Pegg exchanged a
-glance with me, which reënforced his daughter's request; and so saying
-good night to the engaged pair we left them and climbed the stairs in
-company. In another hour it would be dawn and the house was very
-ghostly. It was immensely comforting to have dear Mr. Pegg accompany me
-to my door, though once there he sprang a rather disconcerting
-surprise.
-
-"Say--do you know what book that was Peaches came down to get?" he asked
-with twinkling eyes as he opened my door for me. "Rather curious reading
-for a young girl. I don't want her tastes to get perverted."
-
-"What--what book was it?" I inquired, disturbed.
-
-"You ought to look after what she reads more carefully," said her father
-with some severity. "It was Kimball's Commercial Arithmetic. Good-night,
-Miss Free!"
-
-And with that he was gone, leaving me to digest his statement as best I
-could. However, the significance of the remark was soon obliterated by a
-heavy slumber which lasted until I was roused by Peaches, who brought me
-an eleven-o'clock breakfast and the astonishing story of what occurred
-after I had retired. I will not attempt to tell it in her own language,
-for she was incurably given to the use of slang, but will endeavor to
-present in their proper sequence the events as they occurred.
-
-As soon as Peaches was left alone with her fiancé the disgust and
-repulsion which had been rapidly mounting in her breast all evening
-reached its apex in expression. True, Sebastian Markheim was no
-different from what he had been right along--a little less attractive,
-rather more grotesquely disordered and a little more drunken, perhaps,
-but Markheim just the same--slightly accented, that was all. But the
-small exaggerations were enough to drive her wild. Coming to light as
-they did at a moment when she was at the highest possible tension, when
-for forty-eight hours she had been living with the animate ghost of her
-old and far deeper love, the spectacle of this disorganized little
-millionaire with his ungroomed head, his preposterous purple satin
-wrapper, his stupid drunkenness and his ineffective querulousness about
-his picture was too much for her. The very thought of marrying him
-became more than the mere impossibility which it had been from the
-moment when her memories of Sandro had been quickened into new life.
-This marriage, now only a few weeks distant, became an actual horror.
-She felt unable to face the thought of it another hour. And so, despite
-his condition, she set about making a clean break.
-
-"Mark," said she in a low strained voice, towering over him as he sat in
-a crumpled heap upon the big sofa before the fire place, "Mark--I am not
-going to marry you."
-
-"Eh? What's that, what's that?" said he.
-
-"I said that it's all off!" Peaches affirmed. "I couldn't marry you--not
-on a bet. I'm awfully sorry of course. Will you forgive me?"
-
-"Forgive you!" he said, getting to his feet and seizing her by the hand.
-"Here--sit down a minute--you can't do that, you know--sit down and
-let's talk this over!"
-
-She did not want to do so, but his grip upon her arm was strong, and
-rather than cross him she complied.
-
-"You don't understand--I'm breaking it off," she said firmly.
-
-"But what have I done?" Sebastian asked. "Come on now--don't be mad at
-me! Didn't I pet you enough to-night? Come--give us a kiss and forget
-it!"
-
-"I don't want to kiss you!" said Peaches, drawing away from his advance.
-"Please, Mark! I'm trying to tell you that I had the wrong dope--I never
-loved you enough to marry you, and to-night I got a gleam of light I
-can't go through with it."
-
-"Not go through with it!" he replied sullenly. As the fact that she
-really meant what she said slowly penetrated to his befuddled brain a
-look of anger took the place of the maudlin affection which had been in
-his face a moment before. "Not go through with it--but you--you
-promised. Why, the wedding invitations go out to-morrow--impossible not
-to go through with it!"
-
-"I'm sorry--but you heard me," said she. "I don't love you."
-
-"But I love you!" he burst out. "And as for love--you don't know
-anything about it. What can a great big kid like you know about love?
-You'll love me when we are married! Stop your nonsense and give us a
-kiss!"
-
-He made a lunge at her, which she managed to evade, moving over to the
-opposite end of the sofa. But quick as a cat Markheim was after her. He
-was just drunk enough to have lost his head, but not drunk enough to be
-clumsy. It was at this moment that Peaches began to be afraid of him.
-
-"No, no!" she cried, trying to get away from his pudgy hands. "I tell
-you I don't love you--please! Let me alone. Mark, don't make me afraid!"
-
-"Why should you be afraid?" he asked thickly. "You are going to marry
-me--do you hear? I've stood your offishness long enough. I've kept away
-from you whenever you said. I've been a fool! But you are mine,
-understand? Mine! You've promised. Everyone knows it, and by heaven I'll
-take you when I see fit. Come here!"
-
-Peaches felt as if she were caught in the meshes of some horrid dream.
-With a sudden wrench she broke loose from him, darting round the end of
-the sofa. But with an amazing agility Markheim vaulted the back and was
-after her, hot in a pursuit made silent by the thickness of the heavy
-carpet, their panting breath the only noise in the big room. A single
-lamp was the only light, but it was enough to show her his face, purple,
-bestial--suggesting a chasm of horror.
-
-Swift as she was she could not escape him. He was at the door behind
-her, barring her way, smiling terribly. Then at the French windows as
-quickly as she reached them, his hot moist hands upon hers, even as she
-seized the knob. Then back across the room again in fierce pursuit. He
-seemed to have gone quite mad and become possessed with an uncanny
-swiftness and strength. Then Peaches stumbled across a great chair, and
-in another instant his arms were about her, his hot breath upon her
-face.
-
-"Help!" she cried, struggling to release her hands, which he held behind
-her back. "Help! Sebastian--you beast--let me go, let me go!"
-
-And then the whirlwind happened. Some terrific force like a giant cloud
-of vengeance tore the satyr from her; and there was Sandro, his face
-white and fierce. With a single gesture he had thrown Markheim half
-across the room, and stood with squared fists waiting for the assault
-which came almost at once.
-
-"You rotter!" sang out the newcomer. "Take your dirty hide out of here!"
-
-With a howl of rage and surprise Markheim picked himself up and came at
-his manservant with purple face and popping eyes.
-
-"What the hell are you doing here?" he shouted. "Leave the room!"
-
-"Not until I've given you the thrashing of your life!" replied the
-valet. "Come and get your punishment if you won't clear out!"
-
-And Markheim came. With a roar he flew at the man, striking blindly,
-wildly, and uttering a volley of language which was in itself a shower
-of blows. How long they fought Peaches hardly knows. Crouched against
-the mantelshelf as if seeking the protection of the calmly smiling
-Virgin above, she watched the two men struggle to a finish. She was
-fascinated, terrified, and at the same time fiercely exalted. The end
-came abruptly, with Markheim sprawling on the floor, and Sandro slowly
-raising himself to a towering figure of contemptuous victory above his
-employer.
-
-"Get up!" he said, panting, as he administered a kick to the prostrate
-body of the other man. "That will do, I expect. Get up!"
-
-Moaning, Sebastian obeyed, his face streaked with blood from a cut upon
-his forehead, his left eye swollen and rapidly turning as purple as the
-tattered remains of his dressing gown.
-
-"I'll have the law on you for this!" he warned, fumbling for his
-handkerchief.
-
-"Come here!" commanded the servant in a voice of authority.
-
-"Help!" squeaked Markheim. But before he could utter another sound
-Wilkes had him by the collar, and was dragging him to where Peaches
-still cowered against the wall.
-
-"None of that nonsense!" commanded Sandro. "If you yell I'll have to
-give you another drubbing. Now get down on your knees and ask her
-pardon!"
-
-For an instant Markheim attempted to disobey. But his captor raised his
-hand and as though at a signal Sebastian fell groveling on the floor
-before Peaches, bubbling repentance--a loathsomely servile thing from
-which she shrank.
-
-"Oh, take him away!" she begged. "I hate him so! Take him away!"
-
-"You hear what she says!" said her rescuer grimly. "Go now! Make haste
-or I will throw you out!"
-
-With some difficulty Markheim got upon his feet and made for the door.
-
-"The police!" he said. "I will have the police! Oh, my face--my face!"
-
-He had found his handkerchief now, and staggered out of the room,
-holding it to his wound and mumbling imprecations.
-
-Slowly Peaches emerged from her torpor of fright and looked at the man
-who an hour earlier had been a servant. He was transformed. His
-shoulders were squared, his eyes alive, his face flushed--he was her
-boy-lover again. There was no mistake. Now she knew him beyond the
-shadow of a doubt. If she had ever really questioned his identity, from
-this moment there was no room for questioning left. All the tightening
-of her heartstrings, long drawn taut by repression, relaxed. It was as
-if her whole being had suddenly been flooded with warm sunlight.
-
-"Sandro!" she said, going toward him with outstretched arms. "Sandro, my
-love, my love!"
-
-For one second she saw the unwitting, involuntary response in his eyes.
-Then he looked down, that she might not behold it, and drawing himself
-up he clicked his heels together and bowed. Though he trembled as he did
-so, his voice was controlled.
-
-"Miss Pegg," he said, "I--I am happy to have served you! Good night."
-
-"Sandro!" cried Peaches. "Why do you pretend? I know you--I know. You
-couldn't fool me now! My dear, I thought that you were dead. But even on
-the day we got here I knew you--I knew you in the hall, that first
-moment. Oh, why do you keep away from me like that? Don't you love
-me--don't you want me? Why do you pretend?"
-
-"Don't! Please!" he entreated. "Miss Pegg, I--am just a servant in this
-house!"
-
-"I don't care what you are!" she cried recklessly. "You are Sandy. I
-know you and I love you."
-
-"My God!" he said, the familiar pet name striking home at last. "Don't!
-You cannot understand my position. I tell you I am a servant. It is some
-chance resemblance."
-
-She switched on the main light then and came nearer, scanning his face
-closely. His hands clenched at his sides, but otherwise he remained
-immovable.
-
-"You cannot make me doubt," she said at length. "You are Sandro di
-Monteventi, who was reported killed at----"
-
-"Miss Pegg--don't make it too hard!" he said humbly. "Will you not
-accept my statement and let me go?
-
-"No!" she said fiercely. "Because I know who you are--and because I know
-that you love me. There! I have told the truth!"
-
-"It is true that I love you," he admitted. "One need not have seen you
-for longer than a day for that. But why do you persist I am this
-stranger?"
-
-"Because I know it!" she declared.
-
-"You could not prove it!" he said simply.
-
-"I don't have to!" she said, going closer. "Oh, Sandy, Sandy, I love you
-so! I have been hungry for you such a long, long time!"
-
-She slipped her arms round his neck. And then for a long while she was
-not conscious of anything except his lips upon hers, and the blessed
-iron strength of his arms about her. At length he drew away, just far
-enough to look into her eyes.
-
-"Merciful Madonna!" he breathed. "You are too much for my poor strength.
-I have no right to touch you--but how I love you!"
-
-"I knew it! I knew it!" cried Peaches, wild with triumphant happiness,
-"you'll never get away from me again, Sandro mio!"
-
-But he pushed her from him roughly.
-
-"No, no!" he said. "I--you are wrong! You have got to believe you are
-wrong, even though you hate yourself and me as well for the glimpse of
-heaven you have given me."
-
-But she could not let him go.
-
-"Have I got to have any other proof?" she laughed. "Oh, my dear, my
-dear! Good heavens--what is it?" she added in a changed tone, for he was
-looking over her shoulder toward the end of the room with an expression
-as if he had seen a ghost.
-
-Automatically she turned to follow the direction of his gaze, and almost
-instantly encountered another pair of eyes set deep in a white face that
-stared in at the window. In another instant it was gone, and like a
-flash her companion had seized her by the elbows and was holding her
-with a gaze that riveted her attention.
-
-"See here!" he said rapidly. "I've got to leave you. They've got me this
-time, I'm afraid. But I'll make a dash for it. Say nothing if I get
-away. Silence will help me most. And no matter who I am, I love you. It
-will not hurt you to know that. Good-by!"
-
-Abruptly he was gone, slipping from the great room as noiselessly as he
-had entered it, his going swift as a shadow, and leaving Peaches
-temporarily paralyzed and at a loss. With a tremendous effort she pulled
-her wits together and started for the doorway through which he had
-vanished. To reach it she had to pass the mantelpiece, and as she did so
-she automatically raised her eyes to the painting whose calm beauty had
-been the cause of so much turmoil, and a curious glitter on the lower
-edge of the frame caught her eye. The flash was such a brilliant one
-that despite her pre-occupation she stopped to examine its source. And
-then with a little cry of triumph she stretched out her hand toward it.
-
-On the lower carvings of the ornate Florentine frame lay a little gold
-penknife studded with diamonds--her own jeweled penknife, the one with
-which Sandro di Monteventi had cut that long-faded rose in the garden at
-San Remo--the precious trinket which she had given him for a keepsake.
-The proof! It was the proof positive! In a single flash a great deal
-became clear. He had left it there earlier in the evening--at the time
-the picture was missed--perhaps at the time it was put back!--and
-missing it he had later returned to retrieve it when he fancied that
-every one was asleep, and so had stumbled upon her scene with Markheim,
-and come to her rescue. Seizing the tell-tale toy she kissed it wildly
-and started for the door.
-
-"Sandro! I have proof!" she cried, though she knew he could not hear
-her.
-
-"Proof of what, signorina?" said a voice in the doorway. And there,
-blocking the entrance to the corridor, was the figure of a bearded man.
-With a cry Peaches shrank back, instinctively hiding the knife in the
-palm of her hand. The intruder had a sinister look. His hat was pulled
-well down over his eyes and his coat collar was pulled up about his
-ears.
-
-"What do you want?" demanded Peaches huskily. "What are you doing here?"
-
-She was retreating toward the bell as she spoke, the man's gaze
-following her action without protest. Coming well into the room he
-removed his hat, shaking a few drops from it as he did so. The shoulders
-of the coat were also wet. Evidently it was raining heavily outside. His
-face as revealed in the stronger light was less alarming, and he spoke
-in an even tone.
-
-"Ring by all means!" said he. "Bring help as soon as possible! As for
-who I am," he went on, throwing back his wet coat and revealing a silver
-badge, "I am Pedro, the missing night watchman, and I have a warrant of
-extradition for the arrest of Sandro di Monteventi, alias The
-Eel--wanted by the International Secret Service for the theft of the
-Scarpia panels and sundry charges."
-
-"Go on, ring, miss," said a second man, following in on the heels of the
-first; a man whom Peaches instantly recognized as the face at the
-window. "Ring, please--we know he is in the house--and incidentally
-don't you try to get away. We want to talk to you--you seemed to know
-him rather well."
-
-
-
-
-XV
-
-
-With a violent movement Peaches rang the bell. And almost at once the
-house was again in confusion. The two newcomers, backed by the cursing
-Markheim and aided by Mr. Pegg, made straight for the room occupied by
-Sandro. Peaches followed in their wake, and saw them batter down the
-door--to find an empty room and a gaping window.
-
-Of course! The idiots! Now if they had only had sense enough to wake me
-up I could have told them better! But no, they let me sleep--sleep, mind
-you, when all this, as it were, human motion picture was proceeding
-right under my very nose! I feel outraged, indignant, as I consider the
-lack of forethought and consideration which this lack of attention
-evidenced. Of course the duke escaped--the ninnies should have left some
-one outside in the garden--and their excuse that they did not believe
-that he could escape so rapidly from the third story of the house would
-have been made quite unnecessary if I had been there to inform them of
-his nocturnal wanderings as known to me.
-
-Really, as I listened to Peaches' recital I became quite distinctly
-vexed. The fate by which I seemed doomed to remain a bystander looking
-on at life from a safe distance or merely to be told about it at
-secondhand or to read of it in printed form was really too annoying.
-Despite my utmost endeavor I was apparently to be cheated of active
-participation in the great drama of existence.
-
-But no one could look at Peaches' pale and suffering beauty for long and
-remain unindulgent. And as I lay in the great bed enjoying the tea and
-toast which she had so thoughtfully brought me I restrained the comments
-which sprang to my lips and merely asked, "What happened then?"
-
-"We came downstairs," said Peaches slowly, twisting the amber beads
-about her throat, "Mark, pa and myself along with these two cowbird
-detectives. I tell you, Free, I just could hardly believe the story they
-told. But I had to, in the end. You see, for one thing, as I sat there I
-began to realize I had seen the Pedro once before."
-
-"Where?"
-
-"In a London movie house--and in a hotel bedroom at Monte Carlo," said
-she significantly.
-
-"There!" I cried. "I foiled him twice, you see! Now it's a lucky thing I
-wasn't there last night, isn't it? Humph! I'd probably have defeated
-justice again! But what did he say?"
-
-"He's been after Sandro for years," she narrated. "I am afraid there
-isn't the shadow of a doubt, Free, but that Sandy is the cleverest
-picture thief in the world. They have almost got him half a dozen times,
-but never with conclusive evidence. And thank God, they didn't get him
-this time, either--not yet at least! Why, do you know, they are certain
-that he took the Scarpia panels? It seems, if you remember, that they
-thought that they had been found in the cellar. But it wasn't the
-originals that they found. They were reproductions--synthetic pictures,
-like a near-ruby--do you get me?"
-
-"But the recovery was reported in the papers," I objected.
-
-"The French Government hushed the matter up in order to try and catch
-him off his guard," she went on. "And, Free, that's just what he has
-done in this very house."
-
-"How do you mean--explain yourself grammatically if possible," said I.
-
-"I mean that the Madonna of the Lamp which is hanging in the library at
-this moment is the bunk," replied Peaches earnestly. "It's a
-fake--painted on new canvas and nicely antiqued. The cops took it down
-and showed it to us."
-
-"And what did he want to steal a fake for?" I demanded.
-
-"He didn't want to steal a fake, you dear old prune!" said Peaches, half
-laughing. "He wanted to steal the original, and that's exactly what he
-did."
-
-"And got away with it!" I gasped, astonished into a colloquialism. "But
-when and how on earth?"
-
-"Very simple, but clever," she told me, quite as if it were to the young
-man's credit. "He had this fake all ready on a stretcher in his room. He
-took the original, stretcher and all, out of the frame and upstairs,
-where he unmounted it and hid it--it isn't large, you know. And then,
-before he could slip the substitute into place, you and I came in from
-the garden--from the garden where we had been waiting for him
-to--to----"
-
-Here she broke off and began to laugh hysterically.
-
-"Come, come, my dear!" I cried. "Don't do that--just remember what a
-lucky escape you have had. So we interrupted him before he could put the
-substitute in place! Well, land of goodness! I do recall that he was
-all dressed when he came down stairs at Mr. Markheim's command! Go on,
-do, my dear!"
-
-"Well," said Peaches, complying with renewed composure, "this Pedro-bird
-claims that Sandy slipped it in while we were all out in the hall with
-the servants and he was in and out apparently taking care of Markheim's
-orders. If the secret-service men hadn't been on the job Sandy would in
-all probability have simply stayed his two weeks out as a quiet
-well-behaved servant, and then gone away with a first-class reference
-and the original Madonna, and the substitution might never have been
-found out, or it might have been years--until some feast was held by a
-lot of experts at Mark's invitation--who knows! And he's been doing this
-sort of thing for years and years!"
-
-"Extraordinary! Most extraordinary!" I exclaimed, pulling off my
-nightcap and starting to rise. "I must really dress and descend to take
-a look at that picture and the scene of the crime!"
-
-"You can't!" said Peaches, suddenly listless. "You can't--we are both
-locked in!"
-
-I could scarcely believe my ears. But Peaches was in earnest, there was
-no doubt about that.
-
-"Locked in!" I repeated incredulously. "What on earth are you saying,
-Alicia Pegg?"
-
-"I was saying a mouthful!" she responded. "Pa has locked us in."
-
-"But what for?" I demanded with proper indignation.
-
-"I told him I was going to follow Sandro," said Peaches, as if the
-explanation was the most obvious thing possible and she were just a
-trifle impatient of my stupidity.
-
-"Are you crazy?" I cried. "Follow him--follow that thief--that--that
-scoundrel? Aren't the police following him? Isn't that following
-enough?"
-
-"That's just why," she announced. "Wherever he is--wherever he goes, I
-am going too. After last night I can't do anything else. And if it's to
-jail--all right, I'll go to jail. But I won't stay away from him, and I
-will find him if the secret-service can't, and I hope most heartily they
-will make a flivver of it. And I'll never leave him again--believe me!"
-
-I was obliged to believe her. I had, indeed, only to look at her in
-order to do so. And as I looked, a gleam of human intelligence broke
-into my brain.
-
-"Peaches," I said solemnly, "did you tell on Markheim?"
-
-"Of course not!" she said, flushing hotly. "He--wasn't himself; I
-realize that now."
-
-"So you just told your father that you are through with Markheim and are
-in love with the duke?"
-
-She nodded dumbly.
-
-"No wonder he locked you up!" I gasped, falling back on the pillows.
-
-"Locked me up and said the marriage would go ahead as per schedule," she
-announced grimly. "Which is bunk of course. The point is--what shall we
-do about it?"
-
-"Have they caught the duke?" I inquired.
-
-"I don't believe so," said she. "There is nothing to that effect in the
-early afternoon newspapers from New York, though there's plenty about
-the robbery. Take a look!"
-
-"Let me see!" I exclaimed, stretching out my hand for the paper.
-
-And forthwith she spread the lurid sheets before my distressed eyes. The
-headlines were of the variety known as "scare." Not the German
-ex-Kaiser himself, or even a Bolshevist labor leader was ever presented
-in larger type than was the lurid announcement of the attempted robbery.
-And all our names were mentioned--even that of Talbot--the sacred family
-name, which we had kept inviolate for generations against all newspaper
-publicity excepting only mention in the society and political columns.
-For, of course, the difference between one's appearing as a social or
-political item and as a piece of mere vulgar news must at once be
-apparent to any reader of refined upbringing. And never before had the
-Talbots been news. I dreaded to think how my sister Euphemia would take
-it should the article chance to meet her eye. She might eventually
-forgive me much; but I seriously doubted whether her charity would ever
-extend over newspaper headlines. Alas! This was but a foretaste of what
-was to come!
-
-But much as the reporters had to say of the splendor of Sebastian
-Markheim's mansion and the beauty of Sebastian Markheim's fiancée, whose
-coming marriage would be of the greatest social consequence, uniting the
-greatest fortune of the East with the greatest fortune of the Western
-Coast, and so on, and though it was further replete with details of the
-method by which the robbery had been committed, together with a florid
-account of the robber's high station in life, his heroic action in
-battle, where he was supposed to have been killed while defending a
-position single-handed in a rocky pass during the Austrian invasion,
-thereby enabling the rest of his brigade to escape--nothing indicated
-that his capture was at this time considered very likely. The
-authorities were full of assurances but rather short on facts, to all
-appearances.
-
-"Well, now, Alicia, my dear," I remarked when I had satisfied myself
-that no detail of importance had escaped me in my perusal of the printed
-account of our affair--"now, Alicia, my dear," said I. "I feel it
-incumbent to be quite sure that you know what you are saying when you
-announce your intention of linking your life with that of this wild
-young Italian--always provided that the gallows does not get him before
-you do. Can't you reconcile yourself to the idea that he is a thief, no
-matter how titled, and that therefore he is no match for an honest
-American girl?"
-
-"Oh, cut the moralizing, Free!" interrupted Peaches. "I am in love with
-him, I tell you. And I have sufficient faith in my own integrity to
-believe that this wouldn't be true if he really was the yellow dog
-everybody seems bent on trying to make him out. Now I've got a hunch--a
-mighty straight hunch that he is O. K. There's more to this than we
-know. Maybe the old picture belonged to his great-grandmother or
-something, and he's only taking it back. How do you know he isn't doing
-just that very thing?"
-
-"But the Scarpia panels didn't belong to his grandmother," I answered
-smartly.
-
-"But they haven't got the goods on him for those other deals," she
-retorted. "And if they had, I'd still be crazy about him. Freedom, this
-is a question of the rest of my life. You've got to take my side."
-
-"But what are you--we going to do?" I pleaded, bewildered by her
-intensity. "And what is all this nonsense about our being locked in
-these rooms?"
-
-"You just try to get out and see if it's nonsense," replied Peaches.
-"You were asleep when they locked me in, and as there is no lock on the
-doors between our rooms they locked you too. I wouldn't let them
-disturb you, not only because you were so tired but because I knew damn
-well that if I let you out I wouldn't get this chance to talk to you."
-
-"Well, this is outrageous!" I exclaimed, rising in good earnest this
-time. "We shall see whether your father can imprison two adult women in
-a free country to suit his whim! I shall make my toilet at once and then
-we shall see what we shall see!"
-
-"Better hurry up then!" replied Peaches. "Because they--he and Mark--are
-going to the city on the twelve-o'clock train. Don't you remember why we
-came home early last night?"
-
-Last night seemed a thousand years ago. But she was quite right; I did
-recall the fact, and accordingly made all possible haste, Peaches
-assisting me.
-
-"Now look here, you flighty young thing!" she warned. "Don't do anything
-rash! Remember, you are the only person I have to depend on for help.
-Don't go get yourself kept away from me now!"
-
-"I must and shall interview your father," I protested. "But perhaps if
-you would be kind enough to give me an idea of what you intend doing I
-shall be in a better position to be of assistance."
-
-"I'm going to leave this house before another twenty-four hours are
-over," she declared firmly. "If you can persuade pa to let me go like a
-human, and come along with me, so much the better. If not, I'll have to
-go some other way that may not be as agreeable to him in the long run."
-
-"Why not let me tell him about that terrible performance of Mr.
-Markheim's?" I suggested. "That will be sufficient, or I mistake your
-father greatly."
-
-"Sure it would be sufficient," said Peaches. "But then I'd have to give
-myself away pretty badly, wouldn't I? And there might be a roughhouse.
-Pa is a dead shot and I'd rather get him out of shooting distance before
-I break the information to him. At present he just about thinks I'm
-crazy in the head."
-
-"Well, I'll do what I can to persuade him that this is the twentieth
-century and not the middle ages!" I responded. "This indignity certainly
-cannot be allowed to continue. But suppose you--we do get away from here
-to-day, what then? How do you propose to find a thief that the police
-will have a hard time discovering?"
-
-"I don't propose," said Peaches. "I intend. That's a whole lot stronger.
-How, I haven't the remotest idea. But it's plain enough I can't do
-anything while they've got me cooped up like a marketable yearling, can
-I? Let's get out of this, that's the first thing to accomplish."
-
-"Very well," I agreed, gathering up my reticule and taking up the
-house-telephone receiver.
-
-I asked to speak with Mr. Pegg. The request was at once attended to by
-the footman who responded, and in a tone which brooked no delay I
-commanded the Citrus King to come upstairs and release me. My tone must
-have foreshadowed the mood I was in, for he responded as if by magic. In
-less than five minutes I was face to face with him in the hall.
-
-"Come on over and sit down in the conservatory, Miss Free," he entreated
-as soon as he saw my face. "We want to keep the servants out of this
-much as we can, you know!"
-
-"All right, Mr. Pegg," I agreed, for this was my own thought. "All
-right. But if you allow the situation to continue you will have a hard
-time in doing that!"
-
-Accordingly we repaired down the corridor to a little glass room full of
-plants, where we could talk in seclusion. Mr. Pegg, as usual, chewed
-upon an unlighted cigar and looked at me thoughtfully over the top of
-it, his shrewd eyes half closed.
-
-"You've got awfully pretty hair, Miss Free," said he unexpectedly. "I'm
-glad you've took back to them curls again."
-
-"Now see here, Mr. Pegg," I said severely, not to be diverted by any
-frivolous remarks. "Now see here, Mr. Pegg, what is the meaning of this
-outrageous performance?"
-
-"When I was a cattleman," said Mr. Pegg, looking at the ornate ceiling,
-"we used to lock 'em in a corral until they cooled off a little."
-
-"What--who?" I demanded.
-
-"The ones we was breaking," he informed me. Then his manner changed and
-he brought his big fist down on his knee with a thump. "Now, my dear
-lady," he said firmly, "I know what I'm doing. Why, I had to keep her on
-the ranch, watched like a hawk--and simply because she kept thinking she
-was in love with some undesirable or other. I've seen her do this
-before. So I'm just going to detain her where she'll be safe until she
-comes to her senses."
-
-"Mr. Pegg, you are taking the wrong track with Peaches this time!" I
-warned him. "You can't play the Roman father with your child and marry
-her out of hand--you cannot! You engaged me as a social mentor and I
-would be doing less than my duty if I didn't inform you that this sort
-of thing is no longer being done in the best families!"
-
-"Say!" remarked Mr. Pegg, removing the cigar and staring at me. "Are
-you trying to be humorous, or what?"
-
-"I assure you I am far from any such idea!" I replied with hauteur. "I
-merely affirm that you cannot, even legally, keep an adult female child
-imprisoned against her will and then marry her off to--to a swindler!"
-
-"A swindler!" exclaimed Mr. Pegg. "Oh, come now, Miss Free--smuggling in
-that picture wasn't Mark's fault. You can't say he did it--because you
-don't know it. Why, you and he have always been good friends; you're not
-going back on him now? Peaches is just a kid. By the end of the week she
-will have changed her mind again. Good heavens, look at the fix it would
-put us in if she insisted on breaking her engagement now! The
-invitations out, the presents coming in--trousseau bought! We'd be the
-laughingstock of the country. Not that I'd give a--cuss--if it wasn't
-that I know Alicia. She'd up and go back to him when it was all
-thoroughly broken off. You see that what she needs is the high hand.
-I've had to use it before."
-
-"Mr. Pegg," said I, "you are mistaken. What is worse, you are a cave
-man! I am convinced Peaches really is in love with Sandro di Monteventi
-and that you will break her heart if you persist in your heroic
-attitude. I beg you will desist."
-
-"Nothing doing!" said Mr. Pegg, rising and lighting the cigar--a sign
-that the interview was closed. "I'm not in a desisting mood. I may as
-well add that I am wise to the fact that she's been mooning round after
-that fellow ever since she came into this house. Kimball's Commercial
-Arithmetic, indeed!"
-
-"I don't know to what you refer, I assure you!" I said stiffly. "And I
-insist upon at least having a key to our rooms."
-
-"Will you give me your word of honor not to use that key to let her out
-with?" asked my employer doubtfully.
-
-"Certainly, if you wish," I replied promptly. "You may have my word for
-that!"
-
-"Well, here you are, then," he answered, taking a key from a great
-cluster on his ring. "You'll keep the letter of your word, I know, no
-matter how uneasy the spirit gets. And now I must mosey along. Mark and
-I have to run up to town on business, and he wants to see the
-family-doctor about his eye--he ran into his bedpost in the dark last
-night, and maybe it's just as well to keep Peaches from seeing him
-wearing that beauty spot."
-
-With which intelligent and discerning remark Mr. Pegg left me to my own
-devices, and of course I promptly returned to my apartment and the
-waiting Peaches, who greeted my entrance the more eagerly when she
-observed I let myself in with a key.
-
-"You wonder!" cried she, embracing me with a look of rapture. "So he
-gave in to you--you enchantress!"
-
-"He did not!" I said dryly. "He put me on my honor not to let you have
-this key, and my honor is sacred, and I'm going to keep it that way!"
-
-"Free--you beast!" cried Peaches. "Give it to me. Don't be absurd!"
-
-"Keeping one's freely given word is never absurd," I observed. "Besides,
-if I were to break it and let you walk out, do you think for one minute
-that the servants would let you get away without protest? Or without
-notifying your father by telephone? It is you who are absurd!"
-
-"That's so!" said Peaches, suddenly weary. "Oh, Free--you think it out!
-Help me, I am so tired."
-
-"Lack of sleep," I pronounced. "And I'll wager you have eaten nothing.
-The first thing to do is to have a nice hot luncheon sent upstairs--I
-presume your father's instructions permit the service of food. And then
-you must get a few hours of complete rest while I take a stroll in the
-fresh air and perfect some course of action."
-
-"Then you will help me?" said Peaches eagerly.
-
-It was really pathetic to see her so comparatively tired and helpless.
-She was never more than comparatively so, I may state. However, my
-compassion for her was not lessened by this fact.
-
-"Of course I am going to help you," I declared. "That any mere man
-should attempt a performance of this kind outside of Bolshevik Russia is
-too outrageous to be endured. But first take some hot soup and a nap. I
-will have a plan when you wake up, I feel sure."
-
-Meekly as a little girl she submitted to my ministrations, hot broth and
-all. And when at length she lay sleeping amidst the golden glory of her
-loosened hair, her face like a pale sage lily in its midst, I stole
-downstairs, first faithfully locking the door behind me and pocketing
-the key.
-
-The garden between walls was filled with the roseate glow of sunset as I
-stepped forth into it, and the night promised fair. The earth was damp
-and fragrant from the April storm of the night before, and the new buds
-seemed to have doubled their endeavor to make the world green overnight.
-On the edges of the paths the frail hothouse-born tulips lay beaten into
-the earth. But in the meadow toward the river the wild crocuses marched
-bravely. Robins were warbling their mellow sunset note, and the world
-seemed sweetly peaceful and greatly at variance with my mood.
-
-With my mind continually revolving the problem at hand I walked about
-the bordered barren beds with a step that was listless enough in good
-sooth, pausing now and again to glance up at the walls of the fine
-dwelling, which was now to all intents and purposes a prison. And after
-a few turns I began to realize that my attention was turning more and
-more frequently to the window that had been Sandro's and to the problem
-of his escape.
-
-That he had come out by the window upon the first occasion of my
-discovering him in the library, and simply let himself in at the
-casement door, was plain enough, leaving his door locked from the inside
-to avoid invasion by the other servants; indeed it had developed that it
-had been his habit to keep his door locked during the entire period of
-his employment in the house. But how had he got there? That was the
-question. So far as one could see there was absolutely no means of
-reaching the ground from that third story, unless one excepted a frail
-and narrow wooden lattice intended for the encouragement of vines, which
-extended upward to the level of the higher windows.
-
-Obeying an impulse I went over and made examination of this lattice, and
-the riddle was a riddle no longer.
-
-"I wonder, I wonder!" I said aloud.
-
-"I often have, myself!" agreed a cheerful voice behind me.
-
-With a guilty start I turned about, and there, of all people on earth,
-was Richard, the chauffeur, big nose and all, smiling at me in his
-familiar, friendly manner.
-
-"Richard!" I cried warmly. "What brought you here?"
-
-"I--say, Aunt Mary, I had to come, that was all," he said with troubled
-eyes. "It's Peaches. You know how I feel about her--how I have felt all
-along. I had to see her. It was as if she needed me. Just a fool hunch.
-But I came. I couldn't help it--you understand?"
-
-"Understand?" I cried. "Bless the boy, I do!" Then a way out of our
-situation began to make itself clear in my brain and I seized him by the
-arm, dragging him to a bench out of general sight from the house and
-making him sit beside me, greatly to his bewilderment.
-
-"Richard," I said solemnly, "have you been at the house yet?"
-
-"Why, no!" said he. "I came right into the garden when I saw you from
-the drive."
-
-"Does anybody know you are coming?"
-
-"Not a soul!" declared Dicky. "Why all this mystery?"
-
-"Listen!" I said rapidly. "Something awful has happened. Peaches is a
-prisoner. Your intuition was right. She--we need your help, and need it
-badly."
-
-"Is she hurt?" he asked. "A prisoner? What in the name----"
-
-"I want you to get a big powerful automobile and have it at the entrance
-of the park at twelve o'clock to-night. As soon as you arrive, park your
-car, and come to the foot of that trellis over there. When you get there
-give the whistle you used to call Peaches with. If you get an answer,
-wait for us. If after half an hour you don't hear anything, call me on
-the telephone first thing in the morning. Is that clear?"
-
-"Yes--but Great Scott! What's wrong?"
-
-"Never you mind, except that something is very wrong here. Markheim is
-an unspeakable beast, and Mr. Pegg is trying to force Peaches into going
-through with the marriage in spite of what she has found out. He has
-locked her in her room, which opens into mine."
-
-"Well, why not unlock her, then?" he asked with stupid masculine
-simplicity. "Haven't you got a key?"
-
-"I have," I said. "But I have given him my word not to unlock it to let
-her out!"
-
-"But you'll break your word!" he said with a satisfied grin.
-
-"Not at all!" I disclaimed the suggestion. "Not at all. However, I made
-no promise in regard to the window. And with your assistance----"
-
-"I get you!" cried Dicky, springing to his feet. "Twelve sharp to-night
-it is. And I'd better be off now before the old boys get back from town
-and spot me--eh, what?"
-
-"Yes," I agreed.
-
-Then I hesitated. Should I tell him of the duke? Was it possible that he
-had not seen the afternoon papers? Evidently so, since he had not
-commented upon the robbery. Assuredly they had escaped his notice. And
-why tell the poor lovesick boy about Alicia's part in it? I had a
-feeling that he would be even more effective in assisting us if he did
-not know until we were well on our way that night. So I merely repeated
-my instructions and hurried from him to impart the glad tidings to my
-charge and then to secure my knitting, in order that I might be
-flaunting that badge of womanly innocence in the drawing-room when those
-wretched cave men, Markheim and Mr. Pegg, came down dressed for dinner.
-
-
-
-
-XVI
-
-
-My dear father used to say that the test of good breeding lay in the
-ability to maintain the social amenities toward some one who had wronged
-you. Kipling, I think it is, cites the instance of an Englishman who
-continued to dress for dinner alone in the jungle, as a perfect example
-of breeding. But then, Kipling had only the Englishman's word for it,
-because if he were alone when he dressed, which seems probable--indeed
-is so stated--how could any one have seen him? Whereas I have watched my
-dear father turn the other cheek to the barber who used to visit our
-establishment weekly, when one cheek had been badly scraped, and not
-utter anything stronger than an inquiry about the man's health!
-
-And the art of behaving naturally, yet not too naturally, if you
-understand me, through the routine of living under trying domestic
-conditions, certainly appears to come more easily to persons whose
-traditional training has been in the line of self-restraint rather than
-that of self-expression; in other words, to those of aristocratic
-forbears. Perhaps that is why the purest aristocracy so seldom attains
-anything except good manners. But I digress. My intent was merely to
-make a passing philosophic comment upon the dinner party of three--Mr.
-Markheim, Mr. Pegg and myself--which was held that evening at the villa.
-
-For though no one could deny Mr. Pegg's sterling worth there were times
-when his, as it were, silver needed repolishing. And this was such a
-time. As for Sebastian Markheim, for all his wealth, the veneer of
-culture, which had never been much more than tailor-deep, now showed the
-common clay beneath all too plainly; and the bandage which his New York
-physician had arranged over one eye did nothing to make his behavior
-more becoming. Whereas on the other hand I was my own cheery, chatty
-self, only more so, if possible, entertaining both gentlemen with a
-pleasant account of a railroad accident of which I had read that day,
-and an explanation of the main differences between knitting and crochet
-work.
-
-However, they were not very responsive, proving conclusively my dear
-father's theory. In point of fact they were both so uncommunicative that
-it was necessary for me to exercise considerable tact and ingenuity
-before I could get out of them the fact that Sandro di Monteventi was
-still at large, though he had been traced as far as New York City.
-
-Indeed I cannot imagine why these two gentlemen should have been
-suspicious of my trustworthiness, yet their reticence could have no
-other implication. However, when I made quite sure that no further
-information was to be had out of them I continued to be quite as
-delightful as before, even insisting upon serving their after-dinner
-coffee with my own hands as soon as the footman had carried it into the
-library for us.
-
-I confess that my solicitation about the serving of this was not wholly
-disinterested, inasmuch as I administered a small dose of veronal in
-each cup--a mere five grains to insure their sleeping--and sleeping
-early. And in truth my dear father never approved the taking of coffee
-in the evening, and I knew that neither of these men had had sufficient
-sleep during the past forty-eight hours. Also, I did not wish my
-project to fail through any oversight on my part. Moreover, neither
-being a good judge of coffee, they made no comment on the flavor.
-
-Thus it was that when, shortly after nine o'clock, first one and then
-the other excused himself and went off to bed, I did not seek to detain
-either, but remained myself in the library for half an hour, ostensibly
-engaged in the perusal of a volume of Carlyle's French Revolution but in
-reality with one eye fixed upon the clock, and my attention absorbed
-with waiting for the moment when I might retire to my chamber without
-apparent undue haste.
-
-At length the clock struck ten, having been considerably longer than its
-usual time in getting round to it, or so I fancied, and I rose in a
-leisurely fashion, putting away my book and ringing for the footman.
-When he appeared I bade him a cheerful good night and told him to put
-out the lights. Then I made my way upstairs to Peaches, my heart beating
-with excitement but my head quite cool and collected as I admitted
-myself to our, as it were, joint prison.
-
-I found the dear girl already dressed in a dark suit and small hat, her
-face still pale, though her sleep had greatly refreshed her and her eyes
-were once more the great fiery cat eyes of amber that I loved to watch.
-
-"Free," she began at once, "is there any news of him? Have they caught
-him?"
-
-"Not yet," I replied, "but he's in New York somewhere--at least that's
-what they think. Don't forget to take your toothbrush."
-
-"And you are sure that Dicky understands what to do?"
-
-"Of course!" I replied, going to my top bureau drawer and regarding the
-contents critically. "Now let me see what I shall take."
-
-"I guess father will never forgive us," remarked Peaches dolefully. "But
-it seems a person never can do what they think right without getting in
-wrong with some one."
-
-"I shall take my father's chronometer," I mused half aloud, "smelling
-salts and a pack of cards, for solitaire. Also my small folding check
-book. These, together with my toothbrush and clean handkerchief, will
-just about fill my reticule."
-
-I was putting these articles into their receptacle as I talked, but my
-attention was fixed upon Alicia's face. She looked as if she were seeing
-a vision; never have I beheld such an expression of anxious beatitude,
-if one may say so, on any human countenance either before or since. It
-was hardly wholesome.
-
-"Did you put on low-heeled shoes?" I asked practically. Peaches came to
-with a start.
-
-"Yes," she replied. "Free, do they let you get married in jail?"
-
-"They send you there for getting married too often," I replied. "Now
-keep your mind on the excitement of the moment and hook up my shirt
-waist for me, there's a good girl."
-
-"A shirt waist that hooks up the back is a blouse, Free," she replied,
-smiling wanly. "How am I ever going to make your sense of luxury as
-strong as your pocket-book?"
-
-"This blouse by any other name was just as dear," I replied.
-
-And so with light chaffing we made the interval of our preparation and
-waiting durable to each other; and at length I sat down by the opened,
-darkened window for the third night in succession, to listen for
-Richard, the chauffeur, to signal. One by one the other lights in the
-house were extinguished and gradually complete silence reigned over the
-massive pile of what had but a brief three days ago been Peaches' future
-home, and which we were about to forswear forever in the cause of love
-and spiritual freedom, not to mention actual physical freedom. At five
-minutes of the hour Peaches broke the silence with an impatient whisper.
-
-"All this stage stuff is the greatest bunk!" she exclaimed under her
-breath. "I wish to goodness you'd open the door and let us walk
-downstairs like rational human beings!"
-
-"And break a Talbot's word?" I retorted. "Never! What I promise your
-dear father I keep my word about."
-
-"Freedom Talbot, I sometimes think you are stuck on pa," commented
-Peaches reflectively.
-
-And then, before I was obliged to reply to this most inconsiderate
-comment and indefensible charge, a low whistle sounded from the garden,
-the old familiar whistle with which I had heard Peaches signal to
-Richard, the chauffeur, a thousand times. At once she was upon her feet,
-her body tense, her foolish remark mercifully forgotten as she
-responded. Three liquid notes, soft yet clear. Then silence.
-
-"Now for it!" I whispered. "You follow me--I know the way!" And carrying
-my shoes in my hand I stepped forth across that window sill, which must,
-so I believe, bear about it the odor of romance forevermore.
-
-I am pained to relate that the first thing Peaches did upon reaching
-the ground was to embrace Dick Talbot and kiss him upon both cheeks. But
-such is the distressing truth, inappropriate as the action was in view
-of the fact that she was escaping from one fiancé in order to go in
-search of another, and that Dick was neither of them. But he did not
-seem to object in the least, though the moment she freed him he very
-properly turned his attention to helping me on with my shoes.
-
-"All set, Aunt Mary!" he whispered then. "This way, please, and watch
-your step in case the enemy sets up a barrage!"
-
-In silence we followed him through the garden and out across the meadow,
-keeping in the shadow of the trees and hedges whenever possible, and
-trampling the brave little white crocuses underfoot. At length we
-reached the fence which separated the grounds from the highroad, and as
-it was fortunately not very high he helped us over without difficulty,
-the main gates at the lodge being, as he informed us, locked for the
-night.
-
-Drawn close to the fence was a powerful car with the engine running
-softly. Richard assisted me into the rear seat and Peaches sprang up
-beside him in front; there was a grinding sound from the creature's
-innards and we slid smoothly out into the open road.
-
-The river road from Ossining to New York is one of surpassing beauty,
-even at night, when the smooth winding ribbon of it is practically
-without traffic. But I was not much concerned with its loveliness, as
-the night was too dark, for one thing, to permit more than a speculation
-as to what lay behind the hedges and rows of trees with which it is
-lined, and the Hudson lay hidden in the black depth of its own valley
-save when a moving light or two from a nocturnal vessel betrayed its
-whereabouts. Overhanging clouds now threatened rain, and a mist crept up
-from the broad stream, obscuring the lamps and blurring the occasional
-lighted window by our way. At any moment I expected that, as The Duchess
-would say, the heaven would open to emit a torrential storm; and I
-wished heartily that I had worn my other hat.
-
-Furthermore, if I had been able to see anything of the landscape as we
-passed I could not have focussed much attention upon it because of the
-terrific rate of speed at which Richard, the chauffeur, had determined
-to drive. At each and every curve I anticipated an accident of some
-sort--a collision with some unfortunate night traveler, a possibly fatal
-encounter with a train or trolley car. But miraculously nothing of the
-kind happened. I made one or two futile attempts to dissuade him from
-his reckless course, inasmuch as the discovery of our flight was
-extremely unlikely to occur for many hours to come. My words were merely
-blown back into my face, and solicitude for my hat and feathers at
-length caused me to relinquish my efforts and sit dumbly clinging to the
-seat with one hand and to my headgear with the other. I assume that he
-was driving as much from the stress of his emotions as by reason of
-Peaches' urging him to haste, but I could not help reflecting, sorry as
-I was for the young man's hopeless passion, that love is a selfish
-thing--a remark which has doubtless been made by earlier writers.
-
-I could not hear a word of what conversation was going on in the front
-seat, but there seemed to be little enough of it, and all of Dick's
-energies were obviously bent on driving--a fact for which I dumbly
-thanked the Almighty, and it was not until almost an hour later, when
-the outskirts of the city had been reached and our driver drew up at the
-curb before a species of nocturnal dairy, or all-night lunch, as I
-believe such places are called, that we had any real conversation
-regarding further plans.
-
-Richard insisted that we get down from the machine and enter the humble
-eating establishment, whose window displayed nothing more inviting than
-a few dozen oranges, which my practiced eye recognized as inferior
-sweated Southern fruit, and a black cat, the latter sound asleep.
-
-But once entering its tiled interior, which made me oddly uncomfortable,
-conveying as it did a sense of being in a most dreadfully public
-bathroom, the refreshing odor of coffee and hot cakes revived our more
-material senses, and over a generous supply of both we told Dick the
-whole story, beginning with the moment of our arrival in the East up to
-the point of the aforementioned pancakes and coffee.
-
-While Peaches was telling him about the duke and how she loved him,
-young Talbot could not endure to look at her--a fact of which she
-appeared oblivious, so wrapped was she in her recital. And it was only
-when she had quite finished and was waiting for him to speak that he
-mastered his emotions sufficiently to look at her with his honest,
-suffering eyes.
-
-"So he is alive?" he said simply. "And, of course, you have to go to
-him, old girl. There is something wrong with this crook idea. That man
-is not a crook."
-
-"Thanks, Dicky!" said Peaches, her eyes filling as she covered his hand
-with hers for an instant. "I know there isn't any reason to believe in
-him--but I do, just the same."
-
-"But there is a reason," said Dick unexpectedly. "Look here, Peaches, I
-suppose I ought to have told you this when I first came back. But I
-didn't first off, because I found you engaged to another man and
-apparently happy. I didn't want to go raking over old wounds. So I
-didn't even speak of him except to say that I'd heard he was killed in a
-gallant action--and I never even said that much until you mentioned it
-first--do you remember?"
-
-"Yes," she nodded. "Go on, Dicky!"
-
-"But I'd seen him while I was over there," he said. "I--well, it was
-rather by accident but I happened to save his life. Oh, not the last
-time! Up to to-night I thought he was dead, the same as you did. But
-before that. It was the time I got the Italian medal----"
-
-"So that was why you wouldn't talk about it!" I ejaculated. But neither
-paid any attention to me.
-
-"He asked a lot about you," Dicky went on. "And I told him all I could.
-About the ranch, and what you and Miss Freedom were doing. He was just
-crazy to hear. But he didn't want me to tell you about him. 'I'm not fit
-for her, Dick,' he says to me. We was both getting over scalp wounds
-then and used to sit out in front of the hut and talk a lot. 'I got out
-of her life for her own good,' he says. 'And if it ever comes natural
-tell her I didn't intend to kill the chap at the railway station--it was
-in self-defense.' That's what he told me. And then he tried to give me a
-ring he had, because of me having the luck to save him, see? But I
-wouldn't take it. So he give me his address in case I ever needed
-anything."
-
-"His address?" said Peaches chokingly. "Why, Monteventi is his address,
-surely?"
-
-"Yeh--but he give me another one besides," said Dick. "Though, of
-course, I heard after that he had gone West, and so I kind of forgot
-about it."
-
-"If he had another address it must have been where he could be reached
-in an emergency!" cried Peaches. "Can't you remember it, Dicky? Oh,
-think! Please try to remember it!"
-
-"I guess maybe I got it on me," said he with a curious shyness.
-"I--wrote it on the back of your picture. I--I carried it along through
-the war. I might have it now, at that."
-
-From the inside of his coat he took a thin wallet, through which he
-pretended to search while we watched breathlessly. And there, as I had
-anticipated, was the portrait of Alicia--Alicia at sixteen with her
-heavy hair in braids over either shoulder and a Mexican sombrero shading
-her laughing eyes. He turned it over and she gave a little cry as she
-recognized her lover's name--followed by an address in Hoboken!
-
-We exchanged a look of wonder.
-
-"By gosh, I'll bet a dollar that's where he is to-night!" exclaimed
-Talbot. "Not a very tasty neighborhood, but just the kind of a place a
-bird like him would fly to for cover. And see the way I was to address
-him. S. M., care of Smith! He said they forwarded his mail for him.
-Peaches, I'll go there for you the minute I get you two girls safe at a
-hotel!"
-
-"You will not!" said Peaches. "Because we are going with you."
-
-"Oh, come--that's not right!" protested Dick. But nothing would dissuade
-Peaches.
-
-"Well--we may need some money," said he, at length consenting to the mad
-scheme. "I've a few dollars, but eventually we'll have to get some more.
-Did you bring any, Peaches?"
-
-Her face dropped in dismay.
-
-"I never thought of it!" she gasped "And my purse was on the dressing
-table too!"
-
-"Never mind!" said I, plunging my hand into my reticule. "I have brought
-a check book and I have a lot of money in the bank."
-
-With which I drew out--not my check book at all, but the black leather
-wallet which Peaches had thrown into the pond out at the ranch, and
-which I had subsequently rescued.
-
-For a moment we all gazed at it stupidly. Then Peaches recognized it and
-snatched it from the table.
-
-"Sandy's wallet!" she cried. "Freedom Talbot, where did you get this
-thing?"
-
-"I--I found it in the garden out at home," I stammered, blushing
-violently, "and I kept it in case--that is, I thought that perhaps
-sometime----"
-
-"I see!" said she in a tone which led me greatly to fear that she did.
-
-"What is it?" our escort now wanted, not unnaturally, to know.
-
-"It's something of his--the duke's," I said. "Peaches has had it for
-years."
-
-"Give us a look-see!" asked Dick, stretching out his hand for it. Rather
-reluctantly she allowed him to take it.
-
-"I bet there's something sewed inside that lining!" he commented after a
-moment's examination. "Let's open her up!"
-
-"No!" cried Peaches, snatching it back. "If there is it's none of our
-business. I'll just take care of it, thanks! And now about money--our
-not having any lets us out of the hotel plan, Dick; and anyhow if we
-cash a check we can't do it before to-morrow. In order to get into a
-decent hotel without any bags we'd have to prove who we are, and then pa
-would spot us first thing in the morning."
-
-"Besides which, if Sandro is really at this Hoboken address, he will
-very likely be gone by morning," I added; "if indeed he has not already
-left."
-
-"You said it!" cried Peaches. "Come on, let's go! The Lord only knows
-when that ex-sheriff of a parent of mine will have a posse on my trail!"
-
-We acted upon this, the combined wisdom of all three of us, and paying
-our modest indebtedness to the midnight-luncheon establishment, betook
-ourselves back to the automobile and the pursuit of our quest.
-
-How silent are the busy marts of Manhattan in the small hours of the
-night! With her pearl-like lamps the only sentinels along our way, we
-sped into Broadway and thence across the park and down Fifth Avenue
-almost as rapidly as we had proceeded along the Albany highway from
-Ossining, turning west at some side street evidently familiar to
-Richard, the chauffeur, since the days of his debarkation, and sped
-toward a westbound ferryboat.
-
-It was a great comfort to me to realize that the city of Hoboken itself
-would not be wholly unfamiliar to him either, inasmuch as he had left
-for Europe from that port as a soldier, and had again visited it in the
-same capacity two years later upon his return. Therefore, he could, of
-course, be relied upon to know something about the place, and just how
-undesirable he considered the section for which we were headed might be.
-It did not, however, occur to me to question him on this point until the
-lights of the opposite shore were drawing near. We had remained seated
-in the auto, which was driven bodily upon the lower section of the
-ferryboat.
-
-"Richard," I said, "do you consider the section for which we are bound a
-residential one?"
-
-"I do not!" he responded promptly. "I'll say the inhabitants usually
-make about a week-end of it before they are invited to Sing Sing. I wish
-I had thought to bring a gun along!"
-
-"If a revolver will do as well," said I, "I have one upon my person. It
-is that which I obtained from that gambling creature in Monte Carlo."
-
-"Good girl, Aunt Mary!" he exclaimed. "Slip it to me, will you?"
-
-"In order to do so I must retire to the ladies' cabin," I replied with
-dignity, "inasmuch as it is attached to my--my garter."
-
-"Well, if you aren't a caution to rattlesnakes!" exclaimed he. "All
-right, sport, only hurry up, for we'll be landing in a few minutes now."
-
-I alighted from the rear of the machine with all possible celerity and
-made my way upstairs to the higher deck and the retreat which I sought.
-Putting the firearm into my reticule I was about to descend when the
-sight of a familiar figure standing on the front deck of the vessel, his
-face sharply outlined against the light, arrested my action and my
-attention.
-
-It was the detective named Pedro--he who had posed as night watchman at
-the villa--and he was standing right where he could not fail to see our
-car and recognize its occupants the moment we drove out to land.
-
-It was an emergency and I steeled myself to meet it intelligently. If I
-were to go below at once all I could accomplish would be the warning of
-my companions. Still, what better course offered? None that I could see
-at first. Pedro had not seen me as yet, but continued to stand looking
-out toward the Jersey shore. And while I hesitated as to what I should
-do the Divine Providence which looks after lovers put a means of eluding
-him into my very hands, as it were.
-
-From a door close beside me and which was marked "Private" in large
-letters, there at this moment emerged a man in overalls. The door swung
-to behind him, locking with a snap, and an instant later he discovered
-that he had left something in the cabin and being in a great hurry swore
-shockingly as he fumbled with his keys, for he was obliged to unlock the
-door, which fastened with a spring lock, before he could get back into
-the place. The dock was very close now, and the bell was clanging
-loudly. In another moment we would have touched. The mechanic's haste
-was frantic, which, of course, caused him some further delay, but at
-length he succeeded in opening the door again. On the instant finding
-myself unobserved I slid about a quarter of my little pack of playing
-cards into the jamb of the door. They were just of a sufficient
-thickness to allow the door to shut without permitting it to lock. The
-mechanic having found what he wanted came out, swung the door, as he
-supposed, closed, and went on his way.
-
-Hardly had he vanished down the stairs when Pedro saw me and at once
-approached, raising his hat with a sarcastic politeness that thinly
-veiled a sneer. And as he came I knew for certain that he was the man
-whom it had twice already been my pleasure to foil. Nevertheless, I
-greeted him pleasantly enough.
-
-"Ah--good evening!" said I. "You are looking for Mr. Markheim, I
-suppose?"
-
-Well, the fellow looked a good deal surprised at that, but he wouldn't
-admit it--not he.
-
-"Yes, of course," said he, to draw me out.
-
-"This is splendid!" I said heartily. "We were afraid our telegram hadn't
-reached you. He's just inside in this cabin. Won't you go in?"
-
-The room lighted automatically as the door was pushed inward. He
-entered, I pulled out the cards and slammed the door behind him just as
-the clamor of our arrival at the hospitable Hoboken shores drowned out
-all immediate danger of his cries being heard.
-
-But I ran down the stairs to the car like--like the very deuce, as my
-dear father used to say. And climbing into my place I leaned over and
-slipped the revolver into Dick's pocket.
-
-"Drive like Sam Hill!" I commanded in a fierce undertone. "I've just
-locked Pedro into the fireman's washroom and he's not going to like it
-very much!"
-
-
-
-
-XVII
-
-
-I made this remark with a pleasant smile to give the appearance of
-passing a joke, in case Pedro's partner should prove to be on board and
-watching us. Dicky smiled back, but nevertheless acted upon my hint
-without delay; and as a combined result of our smiling faces the gateman
-grinned as well and permitted our car to debark first.
-
-The delay on the pier, where we were obliged to proceed at a snail's
-pace, was a dreadful strain. Suppose that Pedro's cries were to be
-heard, and, rescued, he bore down upon us? I shuddered at the thought.
-But at length we were past officialdom and speeding up the hill and into
-the city's silent and deserted ways. Dicky turned his head to question
-me, almost colliding with a lamp-post by so doing, but his usual
-nonchalant skill saving us by a hair--or so it appeared to me.
-
-"Now what the devil did you say you did?" he wanted to know.
-
-"Pedro--the detective," I said--"I locked him up on the boat!" I
-repeated.
-
-"Good heavens, Freedom! How?" cried Peaches.
-
-I told them briefly. Richard, the chauffeur, gave a long whistle.
-
-"Then it's more than likely we are headed right!" said he. "Gosh
-Almighty, Aunt Mary, I hope I never get in wrong with you!"
-
-"Why?" I demanded. "I simply do the obvious thing as occasion arises."
-
-"Well, give us a little advance notice when you are going to pull
-something out of the usual," he replied cryptically, and turned his
-attention back to the car--for which I felt profoundly grateful--and to
-scanning the corner lamps for the name of the avenue for which we were
-seeking.
-
-Fortunately the streets were literally deserted and so we escaped
-notice. If any one had followed us from the ferry he would have been
-visible many blocks away. The only living creature we passed in fifty
-squares was a maraudering cat which shot across our path like a black
-arrow.
-
-"Good luck!" commented Peaches.
-
-But the remark failed to reassure me, for by now we had discovered and
-turned into our avenue, and its aspect was most decidedly not
-residential. In point of fact it could hardly be said to contain houses,
-much less anything worthy of being dignified by the name of residence.
-It was quite unlike any part of Boston with which I was acquainted, and
-I did not fancy its atmosphere, which was redolent of gas, to say the
-least. Moreover, it was not at all a suitable place for a duke to live,
-even when in retirement from the police. I should have felt something on
-upper Fifth Avenue much more fitting--say, in a secret chamber in the
-neighborhood of the Plaza. Or in the half-ruinous mansion of some
-aristocrat out at, let us say at Hempstead, which I understand contains
-many fine old estates.
-
-The quarter through which we were proceeding was impossible--simply
-impossible! I trust that there is very little of the snob in me, at
-least of that species of snob which cannot distinguish between genteel
-poverty and common poverty. Mere shabbiness is no cause for losing
-caste, as I myself know full well. And so I would have said nothing to a
-shabby neighborhood. But this was not even, properly speaking, a
-neighborhood, being as it was, chiefly composed of gas tanks which
-towered heavenward in shadowy menace, of warehouses with blank faces,
-and unpleasant odors.
-
-Between these at rare intervals were sandwiched little groups of
-houses--part of what might originally have been rather a fine terrace.
-Three-story brick affairs, they were, that once might have looked out
-upon the river before their giant neighbors had risen to obstruct the
-view. They stood in little groups of three or four, huddled together and
-squeezed on either hand by elbowing dirty lofts or other commercial
-tramps of buildings. Most of them appeared to be used for the storing of
-hides, to judge from the refuse in the street before them; some had been
-ruined by fire without being demolished, others gaped with broken
-windows behind their "For Sale" signs--drearily awaiting purchasers who
-never came.
-
-But here and there among them were a few which gave indication that
-human beings still used them as habitations--a dirty window curtain, a
-set of battered shades, a stoop less cluttered than those of the
-neighbors. And occasionally a dingy notice that there were furnished
-rooms to be had. But nowhere any light. It was like a city of the
-dead,--or like a town long abandoned. It was difficult indeed to realize
-that on the morrow--nay, later on in this very morning--the place would
-be a busy waterfront.
-
-It was before one of these poor houses that Richard, the chauffeur, at
-length came to a halt; and exceptionally moldy and uninviting specimen
-it was, with the storage terminal of some exporting company on the one
-hand of it and a string of unsavory-looking lodgings upon the other. The
-number for which we were looking was discernible, though scarcely
-legible above its closed storm doors--Number 1162. There could be no
-mistake. It was our destination. But it certainly did not look inviting,
-from cellar to attic the shutters, though sagging precariously on their
-hinges, were closed, and the areaway was obstructed by empty crates,
-evidently refuse from its business neighbor.
-
-"It doesn't look as if a soul were home," I observed. "How very
-disappointing!"
-
-"Houses that refugees are hiding in don't exactly open up like hotels,"
-observed Dicky dryly. "The question now is, how do we get invited in
-without bringing a lot of attention on ourselves?"
-
-"Well, there's no use sitting here discussing such things!" I snapped,
-taking out my dear father's chronometer and looking at it under the
-light of the nearest lamp. "It is now fifteen minutes of three o'clock.
-I suggest we take some action. We can't stay here, that's plain. Listen
-to that thunder, will you? I wish I had worn my other hat! I just knew
-it was going to rain!"
-
-"We might go up and ring the bell," suggested Peaches, climbing to the
-sidewalk. "That hasn't failed yet, you know."
-
-"Since we have been fools enough to come without any definite plan,"
-agreed Dick Talbot, "I suppose we may as well act as if it were an
-ordinary call. But first I'm going to run the bus round the corner and
-park it out of sight. They'll be more apt to open up."
-
-He left the motor running and assisted me to alight and then drove off
-to fulfil this plan, returning presently on foot, whereat we ascended
-the broken steps together, and Richard gave the old-fashioned bell knob
-a vigorous pull. Faintly from below came the sound of it in due time, a
-harsh jangle as when a bell clangs in an empty echoing room. Then he
-waited, but no other sound broke the stillness.
-
-"Try again," said Peaches after several minutes had elapsed.
-
-And there really being nothing else to do, Dicky obeyed, with no better
-result. Once the faint echoes of its ringing had died away within the
-building all was as silent as the tomb. A cat wailed suddenly from some
-hidden fence, causing us to start, but that was all.
-
-"There may be some other way in," said Richard in a low voice. "Though
-this is certainly the right number."
-
-"And it may be that nobody lives here too," said I dryly, "and that we
-have come upon a fool's errand!"
-
-"You knew we were chancing that!" snapped Peaches. "But I won't be
-satisfied to go away now--let's try the lower door!"
-
-Well, I could not see what sense there was in that, though our escort
-agreed. And so the two descended from the high stoop and vanished into
-the darkness of the areaway, amid the crates that were heaped within it,
-while I remained at the main entrance. The few drops of rain which had
-been falling when we arrived were rapidly increasing in number and
-force, and the thunder drew nearer and nearer with angry mutterings.
-
-Bitterly regretting that I had ever risked my best hat upon an adventure
-which seemed doomed to so tame an ending I withdrew myself from the
-open stoop and sought what scant shelter the outer ledge of the storm
-door afforded, flattening myself as much as possible and hoping devoutly
-that my ostrich tips would recurl nicely.
-
-From below came the sound of a bell, another bell this time, but ringing
-in just as desolate a way as that of the front door. Again silence
-except for that wretched feline. Then came the sound of approaching
-footsteps. Some one was coming down the street!
-
-The steps were not very loud to be sure, the newcomer being soft shod,
-and after a moment I realized that Peaches and Dicky, being intent upon
-their immediate occupation, and furthermore, cut off from this approach
-by being on the far side of the solid masonry of the high stoop, did not
-hear him. It flashed across my mind that policemen did not usually wear
-sneakers or rubber soles to their shoes, and that therefore this was not
-the roundsman of the beat. In confirmation of this supposition was the
-fact that whoever was approaching was in a hurry--not running, but
-coming on with a quick light step, very unlike the heavy deliberate
-tread of a night watchman wearing away the hours at his post.
-
-Therefore I very cautiously stuck my head round the corner, only to
-withdraw it instantly and remain motionless, soundless, against the
-door. It was a man who was approaching, his arms filled with bundles
-such as would indicate a visit to some all-night grocery or, more
-likely, delicatessen store; and his enormous height made him
-unmistakable. It was Sandro.
-
-All unknowing what awaited him, he ran lightly up the steps, glancing up
-and down the street as he did so. And as he reached the top step I fell
-upon him from the shadow, throwing both my arms round his neck and
-causing him to spill a half dozen oranges, which bounded down into the
-street and areaway--one of them, I later learned, striking Richard upon
-the head and thus giving him notice that he was wanted.
-
-"Sandro!" I cried. "Thank goodness you came home--my hat would have been
-ruined in another five minutes!"
-
-"Good Lord! Miss Talbot!" he stammered, making a futile effort to free
-himself of me.
-
-But I hung on like a leech. I feared that if I relaxed my embrace for an
-instant he would make a dash for liberty.
-
-"Oh, but I'm glad to see you!" I said. "Fear not, we know all, but are
-still your friends."
-
-By that time Peaches and Dicky were with us. Seeing this I let him go,
-and for a moment he stood there looking dazedly from one to the other, a
-side of bacon sticking grotesquely out from under one arm, a bottle of
-milk held firmly in the other hand.
-
-"Alicia!" he murmured, scarcely able to believe his eyes. "I don't
-understand. And Dick----"
-
-"Neither do we quite get it," responded Dick cheerfully. "That's why we
-are here. Just hand over the eats, old man, and let us into this palace
-of yours, where we can chin a little less conspicuously! Hurry now,
-before some unwelcome party tries to join us!"
-
-Spurred into a sort of hypnotic life the duke obeyed, finding a key and
-entering first. Peaches went next, slipping her hand through his arm as
-she went; and hastily picking up two of the oranges and a loaf of bread,
-which fortunately was nicely wrapped in glazed paper, I followed them,
-Dicky bringing up the rear and closing the door behind us.
-
-Then the duke turned on a light, after a brief interval which can only
-be explained by--well, it was probably Peaches' fault. At any rate he
-turned on a light, which disclosed a shabby, threadbare hallway, and
-then opening the door at his right indicated that we should enter.
-
-Now it was one of my dear father's iron-bound rules that no well-bred
-person ever evinces surprise at his surroundings; but it is my firm
-conviction that even he would have excused the exclamation which burst
-from my lips upon entering that apartment; in point of fact it is quite
-possible to conceive of his joining with me in expressing astonishment.
-For far from being the sordid den which I had been prepared to see, it
-was a room of such luxury as I have seldom beheld. The furniture was fit
-to grace a museum, the rugs were priceless, while on the wall hung
-several fine paintings, among which I was horrified to recognize the
-Florentine Madonna and Rubens' Venus and Mars. There were other art
-treasures too--carvings, candelabra and goodness only knows what not. At
-the moment my interest focused so sharply upon the central figures in
-the drama that I was unable to register more than a chaotic impression
-of immense wealth. The museums of Europe might well have envied that
-collection.
-
-The duke turned quietly to Peaches.
-
-"Alicia!" he said. "Now tell me--I don't understand why you have come.
-It cannot be to betray me."
-
-"Sandro!" she cried. "It is I who don't understand. You can't be a
-common thief! And if you are, I don't care. You--you may get over it.
-And I came because I love you. Do I have to tell you that? I'm never
-going away from you again!"
-
-The duke turned very white and backed away from her.
-
-"Look here!" he said. "I can't let you do this, you know. I've run away
-from you once--don't make it impossible, Alicia!"
-
-"But I have loved you right along," she persisted. "We heard that you
-were dead--and so I thought I might as well marry Mark, you
-know--because nothing seemed to matter. Oh, don't send me away! Look--I
-have carried your wallet all these years."
-
-Well, of course, Peaches exaggerated a little when she said that, but it
-was no time for correcting her statement. And anyhow the duke didn't
-seem to care. With a swift gesture he took it from her.
-
-"Do you know what this is?" he asked, looking into her eyes. "No? And
-still you believe in me!"
-
-"I knew there was something in it!" exclaimed Richard, the chauffeur.
-And he was right. There was. To think that I could have overlooked such
-a fact!
-
-Hurriedly the duke took out his penknife, ripped the edges apart, and
-from the interlining took out a thin packet wrapped in waterproof
-tissue. And I had felt that pad and thought it was mere stuffing! With
-skillful--too skillful--fingers he unfolded the covering, and opening up
-the paper it contained he spread it upon the table for us all to see.
-
-"Look!" he said. "I want you to understand what this is before we go any
-further. This bit of paper is a _carte blanche_ from--from a very
-important person in Italy. See, his signature."
-
-We looked--and though I was the only one of the three that could read
-Italian the two others were scarcely less impressed than I was. For the
-duke had spoken truly.
-
-"_Carte blanche_," said Peaches. "That means 'free hand', doesn't it?
-But how does that square you, Sandy dear?"
-
-"It doesn't, really," said he. "But if you'll all sit down I'll tell you
-just where it comes in. It's rather a long story," he added. "And my
-boat sails at eight o'clock."
-
-As if in a dream we did as he suggested. The duke himself stood before
-the open hearth, his hands clasped behind his back, his head bent in
-silence for a moment. Then he raised it as if shaking off some evil
-dream and began his extraordinary story.
-
-"In the eyes of the world I am a thief," he pronounced. "In all
-probability the greatest thief of our day, and what is more, the most
-discriminating one. You see how my taste seems to run--world-renowned
-paintings of almost inestimable value, rare carvings, tapestries and
-statues. Clumsy to handle, are they not? Frightfully difficult to
-dispose of. But that is not the strangest part of my predications. You
-will notice that all of them are of the art of a single nation--Italy."
-
-"Well," he went on, "strange as these two facts may appear, there is a
-stranger one still. Nothing that I take is ever missed. I make one
-exception to that--the Scarpia panels. I bungled that badly. And then
-last night--if it had not been for Markheim's brutality to you"--here
-Sandro's face grew livid at the recollection--"if it had not been for
-that interruption, when I remembered that I had left your little knife
-on the frame and returned to get it because I could not endure to leave
-behind the only souvenir I had of you--I would have got away clear. You
-people would have gone on living with that replica, boasting of it,
-perhaps, to the end of your lives, and then handing it down to posterity
-as a treasure of the highest order. I can assure you that there is more
-than one great collector in whose service I have been, or in whose house
-I have visited as a guest, who is doing that very thing."
-
-"But, Sandro!" cried Peaches. "What did you do it for? You couldn't sell
-such things? Where are they? Or are these some of them?"
-
-She indicated the contents of the room with a sweeping gesture.
-
-"These are my weapons," he said, smiling. "Replicas, all of them, to be
-used as the occasion rises; as I locate some treasure and plan to
-acquire it."
-
-"But do you sell them?" she persisted.
-
-"No," said he.
-
-"Then you keep them? You take them for yourself?" she cried
-incredulously.
-
-"I haven't got one of them!" he declared, "except the Madonna of the
-Lamp. And I'll not have her long."
-
-"But do you mean to say you use a fence?" Dicky broke in.
-
-"I do not," replied Sandro. "Every one of these paintings that I have
-recovered is in the hands of the Italian Government--where they all both
-morally and legally belong!"
-
-His voice had taken on a new tone and we looked at each other in
-astonishment.
-
-"Then this paper----" began Peaches.
-
-"Was for an extreme emergency only," replied Sandro. "I have never had
-occasion to use it before. But to-night I may need to, because I'm
-going to give up my job. If the police come I shall let them in. I can't
-go on any longer because of--you!"
-
-She went to him then, and we turned our heads away. It was later, when,
-still uninterrupted by the police, we were enjoying a breakfast of the
-groceries which the duke had brought in, that we learned the rest of the
-tale.
-
-It seems that both Sandro and his brother, Leonardo, had a passion for
-art, a natural inheritance from their father. And indignant at the
-spoliation of Italy by wealthy foreigners they had determined to recover
-for Italy every object of art upon which they could lay their hands that
-had been illegally smuggled out of the country, by unscrupulous foreign
-capitalists.
-
-"I was the more adept," said Sandro, "and so my brother has for years
-acted merely as a sort of curator for the originals until means could be
-found to place them on public view again. He has them at Monteventi,
-where he has lived a very retired life by preference. He is a sort of
-hermit at best, and it was at his desire that I assumed the title.
-
-"At first the whole scheme seemed nothing but a lark. I was wonderfully
-successful and I cannot, I do not now believe that I have done anything
-but right in recovering these treasures from those thieves! I was deeply
-involved in a mesh of appearances when I met you, Alicia. It was too
-late to clear my heels without taking the International Secret Service
-into my confidence. That I felt I could not do; I had dedicated my life
-to the job, you see, and so I ran away from you. Then the war came. When
-I met Dick and heard of you I thought you had forgotten--as you ought!
-Peaches, I am a miserable adventurer--I haven't a penny in the world
-beyond a tiny income which my brother shares and which we have existed
-on all these years. You see, my robberies have never netted me a
-shilling."
-
-"I should worry!" Peaches remarked.
-
-"You ought to!" he admonished her. "Good Lord, when I found you were
-going to be married----"
-
-"And so I am going to be!" declared Peaches. "Sandro, you are a Dago
-nut, but I get you perfectly. And I'm going to keep you this time. If
-you will promise to get a more usual job I don't care how poor we are,
-only if it's all the same to you I would like to get married right after
-we wash these dishes. Pa may be closing in on us, and I'd like to have
-matters cinched before he arrives on the scene."
-
-"Great Scott!" said Sandro. "Do you mean it?"
-
-"I said it!" replied Peaches. "Please, Sandy, don't make me ask you
-twice!"
-
-"But your poor father will be furious!" I protested. "And you'll have no
-bridesmaids or anything else!"
-
-"Well, I don't know just how the law will act about your other affairs
-when the truth comes out," commented Dicky, "but I will say that Pa Pegg
-will have a hard time prying the wife of an Italian subject away from
-him."
-
-"Will I stop being an American when I marry you, Sandy?" cried Peaches,
-showing the first extreme symptoms of excitement which she had evidenced
-as yet.
-
-"Yes. But not for long!" he replied. "I want to come back to this, my
-mother's country--and stay. And when I am a citizen you'll be one again,
-you know!"
-
-And so it was that it turned out to be a good thing that I had worn my
-best hat, after all. Because I had never been a bridesmaid before, and
-the feathers hadn't come out of curl after all. In point of fact the
-curl stayed in remarkably. I even noticed it after the steamer bearing
-the bride and groom had sailed and I went to the newspapers to insert
-the official notice of the wedding. There was a little mirror over the
-window and I noticed particularly.
-
-And when this social duty was done I made Dicky Talbot drive me right to
-a hotel and sent for Mr. Pegg. I was fearfully afraid, and so was Dicky,
-bless the dear boy's heart. But he went, as was his duty; and I waited,
-as was mine. No one can ever say a Talbot was a coward!
-
-
-
-
-XVIII
-
-
-It was almost two months later before the traditional bravery of my
-family was really put to a supreme test, however. All that had gone
-before--the terrible publicity which followed upon Peaches' elopement,
-the escape with her husband to foreign shores and his official "pardon,"
-the international complications which this involved and my own public
-identification with the whole affair--was as nothing to face when
-compared with the emotion which assailed me upon that late June day when
-I stood alone upon the threshold of my father's house in Boston, and
-rang the newly polished door bell.
-
-True, I had lived much in the past six and one half years, and might
-justly consider myself ripe in the experience gleaned therefrom. Without
-doubt my worldly knowledge was far beyond that of my elder sister, and
-yet nothing in my entire career caused me to experience such memories or
-cost me such effort as did the ringing of that bell.
-
-Not that there was anything in the least alarming about the aspect of
-Chestnut Street itself. Quite to the contrary, its neat brick houses
-with their scoured limestone steps and carefully trimmed window boxes
-were peculiarly restful to the eye, to the spirit. The sheltering elm
-trees were in their finest plumage of delicate green, the destroying
-beetle being still at bay. The feather brick of the sidewalk was warmly
-colorful and quaint, and a flock of grackles foraged noisily in the
-gutter. It was indeed a street of peaceful beauty--unchanged after all
-this stormy interlude of the great war and the first turbulent months of
-reconstruction. All was as I had left it. Only I was changed.
-
-And yet not so changed but that I felt the old childish fear of outraged
-authority upon me as I found myself about to face my sister Euphemia.
-The essence of her chaste personality seemed to rush out at me like a
-cooling wind to chill the ardor of my greeting even before I made my
-presence known--before I was even sure that she was at home.
-
-For I had sent no word of my coming, wishing to take her unaware, and so
-surprise her perchance into some expression of warmth. Of course her
-ignoring of my letters and gifts was not exactly what might be called a
-hopeful sign. And still, hope I did, the while I feared. But after all
-she could do no more than turn me out, and it had been my duty to come.
-At any rate she could not deny this, and so at length gathering my
-forces in a mighty effort and determining to try to be strong in my
-consciousness of right, and not allow her to get the better of me the
-way she always used to in the old days, I finally rang the bell.
-
-My heart pounded audibly as I did so, though I scarcely know just what I
-expected would happen when the door opened. Goodness knows I had time
-enough to calm down before it did--and during the wait I had ample
-opportunity for observing the changes which had been made in the home of
-my father.
-
-It had been newly painted, for one thing, and the rotting column of the
-porch which had so long distressed Euphemia had been replaced by a sound
-one. Moreover, the stable was in repair, and, if I could credit my
-senses, in use. The patch of lawn was neat and trim, and the glimpse
-which I got of the garden betrayed the hand of a hired man--a
-first-class hired man. In the parlor windows hung new lace curtains of a
-most elegant design. Altogether the effect was at once prosperous and
-dignified, and glad tears came into my eyes as I realized that this was
-the fruit of my labors! For this, the substantial restoration of the
-house which had been my dear father's pride and joy but undoubtedly
-rather jerry-built in the beginning, had been restored to its pristine
-glory by the labor of my--well, by my labor!
-
-What a beautiful thought! How it exalted me! And dear Euphemia had a
-comfortable and aristocratic though virginal old age to look forward to
-here in a house which was henceforth to be her very own, secured in it
-through my bounty. What an exquisite appreciation of the virtue of
-generosity was mine at that moment! How glad I was that she wouldn't
-have a single thing to say to me for which I would not have a mighty
-tangible comeback!
-
-And then just as I had reached this high peek of enthusiastic pleasure
-in the rewarding power of good deeds--especially good deeds that cost
-only a small portion of a handsome income--just at this point in my
-reflections I heard a slow footstep making laggard response to my
-ringing, and at once my heart sank into my walkrite shoes--for I would
-not have dared appear in French heels--and my hands trembled in their
-silk gloves. Was it Euphemia herself coming to admit the wanderer? Had
-she grown so feeble in six and one half years that her step was slow and
-halting? I feared to look as the door slowly opened. Yet look I must and
-did.
-
-It was an enormous colored woman.
-
-"Yass, Ise coming," she was beginning, when suddenly she recognized me,
-and her broad face lighted in a grin which extended from ear to ear.
-
-"Lordy, if it ain't Miss Free!" she cried. "Ain't changed nothin'
-a-tall! My lawsy--where you-all come from, Miss Free?"
-
-"I'm just from the train," I replied, stepping gingerly into the hall.
-"Surely you are not Galadia?"
-
-"I sho' am!" she said. "You didn' spek I wuz gwine be a pickaninny no
-mo', did you, Miss Free?"
-
-Of course this was exactly what I had expected--a
-pickaninny,--fourteen-year-old Galadia, short dress, long apron and all.
-Indeed not to find her so was a distinct shock.
-
-"I'm afraid I did," I admitted truthfully.
-
-"Well, bless yo' heart, Ise got fo' pickaninnies of ma own!" she
-exclaimed amazingly. "Three triplets and one single!"
-
-"Galadia!" I exclaimed. "And you are still working here. Why didn't you
-write me you had married!"
-
-"Well, dat no-count nigger what Ah married wiv--he spen' so much time in
-de jail Ah reckoned Ah couldn't afford to lose all dem handsome single
-wages you done been sendin' me."
-
-"I see!" I replied. "And now tell me--is my sister at home?"
-
-"Ain't home yet!" she said. "Reckon you didn't tell her you was comin'?
-No! Well, jes' yo' set in de parlor an I fotch you a nice cup tea!"
-
-Despite my protest the good soul hustled off to attend to my imaginary
-wants, and I stood looking about me dazedly. The change in the interior
-of the house was even greater than the external alterations, and not
-nearly so pleasing.
-
-The quaint old wallpapers were gone, and in their place were cartridge
-papers--new and drab. This was bad enough, but when I caught sight of
-mission furniture in gray oak, and a player-piano encumbering our
-erstwhile rosewood drawing-room, my blood turned cold with horror. It
-was all new, all expensive, frightfully snappy, if I may borrow the
-term, and too, too perfectly dreadful! If this had been done to my
-mother's parlor what had become of the rest of the house? I trembled to
-think! But before I had opportunity to explore further the noise of a
-high-powered car stopping at the curb outside the door distracted my
-attention.
-
-Through the lace of the new curtains I could see a slim woman in some
-sort of uniform, as she dismounted from the driver's seat. The car was
-one of those low-hung, long-chassised affairs with tool box and tires on
-the running board, solid wheels, no top and no windshield--a
-tremendously sporty affair. The chauffeuress wore heavy dust goggles and
-thick gloves, and over the smart uniform, the skirt of which did not
-quite cover her knees, a linen duster was worn rakishly.
-
-Whistling a little tune of the type popularly known as jazz she shut off
-the motor and came up the front steps, letting herself in with a
-latchkey. By this time I was fairly overcome with curiosity as to who
-this young house guest of my sister's might be, and to my great delight
-she came directly into the drawing-room. When she caught sight of me she
-stopped dead in her tracks.
-
-"Good Lord! Freedom Talbot!" she exclaimed. Then she removed the goggles
-with one hand and held out the other like a frank boy.
-
-"Glad to see you, old thing!" she said heartily.
-
-It was Euphemia!
-
-Somehow or other I tottered to a chair and sank into it, calling feebly
-for "Water! Water!"
-
-"Water! Stuff and nonsense!" said Euphemia. "A little brandy is what you
-need! Here you are!"
-
-She held something to my lips and gratefully, but expecting at any
-moment to awaken from my dream, I drank.
-
-"I carry it in my emergency kit," Euphemia was explaining. "Need it
-sometimes in my work with the boys!"
-
-"With the boys?" I asked feebly.
-
-If she had forthwith produced, like Galadia, a set of triplets and a
-single, I should not have been more astonished. In point of fact I was
-not capable of further astonishment because she had already taken all
-the astonishment I had.
-
-"Oh! I forgot. You wouldn't know, of course!" she said briskly.
-"Reconstruction work. I'm on the ambulance--take 'em out for a ride from
-the hospital and all that. Well, how are you now? Better?"
-
-"I'm as much better as I ever shall be after seeing you in the costume,
-Euphemia!" I said severely. "I'm surprised at you, I really am!"
-
-"You have nothing on me!" she retorted. "I'm as surprised at you as you
-could possibly be at me. Look at the opportunities you have had--look at
-the places you have been--the money you have earned--and then look at
-the clothes you have on!"
-
-"What is the matter with my clothes?" I gasped, outraged at her. But
-laughingly Euphemia got to her feet and coming over to me lifted my
-reticule.
-
-"Same old bag!" she said. "Full of junk, I suppose! Same old
-dress--actually the same one, I do believe! And that curled fringe.
-Really, my dear, at your age they are ridiculous!"
-
-"At my age!" I fairly squeaked with indignation.
-
-"Yes--you are far too young for them!" she went on calmly. "As for those
-gloves and those shoes! Really, Free, it's too much! I don't understand
-it, really!"
-
-This was more than human nature could endure. Either her brain had gone
-or mine had. My clothes, of course, were in many ways a concession to
-the feelings of the Euphemia I had left behind me. This new creature
-with her carefully massaged old face, her upright figure, her perfect
-hearing, was a stranger to me; but a rather splendid, competent
-stranger, I was forced to admit.
-
-"Euphy!" I cried in despair. "Will you not confide in me what has come
-over you? What has effected this amazing transformation? You owe me some
-explanation! I--I don't know what to think!"
-
-She regarded me with a look that was suddenly more serious.
-
-"I suppose it all does seem a bit queer to you," she conceded, throwing
-herself into one of the hideous new chairs with a boyish abandon. "I've
-got used to myself, you see, and I forget. I've been so frightfully busy
-all through the war too. I suppose the war and being in the motor corps
-rather waked me up a bit. The war and Uncle Joshua's money."
-
-"Uncle Joshua!" I exclaimed. "I didn't know we had an Uncle Joshua!"
-
-"Well, we had, and he left me all his fortune unconditionally, about two
-weeks after you left home," said Euphemia. "I never wrote you,
-because--well, your showing all that grit, going off your own bat and
-all, made me frightfully jealous. Made me feel so useless. And I
-determined I'd make something out of myself before I got too old. And,
-old dear, with the masseuse I've got and the good time I'm having, I
-expect to live to be a hundred. You see I went to a course of lectures
-the first month you were away. On subconscious inhibitions and
-suppressed desires, they were. I bought the ticket with the first of
-Uncle Joshua's money. I found out at these lectures that all I had to do
-to be a success was to be myself. I at once started in to be
-myself--and--here I am!"
-
-"And I slaved like a--a prisoner!" I sniffed, "and sent you money to
-squander in this--this outrageous life you are leading!"
-
-"There is nothing in the least outrageous about my life!" she snapped
-with some of her old-time asperity. "It's far less outrageous than my
-old, selfish, self-centered life was. Anybody but an old-fashioned woman
-like yourself would see that. And as for your money, every cent of it
-has been spent upon the maintenance of a motor-ambulance corps--in
-France, during the war, and here in Boston in reconstruction since!"
-
-"It must be admitted that I find the news very gratifying," I said after
-a short silence. "I am sorry I was so short. But I am upset--fearfully
-upset. I suppose--indeed I believe that you are living as you think
-right. From my standpoint I think it most unwomanly. However, I want to
-be friends. I wish to make this visit a success. I have some other
-shoes, Euphemia, really I have--quite high-heeled ones. And I only keep
-to my curls because Mr. Pegg, my husband, admires them!"
-
-That fixed her! I noted with satisfaction the look of blank amazement
-which spread over her face.
-
-"Yes, my dear!" I said. "Your masculine ways may be all very well for
-you. But they will never catch you a husband. For my part, nothing could
-appear sweeter than to go gradually down life's sunset path hand-in-hand
-with a beloved partner as I am doing--and the fact that the five-carat
-stone on the left one is a real diamond does not make me any the less
-happy!" Here I withdrew my despised silk gloves and displayed the
-beautiful solitaire which Mr. Markheim had given to Peaches and which my
-dear husband had taken off the banker's hands at cost.
-
-"And we are going to live in golden California," I went on. "Of course
-the East is all very well once in a while for a change, but for living
-give me the West. You ought to see California, Euphemia. No rain, no
-snow, no bad roads, no labor troubles and no high cost of living! And
-the delight of all the flowers you want--such blossoms--blossoms as you
-have never even dreamed of, all with hardly any cultivation! Such
-beaches, Euphemia! Such lovely houses! We never have to heat them in the
-winter, except occasionally, you know."
-
-"Perhaps I'll motor out some day!" murmured Euphemia, plainly awed.
-
-"Oh, do!" I cried. "Gasoline is only nineteen cents in California. We
-grow our own, you know!"
-
-"Must be pretty nice!" said my sister, now almost thoroughly cowed. I've
-noticed that is usually the effect it has upon the listener when they
-get me started about the Coast.
-
-"Oh, you'd love it!" I went on enthusiastically. "You know you
-Easterners never see the real California fruit. It's so much larger and
-finer than that which you get. Of course there is only about enough of
-it for home consumption, so we eat it ourselves. We couldn't supply the
-demand it would create. The California farmer, my dear, is the only
-farmer in the world who consumes his own best products. And the life is
-so varied--boating, swimming, fishing, hunting, tennis, tobogganing at
-Truckee in the winter! Everything!"
-
-"And so you are going to live on a ranch and become a
-regular--er--vegetable!" exclaimed Euphemia, apparently unable to think
-of anything more contemptuous.
-
-"Well, Mr. Pegg says I am pretty wild stock," I admitted, blushing, "but
-he hopes that by cultivating me he can tame me. And I'm sure I hope he
-will!"
-
-THE END
-
-
-
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