The Day of Days

of Eighth Avenue, P. Sybarite turned west on T

off from the sidewalk with a rusty railing: a plot of arid earth scantily tufted with grass, suggesting that stage of baldness which finally precedes complete nudity. Behind this, the moat-like area was spanned to

of kindly light to mitigate its homeliness. In this etherea

face, upturned to his charmer, wreathed in a fond and fatuous smile. From her higher plane, she smiled in like wise down upon him. She seemed in the eyes of her lover unusually

bright even at such times as belladonna lacked in them; her nose pretty and pert; her mouth, open for laughter (as it usually was), disclosed twin rows of sound, white, home-made teeth. Her active young person was modelled on generous lines and, as a rule, clothed in a

ng the gate, delicatel

announcing in an underton

young gent," remarked Miss Prim

ed hastily. "Think I better spring i

e plant, sure. I'd love to watch you feed it to him, but

'll swallow i

Prim in open derision. "

orus lady began to crow with delight, welcoming hi

. Postscript-as I live! Hitherwards, litt

Miss Prim for her unaffected high spirits, and beca

at the lady from the foot of the steps.

t oughta carry on like that-at your age, too! Not that I mind-I rather lik

uoted gently. "How shall I hide the fact of my

ll be bitin' the fence.... What's all this about yo

ad counted on the pleasure of inviting you mys

d to death, and I love you a lot more'n I do George, anyway. So t

el bett

know!" Then she jumped up and wheeled about to the door with petticoats professionally a-swirl. "Well

' to go dec-decol-low neck and all that? Cut it,

for my comp'ny, all right. Besides, you'll be at the back of the box and no

e vestibule. George shook a

e it from me. Anyway, I'm glad it's a box: then I can hide unde

ight," said P. S

don't dress up like a horse. Wha

ar, and what I stand i

as P. Sybarite would have passed on. "Wait a sha

uce P. Sybarite, after the hesitation of an instant, to accede to his request. S

el

ed dubiously. "You better brace yourself to le

gely, George.... But perhaps you're no more addled than usual. Consi

put you next to the facts before you ask her. M

ooked startle

he exc

s a shame. I know you counted on it, bu

. How do you know Miss Lessing

all right," George returned with confidence. "Th

rong?

r bein' w

countenance of the shipping clerk t

verated with some heat. "I suspicioned somethin' was

in you

o scorch your collar. She's all right. Only-she 's

N

om his coat pocket and unfolded its still damp and pungent pages. "And soon's I seen that," he added, indicating

rse mesh of the reproducing process had blurred it to a vague presentment of the head and shoulders of almost any young woman with fai

g, the little bookkeeper conned carefully t

BLESS

n, Bayard Shaynon. This engagement was whispered to be distasteful to the young woman, who is noted for her independent and spirited nature; and it is now persistently being rumoured that she had demonstrated her disapproval by disappearing mysteriously from the knowledge of her guardian. It is said that nothing has been known of her whereabouts since about the 1st of March, when she left her home in the Shaynon mansion on Fifth Avenue, ostensibly for a s

P. Sybarite returne

rge demande

el

ayed some little exasperation in

arite iterate

he well-known family of that name-very closely relate

ly: "I'm not even distinctly

you don'

e," protested P. Sybarit

t observation, George slapped the folded

e don't mean n

thing, as

semblance between Molly Less

nd that portrait?" aske

for each other. Any one w

'm not

tta admit they loo

ins who didn't loo

-image of Marian Blessington-and you know it. What's more-look at their names? Molly for Mary-you make that?

ge, you're trying to imply that Miss Less

methin' then

bles in their surnames and a fancied resemblan

e gettin'

ge, I've been doing you a g

eyes and emitted

explained patiently. "Now you develop a famous, if fatu

s so. When did Miss Lessing come here? Five weeks ago, to a day-March foist, or close onto it

n't claim it's true. In fact, the story is contradicted by th

Mauretania, like he says-how's it come

and annoyed by fortune hunters, may have elected to sail in

ed this in pr

believe what I

h of one iota

scomfiture of P. Sybarite, threatening to collapse of sheer intrinsic flimsiness. He had counted so confidently on the credulity of th

grasped at one fin

ieve me if you don't wanta. Only wait-that's all I ask-wait! Y

So that is why you thought sh

got

necessarily be such a snob that she wouldn't

You'l

telling you, you're wrong. Quite wrong. In the head, too, Ge

uding, glistened wit

t her a

eet. I dropped into Blessington's f

e fell

ed my invit

e ground his cigarette b

right the first time. Only-you just grab this from me: maybe she's willin' to run the r

would take a job at the glove counter of her own store, where everybody must know her by sight-where her gu

Bross recov

it out the safest place for her would

n to living here, at six dollars a week, and clerking in a department store-simply because, according to

and fell back again upon an imagination for the time

t above it, if all they tell of him's true. Maybe he's got her coin away from her, an

inferred from a sudden change in the expression of the little man's eyes. Moment

ical grin. "But this time you're mistaken. I'm not arguing wi

l, I got eight iron bucks that says Mari

d show of his

rge," said P. Sybarite. "Besides

my eight, if you've got five that

ttle wad of bills that represented his weekly

uld you set

isted George in an exp

sk her y

e-

stand on h

el

glancing up the street. "Quick, now; you'

decision, George returne

rved in accents of deep pity.

n't you,

s just kiddin' you along, to

n," agreed P. Sybar

uh

e a word of this

y n

o-because," said P. Sybar

id me? Holy M

s the shop girl turned in at the gateway, lowering his own voice and fixing the shipping clerk with a steely stare, "will b

t; exhibited a distorted and emp