Evening Star Newspaper, December 19, 1926, Page 94

e THE SUNDAY STAR. WASHINGTON, D. €. DECEMBER 19, 1926—PART 8. NOT TO BE OPENED TILL CHRISTMAS Flora Vowed to Marry for Money, and Then Forgot About It—Helen Didn’t R s — OOKING over her shoulder, more exhaus than swimming out | convivial habits, but Chester, who had | Roddy had come hack to her. She re-|the door—that in a few seconds b Lurning her wheel defuly, Flora Lo Jhem. Ske looked about her. 1t been with them the yecord length of | membered how, in that happy #me on | would go. He put his hand on the acked the vellow stalioh Wagon | was late—even the beach was empty- | time—two vears—appeared absolutely | Long Island, when they had talked |knob, turned it. The door did not to the side door of the tiny ing. and the Atlantic was, except for |perfect. He had been hanging wreathe | of the undersea palace and pearls, he |open. He shook it, hammered it post office and the postmaster’s | Flora, like an undiscovered sea. Of {in the hall, and a great pile of ‘them | had mentioned a jewel, not a pearl—a | vainly. S #on, almost obscured behind the course, there were the life-saving men | was to be iaken to the town hall that | single dlamond that had belonged to | She seized her chance mid of packages in his arms, be o lon shore watchinz her, but Flora dld | evening, where, according to a custom | his mother. “Can't you belleve I love you?" she pile them in. Some of them were ob- | not wish to siznal for help—certainly | instituted by the Gages, the well-todo | " Sie oiipsed the ring Into her bag |sata “Even 1 T were mercenary, 1| viously toys, with the trade mark of 4 [not until Walter was off the beach. | portion of the community dressed aand ran down to dinner. The family— | should still be myself, and nothing ;\"‘Il known' shop on_ the Wrapping | suddenly, outside the barrels, she | Christmas tree for the children of the | (e more or les grown-up members | would make me humiliate myself as | /aper, and the postmaster's son |saw a dark head coming along it less. ; s | w n ] | thought how pleasant it must e to | “Hi." sald Flora, but, of course, a| “Guite a load, miss” said Chester, | Of, the family—were already at the | 'm doing_—except love—— — Jave the opening of those, whereas 'head under water cannot hear. “Hi," | peering into the back of the car. *I|I®NE 00l ot she sprang | Amn T mome tiar this fellow Who sent Tlora was thinking how poisonous it I Flora again, He neither saw|began to be rather anxious about |, " fof MENLTE™ Piete Snd gt ‘\_:‘:“‘"h’[:“;"":"m;"m'”w"l o was of her family- ugh motives ard, and might have shot past | you.” : Y | . A o of rather ineflicient economy—to In.|{her if she had not leansd out and| It was characteristic of the house. |Presented itself. Mr. Gage did not feel|got no further in his sentence, for, »ist on spending Christmas in the [given his hair a pull. This brought |hold that only Chester should be|inclined to go himeell, But cowd motjas he opened his hand to return the country. when the happiness of her |an astonished face up immediately be- |aware that the hour was late and the | $PRIOVe €5 B2 h‘,f‘umfi__"f"_m" i | soRCEICTS snatched it from him | whole life depended on her being low her, not a handsome face, but so | roads dark and alippery. Flora was|Shess continued butgReiss Siers must |and threw it through the window. It town freckled and good-tempered that Flora | touched. 1 Feod ghbor- | crashed lm'oulh-dX l“lnkllng like a| She cast her eves over the boxes |had no trouble in explaining her sit-| “Worrled, Chester?” she said, [P0 .0 <0\ (6 arive Miss G _ | falling star, and disappeared Into the and parcels—that was from Aunt Lily, | uation. watching him as he took the packages | ., & * ¥ B heriart mecsal 'lf‘e te ckness of the night. | probably a knitted anti-macassar—a 1 don't o #to Alitnl | Em | OUE. " FhbES you’ think {T'm ‘aigood | 1he Vilngs; (ORSA(ar, HEIRLH. LOBee | ephRe.: aheiskia, s sil 'L care for | book from Walter; Walter always sent | drowning.” she gasped, “but 1 don't | driver? ter “"“""v i n'}"‘}‘:adl dis- | yamonds that you don’t send me. her a book. Ah, that looked interest- | believe I could make land without | "mLl nh(.cn'lr n]\- drl\:‘ng, miss,” nnflgll;‘";ed him. He evidently other l;lb hr'"k,m,,,“v lh"“ i That was a | ing—but it was for her mother. Good elp.” She explained further that she | SWered the butler sadly. “It the - " valuable stone,” he sa hekvens. hother Tocking. horse. for | had been erom o o frlend who. hoq | limes—these bandits and burglars, It| They set out at last, Flors was too Not to me,” she returned. Oh Dher small brother. Now they were |wanted to help, and o, if it.-were|Stems there Was another robbery at|much exoited to talk, though- Cheater y," she added, “if you will say | all in | possible, not to look as if she were | MI. Gorman's last night, across the | Was in an unusually chatty mood. He | hat you don't love me, T'll give vou | “Better take the first-class in front,” | being saved—— He understood, mountain.” ¥ told her all about his arrangements | up without a word, but id the boy, and he gave her a b | Swimming on his back. he took her | Flora laughed. T think I'm safe | for Christmas day, and how he had | T can't suy that," he answered. of letters, and with them a small, | chin in his clasped hands, so that |{rom jewel robberies she sald. In.|Brouped the presents. love you, but I cannot belleve th square box. This last was done up |from the be: they must have |deed, there had been no jewels in the You mustn’t forget to give me | oy love me. I never shall.” very neatly in white paper: it was |looked as if they were swimming in | Gage family in her time. Except for|that one that came for vou this aft-) * kR ok sealed at both ends, as jewelers seal | single file, and towed her in. By the | & family portralt or two and a few odd | ernoon, miss.” he said severely. She | ™ | ok Daroels e 1 e e e e ey Toached shore, tusry ome|BiSces of Lowsstolt dlaske sst, all|feit gullty, koowing she hia burn: | JHETY sisted st each other in sil-| once on each side—'Not to Be|had gone home. The life.guards were |5iSn8 Of former greatness had van-(the wrappers and was holding the | ence, conscious of the wide,| [DATRA Ul Chotstant | 1 ves O BUIVRE CaWey | thie ‘Neach Gnitieiias | 1aed, ring tightly Inside her littie bag al |chilling spaces that separated them. | et o et e s e A e o | Wi dnpaet oot of v Gvor, s | Skt mnriosnt, - " | Then Roddy was almost thrown to| S X el ) . they 1eft | chauffeur had left the week before,| “Oh, ves, Chester,” she said the ground by the door being silently | printed letters told her nothing—but |one standing. and Flora lay under | it Chegter would park the car some: X Wik ik | and quickly opened. A man, an utter | T00k It 1D, ARG Eave 1t & shake; the | beside her, stll JooIng t her, ae she | here_he was-, better driver than | Py the time they resched the town | srenger, entered and sid: SEENIty Wk ‘@iipleaarnt. heavy 'little | knaw very wwell : °r', @s She | (he chauffeur. “I hope the children hall. much of the work had been | “Will you be 80 good as to show me | chunk. 1t looked like jewelry, it shook | Flora. unclosed one eve and sald:|aront, 8DOUt Bhe oald. o of taoes|done. The tree, something like the | the diamond which that young lady | like jewelry. But who was there who | “Just swimming over from Spain, 1| (aya were’ Chrisimas morning. was | Shave of a lady in a crinoline, was ).\::”mlnx to pass you a moment | wouid send her a jewel? ® |suppose? You certainly weren't there | Lo e ie the bt he msacute|Already looped with glittering fes. 18800 o 4 L s she drove home through the twi- |a moment before.” e °nts | toong and paper roses, and tinkling 3 ¥ coming Into Bkt 6F the Troatber fterneon her | STou may have Heard of the o] unused drawing | heils and lights. On a ladder, ar | room like fhat and nearly knocking Smaglantion played: abont that box, |man of the Lea.” he answered. Lotk | o o I et c. © ;. | rROgINg & Bthr on RHe very tip:top, | me down and interrupting: a.conver: and, as she was 21 and unhappy, ali | out e f;;“(‘\‘"’“hn"g;flz‘gd ';"T:;‘Qk‘:'f:‘:“;r‘f;" Ay | was a figure in evening clothes, buf satlon?” asked Roady. ' i - her dreams were gay. Suppose it| They k - i i without a coat, 8o that the black satin This suggestion that he did not . 3 K D i ci ay o ing SOR medvet n , 2 ¢ oy ¢ shone sleek «moo e elec. | Flora that she turned to the new- | = i e e e o o —— pote he was taking this way of telling which he lived and the pearls and bul- | Chesier, who, true to his nationality, shone sieekc and smooth in the elec-| Flors, that ste ‘turned 1o the new.| of letters, but ther w0 febies trown | chs D e i A Bive. vonly |fell in eastly with traditions, assured | * fjorg could not have described what | I just threw it out of the window.” | In& Roddy. “This Is the Gorman dia ‘I don’t believe it any more,” he | guessed at the explanation by nos §C lotters. but there was no letter from | she would make the final dive. Would | per that the little boya Were at SUD-|4he felt on aeeing him again. In the | The man looked very cross. His eye | MONd all right. There's u $5.000 re- |sald, and fook her in h ma and | I presume. 1'm sorry to tell you, Miss B T s—bills | she> p per ami “che 1B givis—the yeung | B0 TSROSO R L | e Role Tt the v eS¢ | ward for its return.” Kissed her. to forgive me for |Gage, that your butler is a thief S said Flora, not knowing how | adjes, as he rather flatteringly called i s n the glass. He made | "\t'hat the deuce does that matter | having been so egotistical and stupid.” | «Chester?” sald Flora The Gages were one of those fami- [ much he meant, but hoping he meant | {ham. - were helping Mrs. (age tie up |21 then seemed to enlarge and fill |a dive for the door G B rester?” sald Yes who had always—that is to sav. (o great deal, for she had fallen In | the last package. He had taken all |Ner Whole body. then her knees felt | ;¢ wae o great relief to have him BT L e ot il it seems he has been carryink for three or four generations—had |love with him. Presently he went | (he parcels out 5% the back of the car, | DTICkly, aa If stuffed with cheatnut | gone "and’ Flora went hack (o the keap running in &nd aut of the room | LHEY stoot tocked m et ather'a | ON & series of robberles. When b money and large families and countr s and hought buns and ginger-|and his eye fell on the small box in | hurt®: Most peculiar of all. her arms | point. “Why can't you believe me.| “I'm a detectlve, from the insurance | e Alsavering. how utterly | found himself suspected he malled the places; so that now, when the money |snaps and bottled soda-water of a o 8 Roddy?" she said o i (ot . g » | Gorman diamond to you, B hensat ko iun S L L e Oy | ToEaAibants. ellc kntl Botisiin.. Bat none of tHeke . company.” sald the man. “I want| unnecessary were any verbal explana- | couMl MU e ' o¢ ‘opening pres PGS, s gt s : "| “Hadn't I better take that, 100, |symptoms was apparent. _“Don’t you see that the chain of | this girl to tell me how sha came into | tions. Several minutes, a long time | YO e = ot hadie causes, only the country place aud the 1:-;:;;‘:‘1:‘:7;:5 with laughter and bitter | mig2 he sald, rather reprovingly. | Haif am hour vasaed. Roddy was circumstantial evidence s complete?” | possession of this stone.” 7| elapsed. Then the detective was back ::;‘):ne:’l“(‘l‘x‘h ‘hriatmas. 1€ ou_ nadnt Archibald Gage, like most Gages, was Tk ok ok X% We are, as George Meredith has o | still up the ladder. Ann passing her. | gt 0o 50 o "‘“ °m;‘9~;.‘m‘1'"' i‘rf:" Keep a civil tongue In your head,” |in the room again. |1t back and disappeared. Wasn't it ncapable of dealing with such a situa- : 3 [truly observed, betrayed by what is | whispered: “Cheer up. What goes | puodd (0 HEERY € FICh man. You | sald Roddy. = This man.is getting to be a perfect ||, ko you broke the rule?” fon. He merely put the bills, un. | JHAT evening she discovered he |false within. As Flora met Chester’s up must come down, you know.” Erpd O DRvit G Why, I got it in the mail today.” | pest,” sald Roddy loudly, but Flora| 4\ gior than he knew opened, into his pocket and said to was Roddy Lee, the great for-|eve she knew t she had contem-| Tt is possible, Victorian ficton to | P85y im0 0 0y replied Flora. Something in Roddy's | sald nothing. Chester was with him.| (75 " 50 0 e eive me,” M Bis wite: I don't know What we can | tune, the boy so many people were |plated breaking the great family rule. |the contrary notwithstanding, to be | 1 9I0WL T Gdwe T did not know | tone had made her happy and she felt horsibly embarrassed at| -t 40 PObE SO FHELE Je0 o do about it, Mary; every year we go | trying to marry. Her hand shot out toward him, and |a good, modest girl, yet not a perfect 4 Ll A Registered being seen by her own butler, with her | L'0S 7 v 2 % . 4 - oo ] “Helen sald 9 . head on Roddy’s should detectives. It wasn't my fault, I can into our capital; it won't last forever, At first it didn’t make any differ- | then shot back. fool. Flora identified Roddy's coat | .gp."jiaq +No; Just the regular m: ICAG OfF AVOHKY 8 SAUUIIEE, " o b All this trouble.” - " : 4 s ritie. SEIE Aoys MR Avent O TIOTA | racy v : ‘o, 111 | nanking on a chair—she even loo She lied. 0 one would send a jewel like that| “Is this your chauffeur?” said the |assure you. A s - ¥ou kmow,” and went off to play golf. 0" she said deflantly. “No, T'll|hABEINE OF & € jooke? he had no motive for lying. |unregistered,” said the detective | detective, “There hasn't been any trouble, ex PR did not quite know, and did not much | aka this up mysels into the inside pocket and saw Roddy's | . » i - re, wi e the; XAy o . . | d the tailor' N Whereas you— “It happened.” sald Roddy, “exactly | said Flora; “he’s the butler.” | cept the sticking of the door,” said R GAGE (e had Beenibom s | oy D0 OF oL they Were ‘en Very good, miss,” said Chester |name and the tailor's address. Then | WIJtSAR YOS o as Miss Gage tells you.” “Oh," sald the detective and disap- | Roddy. - s gaged. 1dly. There wa » question that [She sat in that chair and walted. | - ‘ PESTE d o Vernon of Vernons Landing) wor. | *fnen her past rose amt destroyed | 00 n::](h:;;ur:‘\,(:anmhn!m‘ll:)lh She | People came and talked to her—some. | | Al the realization that he could be. | The detective shook his head. “The |yeared with Chester. He was gone | “Sticking of the door?" sald Postley ried a great deal, but she, too, could | her—a past so innocent and so fatal; | 4id not approve of it herself. | times she even heard what they said, | lleve Helen, rather than herself, it|circumstantial evidence s pretty (so long that they had time to discuss | “Didn’t vou know that you two had Tot ses her way to depriving the hil- | for she had always said that she In. | ks went tn her foom. with her box | AR time went on, the high tide of | %6emed as If her heart broke. Al she | strong." . | % number of important topics which |been practically under arrest all this dren of their natural rights and pleas- | tended to marry money — obviously | clasped in her hand. She had by no | her bliss began to ebb. Te had not | cared for now was to make a dignified | “Circumstantial evidence-—what ut-|had been ecryinz for attention. For |time? ures. The younger boys and girls were | the thing for her to do—and €asy to |jneans resolved to open it—or so she | @ven looked down. It was late. Some ;"“' She walked to the door, An|ter nonsense! sald Roddy instance, what Lud been Flora's sen-{ They did not answer him: they did sent to the best private schools, and|do, she had insisted. She had said |imagined, | of the workers were heginning to go | NOUT a0 she would have said It wax | “Oh, Roddy. do you mean that?’|sations every time she read his name |not need to answer. Thelr faces the eldest son was a freshman at col-| it often, and once she had said It | Dinner was to be earlier than usual | bome. Yet there was the ring on her | iMmpofsible that she should be the one | said Klora. She ran to him in the papers: what he had felt on |plainly betrayed the fact that thex Jege. Flora, the eldest of the children, | before Helen. Helen was one of those | that evening, o that she could get off | inger. No one else could have sent “‘A,{"““ him. X “Of course I mean it," he answered | ceelng her at n cabaret one evening— | had not known it—had not known i was the only one who suffered by the|voracious young married women who |by 8 o'clock to the trimming of the It | 00d-by, Roddy,” she said, and |tenderly. "The idea of any one sus-|only it had turned out not to be she. |at the time. and were not much in present spasm of economy, which con-| take rich young men out of the |tree in the village. At last he cama down the ladder and | turned the handle. Then she shook it | pecting vou of stealing.” Then there wns the full history of |terested In it now. sisted in renting the town house for | mouths of the poor. Helen repeated | While she was dressing she was approached her & i She looked up into his face. “Dear- | how she had herself invited to a house | They moved out into the main room the Winter. Of ail the Winters in her |it all to Roddy—in the sweetest lisp |called to the telephone by Ann, a| “Good evening.” he said. “I'm |, c¥ou will ind hundreds of men to | est,” she said, “T don’t think stealing’| party in his vicinity. All the lights were out, but by the life, Flora most passionately desired to|imaginable, and only told one fie, her | friend, whose family, lucky creatures, | afraid you're sitting on my coat.” He "‘,FI,"‘“- e eald, - . |ls so b it's a clean sort of | All these had been touched on be- |electric lamps outside they could still spend this one in New York. minimum. ' She said Flora must have | had moved to New York in October, |€lipped it on and was, turning away, | T sick of telling you that I don't | crime 5 A | tore they were again interrupted— |see the dressed Christmas tree stand In September she had fallen in love|known who he was, for she, Helen, [but they always came back and | his face bard as steel want any one except you,” she an “Is that s0?" said the detective, and | this time by Mr. Postley, who, if any | ing like a deserted beauty. They were —the first time in her life. A great|had pointed him out at the races one | opened the country house for the holi- | I must speak to you,” she said. :'W;N:v n!umnz at the door. | left the room, without any one notic- | one had looked at him, might have |hand in hand. The sheriff watched surprise to her, for she had always be-| day, and Flora seemed so interested | days. “Oh, what's the use?” he answered. | Suddenly it opened again, and the | ing it been seen to be in an agony of em- |them go. fore imagined as she listened wonder.|in him. And she went on to explain | Ann was a good friend, a friend to | “The thing 1s dead and buried. Don't | JaMe MAN wa« in the room. This time | “But what you accuse me of —Iying | barrassment. | “Love,” he said aloud, “is & wonder ingly to the confidences of her friends,| how she did not blame Flora—a girl | whom You could trust everything, and, | let us dig it up. It would hurt us | he had the diamond in his hand. | to some one T love—that wowld be a| “I am so sorrv, Mr. Lee, after all |ful thing, and that's sure.” that it was an experience she was|had to think for herself, when she |naturaily, she knew all about Roddy. | both." | __"This ix serious.” he said. address. | horrible thing to do.’ vour kindness,” he began. “But you've | (Copyright. 1926.1 never likely to undergo. had a selfish father llke Archibald |She called up now to say she heard Nothing could hurt me as 1',.,1"— o i G - - o . 1| | She had been staying with some | Gage—they all might land in the poor- | that he was spending Sunday with the | being hurt now,” she returned, ople on the south shore of Long Is.|house, the unfortunate creatures! Emorys, and would, of course, be at| She saw one of the vestrymen of | . . and. It was a brilliant September | mean it isn’t mercenary—it's almost & | the trimming of the village Christmas |the church, also the local sheriff—-a IAmerlcan k R o day—the sea was very blue and the|family duty for the poor child.” tree. Ilora’'s hand, holding the re- kind man, but long-winded, and care- | l sun was very hot, and the wind was| But Roddy did not care to figure in | ceiver, began to shake. She said; “Oh. |ful of perods. He wanted, she sup At Christ Feast in Other Land blowing wisps of foam from the reg-| Flora’s life as a family: duty. He |will he, if he knows I'm going to be |posed, to thank Roddy for his work ular waves which broke always in the [asked her whether-it was true that there” To which Ann replied: “Why | They would never get rid of him. She BY PROSPER BURANELLI. is a national dish with us, but on|was turkey stuffed with rice and| After church comes the main Christ ‘C HRISTMAS is a day of piety |Christmas it, is especial and the blg- | chestnuts. | mas dinner, of which the principal in and a day of poetry, and |&est and the best. The first week of | At a French restaurant the pro-|gredients are roast goose stuffed with Christmas is a gastronomical | December is pig-killing time, and by | prietor informed us that the French |sausage meat, and a variety of cakes day also. The earth has | Christmas everything Is ready for the | Christmas dish was roast goose. | headed by straeussel kuchen and baum | many lands and Christians | cocldo. At a Mexican establishment the | kuchen, which latter is a cake baked | have many Kinds of cookery. Then| ‘“Take the two sausages, morcilla| word was that the rich went in for | more or les in the shape of a Christ let us celebrate with song and a loos- | and longaniza, and the smoked pork suckling pig and imported Spanish|mas tree. The meal may last until ening of belts the other ways in other | tozino, add to them the bea gar- | cidra, the poor for roast mutton.) the next day. places of eating (and in non-prohibi- | banzos, and boil them all together |frijoles, tortillas enchiladas and| At a Hungarian place a veteran at tion countries, drinking) on Christmas. | and you have the dish cogido. Tt is | pulque. the art of serving food asked whict Regal England had her wild boar | very good, and when you have eaten| “But.” observed Moneta, “we've had | Christmas dinner was meant. There | ronsted whole and horne aloft majes- | plenty you are ready for the drink, enough of these light lunches. Let's|were two {n Hungary, he said—one on tically on & salver. These free United [ cldra. That is the favorite Spanish |0 some place where they eat some-| Christmas eve and the other at noon States have their turkey, not quite <o [heverage and the necessary heverage | thing on Christmas.” {on Christmas day. The characteristic majestic, but flling enough. There | for Christmas, the marvelous cidra, | So we went to a German restau- | dish for both is roast duckling. are other dishes characteristic and | which in English is called cider, hard | rant, | The Christmas eve meal is distin ser in their own longitudes. So | cider. For the Christmas desserts| [n Germany the Christmas tree is|uished by a wine soup with egss. s s a round, u seasonable gastro- |we have the favorite aroz con leche, | unvefled at 7 or 8 o’clock on Christ-| The full gastronomical grandeur to | nomical journey through Christendom. | which in English is known a& rice | mas eve. After there has been a|Which Christmas can attain was dis | The inspiration came in a small, | pudding.” | general thanking for the presents the | covered among the Russians friendly restaurant. = There the pa After that we went to a Greek re: ‘r‘utinu begins. People of good health | In addition to sundries in the way SAID THE MAN. “I WANT THIS GIRL TO TELL ME HOW SHE CAME INTO POS- 1ON OF THIS STONE.” 5 me spot, so that it was easy to dive|she had said all these things, and should he have come into the neigh- hrough them and swim out to the| Flora, Parrels, although she was not a strong | belleving she would nave plenty of $wimmer. Beside her was her cousin | time Walter. Walter had really no faults|“Yes," tcepl that he was In love with her, | speak to again d did not consider it important that | ahe was not in love with him—a state | who had brought of mind which led at times to his|tempted to neutralize the effect of his being frritating. As he swam beside | fortune by teaching him that he was | not attractive personaily mssured her that he could pull her|fixed bellef that no wom in, even if she were drowning, only | to love him for hiniself. she mustn’t grab him about the neck, | 4rd that he did not mind in the cept the situation without action wrote, trying to tell him what she suf fered through the breaking of their answer the She went to endless trouble to | | ket herseif invited to stay in his neigh borhood, but he avolded a meeting. w York, the chances | were in favor of thelr meeting sooner or later, but a Winter in the country All of which statements, except the | \waq death. | Ber he exhorted her not 10 be nervous ast, altbough it was going to make im late for luncheon engagement ‘o which Flora replied that she had 'friends! intention of grabbing him about the neck, that she was a competent wimmer, and that, as a matter of ct, she liked swimming alone. wanted to sit on the barrels and think frst, were untrue, as she realized the instant Walter took her at her word and swam back to the beach. Flora went on and xat on the rope with ber arm about a barrel. She was out —they kept pulling her back and A She heard afterward that an aunt,| him up, had at- Flora was too sensible a girl to ac. and | 8he had been in most all of the servants of the Gage of breath and had meant to rest!|household had some disadvantage, or there. But the slow, regular swells |they would not have stayed for irregu- were stronger than she had expected | larly paid wages through a Winter in see you?" said, | e o e and she had never seen him to | HE oniy you want me?”’ “Only to say dinner is ready, miss {he returned sadly, and went down Iroom. Dressing, however, wis almost felt so much like crying that she sat down to cry—and found she couldn’t Her eye fell agaln on the sealed hox the code of the Geges and open it. It seemed rveally possible that it was |from Roddy. value. She only knew, as in dreams o1 1l tact, she =aw to her al keep h « fhad tost mer one chance. borhood at all if he doesn’t want ‘”1"‘” ring and held it out to Roddy. upstatrs telephone in_the age house was in the hall { Flora was still talking when she saw | Chester approach the door. Thinking he had a message, she called: “I'm here at the telephone, Chester. Did | stairs. Flora rushed back to her | impossible. Her hands shook. She and this time she decided to violate She cut the string, pried off the | seal and opened a small, rather cheap- looking pasteboard box. She took the E drove up to the front door, and | cover off, and there was an enormous Chester, the butler, came out. Al-|light-blue diamond, set as a ring—as I blue as the sky at dawn, as sparkiing as an icicle in the sun, and a little larger than the diamonds on playing cards. Its value must have been im- mense, but Flora did not think of its | 4 “I can't keep this,” she said. He took it in silence and looked at {1t. Postley, the sheriff, was now be- | {side then | “Could I trespass on your time & { few minutes, Mr. Lee,” he began, “and vours, Miss Gage, if 1 might?" . He |opened a door into a room back of {the hall, used, it came dimly to Flova, s u sort of jail, for the windows had | with eggs, sugar and raisins. It is| bars across them. “I'll be back be- fore many minutes,” he sald. They were alone, “What is this”" Roddy asked, star- ing at the little pool of blue light in | his paim. ‘Didn’t you send it to m “Why should I send a diamond ring | tions?” sald I. “What especial Christ |to you?" he replied. | The form of the denial was unneces- | sarily harsh, but she did not notice it. |nor did she pause to speculate as to who the sender might be. She did care, since it was not Roddy. “Oh, my dear,” she said, “we were | 50 happy, and now we're so wretched.” He moved toward the door. “I hope |you will be happy again” he said |formally, “with some fellow who will be ablé to satisfy all your ambitions.” She could not speak. A sort of paralysis seemed to come over her, as she realized that he was moving to . “People stay at home. Even the | She took drone, Moneta, caught in advance | tayrant, where the proprietor vouch-|and appetite are likely to continue it, | of appetizers, soup and fish, roast | with ‘the spirit of the approaching | feast of the nativity. smote his portly | { middie with both handa. “On Christmas,” said he, “on Christ- mas it is necessary to have panetoni. | | Without panetoni there can be no ! | Christmas.” | There were certain foreigners pres- ent who asked what panetoni was. | One of them, named Smith, was par- ticularly ignorant on the subfect. “1 cannot tell you about the pane- | toni right away,” responded Moneta. | “You do not eat the panetoni right | away. Much goes hefore the panetoni. | “It is 30 years since I left my town on the Lake of Como, but the C‘hrist mas is like yesterday. The feasting begins after the midnight mass on | Christmus morning. We huild a_great | | bonfire in the church square. We all | sit around the high flames and sing, | and some dance. When the fire is down we go home and drink white | wine until It is time to go to mass| | at 11 dlelock. After mass everybody | goes to his house | tavern is empty. If a stranger is not invited to somebody's house he is a lonely man. Each family stays by itself and passes the day with eating Christmas dinner and singing. The dinner has many things. There is the zampone. It was pig-killing time the first week of December. and pork sausage. the zampone, is just ready at Christmas. The bigrest dish is the turkey, just as in this country It is stuffed with chestnuts. Last comes. the paneton]. “They eat panetoni because they have panetoni. The baker of the town makes presents to the families, | and the presents are panetoni. It is an old tradition. They say that 300 years ago a certain baker of Milan ! wanted 10 make a Christmas present to a noble patron He invented panetoni It is a sweetened bread It is made of ordinary bread dough beautiful with wine. That is what it 18 for, to go with the wine that {comes after dinner. We drink wine {all year round in my province, but |on Christmas we have panetoni with | | the wine.” “But what abhout the other mna mas dishes have ey ” “In Washington,” cried the padrone. con grande espressione, as they say in music, “they have all the nations. We will take a taxi and find out.” He took us to Spain, or rather to his friend’s place, where there was an Asturian named Jose Fernandez 3 v, said Fernandez, ‘which is | northern part of §pain, what you have for dinner on Christmas depends on how much money you've got. Wellto-do people will most Ilfkely have suckling pig, but {n the country it is cocido, That| safed the information that among the | varying it with drinking, until church Hellenes the favorite Christmas dish | time the next morning at 10 “IN RUSSIA THE PEOPIF \raww « ING OF THE MEAT.\; (AN N goose stuffed with sauerkraut is a prime necessity. Smoked ham with reen vegetables is also a prime ne | cessity. So is roast suckling pig. All | three of these must be present in very considerable quantities. | There 1s a Christmas custom of visiting. After the noon meal people make a great round, calling upon their friends. Some members of the family stay at home to receive the friends that call on them. The vis- itors, going from house to house, par- take of the meals at each. And so & constant succession of dining fs kept up. A Russian gave the further informa tion that Christmas was not the most important day for dining in Russia. ‘‘Easter is celebrated more solemn Iy, he sald. “Eggs and a sweet cheese are daintles which are char acteristic of the day. They are car. ried on plates to the church in the morning, and there receive the bless- ings of the priest. The people eat more on Easter than they do on Christmas.” It appears that the Russian Christ- mas is a trifle confused these last several years. The bolsheviks have decreed that the Gregorian calendar take the place of the Julian, which was traditional in Russia and was 13 days behind the Gregorian. The religious do not accept the change The {rreligious do not celebrate Christ. mas. The religious celebrate it in ac- cordance with the old calendar. It is not December 25 any more. It is January 7. But it's Christmas just the same. “Different countries,” said Monetsa, brooding with philosophy, “differsnt countries, different dishes on Christ- mas. But in Italy we eat paneton! on Christmas.’ “Fossil Fish Eggs.” No‘l long ago there was reported the fact that a town in Oklahema was found to be built on a depesit of fossil fish eggs, which, through the processes of Nature, had been con- verted into limestone. As a matter of fact, many towns in that State, as well as in Missouri and Arkansas, stand upon deposits of the same kind, which are known to the geologist as “oolite,” because the ma. terlal is made up of small round white bodies resembling eggs. The notion that these bodies are actually acoumulated roes of multitudes of by- gone fishes has long been entertained by the unknowing. Science itself is peculiar formation. One theory that the limy material was precip! | SITS, PARTAK- AT FAYH PLACE™ ROTND OF V tated from sea water in the shape de .N'rlbed by the action of certain bac- teria.