Chapter XII
wT —
Without a sound Lancaster leaped
at him.
Joan saw the secretary snatch up
the lamp and hold it on high, She
heard his screaming, terrified volce
above the uproar. He stood like some
squat statue illuminating the space
above the dark in which Lancaster
and Lawson sprawled, clutching at
each other like two primeval cave
men,
It was grotesque, for It was like a
man fighting with himself; and, In
fact, it might have been Lancaster
fizhting with his evil angel. He was
no match for Lawson, but at first his
pent-up fury, at last unleashed,
matched the two equally. Then Law-
struggled to his knees.
him down again. Lancaster's head
struck the corner of the iron bedstead.
His hands unclosed ; he sighed and lay
perfectly still. Joan saw the look of
malignant rage upon Lawson's face,
saw him raise his heel above the face
of the unconscious man. He would
" have ground out Lancaster's life, but
that Joan pulled the
her pocket and thrust it into his face
for the second time,
Lawson staggered
backward, rage
near her. He set the lamp down.
Joun felt a sharp pain in the upper
part of her arm. She saw the secre-
tary putting something
backed toward the door, pulling Law-
son with him.
“I'm going
Lawson,
to finish this!”
film into the ball. Joan heard Myers’
pager whispers, and Lawson's strug-
gles and angry muttering gradually
subside,
room, and, forgetting them
instantly, she bent over Lancaster and
raised his head upon her knee,
He was breathing heavily, The
blow had only stunned him. Joan
tried to lift him upon the bed, but he
was too heavy for her. As she was
attempting to do so, however, the door
spened and Mrs. Fraser came in,
“I found a key,”
trembling. “I heard
retury’s
she whispered,
them fighting.
done to the doctor?”
“He isn't badly hurt,” said Joan.
“Help me get him upon the bed”
Mrs. Fraser and Joan succeeded,
Lancaster lay there, still unconscious.
The matron clung heavily to the bed-
stead, looking at Joan piteously.
“l know It all now,” she muttered.
“1 should have known before If I'd
listened to the Millville gossip. That
devil is his brother.”
"Yes," sald Joan shortly.
are you going to do, Mrs. Fraser?”
the woman answered.
year after year when I thought he
was by an evil spirit.
Wouldnt I stand by him now?”
“Good,” sald Joan. “And I,
Tomorrow we'll make short work
those men.”
possessed
that man, Miss Wentworth,”
the matron. “He's a devil
no pity.
than himself.”
“Myers? Who Is he?”
“He was his assistant here,
tried once, they tell me, for poisoning
iis sweetheart,
but they couldn't find any poison in
her body. It was his master made the
analysis, and he lied to get Myers free
and have his hold on him. It's all
plain to me now, Miss Wentworth.”
“If you knew this,” said Joan, “you
should have told me; you should have
told the police, told anyone rather
than let him drug Doctor Lancaster
day after day.”
“1 thought it was the doctor who
was in league with him,” the matron
muttered. “Miss Wentworth, I'm
timid, I'm easily frightened, but not
another day will I keep silent. To-
Wor w-"
“Yes, tomorrow,” sald Joan. “You'd
better go to bed now, Mrs. Fraser, I'll
guard the doctor with my revolver,
and tomorrow we'll end these years
of slavery. Doctor Lancaster is a free
man, Think of him as a free man.
The past is all behind us”
The matron slipped away stealthily
to her room. Joan took her seat be-
side Lancaster, listening to the Inco
herent mutterings which had begun.
Presently his eyes opened. He stared
at her for some minutes until recog-
nition came into them,
“Joan!” he whispered,
out his hand to hers,
She let him take and hold it, and
sat beside him, while he began mut-
tering again. Gradually he began to
realize where he was, and to re
member,
“It Is all true, then, Joan,” he sald.
“He has had his revenge for hig fan-
cled wrongs. He has had the best
years of nfy life, and he has beaten
me in the end.”
“Renton yom? asked Joan,
He
worse
stretching
“You
are not beaten. They are at thelr
wits’ ends what to do now, and fo-
morrow you will send them packing
and begin your new life”
“A pitiful hope,” he answered. “For
he has given me back one thing—my
faith In that poor woman upstairs,
and, with It, a greater faith in hu-
manity; but he has robbed me of all
my hope.”
“Why, John?
“Because I conld not have Imagined
that humanity was so vile. Joan, 1
am crushed by his revelation. If he
entered this room now I feel that his
will would dominate mine.”
“Those are the words of a sick
man,” sald Joan. “Tomorrow you will
adjust yourself. Tomorrow you will
be strong. Why, hardly a man on
have done
with the morphine.”
“TI suppose I shall carry
he answered wearily.
victory will mean nothing to me.”
“I shall stand by your side until I
have seen you conquer, and until I
have seen you happy In your success.”
“And then, Joan?
“Then? Then I
where, I suppose.”
away? From
cause of Mrs, Dana?”
“Because of her, John"
“But she Is nothing to me, She
was never anything. Even my mono-
shall go some-
“Go me? Is it be-
Surely you will not
I loved another?”
“It isn't that, John. But, you see,
Even though her
was the con-
presence that ate
wis the maln-
existence here. She
was there
sciousness
your brain;
of your
gone,
of her
she
that
innocent,
wronged,
scheme,
she has been
and her life has become
bound up with yours Indissolubly.
You see, John, there Is no
away from that”
“Joan, don’t yon
She ti
dastard’'s She Is
she hates
death will
cure her
tried three
mysterious
know
that my
her wrongs and
troubles, She
me? inks
avenge
her
times to kill
has
In some
or.
H
2%
*
tn dered
SAH
Id
#
the Lamp and Hold It on High.
Once she stabbed me In
the wrist with an table-knife. Once
she got the matron’s revolver, but for-
1 have been
her somewhere
to send
a constant Incitation to her”
Joan shook her head. “It Is all part
of the past,” she said. “One can't
cancel the past. One must just carry
it with one and try to profit by it,
You know that, John"
“You do not love me, Joan"
She turned her face away: tears
thut filed her eyes came from the
depths of her being. Lancaster took
doth her hands in his,
“You love me, Joan?"
“Too well to wrong you and my-
self,” she answered. “Too well to
let our love build a wall between us.
So well that 1 would rather let the
spiritual bond remain, rather than
mar it.”
He drew her toward him, and she
remained with her cheek resting
against his, with his arms about her.
She could not stir. A strange physical
lethargy seemed to hold her limbs, but
her will was unshaken,
“Your last word, Joan?" whispered
Lancaster,
“No, dear,” she answered,
The humorous look that came at
such odd moments Into Lancaster's
eyes flickered there now. “Your very
Inst?" he asked.
“0, don't ask me to deny my reso-
lution,” she said.
Bhe released herself and stood be-
side him, As she 414 so she had a
sensation as if her feet rested on a
cusnion of alr. Her physical wenk-
ness was matched by her sense of lo-
stabllity; she longed with all her
heart to lean within the arms out.
stretched toward her; she knew that,
if she had given Lancaster life, he
could give her the strength of life;
chivalgle and dear In the land
she had [Bved seemed embodied
him. And before her she saw
closing hospital walls of some far dis-
was
everything that she had known.
“You little stubborn thing, Joan!
sald Lancaster tenderly.
go on loving you.”
“1 shall love you, John”
“Yes.
mouth until your battle Is won.
there will be no battle, They
that they are beaten
Sut
“No,” said Lancaster. “But, O Joan,
have been so easy.”
With the maternal
part of every
that Is
for
feeling
woman's love
his forehead.
“You must
sald “}
with you,
door.”
“I am not afraid of them,” he
swered. “They can do nothing, Joan
try
shall
and
to sleep now.”
leave the
you shall lock
safety.”
That seemed the better way,
was nothing that the pair could
wo» kancuster. If they almed at any
one Nt would be she, She saw
Lancaster again. In the hall
breathed more freely, It ended
now, and she knew that she had done
right thing, the only possible
thing. jut Lancaster had not
mised the terrific woman's
she had fought during
minutes,
was
which
inst few
She did
le awake
and listening
ments in uncertainty. not
mean to sleep, but
resting,
to
though her brain was awake, she was
tired than she had been
iife, She could hardly
her limbs upstairs, and a
that walking on alr.
the burning lamp
more ever
drag
sense of
little she stopped
The ticking of the
the hall below
the house, She strained
room, but she could
Yet the men could not be
They must be planning together,
The silence In the ramshackle old
bullding was a ghastly one. It seemed
to hide innumerable thoughts,
those of all who had ever lived within
its walls survived, breaking upon her
brain In invisible waves, She felt en-
asleep.
the horrors of nightmare The
had gone down, and the raindrops
dripped rhythmically from the eaves,
Joan had an intense inclination to
surrender, to run back into Lancas.
ter's room, cry to him to help her, to
let her fight beside him as long as
they lived. And the slience, which
ment, was unmistakably malevolent.
shake away her fears. She went to
the window and leaned out. The night
was clearing, and a delicious alr blew
in from the hills.
be seen in Millville or Lancaster.
she wept again, heartbroken.
all that love within was bound up so
intimately with the idea of home,
(TO BE CONTINUED.)
Genius ol Philology
of notorious criminals.
strangest was that on behalf of
George Ruloff, an American school
teacher, who was convicted Ia 1570
of a series of robberies and murders,
his own wife and daughter being
among the victims. For cold-blooded
cruelty his record would be hard to
beat, but Ruloff had his other side.
He was an ardent philologist, and
had been engaged for years on the in-
vention of a universal language. No
one could attempt to palliate his
crimes, but a widely signed petition
was presented to the governor of Vir
ginia for his reprieve om the ground
that as his Invention, If completed,
would be of the utmost benefit to man
kind It would be criminal folly to ex.
tinguish such a light of learning. The
governor thought otherwise and Ruloff
was duly hanged.
Copying Nature
Cover a billlard table In a bright
red cloth Instead of the customary
soft green and every billiard hall
would be deserted In half an hour
Billiard tables from the beginning
were covered with green for the same
reason that nature covers her open
stretches usually with green, because
it Is soothing to the eye
Popular Ensemble
Promises to Stay
ues to Hold Its Own With
Spring Fashions.
Another fashion
and still the
hold its own
wise lessened;
that it
difficult
popularity, for there are so many dif-
senson Is at hand,
ensemble continues to
Its prestige has in no
rather one might say
And It
has Increased.
and each one distinctive,
about
semble
the latest costumes of the en.
genre Is the combination of
Sk Is used with wool,
as put together with slik,
fabrics are combined with
leather
knitted
much versatiifty in the colors and de
A costume which ig a sample of the
spring modes 8 the ensemble, which
of n frock of plaided or
striped silk and a coat of kasha or one
of the kindred fabrics. Almost In-
variably the coat Is lined with the
As
most
of
model
this mode an
reverses
an {llustration
ntiractive the
heavy crepe silk with brown
plaids on a natural
Kasha lines the coat and adds
which is so often
yellow tone
neces
Of interest Is
straight
particular»
In this the little one-
i
i
Si
Cf gg
-
Coat of Heavy Crepe Silk With
Brown and Yellow Plaids
tub silk and the coat of powder-blue
kasha lined with the silk. Around
sleeves of the dress, there is an Inch
to hem A
chic of the coat.
Printed Fabrics Are in
Spring Fashion Picture
A cerjain feminine
achieved by the use of filmy chiffon
colors of the pastel tones, Is an lm-
Necklaces, Earrings and
Bracelets Are in Colors
necklaces and earrings, which
is to alternate large, colored synthetic
rose, blue, lavender or green.
is followed in gold, brown and all the
other possibilities of color combina.
tions,
To match these novel necklaces are
the earrings, one light and one dark-
er, of the same color, a one-sided ef-
fect that is decidedly unique. Brace.
lets, a flexible model made of a single
circle of large colored pearls, are
among the new trinkets, and in these
the alternated style, as In the neck.
lace and earrings, Is worn somewhat.
Glitter and Sparkle Is
Feature of Chic Frock
Straight, slim lines and much glit
tor and sparkle=-these are the features
emphasized in a study of the clothes
worn by smart women. While ocea-
gionally brilliant shades are segp, the
tendency for the most part is toward
delicate and pastel vones and for white
enlivened with silver or crystal.
Beading is not by any means passe,
but it Is used with a great deal more
akill than heretofore and with an ap-
precintion of Its value in forming de
signs and patterns that stimuiate mo-
tifs woven into the fabric itself,
Tuls naturally leads to more indi.
vidualiry. for while many of the frocks
are alike so far as line and silhouette
go, théy differ radically in the appli
| Wrought Iron Design
A distinctively new note
The charming garment shown
| National Garment Retail association.
{ portant point emphasized In
| fashions for early spring.
Not only is the trend toward more
| subtle colorings evident in frdcks of
{ plain fabrics, but printed
reveal a similiar tendency io
| lavender and pale green,
Quite lovely are the new
| individuality upon the way the ma-
| terial itself is handled.
Another fashion note which
for immediate that
tonne Is to
costumes It
purposes, is
the
cre
be used for
is, however, na
almost beyond recognition by
silk sand metal thread and
beading.
glorified
: Stitchery In
by fine
coats, bathing suits
match,
necessary
Dresses
knee-length conts to
of cretonne and the
umbrella,
like a Japanese parasol,
| Ashes of Roses in New
pnshes of roses
shade that
French.
that it
call
rose
which some
grayish
liked by
is o
has been
The color is
nicely
the
such
for
gs and facings, and touches
of that kind. Last spring. it will be
remembered, Paris modistes brought
{ out the flesh-rolor facing on the black
hat. This new wonld all
dey eloped the
is. in piping
color
| quite as perishable as the flesh.
| hats with touches
ashes of roses as a facing, or perhaps
are suggested
or
and used in conjunction with black
cordings of the fabric for a crown side
ornament.
In the colors favored especially for
hats, there are two pinks on
the conch shell and the
neither of these is exactly
pink of ashes of roses.
{ spring
{ the card,
tango, but
the grayish
| entire hats In fallle and bengaline,
| cation of beaded designs and In the
mingling and blending of colors,
A charming exponent of the mode of
beaded evening gowns congists of a slip
of cloth of silver and over this is worn
a tunic pale pink satin-finished
crepe covered with a delicate tracery
of silvery embroidery and accented
with motifs of beads of a deeper tone
of rose combined with silver and crys
tal, The huge fan of uncurled ostrich
is shaded through three tones of rose
| and Is tipped with a faint cloudy blue,
A similar frock has a foundation of
sitver lace, while the upper part Is
made of sliver brocade In which the
design is brought out by an outline of
tiny crystal beads.
For the debutante there are the
most entrancing frocks of tulle made
i In period styles with tight bodices and
wide, full skirts. Trimmed with gar
lands of flowers and with knots of
sliver ribbon, they are most appealing
in their artful combinations of modern
chic and old-tiine demureness,
of
—
New Hosiery Shades
Here are the new shades in hosiery
| —wgee if you recognize them-—chalr,
| naturelle, horsie, pucelle, phantom,
| jeunesse, Park avenue, discretion, foot.
light, romance. None is new. They
range from the flesh tones represent.
ed by “chair” to a rosy beige for “ro.
mance”: to a silver gray for “phan:
tom” and to a dark tan for “discre
tion.”
Spring Fur Styles
Neckpleces and chokers bid fair to
be extremely popular this spring.
Women are buying the skins and hav.
ing them made up to order,
|
“Costs little - helps much”
The speculators who bull the market
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the
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with
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feted In a Jiffy by tak n
°
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membrane takes away that cons
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