The Horry herald. (Conway, S.C.) 1886-1923, August 24, 1916, Page SIX, Image 6
mx
; Novelized From the
I of the Same Name
Copyright, 1916, b;
SYNOPSIS
Flerpont Btafford, banker and railroad
magnute, with his sixteen-year-old* daxighter,
Gloria, Is wintering at Palm Beach.
Gloria is a vivacious but willful young
lady who chafes under the restraining
hand of a governess from whom she repeatedly
escapes. Her childish capers
cause young Doctor Royce to fall In love
with her. She steals from her room at
night and In an auto plunges Into the
surf where she leaves the car. Becoming
lost In the everirludes kIip fulls Intn tlm
hands of the Seminole Indians. She Is
rescued and returned to her father who
had offered a reward for her return.
Gloria falls In love with her rescuer, Freju'hu.
Five years later she leaves school
and meets Freneau at the theater; his attention
having been occupied with her
sister-in-law he has forgotten Gloria.
Gloria feels that her one dream is shattered.
l,ater Freneau persuades her to
forgive him. Gloria's sister-in-law, Lois,
becomes intensely jealous and Doctor
Royce discovers in her an ally to assist
In thwarting Freneau. Doctor Royce
warns Freneau that there is another
woman besides Gloria; Freneau goes
sleighing with Gloria without her father's
knowledge. It results in pneumonia for
Gloria, whose family becomes incensed at
.Freneau when they learn the truth.
Royce is summoned to alleviate Gloria's
suffering. Freneau's finances being low
he approaches Plerpont Stafford for a
loan. Doctor Royce again warns From an
of his conduct. Rut l.ois, learning of Freneau's
betrothal to Gloria, threatens lilin
with dire punishment. Ivor husband. Gloria's
brother David, becomes suspicious;
he plans a trap for his wife.
SEVENTH EPISODE
Freneau in his oflice going over the
morning's mail was in a beastly temper.
He snapped at his clerk when
that cheery young man wished him a
bright "Good morning." He made
Bhort work of the mildly flirtatious
stenographer's attempt to begin the
day breezily for him.
The air of the oflice was clouded
with Freneau's gloom when his partner,
Mulry, entered gayly and slapped
him on the back. The clerk and
stenographer paused expectant, but
before he spoke to Mulry, Freneau
snarled to them:
"Get out and stay out till I send for
you."
They got out.
Mulry was amused at his friend's
bad temper. He chuckled: "Wrong
side of the bed this morning, old bear?
What seems to be your little trouble
now?"
Freneau told him that Lois Stafford,
whom he was attempting to get rid of,
had learned of his engagement to her
sister-in-law, Gloria, and had become
unmanageable.
"She threatened that, unless I gave
up ray proposed marriage, she will confess
the whole affair and then kill herself."
Principally this meant to Mulry that
the firm would have to refund the
large sum of money Freneau had Just
borrowed from Gloria's father on the
isirengtn ot the engagement. Muiry
began pacing the floor also, chewing
his cigar. At last he chewed out an
idea that pleased him.
"You make the trip to the branch
offices in my place, and take your fair
tormentor along. Perhaps you can appease
her and get her into a reasonable
state of mind."
j r reneau cnu noi care ror tne scnerae.
Ho shook his head In derision. Mulry
urged.
1 "At least it would gain time for us."
"No, it's out of the question; try
again," Freneau snapped. "Sho is going
to the Catskills for a week and
she insists on my tagging along."
Mulry rubbed his head. His massage
seemed to conjure up another idea, for
he began to rummage through his
desk. He beckoned Freneau to come
over to him and held up delightedly a
handful of miscellaneous papers. Freeman
looked and saw merely a number
of sheets erf writing paper and envelopes
from various big hotels about the
country. They meant nothing to him.
"When I stop at a hotel I always
annex a lot of its paper and envelopes."
"Yes? And what have your parsimonious
habits to do with our present
trouble?" queried Freneau patiently.
Mulrv was disinistAd ''WVi v Hnn't
you eeo, you poor Don Juan? You
take these letterheads and write love
letters on them to your sick fiancee.
1 take them with me and mail them
from the different towns I make. Then
Miss Stafford will think you are there.
Meanwhile you can go away to the
Catskllls and meet your troublesome
I^ois. If you can't rig up some story
to get your letters back from her and
keep her quiet until after your mar
riage, why you're not the little bright
eyes 1 always took you for. See no.w?'
Freneau did see. He was not en
thusiastic, but this seemed the only
possible way to tide over the present
reef in his way to the harbor of mat
rimony.
Freneau was dishonorable. Freneai
was unmistakably an adventurer and
what the world calls a cad, but he wai
born of gentle people; he had good
blood in his veins, as his worldly
\
ilSi
TOM Mats'.
Motion Picture Play
; by George Kleine !
f Adelaide M. Hughea *
graces showed. He truly adored Gloria
and wanted only her. There was
sharp torment in the agonies he endured
fearing the loss of her through
his previous sins. His punishment was
not far off and he was to meet It
with neither peaceful thoughts nor
clear conscience. He had enmeshed
himself in so complex a web of intrigue
and wrongdoing that the problem
of escape was ever more complex.
"Who knows? If Gloria had been
a woman when ho first saw her, the
woman she now was, Instead of the
child then, she might have saved his
soul and his life. But he had to take
the present as the past gave it to him,
and hope for a future of more straight-1
forward life.
Late that night in his apartment
Freneau started the batch of love letters
and telegrams for Gloria. He be- I
n *>^ rt It. 4 mtAni I ? 4 ? ? ?
i laiuu niit'irait'U lit liif.LU, it 11U Ml) HUT* I
ried away by the fervor he infused !
into thom that early dawn and his
j valet found him asleep at last with
, his head resting on sheets of paper j
that bore such messages as:
"My darling Gloria: As I tele-!
graphed you, I arrived safely, bu* J
missed you terribly. This week of absence
will seem an eternity."
This was on a letterhead of tho
Hotel Ten Eyck in Albany. Others
were from other hotels. The last one
he had written was on the paper of
the Fort Pitt hotel, Pittsburgh. In it
he said:
I "The eternity of this long week is
over. I return tomorrow to your
arms."
He sealed the letters, wondering
what would be tho answer to them.
He took them to the oflice, and the
next day when Mulry took his train
to Albany he carried with him these
i letters. He was well pleased with the
network of lies that he and Freneau
; had woven to deceive Gloria. But it
is much easier to carry out plots in
fiction than in fact.
****
David, L?ois, and her father, Judge
I Freeman, were going to tho opera that
night and they stonned to see Gloria
on their way. Gloria waa sitting up
on her chaise longue, still pale and
somewhat weak. She submitted,
rather than invited, the in-law ki3B
that Lois brushed over her cheek.
Then she turned to David and pouted:
"Oh, dear, some people have all the
luck. You are going to hear Geral'
dine Farrar in 'Madame Butterfly/
while I must lie here doing nothing.
They won't even let me read, the stingy
old things!" she made a moue at
her nurse. "And I do despise to be
read to. Just wait until I get out of
; their clutches, I'll make up for this;
! I'll be Madame Butterfly all over the
I place."
David smiled at her innocence in
the allusion to Butterfly, but neither
he nor Gloria knew that Lieutenant
Pinkerton was a white woolly lamb
compared to Gloria's own lover, Freneau.
Lois had moved away from Gloria
toward the bedside table, where a
framed photograph of Freneau looked
tauntingly at her. A jealous desire for
possession came over her. She longed
to take the image of the man from
Gloria as well as the man himself.
The whim became immediately a
necessity to her. She glanced across
at the group about Gloria. No one
I was looking her way. A smile curled
at the corners of her lips and a trij
umphant. gleam shot for a moment
into her handsome, sullen eyes as she
slipped the picture into her opera bag.
Lois was utterly maddened and desperate
in her paRsion for Freneau now,
for tho knowledge that she was to lose
him made her utterly ruthless to herself
as to all who might stand in the
way of her last days with him.
i Sho must bo alone with Freneau
uninterrupted to plead with him to
givo up Gloria and to run away with
her?or, failing that, to get back her
letters and gain time to reconstruct
i her life and recover from her loss.
She carried the stolen photograph
with her to the opera and laughed as
she imagined Gloria's frantic search
. for it.
> The next morning, as she was going
> over Freneau's letters, her fathnr
' dropped In unexpectedly. One of Frel
neau's envelopes had fallen to the
- floor unnoticed by Lois. The Judge
t stooped to pick It up for her. He saw
Freneau's name and. trained at he was
in the wiles of criminals, he suspected
r Lois at once and flatly accused her of
t an Intrigue with Freneau. She mere
ly flounced away in a temper, saying:
"I am old enough to take care ol
i myself. If you want to believe evil
I of your own daughter?why, believe
J it."
I She left Judge Freeman dumbfounded
r and distracted. In the afternoon, while
THE HOKBY BER
iHTid was at his office, the worried I
father again visited Lois to try softer
words. In the hall he met her houseman
carrying a trunk downstairs for the
:iiSBl
BBBBBbi
He Wondered What Would Be the
Answer.
express. Freneau had advised Lois to
send her baggage by train and motor
up with him to the CatskiUs.
Judge Freeman took the liberty of
reading the tag on that trunk. He
saw that it was checked to Blendike,
a village in the CatskiUs.
Going to Lois' room, ho questioned
her. She answered that as David was
going away that evening she thought
she would run out to Lenox to visit
Aunt Kate.
"Aunt Kate has gone to Florida, as
you know," her father answered
sternly.
"I forgot, but anyway, I have to get
off by myself for a few days; my
nerves are in ribbons. Please leave
me alone," Lois said, and burst into
tears.
Again her father left her, his
anxiety greater than before.
* ? ? *
When Doctor Royce made his morning
call on his beloved patient, Gloria,
he found her still progressing toward
complete recovery from her illness.
But her spirits did not seem joyous as
they should be. He thought bitterly
that this might be due to his orders
that she should not be allowed to see
Freneau. I-le told her that he withdrew
the embargo and her rapture
confirmed his fears.
Til n t Q ftortl Ann Vin
? ?t??v miv* nc euaiiecu iu uc
passing David Stafford's home Just as
David stepped from his car. David
greeted him warmly and insisted on
his coming into the house. Royce was
out of his coat and hat before David i
had finished glancing at some letters
the butler gave him. As he felt thoroughly
at home here, Royce went
ahead to the living room. He thought
he heard a murmur of voices. Parting
the curtains, he saw something that
made the blood pound in his temples.
Lois' arms were about Freneau and
his around her. Royce heard her saying:
"At midnight by the pavilion, near
the soldiers' monument. I'll be there.
Don't fail me."
Royce dropped the curtains noiselessly
and stepped back as David approached,
talking briskly. Royce was
thankful for the sound; it would give
the guilty pair time to separate and
spare David a hideous knowledge, at
least for the time being.
Royce and David entered, and Lois
greeted her husband warmly. Royce
: sickened at the sight. He would not
speak, but he refused Freneau's hand.
Freneau, a trifle jolted, said that he
had dropped in to inquire about
Gloria. After a few minutes he left.
Royce said that ho would go along, as
i he had something to discuss with Freneau.
1
He told David that he would see
him later, and for very pity did not
look him in the eye.
I1ut he gave Lois a meaning look of
wonder at her evil recklessness. Then
he followed Freneau with wrath hoil
ing in his heart.
Without waiting for an invitation,
he Jumped into Freneau's ear, and as
soon as it was under way Royee burst
i forth:
"You infernal hound! You could't
play fair if you tried, could you? And
you wouldn't, would you? ? But now
you've got to give up Gloria and get
on the other side of the globe or you'll
j wish you had never been born. I know
what yon are up to and I advise you
not to undertake it. I mean it. 1
warn you that I will stop at nothing
to prevent you from wrecking both of
those homes."
A spark of manhood flickered yet in
Freneau's soul, and he attempted to
explain in eome part his own helplessness,
but Royce cut him short. The
facts as he had sees them permitted
' no explanation.
"Of course you won't listen; you
want Gloria yourself. Tou are only too
anxious to get me out of the way.
But don't let your Jealousy drive you
absolutely insan^"
Royce stopped the car and got out.
"I've warned you," was his parting
shot.
' All the rest of the day Royce pon>
dered over where his own duty in
the matter lay. He could not tell
1 Gloria what he had seen. The shock
M might have thrown her back into a
A
ITJX CONWAY, 8. 0.
"" j 11
lever. He could never bring himself
to smirch her love end young faith
in his rival's honor. He could not put
the responsibility and the horror of
full knowledge on his friend David,
nor cast the burden on David's old father.
It was not Royce's nature to
shift responsibility on other shoulders.
He tried to clear his brain by forgetting.
He took up a medical book
for study, but between his eyes and
the page came a vision of Freneau as
a leering satan. It laughed and
mocked at him, seeming to say:
"I will destroy Gloria and Lois and
David, and you cannot stop me."
Royce jumped up and closed his
book, a look of set purpose coming to
his grim face. It was nearly midnight
when he took from the drawer of his
desk table a revolver and slipped It
into his pocket.
When Royce had met David, David
had not told him that he was leaving
town for a week. David was not sure
what would happen, and Lois was the
only one he wanted to deceive. She
was so badly duping him that she had
no thought of his returning the compliment.
It was difficult for him to
play the part he had assumed, and if
she had been more on the alert she
would have seen the constraint in his
manner.
She played her own role with ttie
ease of long practice. There was nothing
sincere about her except her Joy
in David's departure. She thought
that nothing in the world could have
been more opportune. But she wanted
to make sure that no accident befell
him. She did not want him to miss
that train.
She went to the Pennsylvania station
with h4m, acting the heartbroken,
deserted wife with all her art. She
bade him good-by at the gate and when
ne went aown me stairs to the train
underground she still would not leave
till she saw the roofs of the cars move
off into the tunnel and the porter who
carried David's baggage come hack.
Then she felt it safe and she departed
from the station with a sigh of deep j
relief.
If she had been a little less impatient
she would have seen David return
through the gate after the train ;
had pulled out. David, making sure ;
that she had not caught sight of him, i
took his miserable doubts with him to
one of his clubs.
Judge Freeman found him there, j
and. noting his expression, asked him
what had kept him from taking his
train. When David saw his father-in-1
law the smoldering of his trouble hurst
into flame. He snatched the anony- j
mous letter from his pocket and was i
on the verge of showing it. But he
withheld it, though he could not check
the bitter words: "If this letter is
true I may have to kill a man."
An icy hand seemed to grip at the
Judge's heart. He knew without see- j
ing it what that letter said. He put
his hand on David's arm and was
about to speak, when a man slapped
him on the back. He turned to face
the club's most notorious bore, nick-;
named the "White Man's Burden."
The fellow was fat and even more im- !
pervious to snubs than usval, as he
had been drinking heavily. Judge1
Freeman tried1 to escape him, but as
the Burden had him clasped by the
lapel of his coat it was impossible to
get away at once without knoekinsr
him down. So the Judge stood the
repetition of an ancient story as well
as he could, waiting only for the loosening
of the grip on his coat, which
came with the roar of laughter the
Rurden emitted at the end of his yarn.
The Judge turned to rejoin David,
but found him gone. He started at
once in terrified pursuit.
David meanwhile had fled to his own
house, where he watched on the outside,
eavesdropping on his own property.
Presently he saw Lola silhouetted
against the light in her own room.
She was taking ofT her hat and coat.
The poor young man felt calmed of
his fears. She was home. She was
taking off her things and she was
alone. It was bitter cold in thd street,
so he returned to his club in chastened
mood, calling himself names and glad
1 that he owed Lois an apology. He did
1 not quite dare to face her with it Just
I yet. He would watch her another day.
David had seen Lois (Jivest herself
of hat and coat, but had been too easily
reassured, for she exchanged them
for a fur hat and coat, in the pocket
of which she had slipped Freneau's
letters.
Judge Freeman, arriving fifteen
minutes after David had gone, rang
the bell and was admitted by Lois'
butler, who told him that she had left
he house on foot a few moments before.
The butler did not know where
she had gone or when she would return.
The Judge dashed off, leaving
the butler to shake his head over the
scandalous proceedings of his household.
Gideon Trask, the bargeman, had
Infinite patience in pursuit of his revenge,
but so far he had been unrewarded.
Unable to run down Freneau
elsewnere, he picked on the Pierpont
Stafford home as the most likely and
also the most fitting place to accost
him. It was there that he had first
seen Freneau in New York. He
stood by the iron-barred gate, watching,
until a policeman drove him away.
Then he crossed Riverside drive to the
Soldiers' and Sailors' monument and
resumed a more distant watch over
I the house.
Freneau was indeed there; he had
come to bid Gloria good-by. He told'
her he was leaving on a midnight
train.
Gloria was reclining on the chaise
lengue, exquisitely attired in an ivory
colored lace peignoir, the bands ol
white swansdown which trimmed It
no whiter than hor own fair skin. Her
beautiful hair, drawn lightly into a
knot at the top of her little head, made
l)er look more like a child playing at
being grown-up than she had a right
to look with all lier twenty-one years.
Freneau had paused a moment at
the door when he entered to enjoy the
charm of her, then he crossed to her
side with all a lover's eagerness. Her
eyos beamed on him with tenderness
as she welcomed him and gave him
her lips.
"How much do you love me?" she
queried, measuring an infinitesimal
space with her tiny hands, "that
much?" then, stretching her two arms
wide and purring forth her musical
laugh?"or that much?"
Freneau came within the circle of
her arms and, holding her to him, exclaimed:
"The width of the whole
world is not big enough to measure
my love for you." And he meant it.
Releasing her tenderly to her pillows
on the couch, he continued: "I've
had such a wonderful day on the market,
Gloria. I cleared up a pile. By
Jove, it was thrilling. If I can only
keep this up you won't have to be
ashamed of your poor husband. And,
thank God, I shall have you to work
for. Just see what I've brought my
little mascot with the first spoils of
war." He tossed a leather case into
her lap.
Opening two shrinelike doors, Gloria
gurgled in delight at the string of
pearls within. She made him clasp
them about her throat. Then she
leaned forward to thank him with a
kiss; she saw the corner of a large
sealed envelope in his inner pocket.
"What's this? More business, or
love letters?"
A dull mottled red began to surge
up Freneau's face. She spoke so much ,
truer than she knew. It was the packet
of letters he was taking to Lois. lie
had pocketed them to make sure that1
he should not leave them behind.
"Just business documents connected j
??U1. ? .. t * 1
?mi 111.> ui|>. no sain, as naturally as,
he could. Gloria accepted the explana-l
tion In perfect faith. It did not occur
to her to suspect him of any deceit.
BareBBBggB
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Ma Q r% \mj C/vm%a4U1m?> l. a. ii -j- a i?
? viumciMiiiy i iiml maac xne .
Blood Pound in Hit Temples.
She put the envelope back in his 1
pocket, making a little gesture of disgust:
"Ugh! I hate your old business!
How long must you be away?"
"One whole week, dearest little
love," he murmured brokenly. "I'm
afraid it will never pass for me, but
take good care of your precious self,
and get those wonderful roses back in
your cheeks. I will write and tele- j
graph you every day."
Then his face darkened and ho hung
his head before her as he added: "I
can't give you any address to write to
me, as I shall be Jumping about so, but
I'll telephone you." 1
When the hour grew late and the
nurse began to frown he told her he
must leave. She stood up sadly and
they clung together for a last embrace.
Freneau went to his rooms in a new (
mood. Gloria's trust had touched him
more than Royce's threats. He was
furious at himself and at Lois. He
started to the telephone to call her up
and tell her to do her worst, he would
not go away with her. As he was
about to take the receiver off the hook
he looked at his watch. It was too
late; she would have started for their
trystlng place by now. He caught a
ghmpse of himself in a mirror and
loathed the face he saw. He vowed
that he would redeem his soul. He
would begin at once. He would meet J
Lois at the pavilion %nd tell her that
he would carry no further the chains
of intrigue. ]
On hie way to the little classic stone
pavilion near the Soldiers' and Sailors'
monument, where Lois had agreed to
meet him, his car broke down. He
took that as a further reason for not }
making the journey. He left the
chauffeur to correct the trouble an# {
went ahead on foot. 1
Gloria had retired after Freneau left
her, but lay tossing about on her pillows
unable to sleep. The moon was ,
pouring white glamour In her window.
The flight nurse, sitting upright by her '
bed, was sleeping soundly. She had 1
won Morpheus because she was spurn*
Ing him Instead of courting him.
Gloria determined to try the same
method herself.
Doctor Royce, who seemed to think
of every thing, had, during her illness, J1
v
i- i i , i . ..fa .
* 1 1 I mmmmnmm i i
# N
/m fflf Jj^HKi
She Wanted That Picture.
made her a present of a pair oi
binoculars. She had been able to
*hile away many tedious hours with
hem watching tho traffic on the drive
md boats on the river. i
Now she slipped into a negligee and
slippers quietly, not to disturb hei
Rlooninc RnnHnrO f^wxU ?.*
, Q ~ w? w... V>| MUW WVV/1% lip 111C
binoculars and moved to tlio window.
The moon cast such a glow on the
river that she drew in deep breaths ol
delight. The columns of the monument
stood in the foreground li' e
marble trees clustered about a little
temple.
Suddenly her attention was caught
by the curious behavior of a man who
seemed to be skulking about the monu
ment. He had his hat pulled down
and his overcoat collar pulled up and
she could not see his face. He wae
apparently waiting for someone. She
saw him take from his pocket some
thing that looked to her like a revolver.
Gloria was greatly excited
Before she could decide what to dc
the skulker walked away. She saw
another man come around the column
and crouch down for a moment.
She put up the glasses to see more
clearly. The figure moved forward beneath
a street lamp and Gloria could
see distinctly a wild and bearded face.
A. shudder went through her; unconsciously
she drew her robe closer
about her.
Turning her glasses down the drive.
Bhe saw a third man approaching. He
looked vaguely familiar. Coming closer,
he stopped to light a cigar. It was
Freneau!
She realized 1: with astonishment.
She wondered if he had missed his
train. He saw that she looked out of
her window. Before she could wave to
him a figure sprang from the shadows
and leaped upon Freneau, long hands
clutching hJs throat.
Gloria tried to cry out. She could
not make a sound. Subconsciously
her hands kept their grip on the binoculars
and held them to her eyes that
Bhe'might see the whole of the tragic
spectacle.
The struggle that ensued seemed im
possibly unreal. Surely she was In
some hideous nightmare. But the fight
went on. No policeman arrived to interfere.
Then suddenly it was over.
She saw Freneau's limp body fall to
the ground, saw his enemy raise his
hands toward the sky and then hurry
away. i
And still Gloria could not give vent
to her terror, she cohld only watch
helplessly. Now the first man she had
seen came back along the drive, saw
Freneau's body, knelt down quickly,
and listened to his heart. Gloria was
sure that he would help her lover.
She continued to gaze, though her
strength was ebbing^way.
Instead of rendering aid, the shadowy
figure began to ransack Freneau's
pockets. Ho found the envelope of letters
and put them in his own pocket.
Then, startled by the approach of a
third man, he also vanished.
The third man came on openly.
Gloria felt sure that she would either
waken from her nightmare or that aid
was at hand. She used all her will to
control her reeling senses.
The newcomer did not even see Freneau
till he stumbled over the prostrate
form. He knelt down by it,
seemed to be aghast at recognition.
Then he, too, began to search through
Freneau's pockets. Then Gloria
Bcreamed. Shriek after shriek burst
through the silence of the Stafford
home.
no J3K CONTINUED.) i
Orders for the remaining mobilized
units of the National Guard to proseed
to the border have been suspended
by the war department.
Including the territory which haa
been cut off and given to McCormick
county, approximately 3,000 fruit
trees were set in Abbeville county
last fall and spring.
Wind and the other elements of
nature are not among the least of the
obstacles presented to man's progress
through life.