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BERPPNIESTE NL NEE TH SNS NEU SRP BY TAR RS SE a a ata gus" among the busiling London Bros «1 'Knew her address, it was] the eylin- | raph, and as 1 sal alone maodily smoking my delight in reflecting philosophical" theories, to * the musical cadence 'her well-romembered voice as plain- J 29 thouh she were al 'my side. vii Xes. 1 openly confess: that 1, whet ¢l later years determined to remain: a bachelor, was deeply in Jove with her. 1 ndeed; for thes time, 1: actually Torgot he grim slindow of evil which had im] ly blindness fallen upon me. ither and thither in the great world nl went with my eyes ever in ea to -calch a 5 unged in. the Row at the 3 went to the opera, and and stalls with my glasses; about . Regent Street, Ox-! Street, and High Street, Kensing- k, in Lhe vicinity of those great drapery poriums: so 'dear alike fo the femin- heart and male pocket. For 'days or so I spent greater part. of time in searching for her slim, erect bul my acquaintance was not sul- il, however "val Er leouied in take na Hood nit 's extraordinary © premonition, Jaughed-at_his fetgrtale y 8 A uons, for I'meant at al) pow to thet roagein. One day. I suddenly recol- ed that in conversation Mus. go there alone on certain days to] hec lessons. By carefully wiatch- "Lmight, I thought, meet her as it aceident... So. 1 at. once set to work make inquiries, - and discovered 3 § ane of the hall-poriers Anstitution that. _Anson came every day and Friday at two afternoon. - Tho. next be uesday, therefore I : and waited for ed; 'unsuc- blow fell port a consi LI had obeyed: the order of my mysteri- | with the wane of sum t the. light-blue sky, a H Jet : were the reverse of i tanger in the vicinity the son. intended fo meet. me would give very wide berth. t hot night 11ay awake through ny hours calmly raviewing the whole 1 -On the last occasion when ison undo vat. a's instigation--I had. profited con- 'devably. Was the. present order. for good or for evil? "7 | " Natural y, 1'hod-always be:n fond of adventure, for 1 came of a family of rs. But the grucsome incidents of night when I had wandered Lot had utlerly' unnerved me. 1 had become so surrounded: by mystery that each effort of mine to elu- 'cidate it caused me to sink deeper and | deeper inta the complex quagmire of uncertainty. 4 . Perhaps Edna herse't desired to speak with me naw: that 1 could see. This Suggestion took 'possession of me, and next marniing 1 was anxious and inter-' ested in Me oppointment. Soon after three I took an omnibus from the Strand to. the corner.of Park I ane, and on the siroke of-four entered the Park at Gros- venor Gate and glanocd cagerly around, 4 NG one 'was in the vicinily save one oe 'two 'loungers of tho "unemployed' type an 4d two or Lhree nursemaids with children. found tre seat indicalcd, and sat down lo wait, It was a pleasant spot beneath 'a. large. chestnut , quiet and more sec] than any of the others, Evi. Bently my correspondent knew the Park well. . 1 1it a cigarefte and possessed myself in patience. After some five minutes or so 8 femdle figure en'ered the gate dnd approached in my direction. It was | that of am elderly woman. of rather, com- mon type, and' as she came straight i [towards me I-awaited her with' some @ | Curiosity ~but she pass'd me by with oul a look, and continued on her way. Then I knew that she was not the rer. 20n who intended - to meel me, 'and luughed within myself. * My pesition was one of curiosity, sit- ting there prepared to meet some per- son unknown. We have all of us, at .{ on¢ {ime or-another, sat awaiting per- SCR We have never before seen, and awa have 'invariably found mental pic- tures of their appearance ullerly dif ferent from their real aspect.. It was 8 wilh me at that moment. | felt 'my- eit sitting 'there in full possession -f my' sighl, and yet on the {hreshald of some discovrey which might, it I were "sufficiently shrewd, lead to the Solu 'tion "of the problem' which bad for so long-held me in terrible anxiety and suspense, Whomsoever | met, be it man or woman. they" must. give me stme 'clus 19 the identi'y of (hose mto whose bondage | had foolishly: entered, The afternoon was warm and bright, for that October in London was unusu. ally hot,-and as the_leavas had not yet commenced to fall, the great chestniils threw: a welcome shade... The Park "looked a 4vife dusty; as. it always does. OH less ¥ en sunlight, lL dn Be the foliage com- "I'hincd lo render it 'a pleasdnt retreat af: ter the unceasing whirl of traffic in the | great thoroughlares around. The air 'J was distnetly fresher there Than on the grim gloom of grimy Essex Stroet, but I..¢at 'waiting and tori "for half aw hour or so, walching narrowly ail 2d | ho chariced 10. approach, until 1: be- '| gan to suspect (hat. for shmie reason or other the appointment would riot' be "A glance at my watch showed Jt io be ready twenty: minutes to' five, My ence was exhausted, and-1 felt an- thal I should be thus brought on a purposeless errand. Of one {man who had assed, a dhck-f 1, il hi ha aed i even if I went. lo. the] ould bo unable fo assist] Without difficulty I soon |" overpowered his sense: of dhe dignity "Mother forbids it, but Fthe Park to. stully omnibuses, ' "And you've Been to. your music, I 'suppos2?" | inquired. "Yes... I've not been well for the past few days, and have missed several les- sons, Now, like a geod pupil, 'm en- deavoring to make them up, you know." And she laughed marrily, : "How many times a weels- do you go to the emy?" 1 asked, surprised that. she should have gone. there thal doy, after what the hall-porter had told me . : "Twice, as a general rule," she re marked; "but just now I'm rather regular.' y "And so you prefer to cross the Park ralher than ride by ommibus}" "Certainly, = Mother doesn't' approve ol girls riding on the {ops of "busses, and says it's fast, Therefore I'd much rather walk, for at this hour half Lon- don ems to te going from Piccadilly Circus to' Hammersmith. ~ [ go right across, - pust the Serpentine, through kensington Gardens to the Broad Walk, and out by the small gate next thy Palace Hotel," she added, with a sweep of her gloved hand. Her eyes were lovely. As she .slood there in the fading sunlight she-scemed the fairest vision I had ever seen, stood spell-bound by her marvellous beauty. + "And may I not act as your escort on your walk to-day?' I asked. "Certainly. 1 have no objection," she answered with graceful dignity, lhere- fore 1 turned and walked beside her, carrying her mus'e. * We took the road which leads straight away to the Magazine, and crosses the Serpentine beyond. There in the yel- lew glow of the Oclober.sunset I loung- €d at her side and drank my fill of her loveliness. Surely, I thought, there could be no more beautiful 'woman in all the world, The Colonel's strange warning recurred to me, but I laughed it to scorn. : As we passed beneath the rustling trees the sun's last rays lit up her beau. tiful face with a light that seemed oth- ercal and tipped her hair until there scemed a golden halo about her. 1 was no love-sick youth, Le it remembered, tut a man who had a bitter experience of the world and its suffering. Yet al that hour I was fascinated by tho grace of her superb carriage, the sup. pleness of her figure, the charm of her swoetl smile, and the soft music of her voice as she chalted to me, She told me of her love for music, and from the character of the pieces which formed her studies [ knew thal she must be a musician of a no mean order. The operatic melody which she tad sung at (he Colonel's was, she do- cared, a mere trifle, We discussed the works of 'Rossini and Massent, of Wag- ter and Mendelssohn, and of Verd: Puceini, Mascagni, Perosi, and such lat ter-day composers. | had always prid- e.myself that I knew something of music, but her knowledge was far deep- er than mine, -- (To be Continued.) Eis Last Shi VVAAMAMAAMAAAAAAAMNY * Caplain Norris lounged idly on the Valparaiso Quays, ~ He 'waited in hope i some acquaintance would heave sight---some captain or first or sec- nd officer who would be good for a drink--or af'er dark even, he would ac- cept the hospitality of a man before dhe mast, or & steward. His 1hirst had ghed. 1 much prefer 8 'man who had commanded num- less Vesesls on. 4he high seas. And now. tines were particularly hard, : the collision of the | sounselt ness." {against it, : ¥ war and ghisses from a cupboard, and &sid: "Now, €ajttain, help yourself.' : 'Norris swallowed a glass of whiskey ra gulp, and then held but his glass flo be. refflled. "I "wanted that drink : Nuh aso ike, Captains "Much 'as you like --jest get setliod, ani thon. we'll talk "The second glass made Captain Norris '| feel himself again, He looked al the stranger and seid: 1 "You'll be Mr. Stevens, 1 Suppose?" | The tall man nodded, "Well, what do' you want-with me? - "Look hyar, Captain, I want to talk Slraight - fo you, You're night up Lost your ship, lost your Feputation. De you think there's a Shipowner on the West Coast who'd trust you with a vessel?' "Give me some whiskey and tell me -| something fresh," grunted lhe Captaia, "Well, you're right up against it--you "can't get a berth--you're dying for the , and you can't get that. For all I know youve folk dependent on you somewhere." The Captain wriggled as he listened to {his semtence. He thought of his wife and three children at Poplar, and wondered what she thought when she heard from the owmers that he had been discharged and that she could no longer draw against his pay. "Now, I can give you a chance--the command of a ship, and ag much drink #8 you like shipped aboard, for the drunker you are the bebler it will suit me." "What's the- game?' thundered Nor Tis, slamming his fist down on the table, - "There's a ship if ours loading at the letty. Could you take her po Maranai- ped i. "There ain't a ship sailing that I couldn't take anywhere,' roared the Captain, "That's what | thought'. said Mr. Stovens; "have some more whiskey, Cap- in?" "As much as you liko--it makes me feel a man again." "Well, this particular vessel isn't what you might call a profilable speculation. Captain. She's old and cranky, and won't last many voyages more. Already the underwrilers are sniffing at her. So HI thought that you, being a first-class seaman with a liking for drink, might, Whilo you were on the bust, pile the ship up on Mardnaibo Bar.' "Heavens!' cried the Captain; "see what drink brings a man to. Last night I cadged drinks from a steward, and today a derned Yankee asks me to lose my first ship." The shipowner rose quickly from his eat "Hyar, Captain, if you can get a ves- #el from any other firm, go and get il; tut take care how you talk aboui this firm. My, partner's a Spaniard, and touchy--he might see you gol a bowie in your back. Though, alter all, what You say wont be of much acoount. Who'd take any notice of the ravings <f a drunken, discharged coptain?"' Captain Norris glared at Stevens. "I didn't say I wouldn't do your dirty work. Only it ain't pleasant for a man ic know@how low he's got. But mind you, il I agree to sell myself I want my price. Whal's it mean to me if [ pile this vessel-up--the loss of my cer- tificate. Never will I command a ship again. What's it mean to you The full value of a rotten ship and all you can get from a faked cargo. I know you wreokers' dodges. IUll be ten or twenty thousand pounds in your pock- cts. Now, it's money down I want. | fancy myself coming to you when the job's done for my pay and gelling kick- de"out of this office as a darned black- matler. Givé me five hundred pounds dcwn, and I'll sentlle her or pile her up, or do what you wish with your rot- lem ship.' "I's a lot of money," said the ship- owner, shaking his head. "Five years ago I'd have laid an: man cul who offered me fifty thousand pounds to sink any ship I commanded.' "We might arrange for you to have half the dollars in advance and hall when the jobs done." "That's like offering mo half my price, No, if I risk my certificate and my life and the lives of twenty better men than me itll be for money down--cash, no credit." . "Well, we won't quorrcl. about the amount. © Now, Captain, let me tell you what we want you to do. You must keep: fairly sober till the vessel sails. Cive us the chance -of saying you've sort of reformed. When she's out of har- Lor the more your drink the beller. There'll be a supercargo aboard." "Never had .I a super-cargo .on ship of mine yet," groaned the Captain. The shipowner ignored the interrup- tien: "He 'will protest against your drinking habs. hn! clap him in irons if he does." '"] 'we think it would be as well rot to scuttle the ship. Sailormen talk when .a vessel springs a sudden leak at sea, and the underwriters might {urn rusty. So you'll be. drunk when Tun- ning 'into Mazanting Harbor--" "You needn't explain to me, Don't 1 imoy that 'the Shannel ab the Bar ds always shifting? Don't I know ship that louches there inside of hall dri 'from the ha » : t ship ing. shanks. the money, Captain?" ing what's due that he declined all drink. tain secretly smuggled whiskey inte the bedroom at his #otel, and made up for his sober days by drinking all the night. 'The .moniey agreed upon was paid the next evening. "Now, Cap- lain," said the shipowmer, "don't make a fool of yoursell by swanking those dbllars about. People .might wonder how you got them." The Captain glared at his employer. "What do you think I am going. to do with this money? Every penny of its going to be paid inlo a British bank to be sent to a lillle woman at Poplar. It it weren't for {hat little: woman you'd have to look a sight further for a man to pile up your rolten tub.' After a few days" Mr. Stevens let +t slip that as Captain. Norris had reform- el he had offered him the command of the Oregon. One of two wily persons who knew Stevens' Way of doing busi- ress smiled at the news, But most peo- ple agreed that, as Norris had turned over a new leaf Stevens & Teran were lucky to get him--aspecially as having a black mark against him he would come cheap. Ab last the Oregon was ready for sea, and the Captain heaved a sigh of relief. Now he could give up the mis- erable abstinence which had made his days a burden. He could let his chicf officer look after the ship, whilst he himself could spend his time in an ua- ocasing fuddle. AlL went well for the first few weeks cf the voyage. The Captain kepl his cabin, and rarely appeared on deck. The weather was so favorable that even a leaky old tub like the Oregon gave nu trouble, It was not till the vessel was within a day's sail of Maranaibo that anything untoward happend. Then a heavy south-westerly 'gale sprang up. When the chief officer consulted {he Captain the only answer he got was, "Run before il.' So the Oregon sped on her course, and early the next morning the look- cut sighted Maranaibo lights. The gale had become a Miirricane, and the chief officer lost his nerve. He went town to the cabin and demanded the, Captain's presonce on deck. With some difficulty Norris was made to under. sland the situation. He staggered on deck and the air sobered him a Liile He saw the Maranaibo Bar in the dis tance--one mass of foaming breakers. The supercargo stepped up to the Cap- lain and whispered, "Not to-day, or every soul will be lost." Instantly the Captain swung round, and with one blow of his fist struck the unfortunate supercargo to the deck. "Set three men at the wheel," cried the Captain, "a man like me ain't afraid of Maranaibo Bar." The crew hesitated, but the Captain pulled out a revolver ond ordered them lc their posts. The chiel officer mur- mured an expostulation, and was or- dered below at the revolvers point, Then whilst great seas smote the ves sel and sho trembled through every rotten timber, her head was set for the line of breakers which showed Maran a bo Bar. The crew were frantic wilh terror; some cast off their oilskins ond sea- bots so that they might stand a chance when he smash came. But much as they dreaded the angry seas they dread- ed the angry Captain more, There he stood, clinging to the raii with one hand, holding his revolver with the other--now roaring his orders so that they could be heard even above the storm, now singing in sheer exultation at the fight with the tempest before him. The vessel came nearer and nearer (o the mass of foam. The Captain covered TORONTO & WINNIPEG the men at the wheel with his revolver. If onc of them had shrunk from his vost he would have shot him. A blind mass of foam and spume surg- od over the vessel's deck, the ship was turned and tossed about by the waves as &f she were a plaything; out of the flurry on the port side a great mass of rock rose not flve yards from the ship's quarter. Then came a final smother, the vessel lurned nearly on her beam- ends, and then all at once it was in the smooth waters of Maranaibo Bay, and sailorman on the quays and on vessels in harbor wore cheering (he plucky Captain who had faced the deadly Bar. | As the Oregon took up her moorings in the harbor two boats sped aut from the quay. In onc the harbor-master snd Lloyd's agentcame to congratulate' the Captain on his feat of pluck. Cap- tain Norris was standing on the-bridge,' whiskey bottle in hand. He accepted their congratulations as if they were no more than his due. When they had lefl him he noticed a small, dark Spani-. ard whisparing eagerly to the super cargo. ! The next moment the Spaniard came up lo the Captain. "I am Senor Taran, part owner of this ship. Whal does this mean? We paid you five hundred' pounds to wreck the ship, and hero she is safe in harbor." Captain Norris struck his forehead with his hand. "That's the worst of whiskey --makes a man forget things so. | knew there was something all the time I had to do, but I couldn't call it to mind. Now, I'm a man of my word. I'd give you your money baok' il 1 hadn't sent every penny of it to the old girl at Poplar. But as I can't do that, I'll tell vou what I will do. [1] take your derned ship out and pile her up for you--properly this time. [I can't treat you fairer than that, can I?" Tho Spaniard gave him an ominious glance, but left him without saying a word. That night Captain Norris spent ashore in Maranaibo drinking. [i wes past midnight when he slaggered Jown to tho quay to go aboard his ship. He was singing loudly as he swayod his way down, and never heard the stealthy footsteps behind him. Then came a sudden knife thrust in the dark, and a slight splash in the harlor. The next morning the chiel offcar ol the Oregon, leaning idly aver the ship's side, saw a body floaling in the water The receding tide brought it alongside. le started with horror when he saw the face. IL was Captain Norris's return to his lest ship.--DPearson's \Weekly, {MANUFACTURERS bY INTENDING TO LOCATE IN TORONTO WILL FIND Ideal Manufacturing Premises IN TRUTH Flats 2,000 to 10,000 Square Feet Each LOWEST RENTALS, INCLUDING Steam Power, Heat, Electric Light Fire Sprinkier System, Most Central Location. Freight Elevators, S. Frank Wilson & Sons, 73-81 Adelaide St., West BUILDING Lowest Insurance, Four Large mmm ------------ The Utility of the Bicyclc| Was never more assured than al the present time. The busi- ness man, the doctor, the curate, ihe the Jacks ol all trades ride the wheel, time and money and puls you teacher, the farmer, The bicycle saves on the highway to economy. For 'the odd message to the store or into town, for a hurry call or imporjant engagement, thé wheel splves the. proljem,