Jasper County Democrat, Volume 22, Number 24, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 June 1919 — GREEN FANCY [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

GREEN FANCY

by GEORGE BARR Mc CUTCHEON

Author rs “CRAUSTARK” “THE ' HOLLOW OF HER HAND," “THE i PRINCE OF CRAUSTARK," ETC

SYNOPSIS. CHAPTER I—Thomas K. Barnes, wealthy New Yorker, on a walking trip through New England. Is caught In a ■tons miles from his destination. At a crossroads point he meets a girl In tna same plight. While they discuss the situation an automobile, sent to meet the Sri, arrives and Barnes Is given a lift to Bart's trfVem, while the girl Is taken on to her destination, which she tells Barnes Is a place called Green Fancy. CHAPTER IT—At the tavern Barnes falls In with a stranded troupe of “barnstorming" actors, headed by Lyndon Rushcroft, and becomes Interested in them. CHAPTESt lII—As the storm grows, Barnes finds himself worrying over the safety of the girl, traveling over the mountain roads at what he considers dangerous speed. He learns tnat Green Fancy Is something of a house of mystery. Two mounted men leave the tavern In a manner which arouses Barnes’ curiosity. r' ———•

CHAPTER IV. An Extraordinary Chambermaid, a Midnight Tragedy, and a Man Who Said "Thank You.” Miss Thackeray was “turning down” his bed when he entered his room after bidding his new actor friends goodnight. He was staggered and somewhat abashed by the appearance of Miss Thackeray. She was by no means dressed as a chambermaid should be, nor was she as dumb. On the contrary, she confronted him in the choicest raiment that her wardrobe contained, and she was bright and Cheery and exceedingly incompetent. It was her costume that shocked him. Not only was she attired in a lownecked, rose-colored evening gown, liberally bespangled with tinsel, but she wore a vast, top-heavy picture hat whose crown of black was almost Wholly obscured by a gorgeous white feather that once must have adorned 'the king of all ostriches. She was not at all his idea of a chambermaid. He started to back out of the door with an apology for having blundered Into the wrong room by mistake. “Come right in,” she said cheerily. *TU soon be through. I suppose I should have done all this an hour ago, but I Just had to write a few letters. I am Miss Thackeray. This is Mix Barnes, I believe.” He bowed, still quite overcome “You needn’t be scared,” she cried, Observing his confusion. “This Is my regular uniform. I’m starting a new style for chambermaids. Did it paralyze you to find me here?” “I couldn’t believe my eyes.” She abandoned her easy, careless manner. A look of mortification came Into her eyes as she straightened up and faced him. Her voice was a trifle husky when she spoke again, after a moment’s pause. “You see, Mr. Barnes, these are the only duds I have with me. It wasn’t

necessary to put on this hat, of course, but I did It simply to make the character complete. I might just as well make beds and clean washstands In a picture hat as in a low-necked gown, so here I am.” She was a tall, pleasant-faced girl of twenty-three or four, not unlike her father in many respects. “I am very sorry,” he said lamely. “I have heard something of your misfortunes from your father and —the others. It’s—lt’s really hard luck.” “I call It rather good luck to have got away with the only dress In the lot that cost more than tuppence,” she said, smiling again. “Lord knows what would have happened to me If they had dropped down on us qt the end of the first act. I was the beggar’s daughter, you see—absolutely In rags. Glad to have met you. I think you’ll find

everything nearly an rignt. Good bight, sir."

She closed the door behind her, leaving him standing in the middle of the room* perplexed but amused. “By George,” he said to himself, still staring at the closed door, “they’re wonders, all of them. I wish I could do something to help them out of —” He sat down abruptly on the edge of the bed and pulled his wallet from his pocket. He set about counting the bills, a calculating frown In his eyes. Then he stared at the celling, summing up. “I’ll do it,” he said, after a moment of mental figuring. He told off a half dozen bills and slipped them Into his pocket. The wallet sought Its usual resting place for the night: Under a pillow. He was healthy and he was tired. Two minutes after his head touched the pillow he was sound asleep. He was aroused shortly after midnight by shouts, apparently just outside his window. A man was calling In a loud voice from the road below; an Instant later he heard a tremendous pounding on the tavern door. Springing out of bed, he rushed to the window. There were horses In front of the house —several of them — and men on foot moving like shadows among them. ■ -

Turning from the window, he unlocked and opened the door Into the Vail- Some one was clattering dowf the narrow staircase. The bolts on the front door shot back with resounding force, and there came the hoarse jumble of excited voices as men crowded through the entrance. Putnam Jones’ voice rose above the clamour. “Keep quiet I Do you want to wake everybody on the place?” he was saying angrily. “What's up? This Is a flue time o’ night to be — Good Lord I What’s the matter with him?” “Telephone for a doctor, Put—damn’ quick! This one’s still alive. The other one is dead as a door nail up at Jim Conley’s house. Git ole Doc James down from Saint Liz. Bring him in here, boys. Where’s your light? Ehsy now! Eas-ee!” Barnes waited to hear no more. His blood seemed to be running Ice cold as he retreated Into the room and began scrambling for his clothes. The thing he feared had come to pass. Disaster had overtaken her in that wild, senseless dash up the mountain road. He was cursing half alond as he! dressed, cursing the fool who drove that machine and who now was perhaps dying down there In the taproom. “The other one is dead as a door nail,” kept running through his head —“the other one.”

A dozen men were In the taproom, gathered around two tables that had been drawn together. The men about the table, on which was stretched the figure of the wounded man, were undoubtedly natives: Farmers, woodsmen or employees of the tavern. At a word from Putnam Jones they opened up and allowed Barnes to advance to the side of the man. “See If you c’n understand him, Mr. Barnes,” said the landlord. Perspiration was dripping from his long, rawboned face. “And you, Bacon —you and Dlllingford hustle upstairs and get a mattress ofTn one of the beds. Stand at the door there. Pike, and* don’t let any woman In here. Go away, Miss Thackeray I This Is no place for you." Miss Thackeray pushed her way past the man who tried to stop her and joined Barnes. “It Is the place for me,” she said sharply. “Haven’t you men got sense enough to put something under his head? Where Is he hurt? Get that cushion, you. Stick it under here when I lift his head. Oh, you poor thing! We’ll be as quick as possible. There!” The man’s eyes were closed, but at yie sound of a woman’s voice he opened them. The hand with which he clutched at his breast slid off and seemed to be groping for hers. His breathing was terrible. There was blood at the comers of his mouth, and more oozed forth when his lips parted In an effort to speak. With a courage that surprised even herself, the girl took his hand In hers. It was wet and warm. She did not dare look at It. “Mere!, madame,” struggled, from the man’s lips, and he smiled. 'Barnes leaned over and spoke to him In French. The dark, pain-stricken eyes closed, and an almost imperceptible shake of the head signified that he did not understand. Evidently he had acquired only a few of the simple French expressions. Barnes had a slight knowledge of Spanish and Italian, and tried again with no better results. German was his last -resort, and he knew he would fall once more, for the man obviously was not Teutonic. The bloody lips parted, however, and the eyes opened with a piteous, appealing expression in their depths. It was apparent that there was something be

wanted to say, something be had to say before he died. He gasped a dozen words or more In a tongue utterly unknown to Barnes, who bent closer to catch the feeble effort. It was he who now shook his head; with a groan the sufferer closed his eyes In despair. He choked and coughed violently an Instant later. “Get some water and a towel," cried Miss Thackeray, tremulously. She was very white, but still clung to the man’s hand. “Be quick I Behind the bar.” Barnes unbuttoned the coat and revealed the blood-soaked white shirt. “Better leave this to me,” he said In hbr ear. “There’s nothing you can do. He’s done for. Please go away." “Oh, I eha’n’t faint —at least, not yet. Poor fellow! I’ve seen him upstairs and wondered who he was. Is he really going to die?” “Looks bad,” said Barnes, gently opening the shirt front. Several of the craning men turned away suddenly. * “Who Is he, Mr. Jones?” “He Is registered as Andrew Paul, from New York. That’s all I know. The other man put his name down as Albert Roon. He seemed to be the boss and this man a sort of servant, far as I could make eut. They never talked much and seldom came downstairs. They had their meuls In their room.”

“There Is nothing we can do,” said Barnes, “except try to stanch the flow of blood. He Is bleeding inwardly, I’m afraid. It’s a clean wound, Mr. Jones. Like a rifle shot, I should suy.” “That’s Just what it is," said one of the men, a tall woodsman. “The feller who did It was a dead shot, you c’n bet on that. He got t’ other man square through the heart.” “Lordy, but this will raise a rumpps,” groaned the landlord. ■ “We’ll have detectives an’—” “I guess they got what \fras cornin’ to ’em,” said another of the men. “What’s that? Why, they was rldln’ peaceful as could be to Spanish Falls. What do you mean by sayln’ that, Jim Conley? But wait a minute! How does It happen that they were up near your dad’s house? That certainly ain’t on the rqad to Span—”

“Spanish Falls nothin’! They wasn’t Koin’ to Spanish Falls any more’n I am at this minute. They tied their horses up the road Just above our house,” said young Conley, lowering his voice out of consideration for the feelings of the helpless man. “It was about ’leven o’clock, I reckon. I was cornin’ home from slngin’ school up at Number Ten, an’ I passed the hosses hitched to the fence. Naturally I stopped, curious like. There wasn’t no one around, fer as I could see, so I thought Td take a look to see whose hosses they were. I thought it was denied funny, them bosses bein’ there at that time o’ night an’ no one around. Looked mighty queer to me. Course, thinks L they might belong to somebody visitin’ In there at Green Fancy, so I thought Td—” •Green Fancy,” said Barnes, starting. “Was It up that far?” demanded Jones.

“They was hitched Jest about a hundred yards below Mr. Curtis’ propity, on the off side o’ the road. I hadn’t any more’n got to our front gate when I heard some one running the road ap there behind me. knowed what was happenin’, bang went a gun. I almost Jumped out’n my boots. The runnlqS had stopped. The horses was rarin’ an* tearing’ so I thought Td —” “Where’d the shot come from?” demanded Jones. “Up the road some’eres, I couldn’t swear Just where. Must’a’ been up by the road that cuts in to Green Fancy. So I thought I’d hustle In an’ see if pa was awake, an’ git my gun. Jest then pa stuck his head out’n the wdnder an’ yelled what the hell’s the matter. You betcher life I sung out who I was mighty quick, ’cause pa's purty spry with a gun an’ I didn’t want him takin’ me fer burglars sneaking around the house. While we wuz talkin’ there one of the hosses started our way lickety-spllt, an’ In about two seconds it went by us. It was purty dark, but we see plain as day that there was a man In the saddle, bendln’ low „over the hoss’ neck and shoutin’ to It. We waited a couple o' minutes, wonderin’ what to do, an’ listenin’ to the hoss gittin’ furder and furder away in the direction of the cross-roads. Then ’way dotvn there by the pike we heerd another shot. Right there an' then pa said he’d put on his clothes an’ we’d set out to see what it was all about. “Well, na come out with my gun an’

bls’n an’ we walks up to where I seen the bosses. Shore ’nough, one of ’em was still bitched to tbe fence, an’ t’other was gone. We stood around a minute or two examinin’ tbe hoss an’ then pa says let’s go up the road a ways an’ see If we c’n see anything. An’ by gosh, we hadn’t gone moren’ fifty feet afore we come plumb on a man layln’ in the middle of the road. Pm shook him an’ he didn’t let out a sound. He was warm, but deader’n a tombstone. I wux fer leavin’ him there till we c’d git the coroner, but pa says no. We’d carry him down to our porch an’ lay him there, so’s he’d be out o’ danger. I jumps on Polly an’ lights out fer here, Mr. Jones, to telephone up to Saint Liz fer the sheriff an’ the coroner, not glvln* a dang what I run into on the way. Polly shied somethin’ terrible Jest afore we got to the pike an’ I coine derned near bein’ throwed. An’ right there ’side the road was this feller, all In a heap. Thinks I, you poor cuss, you must ’a’ tried to stop that feller on hosslmck an’ he plunked you. That accounted fer the second shot. The thing that worries all of us is did the same mun do the shootln’. or was there two of ’em, one waitin’ down the cross-roads?” “Must have been two,” said Jones, thoughtfully. “The same man couldn’t have got down there ahead of him, that’s sure. Did anybody go up to Green Fnncy to make Inquiries?” “ ’Twusn’t necessary. Mr. Curtis heard the shootln’ an’ Jest before we left he sent a man out to see what It was all about. The old skeezlcks that’s been drlvln’ his car lately come down half-dressed. He said nothin’ out of the way had happened up at Greeßi Fancy.”

“It’s most mysterious," said Barnes, glancing round the circle of awed faces. “There must have been some one lying In wait for these men, and with a very definite purpose In mind." “Strikes me,” said Jones, “that these two men were up to some kind of dirty work themselves, else why did they aay they were goln’ to Spanish Falls? They were queer actin’ men, I’ll have to say that” His eyes met Barnes’ and there was a queer light in them. “You don’t happen to know anything about this, do you, Mr. Barnes?" be demanded, suddenly. (TO BE CONTINUED.)

“You See, Mr. Barnes, These Are the Only Duds I Have With Me.”