The Argosy, April 1916 — page 16: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

- 6 bidden Miss Wayne good night, and she had waved her hand at him from her room door, His dreams were pleasant. He was an early riser, and it was but about half-past six when he woke and be- gan leisurely to dress, intending to take a walk before the household was astir. So far as he could tell, the silence was so profound, not a soul was stirring except himself. . Suddenly the air was split with a shrill cry of terror or pain, or both, and the voice was the agonized voice of a woman. Yale flung on a few remaining garments, hurled himself out of his room, and crashed into Greenland, clad only in his pajamas and but half awake. CHAPTER III. UNDER SUSPICION. “TITEY! Hey! What’s all this row? * What the devil—” “Let me alone, you fool,’ shouted Yale, whom Greenland had grabbed by the throat. “I didn’t holler, and I didn’t make anybody else holler. Get your clothes on.” He hurled Greenland from him and rushed down-stairs. The main staircase led to the wide main hall, and against the wall of this Yale found a maid of the household leaning, screaming and beating her breasts with her hands. “What’s the matter? Who hurt you? What have you seen?” asked Yale, putting his arms around the maid, fearing she was going to faint. “Stop that noise.” “They’ve gone! They’ve gone! They’ve gone!”’ she yelled shrilly, and nearly be- side herself, she caught Yale’s hair in both her hands. ‘‘Where have they gone?” ‘‘Who’s gone? Let go my hair,” shouted Yale. ‘“Who’s gone? What’s the matter with you? Greenland and Miss Raymond haven’t gone. I just met Greenland.” “Not them! Nobody! -Them things in there.” She pointed to the dining-room door, having released Yale’s hair. By that time Mr. Raymond and Green- land had arrived on the scene. Mr. Ray- mond had on his trousers, a dark brown dressing-gown, and slippers. Greenland wore the Tuxedo he had sported the pre- vious evening, and the vest belonging to it. These had been put on over his striped pajamas, and he was barefooted. - “What’s the ding-dong ringing for? THE ARGOSY. What’s the matter here?” Greenland de- manded to know. | “They’ve gone! They’ve gone! They’ve gone!” howled the maid, pointing toward the dining-room. “What the devil does she mean, Yale?” asked Greenland, while Mr. Raymond stood looking daggers at the visitor. “Has this man offered you hurt or in- sult, my girl?” he asked sternly. Yale laughed. “They’ve gone! They’ve gone!” con- tinued the hysterical maid. “Explain this thing, sir,” said Mr. Ray- mond to Yale. “T can’t explain it and prevent this girl from falling at the same time. Can’t you see she’s about lost her senses? Help me get her to a chair.” Greenland rushed to the drawing-room and dragged out a small, armless divan sort of thing, upon which they placed the girl, who immediately rolled off on to the floor. “They’ve gone!” she screamed once more, and then fell silent in a faint. “She pointed to the dining-room,” Yale said to Greenland. ‘“‘Let’s take a look.” He, the coolest because it was his nature to be cool, and because he was less con- cerned than the other two in whatever had occurred, led the way, followed by the grotesque Greenland and the utterly incom- petent self-made Raymond. They stood in a row inside the newly decorated dining-room and gazed stupidly at the mahogany table they had left loaded with wealth the night before. Not a vestige of that wealth was visible now. All the expensive and rare pieces of silver, the costly dinner and tea-sets, can- delabra, urns, silver table baskets, fruit- dishes, all, or nearly all, of solid silver of sterling grade, had disappeared. One win- dow of the dining-room was open. ‘Rouse the house!” roared Mr. Ray- mond. “Get everybody out. I say, George, wake everybody! Good Heaven, what have you got on? Would you present yourself to my wife and daughter in that ridiculous garb? Go to your room and dress. Jil wake the house.” It occurred to Yale that Mr. Raymond, though undoubtedly an able man in the business world, was not the man to grapple with a problem like the one before them. He went into the hall, and found Sims, the butler, and another female servant working over the maid who had fainted. MICLOOOK C@