CHAPTER XLIV.
MISS FEATHERINGTON'S SHATTERED DREAM.
Marietta Featherington couldn't seem to concentrate her mind upon that
thirteenth chapter of "Lily the Lovely Laundress." The handsome
rat-catcher had just beaten the aristocratic villain to a pulp and
would have finished the job neatly and thoroughly had not Lily raised
her lovely fair hand and cried with the imperiousness of an empress:
"Pause, Giovanni! Pause! He may have a mother!"
Ordinarily Miss Featherington would have raced through the pages
hungrily, avidly. Not so on this fair November afternoon. Whether it
was the mince pie and melted cheese she had partaken of a bare hour
before, or whether it was the even-more-so-than-usual grumpy mood of
her employer, Joshua Barnes, she could not tell. Perhaps it was
neither. She refused to analyze it. Whatever the cause, she felt heavy
and wistful and sad.
From time to time the emotional Miss Featherington allowed Whitney
Barnes to flit through the corridors of her imagination. He had walked
heavily through her dreams the night before. His strange words of
yesterday had strangely moved her. Desperately she had striven to
solve the mystery. Were they words of love? If so, how would Old Grim
Barnes accept the declaration from his son's lips that he loved the
humble though, yes, though beautiful stenographer lady of the Barnes
Mustard Company, Limited?
Miss Featherington had half expected to walk into Joshua Barnes's
presence that morning and meet with a torrent of abuse. She had
rehearsed a cold and haughty retort. But her employer had greeted her
with a gruff, "Good-morning," and an expression that was equivalent to
a smile.
Alas! the prince had not spoken.
Marietta pounded out forty-two letters containing references to as
many different kinds of assorted and selected mustard before she
succeeded in dismissing the heir to the mustard millions from her
romantic thoughts and creating a new hero in his stead. The new hero
some way fell down and she picked up "Lily the Lovely Laundress." But
even the "Lovely Lily" failed to thrill and she laid the book aside.
A long sigh was escaping from the depressed maiden's bosom when the
door of the anteroom opened and who should enter but Whitney Barnes.
Marietta swallowed her sigh and clasped her hand over her palpitating
heart.
The young man was not alone, however, and he did not deign Miss
Featherington a glance as he held the door open and cried:
"Come in, children!"
The children were none other than Helen and Sadie and Travers Gladwin.
Nor did they deign Miss Featherington a glance as they assembled in a
little group, talking in hushed tones and punctuating their talk with
suppressed laughter.
By the time Whitney Barnes did turn to Marietta that young lady's nose
was elevated to an excruciating angle--so much so that she was unable
to fulfill her desire to sniff. There was cold hauteur in her stare as
she met the smile of Whitney Barnes and replied to his query:
"Yes, Mr. Barnes, your father is in and alone."
"Thank you, Miss Featherington," cried the young man, gaily, and an
instant later the little party of four had vanished behind a mahogany
portal.
Joshua Barnes was bent over his desk writing, as the door opened
noiselessly and the four young people entered. When he looked up his
son, Travers Gladwin and Helen were lined up beside his chair, the two
young men smiling sheepishly and the girls blushing crimson and
looking down at the floor.
"Hello, Pater," opened Whitney Barnes, "you remember Travers Gladwin.
This is Mrs. Gladwin, a bride of sixty-seven minutes!"
Old Grim Barnes was on his feet in an instant with a gallant bow to
Helen and a hearty handshake for the bridegroom.
For a second or two he failed to descry Sadie, who, as per rehearsal,
was hidden behind the two young men. As, with a look of surprise, he
spied her, Helen drew Sadie to her and managed to stammer:
"And this is my cousin Sadie, Mr. Barnes."
Sadie dropped a timid courtesy, her face on fire.
"How do you do, Miss--er"----
Joshua Barnes was feasting his eyes on Sadie's shy beauty and smiling
benignly.
"I didn't catch the name," he added, turning to Helen.
"B-b-b," she began, when Whitney Barnes came to her rescue.
"Barnes, pater--Mrs. Sadie; that is, Mrs. Whitney Barnes--a bride of
seventy-seven minutes."
Whitney Barnes beamed upon his father and put his arm about the old
gentleman's shoulders to support him.
"How do you like my choice, dad?--isn't she a darling? Why don't you
ask to kiss the bride?"
Joshua Barnes breathed with difficulty for a moment and his eyes
blinked. Slowly he looked for confirmation in the faces of the
newlywed Gladwins, and when they both nodded and smiled, he returned
his glance to Sadie, who had turned very pale and was beginning to
tremble.
The mustard king shook off his son's arm and gathered Sadie to him
with a bear hug.
He kissed her ten times in succession and then let her down in his
chair and patted her shoulder. Joshua Barnes was so happy that tears
glistened in his eyes. He continued to look at Sadie for a long moment
before he turned to his son and gulped:
"Whitney Barnes, you scoundrel--have you been keeping this from me?"
"Why no, dad," came the laughing answer. "I telephoned you about it
last night, and you called me"----
"For the first time in my life I made a mistake, Whitney Barnes,"
his father checked him, "and you both have my blessing a
thousandfold--provided you will take me in as a boarder."
"Done!" exclaimed Whitney Barnes.
(THE END)
Popular Copyright Novels AT MODERATE PRICES
Ask your dealer for a complete list of A. L. Burt Company's Popular
Copyright Fiction
Abner Daniel....................................Will N. Harben
Adventures of a Modest Man..................Robert W. Chambers
Adventures of Sherlock Holmes...................A. Conan Doyle
After House, The.........................Mary Roberts Rinehart
Ailsa Paige.................................Robert W. Chambers
Air Pilot, The.................................Randall Parrish
Alton of Somasco...............................Harold Bindloss
Andrew The Glad.........................Maria Thompson Daviess
Ann Boyd........................................Will N. Harben
Anna the Adventuress.....................E. Phillips Oppenheim
Armchair at the Inn, The....................F. Hopkinson Smith
As the Sparks Fly Upward..................Cyrus Townsend Brady
At the Mercy of Tiberius..................Augusta Evans Wilson
At the Moorings..................................Rosa N. Carey
Aunt Jane of Kentucky.......................Eliza Calvert Hall
Awakening of Helena Richie.....................Margaret Deland
Bandbox, The................................Louis Joseph Vance
Bar 20.....................................Clarence E. Mulford
Bar 20 Days................................Clarence E. Mulford
Barrier, The.........................................Rex Beach
Battle Ground, The...............................Ellen Glasgow
Bella Donna.....................................Robert Hichens
Beloved Vagabond, The.........................William J. Locke
Ben Blair.....................................Will Lillibridge
Beth Norvell...................................Randall Parrish
Betrayal, The............................E. Phillips Oppenheim
Beulah (Illustrated Edition)..................Augusta J. Evans
Bob Hampton of Placer..........................Randall Parrish
Bob, Son of Battle.............................Alfred Ollivant
Brass Bowl, The.............................Louis Joseph Vance
Broad Highway, The..............................Jeffery Farnol
Bronze Bell, The............................Louis Joseph Vance
Buck Peters, Ranchman......................Clarence E. Mulford
Butterfly Man, The......................George Barr McCutcheon
By Right of Purchase...........................Harold Bindloss
Cabbages and Kings....................................O. Henry
Calling of Dan Matthews, The................Harold Bell Wright
Call of the Blood, The..........................Robert Hichens
Cape Cod Stories.............................Joseph C. Lincoln
Cap'n Eri....................................Joseph C. Lincoln
Cap'n Warren's Wards.........................Joseph C. Lincoln
Cardigan....................................Robert W. Chambers
Car of Destiny, The.................C. N. and A. M. Williamson
Carpet From Bagdad, The........................Harold MacGrath
Casting Away of Mrs. Leeks and Mrs. Aleshine....F. R. Stockton
Chaperon, The.......................C. N. and A. M. Williamson
Circle, The...........................Katherine Cecil Thurston
Claw, The.....................................Cynthia Stockley
Colonial Free Lance, A...................Chauncey C. Hotchkiss
Coming of the Law, The...................Charles Alden Seltzer
Conquest of Canaan, The.......................Booth Tarkington
Conspirators, The...........................Robert W. Chambers
Cordelia Blossom.......................George Randolph Chester
Counsel for the Defense............................Leroy Scott
Cry in the Wilderness, A........................Mary E. Waller
Dark Hollow, The..........................Anna Katharine Green
Day of Days, The............................Louis Joseph Vance
Depot Master, The............................Joseph C. Lincoln
Derelicts.....................................William J. Locke
Desired Woman, The..............................Will N. Harben
Destroying Angel, The.......................Louis Joseph Vance
Divine Fire, The..................................May Sinclair
Dixie Hart......................................Will N. Harben
Dominant Dollar, The..........................Will Lillibridge
Dr. David................................Marjorie Benton Cooke
Enchanted Hat, The.............................Harold MacGrath
Excuse Me........................................Rupert Hughes
54-40 or Fight...................................Emerson Hough
Fighting Chance, The........................Robert W. Chambers
Financier, The................................Theodore Dreiser
Flamsted Quarries...............................Mary E. Waller
For a Maiden Brave.......................Chauncey C. Hotchkiss
Four Million, The.....................................O. Henry
From the Car Behind........................Eleanor M. Ingraham
Fruitful Vine, The..............................Robert Hichens
Gentleman of France, A..........................Stanley Weyman
Get-Rich-Quick-Wallingford.............George Randolph Chester
Gilbert Neal....................................Will N. Harben
Girl From His Town, The........................Marie Van Vorst
Glory of Clementina, The......................William J. Locke
Glory of the Conquered, The.....................Susan Glaspell
God's Good Man...................................Marie Corelli
Going Some...........................................Rex Beach
Gordon Craig...................................Randall Parrish
Greyfriars Bobby..............................Eleanor Atkinson
Guests of Hercules, The.............C. N. and A. M. Williamson
Halcyone...........................................Elinor Glyn
Happy Island (Sequel to Uncle William)............Jennette Lee
Havoc....................................E. Phillips Oppenheim
Heart of the Hills, The..........................John Fox, Jr.
Heart of the Desert, The........................Honore Willsie
Heather-Moon, The...................C. N. and A. M. Williamson
Her Weight in Gold......................George Barr McCutcheon
Herb of Grace....................................Rosa N. Carey
Highway of Fate, The.............................Rosa N. Carey
Homesteaders, The....................Kate and Virgil D. Boyles
Hopalong Cassidy...........................Clarence E. Mulford
Honor of the Big Snows, The...............James Oliver Curwood
House of Happiness, The....................Kate Langley Bosher
House of the Lost Court, The..................C. N. Williamson
House of the Whispering Pines, The...............Anna K. Green
Household of Peter, The..........................Rosa N. Carey
Hugh Wynne, Free Quaker.................S. Weir Mitchell, M.D.
Husbands of Edith, The..................George Barr McCutcheon
Idols.........................................William J. Locke
Illustrious Prince, The..................E. Phillips Oppenheim
Imposter, The..................................John Reed Scott
In Defiance of the King..................Chauncey C. Hotchkiss
Indifference of Juliet, The..................Grace S. Richmond
Inez (Illustrated Edition)....................Augusta J. Evans
Infelice..................................Augusta Evans Wilson
Initials Only.............................Anna Katharine Green
Iron Trail, The......................................Rex Beach
Iron Woman, The................................Margaret Deland
Ishmael (Illustrated)..............Mrs. E. D. E. N. Southworth
Island of Regeneration, The...............Cyrus Townsend Brady
Japonette...................................Robert W. Chambers
Jane Cable..............................George Barr McCutcheon
Jeanne of the Marshes....................E. Phillips Oppenheim
Jennie Gerhardt...............................Theodore Dreiser
Joyful Heatherby.................................Payne Erskine
Judgment House, The.........................Sir Gilbert Parker
Keith of the Border............................Randall Parrish
Key to the Unknown, The..........................Rosa N. Carey
King Spruce.........................................Holman Day
Knave of Diamonds, The...........................Ethel M. Dell
Lady and the Pirate, The.........................Emerson Hough
Lady Betty Across the Water.........C. N. and A. M. Williamson
Land of Long Ago, The.......................Eliza Calvert Hall
Langford of the Three Bars...........Kate and Virgil D. Boyles
Last Trail, The......................................Zane Grey
Last Voyage of the Donna Isabel, The...........Randall Parrish
Leavenworth Case, The.....................Anna Katherine Green
Life Mask, The.........................Author of "To M. L. G."
Lighted Way, The.........................E. Phillips Oppenheim
Lin McLean.........................................Owen Wister
Little Brown Jug at Kildare, The............Meredith Nicholson
Lonesome Land......................................B. M. Bower
Lord Loveland Discovers America.....C. N. and A. M. Williamson
Lorimer of the Northwest........................Harold Bindloss
Lorraine....................................Robert W. Chambers
Lost Ambassador, The.....................E. Phillips Oppenheim
Love Under Fire................................Randall Parrish
Macaria (Illustrated Edition).................Augusta J. Evans
Maid at Arms, The...........................Robert W. Chambers
Maid of Old New York, A.........................Amelia E. Barr
Maids of Paradise, The......................Robert W. Chambers
Maid of the Whispering Hills, The................Vingie E. Roe
Maid of the Forest, The........................Randall Parrish
Making of Bobby Burnit, The..............Geo. Randolph Chester
Mam' Linda......................................Will N. Harben
Marriage...........................................H. G. Wells
Marriage a la Mode..........................Mrs. Humphrey Ward
Master Mummer, The.......................E. Phillips Oppenheim
Masters of the Wheatlands......................Harold Bindloss
Max...................................Katherine Cecil Thurston
Mediator The........................................Roy Norton
Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes......................A. Conan Doyle
Missioner, The...........................E. Phillips Oppenheim
Miss Gibbie Gault..........................Kate Langley Bosher
Miss Philura's Wedding Gown............Florence Morse Kingsley
Miss Selina Lue.........................Maria Thompson Daviess
Mollie's Prince..................................Rosa N. Carey
Molly McDonald.................................Randall Parrish
Money Moon, The.................................Jeffery Farnol
Motor Maid, The.....................C. N. and A. M. Williamson
Moth, The..................................William Dana Orcutt
Mountain Girl, The...............................Payne Erskine
Mr. Pratt....................................Joseph C. Lincoln
Mr. Pratt's Patients.........................Joseph C. Lincoln
Mrs. Red Pepper..............................Grace S. Richmond
My Friend the Chauffeur.............C. N. and A. M. Williamson
My Lady Caprice.................................Jeffery Farnol
My Lady of Doubt...............................Randall Parrish
My Lady of the North...........................Randall Parrish
My Lady of the South...........................Randall Parrish
Mystery Tales..................................Edgar Allen Poe
Mystery of the Boule Cabinet, The..........Burton E. Stevenson
Nancy Stair..............................Elinor Macartney Lane
Ne'er-Do-Well, The...................................Rex Beach
Net, The.............................................Rex Beach
Night Riders, The..............................Ridgwell Cullum
No Friend Like a Sister..........................Rosa N. Carey
Officer 666...............Barton W. Currie and Augustin McHugh
Once Upon a Time.........................Richard Harding Davis
One Braver Thing.................................Richard Dehan
One Way Trail, The.............................Ridgwell Cullum
Orphan, The................................Clarence E. Mulford
Out of the Primitive........................Robert Ames Bennet
Pam.........................................Bettina Von Hutten
Pam Decides.................................Bettina Von Hutten
Pardners.............................................Rex Beach
Parrot & Co.....................................Harold McGrath
Partners of the Tide.........................Joseph C. Lincoln
Passage Perilous, The............................Rosa N. Carey
Passionate Friends, The............................H. G. Wells
Paul Anthony, Christian..........................Hiram W. Hays
Peter Ruff...............................E. Phillips Oppenheim
Phillip Steele............................James Oliver Curwood
Phra the Phoenician........................Edwin Lester Arnold
Pidgin Island..................................Harold MacGrath
Place of Honeymoons, The.......................Harold MacGrath
Pleasures and Palaces...................Juliet Wilbor Tompkins
Plunderer, The......................................Roy Norton
Pole Baker......................................Will N. Harben
Pool of Flame, The..........................Louis Joseph Vance
Polly of the Circus..............................Margaret Mayo
Poppy.........................................Cynthia Stockley
Port of Adventure, The..............C. N. and A. M. Williamson
Postmaster, The..............................Joseph C. Lincoln
Power and the Glory, The ..................Grace McGowan Cooke
Price of the Prairie, The...............Margaret Hill McCarter
Prince of Sinners, A.....................E. Phillips Oppenheim
Prince or Chauffeur.............................Lawrence Perry
Princess Passes, The................C. N. and A. M. Williamson
Princess Virginia, The..............C. N. and A. M. Williamson
Prisoners of Chance............................Randall Parrish
Prodigal Son, The...................................Hall Caine
Purple Parasol, The.....................George Barr McCutcheon
R.J.'s Mother..................................Margaret Deland
Ranching for Sylvia............................Harold Bindloss
Reason Why, The....................................Elinor Glyn
Redemption of Kenneth Galt, The.................Will N. Harben
Red Cross Girl, The......................Richard Harding Davis
Red Lane, The.......................................Holman Day
Red Pepper Burns.............................Grace S. Richmond
Red Republic, The...........................Robert W. Chambers
Refugees, The...................................A. Conan Doyle
Rejuvenation of Aunt Mary, The.....................Anne Warner
Rise of Roscoe Paine, The....................Joseph C. Lincoln
Road to Providence, The.................Maria Thompson Daviess
Robinetta..................................Kate Douglas Wiggin
Rose in the Ring, The...................George Barr McCutcheon
Rose of the World.....................Agnes and Egerton Castle
Rose of Old Harpeth, The................Maria Thompson Daviess
Round the Corner in Gay Street...............Grace S. Richmond
Routledge Rides Alone...................Will Levington Comfort
Rue: With a Difference...........................Rosa N. Carey
St. Elmo (Illustrated Edition)................Augusta J. Evans
Seats of the Mighty, The........................Gilbert Parker
Second Violin, The...........................Grace S. Richmond
Self-Raised (Illustrated)..........Mrs. E. D. E. N. Southworth
Septimus......................................William J. Locke
Set in Silver.......................C. N. and A. M. Williamson
Sharrow.....................................Bettina Von Hutten
Shepherd of the Hills, The..................Harold Bell Wright
Sheriff of Dyke Hole, The......................Ridgwell Cullum
Ship's Company....................................W. W. Jacobs
Sidney Carteret, Rancher.......................Harold Bindloss
Sign at Six, The..........................Stewart Edward White
Silver Horde, The....................................Rex Beach
Simon the Jester..............................William J. Locke
Sir Nigel.......................................A. Conan Doyle
Sir Richard Calmady................................Lucas Malet
Sixty-First Second, The...........................Owen Johnson
Slim Princess, The..................................George Ade
Speckled Bird, A..........................Augusta Evans Wilson
Spirit in Prison, A.............................Robert Hichens
Spirit of the Border, The............................Zane Grey
Spoilers, The........................................Rex Beach
Strawberry Acres.............................Grace S. Richmond
Strawberry Handkerchief, The....................Amelia E. Barr
Streets of Ascalon, The.....................Robert W. Chambers
Sunnyside of the Hill, The.......................Rosa N. Carey
Sunset Trail, The...........................Alfred Henry Lewis
Susan Clegg and Her Friend Mrs. Lathrop............Anne Warner
Sword of the Old Frontier, A...................Randall Parrish
Tales of Sherlock Holmes........................A. Conan Doyle
Tarzan of the Apes........................Edgar Rice Burroughs
Taste of Apples, The..............................Jennette Lee
Tennessee Shad, The...............................Owen Johnson
Tess of the D'Urbervilles.........................Thomas Hardy
Texican, The.....................................Dane Coolidge
That Affair Next Door.....................Anna Katharine Green
That Printer of Udell's.....................Harold Bell Wright
Their Yesterdays............................Harold Bell Wright
Throwback, The..............................Alfred Henry Lewis
Thurston of Orchard Valley.....................Harold Bindloss
To M. L. G.; Or, He Who Passed.......................Anonymous
To Him That Hath...................................Leroy Scott
Torn Sails.........................................Allen Raine
Trail of the Axe, The..........................Ridgwell Cullum
Trail to Yesterday, The..................Charles Alden Seltzer
Treasure of Heaven, The..........................Marie Corelli
Truth Dexter.....................................Sidney McCall
T. Tembarom............................Frances Hodgson Burnett
Turnstile, The..................................A. E. W. Mason
Two-Gun Man, The.........................Charles Alden Seltzer
Uncle William.....................................Jennette Lee
Under the Red Robe...........................Stanley J. Weyman
Up From Slavery...........................Booker T. Washington
Valiants of Virginia, The.................Hallie Erminie Rives
Vanity Box, The...............................C. N. Williamson
Vane of the Timberlands........................Harold Bindloss
Varmint, The......................................Owen Johnson
Vashti....................................Augusta Evans Wilson
Wall of Men, A..........................Margaret Hill McCarter
Watchers of the Plains, The....................Ridgwell Cullum
Way Home, The.......................................Basil King
Way of An Eagle, The................................E. M. Dell
Weavers, The....................................Gilbert Parker
West Wind, The............................Cyrus Townsend Brady
Wheel of Life, The...............................Ellen Glasgow
When Wilderness Was King.......................Randall Parrish
Where the Trail Divides.......................Will Lillibridge
Where There's A Will.....................Mary Roberts Rinehart
White Sister, The..............................Marion Crawford
Wind Before the Dawn, The.......................Dell H. Munger
Window at the White Cat, The.............Mary Roberts Rinehart
Winning of Barbara Worth, The...............Harold Bell Wright
With Juliet in England.......................Grace S. Richmond
With the Best Intentions.........................Bruno Lessing
Woman in the Alcove, The .................Anna Katharine Green
Woman Haters, The............................Joseph C. Lincoln
Woodcarver of 'Lympus, The......................Mary E. Waller
Woodfire in No. 3, The......................F. Hopkinson Smith
Wrecker, The............................Robert Louis Stevenson
Younger Set, The............................Robert W. Chambers
You Never Know Your Luck........................Gilbert Parker