"SUGGESTION."

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 455, 13 March 1909, Page 11

"SUGGESTION."

(Br Elaine Macdosalb.)

..now it is all these blessed fortuneteliou, said Tom. "I'd stand a good enough chance with Alice, because she "is awfully sweet to me; but she is always going to them, and they tell her she lias a brilliant future, and will marry a title or some such rot, and she won't look at any ordinary chap." i . "I wouldn't call you 'any ordinary chap' at all," said Lallie. "Oh, I don't know about that," said Tom, sitting up, and looking flattered. "But, of course, when we are siieh old chums " said Lallie.

Tom sat back again. ' <, "And have you asked her to 'look at you? , " • "Why, no. You see I have only known her such a little while; but she has fairly bowled me over. She is a lovely girl." "Isn't she?" said Lallie, enthusiastically, following her usual policy of agreeing with men when they praised other girls. , "And she- has an awfully sweet nature, too. Not one of these cold, calculating sort of girls. _ She trusts everyone so." "Specially fortune-tellers," murmured Lallie, putting a gold-coloured silk cushion behind her little dark head. . "Oh, hang tho fortune-tollers. Can't you help .things along, Lallie? You have a talk with her, and tell her they work off that sort of rot to every girl who goes to them." "She would not believe me. No, I'll think out a. hotter plan than that. Now you keep quiet for a minute, and let mo thing," and Lallio made her dimples show, and potted Tom with her eyes. Then she pulled a violet out of the big bunch in her dress, and nibbled tho stalk thoughtfully, while she looked in tho fire for an idea. It was a cold, grey afternoon. Tom settled tho cushions at his back, and stretched his legs luxuriously. Lallio had given him what slip called "men's tea"—strong, hot tea in a big cup —and an armchair by a glowing fire: Alico's drawing-room was very elegant, but one had to move carefuly, so as not to break anything. And the tea was always rather cold. One thing about Lallie, she did know how to make a man comfortable. Sho looked pretty, too, with the violet stalk between her iittlo white teeth, and the fire making red lights on her hair. Of course, sho was quito a different stylo to Alice. "1 have an idea," said Lallie. "Alico has nn appointment.on Thursday with Madame Claire; you know, that new palmist all the girls are talking about, Why don't you seo Madams before then, and get her to de-

scribe you to.Alice, and say you are tho man sho is "going to marry. It sounds so much more probable than the title, and if it came true, Alico would tell everyone, and it would bo such an advertisement for Madame. You can easily persuado her to do it, and Alice will believe her, and give you a chance." " Well, it sounds a jolly good idea. You aro quite suro it is not a bit —or " "'Course not," said Lallie, soothingly. "Not when it is only those old fortunetellers keeping you apart." "That's just it. I'm not going to be beaten by a lot of swindling old hags," said Tom excitedly. "And when you love her so," said Lallie, sympathetically. " Yes, that's what I mean, of course." / " Of course," cooed Lallie. " Well, I must go now. Good-bye, Lallie. You aro the right sort of a chum for a fellow to have." "If ho really cared for her—but he doesn't, a bit. It is only that ho hates being beaten," said Lallie to the mirror, as she dressed to go out. "If he proposed, she would snap him up, and never let him go again. Tom's money in the hand is worth any number of titles in the bush. Know he would love me awfully if it only occurred to him; but he's got into a stupid habit of looking on me as a chum. Do 1 look tho kind of a girl who wants to be chums with a man? Anyone would think I was a frump I" Lallie angrily stabbed three very big hat-pins into a very small hat, and put two sovereigns into her gold chain-purse. "She would mako him miserable, because she does not care two pins for him, and I care—packets I" Two'tears swam in the bright eyes; but Lallie wiped them away daintily, so as not to mako her eyes red, and went out to get a Carlton tram.

Sho was shown into a room all dingy red cretonne, and smelling of fried onions. Madame Claire was a stout woman, with oily black hair and a long upper lip. " You wish to sec me; yes?" she said, with a laboured French accent, and a suspicion of brogue. Lallie stared. "Why, it's Mrs. Mullins!".

" Glory be to tho saints, 'tis Miss Lallie 1" said Madame, dropping into broad Irish with startling suddenness. " Well, fancy hearing all about the wonderful French palmist, and then finding her

to be Mrs. Mullins, our cook at Corylderie Station! How surprised all my friends will bo," said Lallie, in her sweetest voice. " Oh, but Miss Lallie, that would ruin me. You see, darlin', I was cook to a Frinch leddy, who was in this line of business; and 1" picked it up from her, and the Frinch accent, I can talk it beautiful, on'y you've put it clean out of my head. I'm doin' so well, too, and what good will it do a pretty young leddy like you to roon me?'.' "Will you do what I want?" " Oi will," groaned Madame. "Well, there's a. man coming here tomorrow "—and Lallie took a little snapshot of Tom out of lier purse. "And ho wants you to describe him to a girl, and tell her she will marry him. Don't you dare to. Bo very indignant at the idea; then, beforo he goes insist on reading his hand. He will not want you to, but you must. I will tell you some things that will make him believe you. Then describe me—me, do you understand? —and toll him it's me ho loves, and mo he'll marry. Write and tell me every single thing ihat happens. You've just got to do it." "All right, darlin'; all right. Oi'll do me best," said Madame, submissively, but with a comprehensive twinkle in her eyes. " Heaven helps those who help themselves," said Lallie piously, as she waited for her tram. ." I feel like !i Bland Holt villainess, but I'll be a dear to him when I get him." Lallie and Tom sat in one big chair by the fire a fortnight later. "And you never loved Alice a bit, even for a minute?" and Lallie rubbed her soft little cheek against Tom's. " No; I was just talking rot when I said anything about her. It was you all the time, honey." "Then didn't you go to the fortune-teller woman, after all?"

Tom crowded a lot of thinking into a remarkably short time.

" Well, I did go," ho Enid, cautiously " And told her about Alice?"

"No, I didn't do that. You see, by the time. 1 got into tbo room I realised that you were the little girl 1 wanted—not Alice at all; so I just let her read my hand and came away again." Lallio's little hand wandered caressingly around lom's neck.

"And what did she tell you?" "Well, she made one or'fivo lucky shots, but sho did iiot tell me anything I did not know before"—and by this time ho quite believed it.

" Let s talk about you and me now. Wo don't care about old fortune-tellers," cooed Lallie, in the voice of a mating dove. " My precious baby," said Torn fervently, and the precious baby looked into the fire and smiled a sphinx-like smile.—" Australasian."