A STOLEN EVENING.

Otago Witness, Issue 3383, 15 January 1919, Page 58

A STOLEN EVENING.

By Sybil Campbell Letiibridge. [Copyright.] "It wouldn't be wrong, and it would be such fun, Doris. Why shouldn't I enjoy myself for once? I'm sick of the grind that life is sometimes, and this would be such a change. Look, here is the card; why shouldn't I use it?" The speaker was a young and strikingly lovely girl, with a tall, sp.lendidly-carned figure, masse3.of reddish auburn hair, and deep blue v es. She and her companion were employed by Madame Carine, the leading dressmaker and milliner in the great town of Dorcaster. "Madame gave you this ticket for the ball; she said it would amuse you to look on, but she never thought that you would dress up and go and pretend you were a guest," said Dorifi, uneasily. " It seems so—so daring, May." "Rubbish!" retorted May, her blue eyea flashing. " Madame gave me the card, and said I could go. I've got that lovely blue-and-silver that Madame let me have at cost price, because Miss Woodburn wouldn't take it after it was finished. I shall see heaps of the frocks that we've had made at our place." As she spoke, May took from its linen ■ wrappings the dress of misty chiffon and silver, and regarded it with rapt eyes. " I'll have a cab to the Assembly ns, and for once in my life I'll be a real lady, who never does a. hand's turn, and has money enough for everything," she declared, with a happy laugh. " Do you think that people will ask me to dance, or don't they generally ,go in parties and dance amongst themselves? Anyway, I shall see all the lovely frocks and be with the people who are enjoying them- . selves—and that's something." Dorcaster was celebrated for its pretty women, and at. the Assembly ball that night it was quite a remarkable thing to see a plain face; yet, when May Yorley passed up the wide staircase that led to the ballroom a tall radiant vision, murmurs of admiration were heard on every side. .."Who on earth is she?" murmured a tall, dark-faced and distinguished-looking man, whose upright bearing had in it something soldierly. "Do find out, Cardon; she's the most beautiful girl here to-night." - "You'll hear her name called out in a moment," rejoined Carton, a slim, cheerylooking boy, with grey eyes. "You know, Warford, we in Dorcaster do things differently to other towns. At.a charity ball we always have a hostess to receive the guests. This time it's Mrs Faussett; she's the wife of our county member, very short-sighted and deaf, but a good old sort. Now, listen, the servant's just asking your lovely unknown her name." The man called Warford moved a little ' forward so that he could tret a good view of May's lovely flushed face, that paled, however,-slightly, as the man-servant inquired her name. She had not been prepared for this, and t" j knowledge that she was in a false position was forced upon her. She lost her presence of mind, and instead of giving her real name, she gave the name of that client of Madame's who had rejected the dress that May was then wearing. " Miss Woodburn," she said, and the man echoed it in stentorian tones. Mrs Faussett, fat, good-natured, blaz-ing-with diamonds, had caught the sound of the name, and was holding out both hands to Alay. v " Why, of course, it's little May Woodburn, grown out of all knowledge," Mrs Faussett exclaimed kindly. "I>ve not seen you since you were a child, but you and your people have been away so long from Dorcaster you're all strangers. I'm glad you're settling here again. Are you alone? In my young days girls required chaperons, but they don't now, it seems. Well, well, I'll look after you. Run away and enjoy yourself." As May entered the ballrom one of the stewards approached her, bringing with him a would-be partner for May. " May I introduce Colonel Warford, Miss Woodburn," he said; 'and also, may I get you a programme." May glanced up shyly through her ex■lravagantly long eyelashes at the colonel. He was very good-looking, she decided hastily, with a square, strong face and kind, dark eyes. He put out his hand and took her programme. "May I set down my name for as many as I want?" he said audaciously, and May, ignorant of the ways of ballrooms, said frankly that she would be very pleased. She gave a little gasp, however, when the colonel returned her her card vith his initials against more than half the dances. " Oh, but you can't want all those," she protested. " Why, it's absurd/ "We needn't dance them, you know," Warfold told her smilingly. 'We can fit -them out, if you're tired; we n'.vht try a turn, though, before the rooms gets too full. I've a friend who wants to b§ introduced—Jack Carton. His people live near the place your father has taken." May rmirmured that she was not acquainted with Mr Carton, and was thankful to begin dancing. She soon found, however, that her partner preferred to talk. "It's awfully hot and crowded in here," he said after a few turns; "suppose wo go to one of those jolly little sitting-out places that they have on the roof. Sort of tents they've made, you and you see all Dorcaster at your feet." May agreed, and the colonel led her to what to her seemed an enchanted garden of palms and roses, with Oriental rugs upon the ground. No one would have thought that this was merely the lower roof of the Town Hall. Below,, the lights of the town sparkled and shone like

jewHs in the darkness. May looked down upon the scene thoughtfully, all unconscious that the colonei was watching her with eager, admiring eyes. "It looks jolly from here," he said; "but I should hate to live in a town, wouldn't you?" May sighed. "One has to do such a lot things one hates," she answered. One wants to live one's own life and onjoy one's self, but one can't."

She turned her lovely, wistful face towards Warford as she spoke, and he was puzzled to hear ono who was said to be an heiress, with the power of gratifying every whim, speak in such a fashion. "You ought to have everything you want," he said frankly; "if I could, Miss Woodburn, I'd give it you.',' He spoke sincerely; May's beauty, her soft charm of manner, had captivated one who hitherto had troubled little .about women. For the rest of the evening he devoted himself to her, and May was herself strangely happy. Longingly, she wished that the evening might last for ever. 'Hie colonel took her to supper, where Jack Carton was introduced and proved himself a lively, agreeable companion. "How lovely all those wax candles look on the tables," May said as she looked about her, "ever so much nicer than electric light. Here comes Mrs Faussett, aren't her diamonds beautiful? Oh Mrs Faussett had slopped to speak to a friend at the next table, and as she leaned forward knocked over one of the slender candlesticks, so that the lighted candle fell upon her dres9, and the next instant the filmy fabric shot up into flames!

There was a wild scream, but at the same instant May dashed forward, seized the poor distracted lady in her arms, and crushed out the fire. It was all done so swiftly that half of those in the room had not realised -what had happened, until they saw Mrs Faussett half-fainting, her dress blackened and ruined, whilst May sank into a chair, -white and with lips tortured into a smile that -would fain have hidden the pain she was suffering, for one arm had been severely burned. "A doctor. You're hurt; by heavens, it was wonderful, your presence of mind," exclaimed Colonel Warford hoarsely. "Miss Woodburn, you saved Mrs Faussett's life; there's no doubt about it. You've hurt yourself." But May rose to her feet with determination, and moved away. "I must get out of this, and home," she whispered, and the colonel contrived to help her away from all the curious eyes that were fixed upon her, and to the comparative quiet of the cloak room. Here the colonel left her to search out a doctor from among the guests, and then May seized the opportunity to slip out and home by the back way. When the colonel returned it was to find his treasure vanished. "But we'll call on her the first thing to-morrow, and find out how she is," he told his friend* Carton. "It's Thredly Hall, isn't it, that her father's taken? She's a splendid girl. Her pluck and pre"sence of mind were wonderful." "Indeed they were," agreed Carton; "she was wonderful." The next morning saw the colonel and Carton together with the latter's sitter, Irene, at Thredly Hall, and on inquiring for Miss Woodburn they were shown into a drawing * Toom, where a tall, sandyhaired girl in glasses looked at them in some amazement. Irene Carton, who was of an impulsive nature, rushed forward and seized their hostess by the hand. " I wanted to tell you how -wonderful I think you, and how plucky it was of you to put out the fire, when poor Mrs Faussett might have been burned to death," she said breathlessly; "my brother and the colonel can talk of nothing else but of you at the ball last night." Irene, what are you doing," broke in Carton angrily. "This isn't Miss Woodburn." "Indeed, it is," said the sandy-haired girl,' "and what you're talking about I don't know. I've never saved Mrs Faussett or anyone else from burning. I wasn't at the ball last night." " Have you a sister?" asked the colonel eagerly—"a lovely girl, blue eye 3, golden hair, and " "No, indeed, I'm an only child," said Miss Woodburn tartly. " Somebody's been playing a trick on you, pretending to be me." .And, though Colonel Warford at first vehemently refused to credit this, later, when fresh inquiries bad been made in Dorcaster itself, he was obliged to own that it was the truth. The lovely stranger who had impersonated May Woodburn was not to be found. She had presumably vanished, and to his grief he could not discover where she had taken refuge. " You'll come across her by chance," Carton told him consolingly, as they motored through Dorcaster a few days later' "and —why, what's wrong?" For colonel had suddenly shouted to the chauffeur to stop ;„then, as the car slowed down, he leaped out dashed across the pavement and into the splendid premises above which was inscribed the legend " Madame Carine, Court dressmaker." Carton followed him, to find the colonel grasping the left hand of "Miss Woodburn,' for her right was in a sling, whilst he exclaimed in delight at havinpr found her. , "Looking for you all this time, I've gone nearly mad," he told her. "If I hadn't seen you go in here I should have done something desperate. I can't talk here. Come in my car and let's discuss it." " I'm iust going," said May hesitatingly. "I—l hoped you'd never find me, Colonel Warford. I was so ashamed of having pretended to be Miss Woodburn. It was so* silly of me." " Silly! By Jove I it was a blessed chance," he answered fervently. " Come, I'm waiting, and Carton —he'll walk home." v

Because she wanted to set herself tight in the eyes of the colonel, May agreed, and then from her lips he learned how it had nothing but a girlish escapade. " Just for an evening I wanted to pretend I was rich," she said wistfully; " Doris didn't want me to but I would." "Thank goodness you did," said the colonel fervently. He* took her hands and held them. "Darling, I fell head over ears in love with you the first moment I saw you. I knew then that you were the only woman in the world for me. If I'd never seen you again I should have died a bachelor. Dearest, will you be my wife?" May, her eye 3 misty with happy tears, answered, "Yes," and thus through a stolen evening's pleasure came the joy of her life and a few weeks later May Yorley ceased to exist, and Mrs George Warford took her place!