Picture Show (May-Oct 1919)

6 The Picture Show, SepUmhtr 27th, 1919. DON'T MISS OUR SPLENDID NEW SERIAL, ''THE GENTLEMAN RIDERS NEXT WEEK. Dacre Lawson's Proposal. WHEN Dacfo Lawton canio back into the garden, ho found it deserted. Then ho whistled softly, and Janice popped a glowing face from beliind a syringa bush. " Nobody here ! " Lawton hissed, in stage conspirator fashion. "I'll wait," Janice , replied. "Perhaps they're inside.'' llawton i«vostigated and found 5Iarigold by herself in the living-room, looking limp and thoroughly woe-bogone. " Oh, Daore, he's gone ! I sent him away," she said. " What do you think ? Ho'd forced poor Jane to be engaged to him. Gave her a ring. No wonder she was afraid to confess where she got it. But I've sent him packing, and she mustn't run any more such ri.sks. Why, she might fall in love with him 1 " Lawton laughed tenderly. " What a horrible fate for Janice ! " ho exclaimed. " Yes. You see, she could never be sure about him, could she ? She would always wonder whether it wasn't me that he really loved." Lawton turned this over in his mind as he went out to tell Janice that the coast w.as clear. Sho seemed shghtly disappointed, bat murmured something about helping to prepare supper, as their mother would bo homo soon. Lawton went back to the living-room. Marigold sat as before, white-faced and altogether pensive. He dropped down on the couch beside her. " W.as Sugden heartbroken ? " he asked. " I don't know. He's so queer. Pretended that I wasn't the girl he'd made love to. Fancy that ! " " But you're not," Lawton said. Marigold smiled faintly. ' " But, you see, ho thought I was," she argued ambiguously. " Marigold, what an egotistical little bnite you are ! I wonder why I love you so ? " " You love ma ? Why, you despise me, Dacrs. Every breath you draw, you're pointing out my faults." " Yed, that's my fault. I see yours too plainly. By all the rules of the game, I, too, ought to be desperately in love with Janice. But it happens I'm not — not in the same way. She's a great little .sport, Janice, but she isn't •you — and it's you I love. Lucky for me, because Janice regards me as a father. For Heaven's sake, Marigold, don't say that you do ! " ]\Iarigold gasped, and hor face went a shade whiter. " Oh, Dacre, you'ro only fooling-^nly being beastly. It isn't fair " " To ask you to marry me ! " " You can't be serious." " Can you ? " "Y-yes." ' " Then tell mn. Marigold, is there any chance ? I've waited, hating Sugden a little, and envying him much. I've waited, watching this comedy playing itself out until it's become what nearly every comedy is at heart, a tragedy. And now I can wait no longer. I'm not terribly young. Marigold, but you are the sort of girl who would disillusion a young man. T havo no illusions about you. You see, my dear, I know you. And you wouldn't have an easy time with me for a husband. If you cared for me, I might break your heart, but you could never break mine." This was a curious way for a man to court a girl, but Dacre Lawton was a curious and unusual type of man. Yet he was just the right sort of Tn<\n for Marigold. " I don't want my heart broken ! " she nailed. In a moment .she was in his arms, her head Ogainst his shoulder. " Oil, Dacre, bo good to me ! I'm fright enc(L You'ro hard and stern. I — I wish I didn't care 'wssj, r you." ■/,',""'■ "But you do?" ^''"■'^' " Ye", ever so much. It was strange that I began to care the day I told you I couldn't play those dreadful scenes. You sneered at me, Dacre." " Poor kid ! But afterwards T understood. And if it hadn't happened, you might have married Sugden. Heavens, how jealous I was of him ! " " And now, poor fellow, he'll be jealous of you," Mangold said pensively. She did not see the smile that hovered on Lawton's lips. Her conceit amused and irritated him, but just now he could not find it in his heart to scold her. Janice came into the room to announce that supper was ready, and Marigold started .selfconsciously, but her lover kept his arm about her waist. " Now, Janice, what do you think of me for a brother-in-law ? " he asked. " Oh, it's all right, then t " She nodded happily, and ran to her sister, giving her a tender hug and kiss. " I'm so glad, Marigold." — i-' Indeed, it seemed as though the whole world was right, for now there would no longer be any bar to her own happiness. She was too shy to speak of Sugden or to ask any questions as to what had passed between him and Marigold, but she thought it a httle unkind that nobody else mentioned him. Gradually a feeling of uneasiness crept into her heart, particularly when Marigold announced that they were going to cut the few last scenes of the film — scenes that could be dispensed with — and take a long and immediate holiday. Mrs. Clare, who had been beaming all the evening, expressed ecstatic delight at this news. " We'll go to Dieppe," Marigold said brightly." And Dacre will join us just as soon as he can settle up affairs at Hurstfield." . And then Roy was mentioned at last. " I must arrange with Sugden about the new play before I can take a holiday," I-awton said. Janice raised timid eyes to him, but he was looking at Marigold, whose lips were puckered and upon who.se forehead a wee frown gathered. " Dacre, Roy Sugden isn't the only scenario writer in the world. Of course, he's awfully cleuer — I know that — but I wish you'd get rid of him. After to-day I feel that it would be too painful "' " Painful to whom ? " Lawton asked. " And why 1 " " Well, it won't be very pleasant to have one's discarded suitor knocking about all the time. I want to cut Roy out of my life in every possible way. I never want to see him again." Janice's heart thumjied miserably. What did Marigold mean ? " That's nonsense ! " Lawton said, goodhumoiiredly. " Besides, we have a contract with him, and he's too good a man to Io.se." Then he turned to Janice. " And what does the ' understudy ' think ? Do.es she want to cut Sugden out of her life, too ? " " It's nothing whatever to do with Janice," By ELIZABETH YORK MILLER. JIarigold put in quickly, before Iier sister could speak. Janice was getting ready for bed before she made the discovery that her ring was missing. At first she thought she must have put it somewhere else, but an inkling of the truth dawned on her as the door opened and her sister came in, wearing a slightly perturbed look. " Yes," Marigold admitted, " I gave it back to him. You see, he thought he was engaged to me. You rather overstepped yourself, Jan dear." Fierce anger swept .Janice like a storm, leaving her cold and trembling. " You had no right " she bejgan ; then choked up, and found it impossible to go on, " I had every right. I can't marry two men, can I ? " _ " Nobody wants you to," Janice said, halfdead with the effort she was making to teep her temper. " It was I he asked to marry him ; it was for me he bought that ring." " Yovi don't exist as far as Roy Sugden is concerned," Marigold said patiently. Can't you get that through your head, Jan dear ? " " You mean you don't want me to exist," Janice replied. " You mean that my happiness isn't to be counted for anything against your selfish pride. Roy knows the difference between us. He never calls me ' Marigold,' and — and I don't believe he'smade love to you. ' Marigold's eyes opened wide. ' Good heavens, you're in lovo with him ! " she gasped. Janice flung herself face downwards on the bed, and wept ; while a chastened Marigold crept from the room. Curious she hadn't thought before that Janice might be in love with Roy. But he Shamefacedly she recalled his refusal to believe that she was the girl he loved. He had been ungallantly positive on that score, and had gone away angry, hurt, and disillusioned. She had tfiought it was because of her final and positive refusal. The little ostrich found that it was no longer of any use to bury her head in the sand ; she was fairly caught. Marigold Charges Her Mind. " I'VE changed my mind about cutting those I scenes,' ' Marigold was saying over the telej^hone. " And — about some other things, Dacre. I'll be at Hurstfield in about an hour." Lawton muttered something unintelligible, and hung up the receiver. He was well used "to Marigold's vagaries, but this last one did not ill plea.se him. He had wanted those purely spectacular animal scenes, although the last they were doing were not essential to the story. After he had rung off, he remembered that they were scenes which Marigold had refused to play, yet just now she had said explicitly that she would be coming over to Hurstfield herself. Well, the only thing to do was to wait until she came before he could guess what she had up her sleeve. He turned to the mass of correspondence on his desk, and was deep in it when the door opened, and Roy Sugden came in, looking like the victim of a prolonged nightmare. Lawton, who was feeling very cheerful himself, expressed deep solicitude. " What on earth's the matter, old chap ? You're fairly done in." 'Since Roy was no longer his rival, he found himself liking the young man again. " I believe I'm a ' mental case,' " Roy said grimly. " HallucinatiorB, or something. However, let's hope they'll pass. Now about those cuts " " Oh, Miss Clare has just rung up to say she'll do the scenes, after all. She's on her way over now. (Continue// cn page 8.)